Thank you for taking the time to read this. These last few months have held some of the best memories of my life. I’m sorry that it has taken me so long to publish my journal entries- it takes a little bit of time to go through the pages of doodles and random thoughts, and to put them together as a journal entry that can be easily understood. I’m glad that you have been able to read about my journey. Thank you for supporting me both financially and through prayer, I hope that you can see how your support has played such a huge part of this trip! Many lives were changed, and many hearts (including mine) are on fire for the Lord in ways that I never would have thought possible.
I am excited to say that I am going back to Kenya in June of 2010. I love this country, and would be honored to mission there a second time!
I would also like to upload a thankyou video, so you can see what has taken place on this trip. I will update the blog again when I can figure out how to put it on youtube.
Again, thank you so much! Asante Sana!
-Heather
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Friday, 7-31-09 (or? 30th? 29th?) day 45(ish)
Wow, I had to get through 7 pages of doodles and such to get to this entry! Ha!
The benedryl was very effective in helping me sleep! When I woke up, I listened to my I-pod for a bit and watched duplicity. We have 2 hours left before landing in Atlanta. I’m not in a window seat, so I can’t see the ocean, but it’s kind of cool to know that I’m flying over it right now! How do I know this? Airplanes (keep in mind I haven’t been on one this nice in… ever.) have this little button on the tv’s that say “track your flight”. It shows you a map with a red dotted line (that is the flight path) and a little airplane that shows where you are.
I know this entry is boring… nothing has changed much, I’m just sitting on the plane, eating my breakfast, and impatiently waiting for these 2 hours to pass so the plane can land already. I want to be home, and I’m not there yet. I would like to be home sooner rather than later, but I know that the plane is already going hundreds of miles a minute. I was thinking about this further and realized something- thanks to time zones, I’m actually going back 10 hours, so when I get home it will be the 29th even thoug I left for home on the 30th. Ha! Who said time travel was impossible???
FINALLY! “Welcome to Atlanta, we hope you enjoyed your flight!” YES! Getting through security and customs was a breeze! “Welcome home” greeted the attendant, as she scanned my ever-so-American passport. Those were probably the most beautiful words spoken to me all day! I would also like to point out something to future travelers- it is amazing to see how your attitude to airline personal will affect how they react to you. I got the nicest service by being nice to them first. Just sayin’.
Jan and I immediately set out for the clean bathrooms (with toilets that flush!) and to satisfy our weeks long craving for pizza. We got soda WITH ICE! I didn’t realize how much I would miss ice! The Domino’s lady thought we were weird because we were excited to be handed back quarters (As opposed to shillings) and when we told her that we were in Africa for 2 months, she too gave us a warm “welcome home”!
Since our flight arrived a little late, we weren’t able to make the direct flight home to Vegas, so instead we are heading to Salt Lake city and are heading to Vegas from there.
It was roughly a 2 hour flight to Salt Lake City, and then another 45 minutes to Vegas. I was impatient for these flights, because now I was only hours away from seeing my family! I miss them so much! I can’t wait to hug them again, and to see them smile at me! I’m excited for my own bed, my own shower, and again- my family! I’ve been thinking about the way God has changed me on this trip- how He has taken my heart as His, how He has shown me how I’ve lost my way, and how He has taken my hand to bring me back to the straight path. I wonder if my family will notice these changes- and if they will like them. I’ve also humorously noted that my once-fear of navigating an airport has vanished. I feel like a pro at this now! I’m so glad I went on this trip- and I’m even more glad that I’m home!
I took my stuff down the escalator- I saw my brother waiting at the bottom, looking for me. Too bad he was looking at the wrong escalator! I snuck up on him and gave him the biggest hug! My sister was next to see me- holding a bright orange sign saying “welcome home”! It was glittery, very homemade, and filled with love! We hugged each other, and I was so excited to see both of the teeth she lost! My mom gave me a really tight, stopped-my-breathing kind of hug, and started crying. I was teary eyed, too! My dad was there, and he gave me a big hug, and asked me if I had fun!!! He told me that he was glad that I did decide to come home, because otherwise he would have sold my car and gone all the way to Kenya just to get me back! Another big surprise was that Nathan showed up to bring me home, too! He is such a good friend to me!
I could not be happier- I am home! As soon as we got in the car, I asked if we could go to In-n-out. I have had this ridiculous desire for a chocolate shake for 3 weeks now! (I talked about it so much that Jan wanted one, too!) Jan’s family, Nathan, and my family all went to In-n-Out and indulged in chocolate-shake-and-burger goodness. When we got home, I told my parents about the various highlights of my trip, they told me about all the things that they did while I was gone. It was an incredible reunion! I’m glad I’m home!
