Hello from Kisumu! Today it feels like a very hot Thursday, there has been little rain (well, the rainy season is officially over) and Rahel is at home because she woke up this morning with a headache and a sore throat. I am feeling fine, it seems my cold has gone away, but with the past experiences here, who knows? However, my spirits are up and its nice to be down in town to be in touch with people again.
- Tomorrow we leave for Nairobi as we will get our VISAs renewed on Monday, and so we will travel halfway to Nairobi to Nakuru, and go to the baby orphanage where Rahel was working before she joined SIM. We will stay there until Saturday evening and then go to Nairobi and the compound. On Tuesday at 6.30am we will leave to be back in Kisumu by the afternoon and start up again on Wednesday. It is a lot of traveling (6 hours aprox) but it will be nice to have a change.
- I thought I should talk a little about the lesson we have been giving the kids. They SHOULD know their ABC and how to write “Aa Bb Cc…. Zz” but we always go over it in their books just to practice. We have been doing three letter words and each week we start on a different vowel (i.e. on Monday we see “ba ca da fa..” and write it, on Tuesday we read “bad, cat, hat”, on Wednesday they change the words from small to capital letters “bat BAT”, o Thursday they do the opposite and on Friday there is a dictation of the words to see if they remember. The biggest problem is they know the alphabet letters “ay bee sea dee ee ef jee” but not the sounds “ah bih cki di eh” and so when they see the word “hat”, they think “ach ay tee” and it should say achaytee but it reads h-ah-tuh (= hat). So now we are trying to focus on the letter SOUNDS more than their names. This is English, we also do Maths, Enviroment, Social and Music and movement but more on that another day =).
- Tinderet was wonderful! We were all crammed in the 4x4 and left on Friday night. We waited in Ahero (1/2 out of Kisumu) for Sarah’s school trip bus to come back (it was supposed to be back at 5.45 and but 7.00 it had still not gotten past Ahero) so we decided to leave her and go on. She stayed the night at a teachers (the house is to far away to get to/ walk to at night) and it turns out the school trip bus arrived at 10pm (the parents were NOT happy). Saturday morning found us in BEAUTIFUL tinderet, in the mountains at the Diguna mission station. Vitilus gave us a tour and then we went in the pool with the best view you can imagine (pix on facebook when I get to Nairobi!). That evening was the “Kwaheri” party (goodbye!) to two couple that were leaving (which is why we went) and it was a really enjoyable time. On Sunday it was nice to relax without rushing to church, we had a quiet morning, went in the pool around 11 and left around 1pm to go back to Kisumu. It was great weekend, like a mini-holiday.
- So apparently the internet conection seems to have gone in the whole of Kisumu but I am still sending my emails so either this is a miracle or they were exaggerating a bit. There is only one other lady in the internet café, everyone else has left! So anyway, I have been here too long now and will now cut off for this week.
- Cavin Akech had made me lose my temper but he is improving, there is improvement!!!, thanks for your prayers! Hebalyne is also showing signs of being a human, smiling more, but also making Loice, her classmate cry (although we never see HOW it happens). I have a little space in my heart for Pancreaus (yes that is his name)… he is quite behind in the class but is sweet (stubborn) and hyperactive (he reminds me of myself). When he has to do something he speaks to himself under his breath at top speed, which is what I did in stressful times before exams. I just pray he can catch up with the others and FOCUS so that he will not have to do Final Class again next year.
So, we will be in Nakuru, Nairobi and then on Friday a team of 13 people come to stay with us for a week (so we will be camping in Anne and Sarah’s room and relinquish our hold on the guest rooms). That will be awesome chaos that I am looking forward to. I have made a routine and now I enjoy breaking out of the routine.
Ok, now I depart! =D
Thursday, 18 June 2009
Thursday, 11 June 2009
Habari gani? Mzuri
Wamgeni,
A silly song that gets stuck in your head very easily! Basic Swahili! Only a week has passed? So much has happened it seems like it should be more! .. As I continue to write I realize that not much HAS happened that is out of the ordinary :o).. define ordinary XD, it just feels long...
- I am breaking through cultures and merging them. At breakfast sometimes I have ugali (I cut into slices) with marmite and today I joined the
- Today I was talking to Hebalyne and she smiled at me, it was really an amazing moment… its just taking the time to sit down and spend time with the kids, or talk to them, even if they don’t understand you, it shows you care. I know many people have been praying for her, I am so thankful I am allowed to be the one showing her love.
- My third cold (or, third strong wave of the first cold since I got here) started up this morning with a sore throat and a runny nose. It seems Rahel and I have taken it in turns to have colds, they seem to go and suddenly appear again. Last week we had a rough time emotionally (it was a month since we arrived) and with flight arrangement stress for her it wasn’t the cheeriest of times but we have each other to lean on so we are ok! This week has been a lot more positive!