The benedryl was very effective in helping me sleep! When I woke up, I listened to my I-pod for a bit and watched duplicity. We have 2 hours left before landing in Atlanta. I’m not in a window seat, so I can’t see the ocean, but it’s kind of cool to know that I’m flying over it right now! How do I know this? Airplanes (keep in mind I haven’t been on one this nice in… ever.) have this little button on the tv’s that say “track your flight”. It shows you a map with a red dotted line (that is the flight path) and a little airplane that shows where you are.
I know this entry is boring… nothing has changed much, I’m just sitting on the plane, eating my breakfast, and impatiently waiting for these 2 hours to pass so the plane can land already. I want to be home, and I’m not there yet. I would like to be home sooner rather than later, but I know that the plane is already going hundreds of miles a minute. I was thinking about this further and realized something- thanks to time zones, I’m actually going back 10 hours, so when I get home it will be the 29th even thoug I left for home on the 30th. Ha! Who said time travel was impossible???
FINALLY! “Welcome to Atlanta, we hope you enjoyed your flight!” YES! Getting through security and customs was a breeze! “Welcome home” greeted the attendant, as she scanned my ever-so-American passport. Those were probably the most beautiful words spoken to me all day! I would also like to point out something to future travelers- it is amazing to see how your attitude to airline personal will affect how they react to you. I got the nicest service by being nice to them first. Just sayin’.
Jan and I immediately set out for the clean bathrooms (with toilets that flush!) and to satisfy our weeks long craving for pizza. We got soda WITH ICE! I didn’t realize how much I would miss ice! The Domino’s lady thought we were weird because we were excited to be handed back quarters (As opposed to shillings) and when we told her that we were in Africa for 2 months, she too gave us a warm “welcome home”!
Since our flight arrived a little late, we weren’t able to make the direct flight home to Vegas, so instead we are heading to Salt Lake city and are heading to Vegas from there.
It was roughly a 2 hour flight to Salt Lake City, and then another 45 minutes to Vegas. I was impatient for these flights, because now I was only hours away from seeing my family! I miss them so much! I can’t wait to hug them again, and to see them smile at me! I’m excited for my own bed, my own shower, and again- my family! I’ve been thinking about the way God has changed me on this trip- how He has taken my heart as His, how He has shown me how I’ve lost my way, and how He has taken my hand to bring me back to the straight path. I wonder if my family will notice these changes- and if they will like them. I’ve also humorously noted that my once-fear of navigating an airport has vanished. I feel like a pro at this now! I’m so glad I went on this trip- and I’m even more glad that I’m home!
I took my stuff down the escalator- I saw my brother waiting at the bottom, looking for me. Too bad he was looking at the wrong escalator! I snuck up on him and gave him the biggest hug! My sister was next to see me- holding a bright orange sign saying “welcome home”! It was glittery, very homemade, and filled with love! We hugged each other, and I was so excited to see both of the teeth she lost! My mom gave me a really tight, stopped-my-breathing kind of hug, and started crying. I was teary eyed, too! My dad was there, and he gave me a big hug, and asked me if I had fun!!! He told me that he was glad that I did decide to come home, because otherwise he would have sold my car and gone all the way to Kenya just to get me back! Another big surprise was that Nathan showed up to bring me home, too! He is such a good friend to me!
I could not be happier- I am home! As soon as we got in the car, I asked if we could go to In-n-out. I have had this ridiculous desire for a chocolate shake for 3 weeks now! (I talked about it so much that Jan wanted one, too!) Jan’s family, Nathan, and my family all went to In-n-Out and indulged in chocolate-shake-and-burger goodness. When we got home, I told my parents about the various highlights of my trip, they told me about all the things that they did while I was gone. It was an incredible reunion! I’m glad I’m home!
Thursday, 7-30-09 Day 44
Between the day I had, the malaria meds that I had to take, and the Tylenol, I had the perfect concoction for crazy dreams last night! I really don’t want to be awake right now. It is 5:45 in the morning. I am tired. I am emotionally exhausted. I kept reminding myself that my family is home waiting for me, and I’m less than 48 hours away from seeing them. We were picked up late by our driver because there was an accident on the road and traffic was even worse than what it already is. He didn’t get to us until 6:30. We rushed to the airport, hoping and praying beyond all reason that we weren’t late. God got us through the traffic (magnificently, I must say!) and we got to watch the sunrise on the way. We checked out bags and got everything together for our flight. We ate breakfast at the Java House (which for me included a double-shot mocha) and were through check-in quickly. The airline ended up running out of space for overhead storage, and needed to check my bag. Jim kept telling me that whatever was in my bag would probably get lost. Nothing was life-or-death important in there, but I still would rather it not get lost…
The airline people made us walk on the tarmac outside to board the small jet of a plane. They didn’t park the plane anywhere close to our gate, either, which was irritating. They had us board the back of the plane only, because the plane makes a pit-stop where the passengers in the front of the plane de-board and new ones get on… then we all go as a happily family of strangers to Dakar. Still, the flight served us food and drinks. I sucked down coffee, coke, and some of Jim’s white wine. We’ve been on this freakin plane for a few hours now. I’m in seat 20E, on the right side of the plane, between Jim and Jan. You would think that I would be asleep right now, but this is not the case. After the pit stop and passenger changes, the airline served us food again. Jan could only drink half of her white wine, so Jim and I split the rest of hers. Jan crashed, so Jim and I watched this crazy African Soap Opera Drama thing. It was terrible, but it passed the time.
Guess what? Since they checked my carry-on, I had to go pick it up with at the luggage place. Guess who’s luggage was also there? The luggage for the rest of the team. The airline was supposed to send the luggage all the way through to Atlanta, so that it would be there when we got there. No such thing happened! It was a good thing that I checked my bag, otherwise we would have just gone through to the waiting area and not stopped to wait for the luggage at all! Jim was NOT happy with the airline!
Our next flight doesn’t leave for hours, so we opened up our snacks and made small talk. Certain team members laughed at me for re-packing my luggage. My logic was that I didn’t have a scale to weight the weight of my luggage when I first packed it, so I would re-pack it now so that my bags would be under the weight limit for our American flights. The funny part of this was that after I had my bags in order, the other teammates took use of the available scales and rearranged their luggage, too! Haha!
We spend a lot of time people watching. Some of the people here are immaculately dressed, and some dressed as per their culture’s guidelines. It’s cool to watch. There were lots of women wearing brightly colored suits and dresses, and others with vivid and beautiful veils that flowed behind them when they walked. Most of the men showed up in casual attire, but there were a couple that stood out with their cleanly pressed suits.
There is almost nothing here. This has to be the lamest international airport I’ve ever stepped foot in. There is one small drink stand that’s only open short bits of time. There are hardly any chairs to sit on (we grabbed the only 2 rows in sight). After an hour or so, half the team was bored of sitting so we decided to wander around and explore the airport while the other half of the team watched the chairs and luggage. We found a (very hidden) café. It was very “upper class” and the staff was less than polite. We grabbed coffee there and left to wander around some more. On the way back, we passed a small little gift stand that had a man standing outside holding a large stack of brand new hundred dollar bills. He kept asking us if we had change for a hundred- do we really look like idiots???
We got back to our seats just in time to watch a group of men unroll their mats and pray in the middle of the airport. It was an awesome cultural thing to watch- you don’t really imagine that someone would actually drop everything to pray until you see it happen right in front of you.
……. There is 8 hours left of waiting time, and I am running very low on entertaining things to do. Thanks to the drastic humidity change that is Dakar, my nose is stuffy. Humidity is not a strong point of mine. I’ve come to the realization that in the next 24 hours, I will probably get no sleep. I also realized that I need to make it a point to my dad that I used more Maxi Deet (that he made me bring) in Dakar than I did the entire trip put together.
The airport finally is starting to look busier, which means there are more people to watch. We finally were able to get in the baggage check line so that we could get ready to board the plane. They don’t have x-ray machines here- they have people that physically check out your bag. They had me open my bag, and they were pretty gentle going through it. I’m very happy to say that all of my knives are still there
I am now on the plane, with benedryl in my system (to MAKE me get some sleep), and am people watching until I get bored. I’ve been flipping through the free chanels on the little tv in front of me. I’m bored out of my mind, but happier to know that I’m on my way to Georgia, which is just one step closer to being home! (I didn’t think I would be so happy to return to my own country!)
The airline people made us walk on the tarmac outside to board the small jet of a plane. They didn’t park the plane anywhere close to our gate, either, which was irritating. They had us board the back of the plane only, because the plane makes a pit-stop where the passengers in the front of the plane de-board and new ones get on… then we all go as a happily family of strangers to Dakar. Still, the flight served us food and drinks. I sucked down coffee, coke, and some of Jim’s white wine. We’ve been on this freakin plane for a few hours now. I’m in seat 20E, on the right side of the plane, between Jim and Jan. You would think that I would be asleep right now, but this is not the case. After the pit stop and passenger changes, the airline served us food again. Jan could only drink half of her white wine, so Jim and I split the rest of hers. Jan crashed, so Jim and I watched this crazy African Soap Opera Drama thing. It was terrible, but it passed the time.
Guess what? Since they checked my carry-on, I had to go pick it up with at the luggage place. Guess who’s luggage was also there? The luggage for the rest of the team. The airline was supposed to send the luggage all the way through to Atlanta, so that it would be there when we got there. No such thing happened! It was a good thing that I checked my bag, otherwise we would have just gone through to the waiting area and not stopped to wait for the luggage at all! Jim was NOT happy with the airline!
Our next flight doesn’t leave for hours, so we opened up our snacks and made small talk. Certain team members laughed at me for re-packing my luggage. My logic was that I didn’t have a scale to weight the weight of my luggage when I first packed it, so I would re-pack it now so that my bags would be under the weight limit for our American flights. The funny part of this was that after I had my bags in order, the other teammates took use of the available scales and rearranged their luggage, too! Haha!
We spend a lot of time people watching. Some of the people here are immaculately dressed, and some dressed as per their culture’s guidelines. It’s cool to watch. There were lots of women wearing brightly colored suits and dresses, and others with vivid and beautiful veils that flowed behind them when they walked. Most of the men showed up in casual attire, but there were a couple that stood out with their cleanly pressed suits.
There is almost nothing here. This has to be the lamest international airport I’ve ever stepped foot in. There is one small drink stand that’s only open short bits of time. There are hardly any chairs to sit on (we grabbed the only 2 rows in sight). After an hour or so, half the team was bored of sitting so we decided to wander around and explore the airport while the other half of the team watched the chairs and luggage. We found a (very hidden) café. It was very “upper class” and the staff was less than polite. We grabbed coffee there and left to wander around some more. On the way back, we passed a small little gift stand that had a man standing outside holding a large stack of brand new hundred dollar bills. He kept asking us if we had change for a hundred- do we really look like idiots???
We got back to our seats just in time to watch a group of men unroll their mats and pray in the middle of the airport. It was an awesome cultural thing to watch- you don’t really imagine that someone would actually drop everything to pray until you see it happen right in front of you.
……. There is 8 hours left of waiting time, and I am running very low on entertaining things to do. Thanks to the drastic humidity change that is Dakar, my nose is stuffy. Humidity is not a strong point of mine. I’ve come to the realization that in the next 24 hours, I will probably get no sleep. I also realized that I need to make it a point to my dad that I used more Maxi Deet (that he made me bring) in Dakar than I did the entire trip put together.
The airport finally is starting to look busier, which means there are more people to watch. We finally were able to get in the baggage check line so that we could get ready to board the plane. They don’t have x-ray machines here- they have people that physically check out your bag. They had me open my bag, and they were pretty gentle going through it. I’m very happy to say that all of my knives are still there
I am now on the plane, with benedryl in my system (to MAKE me get some sleep), and am people watching until I get bored. I’ve been flipping through the free chanels on the little tv in front of me. I’m bored out of my mind, but happier to know that I’m on my way to Georgia, which is just one step closer to being home! (I didn’t think I would be so happy to return to my own country!)
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
Wednesday, 7-29-09 Day 43
I slept horribly last night thanks to terrible nightmares. Not to mention, I kicked off my blankets and got into a few fights with the mosquito net. Jan and I were up around the same time. We packed up the few things that managed to escape the grasp of our suitcases, and were the first up to breakfast. We enjoyed our eggs, toast, sausage, beans, and coffee while observing the interactions between another groups of missionaries a few tables down. After the boys were all up at breakfast and had their food, we were able to talk t the missionaries. We found out that they were from south Carolina, and are just arriving for their mission.
It was a very quiet drive down to the Kisumu airport. Our flight leaves at 8:15 so we made sure we were there around 7. It was a pretty easy, in & out thing. Our flight was only 45 minutes long, after which we waited a half hour or so for some guy named Albert to show up and take us to our hotel. We loaded up the van with our luggage and spent another 45 minutes in total chaos trying to drive to get to our hotel. Imagine this- overcrowded streets, NO stoplights (and very few street signs), and a bunch of roundabouts that people will go the right AND wrong directions on. After reaching the calm of the storm that was our hotel, we met up with Judith’s sisters, Evelyn and Susan. They were very nice. I really am not in a “talk to people” kind of mood today, so I was pretty quiet for the duration of their visit. Evelyn and Susan ate lunch with our team. We had the displeasure of a very inattentive staff. It took us between 2 ½ and 3 hours to get through lunch- and a half hour of that was waiting to get our check! Jan told Jim about a letter that one of the kids had written to some of Jan’s students. The little girl talked about 2 visitors who “didn’t even stay a month! And the visitor’s names are Visitor Sharon and her Son”. The little girl was so serious in her letter, it was hilarious! When I get home, I’ll have to tell Sharon and Brad that people in Kenya think that Brad is Sharon’s son.
After lunch, our team laughed in the face of death by j-walking in heavy traffic to get to Tusker’s grocery. We had to get food for our flight to Dakar, because we were forewarned by Sharon and Brad that Dakar is a terrible airport filled with French-speaking American haters and no place to get food or drinks. We were in and out of Tusker’s fairly quickly. The team went back to their prospective rooms, and Jan and I enjoyed getting some down time before dinner. Mike, Mark, and Jim were all set to go to have coffee with the Kean’s, who are full time missionaries here in Nairobi. (If I didn’t mention it already, we are staying the night here in Nairobi before taking off to Dakar tomorrow.) Jan and I were given instructions that we were NOT to leave the hotel until Susan and Evelyn arrived to take us to dinner. I brought my deck of cards with me to the lobby. Jan and I chatted and people watched while I shuffled and re-shuffled my cards on the small table in front of us. An Indian businessman from Mumbai saw my deck of cards, and complimented my shuffling. He proceeded to teach Jan, me, and another gentleman guest in the lobby some card tricks and card games. We played cards and talked about ourselves for about 45 minutes. It was very entertaining to learn a thing or two from a self-proclaimed card master.
Susan and Evelyn arrived around six, and we proceeded to walk back to the Ambassador Hotel (where we ate lunch at) for dinner. I guess dinner is a much bigger event, because there was many more people, many more tables open, and infinitely better service! We all had samosas, chips, and icecream! Over dinner, we discussed things like the water shortage in Nairobi (they section off the city, and each section gets their water turned on only once a week.) politics, the President’s recent to Kenya, and our family lives. I showed them pictures of all the smiling faces I get to go home to, which they oohed & awed over, and we walked back to the Diplomat hotel, where we traded e-mail addresses and said our goodbyes.
Jan and I were in for quite a night- There are no mosquito nets in this room, and we’ve already seen bugs crawling around. This is not okay. And as a consequence of the water shortage, there is a sign that says to use the minimal water necessary. I can get over that, but I can’t get over the lack of a shower curtain (or any kind of covering) for the shower. This is definitely not ideal, but I guess this is what a mission trip is all about.
Jan gave me two Tylenol PM to help me sleep tonight. Goodnight!
It was a very quiet drive down to the Kisumu airport. Our flight leaves at 8:15 so we made sure we were there around 7. It was a pretty easy, in & out thing. Our flight was only 45 minutes long, after which we waited a half hour or so for some guy named Albert to show up and take us to our hotel. We loaded up the van with our luggage and spent another 45 minutes in total chaos trying to drive to get to our hotel. Imagine this- overcrowded streets, NO stoplights (and very few street signs), and a bunch of roundabouts that people will go the right AND wrong directions on. After reaching the calm of the storm that was our hotel, we met up with Judith’s sisters, Evelyn and Susan. They were very nice. I really am not in a “talk to people” kind of mood today, so I was pretty quiet for the duration of their visit. Evelyn and Susan ate lunch with our team. We had the displeasure of a very inattentive staff. It took us between 2 ½ and 3 hours to get through lunch- and a half hour of that was waiting to get our check! Jan told Jim about a letter that one of the kids had written to some of Jan’s students. The little girl talked about 2 visitors who “didn’t even stay a month! And the visitor’s names are Visitor Sharon and her Son”. The little girl was so serious in her letter, it was hilarious! When I get home, I’ll have to tell Sharon and Brad that people in Kenya think that Brad is Sharon’s son.
After lunch, our team laughed in the face of death by j-walking in heavy traffic to get to Tusker’s grocery. We had to get food for our flight to Dakar, because we were forewarned by Sharon and Brad that Dakar is a terrible airport filled with French-speaking American haters and no place to get food or drinks. We were in and out of Tusker’s fairly quickly. The team went back to their prospective rooms, and Jan and I enjoyed getting some down time before dinner. Mike, Mark, and Jim were all set to go to have coffee with the Kean’s, who are full time missionaries here in Nairobi. (If I didn’t mention it already, we are staying the night here in Nairobi before taking off to Dakar tomorrow.) Jan and I were given instructions that we were NOT to leave the hotel until Susan and Evelyn arrived to take us to dinner. I brought my deck of cards with me to the lobby. Jan and I chatted and people watched while I shuffled and re-shuffled my cards on the small table in front of us. An Indian businessman from Mumbai saw my deck of cards, and complimented my shuffling. He proceeded to teach Jan, me, and another gentleman guest in the lobby some card tricks and card games. We played cards and talked about ourselves for about 45 minutes. It was very entertaining to learn a thing or two from a self-proclaimed card master.
Susan and Evelyn arrived around six, and we proceeded to walk back to the Ambassador Hotel (where we ate lunch at) for dinner. I guess dinner is a much bigger event, because there was many more people, many more tables open, and infinitely better service! We all had samosas, chips, and icecream! Over dinner, we discussed things like the water shortage in Nairobi (they section off the city, and each section gets their water turned on only once a week.) politics, the President’s recent to Kenya, and our family lives. I showed them pictures of all the smiling faces I get to go home to, which they oohed & awed over, and we walked back to the Diplomat hotel, where we traded e-mail addresses and said our goodbyes.
Jan and I were in for quite a night- There are no mosquito nets in this room, and we’ve already seen bugs crawling around. This is not okay. And as a consequence of the water shortage, there is a sign that says to use the minimal water necessary. I can get over that, but I can’t get over the lack of a shower curtain (or any kind of covering) for the shower. This is definitely not ideal, but I guess this is what a mission trip is all about.
Jan gave me two Tylenol PM to help me sleep tonight. Goodnight!
Tuesday, 7-28-09 Day 42
God? I think there is a bad connection between heaven and earth right now. I have no idea what you are telling me to do here…
I woke up this morning and helped to tear down camp. I had PB&J, and then tea with Judith. I took pictures with everyone here while the “manly men” were loading up the back of the van.
I am going to miss it here so much! The goodbyes that I exchanged were not tearful, but definitely heartfelt. I can’t believe that this is the last time I will see this place for a long while. I am coming back next year, God willing.
Protus sat next to me on the drive to town. I was being a general nuisance- I kept poking him, undoing his watch, etc. It passed the time :)
We had lunch at the Imperial Hotel. Their chicken sandwich wasn’t bad but wasn’t too great either. It was nice to drive on a smooth road, and very nice to stay at the Sunset Hotel. After freshening up at the hotel, the team went shopping at the same outdoor shopping area that we took Brad and Sharon to. Protus helped me to barter with people so that I would get a good deal on the things I was getting. I got everything I needed! Protus and I got chatty with one of the shack owners while we were waiting for the gentleman of the group. He joked with the owner that he would sell me for 1,000 cows. (The owner immediately said “500”. Not gonna happen, buddy.)
We had a short drive back to our hotel. I took some time to re-pack my bags for the convenience of easier air travel. It was then that I realized that I had left my headlamp, razors, shampoo and conditioner all back at camp. I’m hoping that this won’t be that big of a deal! Jan let me borrow some of her shampoo. I guess I’ll just have to replace dad’s headlamp when I get home!
The team had a very leisurely dinner of rice, chicken, watermelon, and cooked carrots. I now have a serious desire for Kraft mac-n-cheese… maybe going home won’t be so bad afterall! Protus confessed to me after dinner that he was very upset about us all leaving. I recall Jim telling me earlier in the trip that this is the first time, in all of their mission to kimikungi, that they have had this many people in one group stay all 7 weeks. I guess Protus has been very attached to us! He asked me what the actual likeliness of my returning home was. I told him it was 90%, unless something drastic changed my plans. I fell asleep quickly, but am still torn between saying goodbye to Kenya and hello to home.
I woke up this morning and helped to tear down camp. I had PB&J, and then tea with Judith. I took pictures with everyone here while the “manly men” were loading up the back of the van.
I am going to miss it here so much! The goodbyes that I exchanged were not tearful, but definitely heartfelt. I can’t believe that this is the last time I will see this place for a long while. I am coming back next year, God willing.
Protus sat next to me on the drive to town. I was being a general nuisance- I kept poking him, undoing his watch, etc. It passed the time :)
We had lunch at the Imperial Hotel. Their chicken sandwich wasn’t bad but wasn’t too great either. It was nice to drive on a smooth road, and very nice to stay at the Sunset Hotel. After freshening up at the hotel, the team went shopping at the same outdoor shopping area that we took Brad and Sharon to. Protus helped me to barter with people so that I would get a good deal on the things I was getting. I got everything I needed! Protus and I got chatty with one of the shack owners while we were waiting for the gentleman of the group. He joked with the owner that he would sell me for 1,000 cows. (The owner immediately said “500”. Not gonna happen, buddy.)
We had a short drive back to our hotel. I took some time to re-pack my bags for the convenience of easier air travel. It was then that I realized that I had left my headlamp, razors, shampoo and conditioner all back at camp. I’m hoping that this won’t be that big of a deal! Jan let me borrow some of her shampoo. I guess I’ll just have to replace dad’s headlamp when I get home!
The team had a very leisurely dinner of rice, chicken, watermelon, and cooked carrots. I now have a serious desire for Kraft mac-n-cheese… maybe going home won’t be so bad afterall! Protus confessed to me after dinner that he was very upset about us all leaving. I recall Jim telling me earlier in the trip that this is the first time, in all of their mission to kimikungi, that they have had this many people in one group stay all 7 weeks. I guess Protus has been very attached to us! He asked me what the actual likeliness of my returning home was. I told him it was 90%, unless something drastic changed my plans. I fell asleep quickly, but am still torn between saying goodbye to Kenya and hello to home.
Wednesday, February 03, 2010
Monday, 7027-09 Day 41
Today has been hard. I woke up late- breakfast was almost ready by the time I climbed out of my tent cot. The eggs and coffee were a great start to a busy morning- and lunch of samosas, fries, and coke made my day better.
Today is the day that we pack our bags. Jan and I went through the childrens ministry bags and the kitchen stuff that was being stored away in our tent. We each went through our own bags to reorganize them for the trip home. Our laundry was all pulled of the line, wet or dry. The kitchen shed was re-organized. We took an inventory of what we had, so that we could form a list of whatever’s needed for the next trip. (I plan on coming back to the next trip.)
We went to town, where we got a break at the internet café, and lunch. We continued to clean and pack anything that was at the office, and we took inventory of the things that were there.
We had some down time so we watched movies. I wasn’t concentrating on the TV so much as I was concentrating on the situation. Today has been a very emotionally challenging day. I want to go home so badly so that I can see my family. I miss them so much! At the same time, I want to stay here. I’m home here, and I’m going to miss it terribly. I want to stay. Ideally, I would go home for 2 or 3 weeks to see my family, and come right back here to Kenya.
When we went home, I went to Judith’s house to have tea with her. She is a very dear friend of mine, and I will miss her so much! Today has just been melancholy.
Today is the day that we pack our bags. Jan and I went through the childrens ministry bags and the kitchen stuff that was being stored away in our tent. We each went through our own bags to reorganize them for the trip home. Our laundry was all pulled of the line, wet or dry. The kitchen shed was re-organized. We took an inventory of what we had, so that we could form a list of whatever’s needed for the next trip. (I plan on coming back to the next trip.)
We went to town, where we got a break at the internet café, and lunch. We continued to clean and pack anything that was at the office, and we took inventory of the things that were there.
We had some down time so we watched movies. I wasn’t concentrating on the TV so much as I was concentrating on the situation. Today has been a very emotionally challenging day. I want to go home so badly so that I can see my family. I miss them so much! At the same time, I want to stay here. I’m home here, and I’m going to miss it terribly. I want to stay. Ideally, I would go home for 2 or 3 weeks to see my family, and come right back here to Kenya.
When we went home, I went to Judith’s house to have tea with her. She is a very dear friend of mine, and I will miss her so much! Today has just been melancholy.
Sunday, 7-26-09 Day 40
This morning was a little difficult. It’s day 40, and we are almost ready to go home. This is our last Sunday here in Kenya, which is bittersweet.
We started our morning with toast, eggs, coffee, and pineapple. Jim taught church this morning, and all of us got a chance to go up on stage and say our goodbyes. After service, one of the church elders (Rose) wanted me to come over to her house “right now”. She was a little scary- a very upfront, bold person who does NOT take no for an answer. She didn’t understand that I couldn’t go to her house today, and wouldn’t accept my polite declination, so I had to step back and let Protus handle it.
I went to town with Mike and Mark (Mike drove! Ah!), where we had Samosas and Chapati for lunch at The Coffee Garden. We went to Shariffs to do a bit of shopping; and I bought 4 new mugs for Judith to replace the one that I broke. (I hope she likes them.) When we came back home, Protus tried to pick a fight with me about buying new mugs, and telling me that it wasn’t necessary and that I needed to return them. I wasn’t about to back down and I told Protus, specifically, not to worry about it and just say thank you! He told me that I shouldn’t have bought the mugs, and asked how much they were. I told him not to worry about it, and threw the price tags away. He dug them out of the trash, and I chased him around to get the price tag back from him (for about 10 mintues) like a highschooler. It was fun banter, and he never did look at the price!
The team walked down to the crusade (again held right down the street.) Webb was on the stage at this time, and his whole family was there to support him. I hung out with his daughter, mainly. Her name is Emma, and she is 25 years old. It is her son that keeps crying whenever Mzungu’s are around! (speaking of which, people have really gotten a kick out of my “Mzungu” shirt! I wore it on Sunday!)
The crusade was great! Webb thinks that I should go and dance with the girls, because I have very loose shoulders (they mainly dance with their shoulders in this part of Kenya.) Many were saved today, and many more were reassured of their faith.
The team had PB&J for dinner. Later that evening, I went to the church, where I learned some keyboard stuff from Job (who is quite gifted!) We had a conversation about different worship styles. He asked questions about how we worship in America, and how worship is done in Panama. Trying to explain how the singing was different was the hardest part- and eventually he suckered me into singing so that he can hear the difference. I was a little embarrassed because I don’t make a habbit out of singing in front of other people, but Job (and the 3 other guys that were helping with the instruments) said I sounded “like an angel”. It wasn’t long before the instruments were finished being set up for the revival service that was taking place tonight. A movie was going to be shown after doing a few worship songs. I was told that many “different” kinds of people would be showing up at this service, there was extra security around for the sake of Jan and I. It’s just another reminder of how welcomed and loved we are here! Judith assigned me the job of taking tea to Protus while he was setting up the movie. Afterward, Judith and I had our own tea, and another chance to sit and talk to each other. She got her hair redone today, and was showing me her braids and the red pieces that hey braided into her hair. She is very excited about it, and it looks beautiful as always! She told me that she loves her new cups, which made me very happy! Now… Lala Salama! Sleep well!
We started our morning with toast, eggs, coffee, and pineapple. Jim taught church this morning, and all of us got a chance to go up on stage and say our goodbyes. After service, one of the church elders (Rose) wanted me to come over to her house “right now”. She was a little scary- a very upfront, bold person who does NOT take no for an answer. She didn’t understand that I couldn’t go to her house today, and wouldn’t accept my polite declination, so I had to step back and let Protus handle it.
I went to town with Mike and Mark (Mike drove! Ah!), where we had Samosas and Chapati for lunch at The Coffee Garden. We went to Shariffs to do a bit of shopping; and I bought 4 new mugs for Judith to replace the one that I broke. (I hope she likes them.) When we came back home, Protus tried to pick a fight with me about buying new mugs, and telling me that it wasn’t necessary and that I needed to return them. I wasn’t about to back down and I told Protus, specifically, not to worry about it and just say thank you! He told me that I shouldn’t have bought the mugs, and asked how much they were. I told him not to worry about it, and threw the price tags away. He dug them out of the trash, and I chased him around to get the price tag back from him (for about 10 mintues) like a highschooler. It was fun banter, and he never did look at the price!
The team walked down to the crusade (again held right down the street.) Webb was on the stage at this time, and his whole family was there to support him. I hung out with his daughter, mainly. Her name is Emma, and she is 25 years old. It is her son that keeps crying whenever Mzungu’s are around! (speaking of which, people have really gotten a kick out of my “Mzungu” shirt! I wore it on Sunday!)
The crusade was great! Webb thinks that I should go and dance with the girls, because I have very loose shoulders (they mainly dance with their shoulders in this part of Kenya.) Many were saved today, and many more were reassured of their faith.
The team had PB&J for dinner. Later that evening, I went to the church, where I learned some keyboard stuff from Job (who is quite gifted!) We had a conversation about different worship styles. He asked questions about how we worship in America, and how worship is done in Panama. Trying to explain how the singing was different was the hardest part- and eventually he suckered me into singing so that he can hear the difference. I was a little embarrassed because I don’t make a habbit out of singing in front of other people, but Job (and the 3 other guys that were helping with the instruments) said I sounded “like an angel”. It wasn’t long before the instruments were finished being set up for the revival service that was taking place tonight. A movie was going to be shown after doing a few worship songs. I was told that many “different” kinds of people would be showing up at this service, there was extra security around for the sake of Jan and I. It’s just another reminder of how welcomed and loved we are here! Judith assigned me the job of taking tea to Protus while he was setting up the movie. Afterward, Judith and I had our own tea, and another chance to sit and talk to each other. She got her hair redone today, and was showing me her braids and the red pieces that hey braided into her hair. She is very excited about it, and it looks beautiful as always! She told me that she loves her new cups, which made me very happy! Now… Lala Salama! Sleep well!
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