- Cavin Akech has made me cry in frustration but I am really getting to love him (!). Vitilus came in and talked to him (“the pastah, the pastah!”) and that seemed to calm him down and we have him sitting with the girls at the back (Susie had to bring a stick into the classroom to get him where we wanted him to sit) and it is A LOT better now (except poor Queen who is sitting beside him ended up hitting him yesterday cause he kept talking her puppet off her and today he did it again, she hit him and he hit her back and she started to cry). We are working on it… but I really want to understand him. His mother is in prison and he is looked after by his grandmother along with his three half-brothers (the same mother) so life is not easy for him. He seeks attention by being noisy, trying to be loved that way. Its funny, we can talk about him for hours at the dinner table. If he fails to get into primary one he won’t want to go to nursery again, he is way to old and too big and if he doesn’t get into primary school now, he won’t go cause he is much to old and he’ll end up wandering the streets. Keep praying for him, and for the teachers (pacience, LOVE and wisdom to know how to deal with him).
- I have also developed a rash on the backs of my knees and my right arm. I thought it was eczema initially, then Rahel said it looked like ringworm, a nurse came to visit and said it was a fungus and now no-one knows what it is. It was very itchy and about a week ago I scratched like mad and my right knee one opened up and there was a wound that got infected. Rahel has been faithfully washing it with warm salt water and it is getting better. I am applying “daktarin” cream to the fungus/eczema and it seems to be drying out but is not gone. I am taking antibiotics for the infection and my cold and I think that the rash may be because of the doxycycline (anti-malarial, a tetracycline for those Chem HL freaks). It makes skin sensitive to sun but the backs of my knees are never in the sun. So hopefully that will get better, if not when we go to
- We are going to a missionary station in Tinderet tomorrow because a missionary couple are leaving the field so the whole family is going for the weekend to say kwaheri, us included! That ought to be fun (and we may get some swimming done =D!)
So that’s all for this week, thanks for the e-mails (even those that have made me laugh out loud in the middle of the internet café!) and all the support.
This is Kat in Kisumu, over and out (with lots of love!)
xxx
Thursday, 4 June 2009
Kisumu in June
Hello again!There is NEWS =) (Bullet points are easier to work with so bear with me please)
- I have successfully (or well, the SIM Team have) managed to extend my time until the 6th of August, which means that I can stay in Kenya until the term ends so the kids can do their exams and final preparations with us there! Rahel and I hoped to fly to Switzerland and Scotland on the same day, but it doesn’t seem it will be possible, unfortunately! So that is really good! (I add this later on: it seems that Rahel has to pay for her flight to be booked (it was an open return) and it is a bit discouraging as it was not expected, pray that the situation could sort itself out and she could get the needed support).
- Susan had to make 3 wedding cakes for a friend that was getting married (someone else was doing the other 4!) so she baked them and then we talked and planned and tested and retried ways to decorate it (the colours had to be navy blue and cream!!!) and we worked on it in the afternoon, the evening and finally Susie, Rahel and I finished at 11.30pm (which is actually very late for us now… a late night is 10.30pm) and then we sat in the dark (the solar panel charge had run out) drinking some hot chocolate! It was a nice experience though! My first wedding cake hehe… pictures to be posted on facebook at sometime in the future.
- The next day I had a sore throat and the start of my second cold here! Now it is almost gone but it was a bit discouraging to get another cold. I had one when I arrived, Rahel then got it, then Rahel got it last week, and I had it this weekend and this week. So hopefully it is getting better and will stay away! And I was bitten by a safari ant, but that is just plain cool (h). Hehe.
- On Sunday we WENT to the wedding! Hehe, it took about an hour to start after we arrived (we arrived 1 ½ hours late) but it was really nice, the bridal procession took an hour to come in (not joking) but after thinking initially that they walked at the speed of snails, you appreciated the way they bounced to and fro, and it meant the people were not craning to see, because you knew they would eventually come into sight. I had some mendazis (Kenyan doughnut, not that sweet) that Susie gave me and was smuggling them to the kids and to Rahel during the service. The service finished at 3 and then the reception (starting at 1pm) would take place somewhere else so we decided to just leave them, especially because we suspected the cakes would be covered up until the end – after all the speeches. So we never knew if the cakes “went” with the decorations but there you have it.
- Cavin Akech… I am definetly more patient with him (ignoring him sometimes works) but he is really behind because he missed a term (no one is quite sure why). The kids have different strengths and weaknesses but its nice to get to know them. James is opening up and smiling more and HEBALYNE was reported to have smiled today… she smiled once when she was skipping and the sun shone (more than it already was).
- Since we are extending our time here, we will renew our VISA’s on the 21st of June so we will travel to Nairobi at the end of next week (it seems too soon!!!) and we may stay in Nakuru for a night or two (a baby orphanage where Rahel worked before she joined SIM).
So that’s all / enough from me for now, it is still lovely and hot here and I am grateful I can be here!
Love, and lots of it!
Kat
- I have successfully (or well, the SIM Team have) managed to extend my time until the 6th of August, which means that I can stay in Kenya until the term ends so the kids can do their exams and final preparations with us there! Rahel and I hoped to fly to Switzerland and Scotland on the same day, but it doesn’t seem it will be possible, unfortunately! So that is really good! (I add this later on: it seems that Rahel has to pay for her flight to be booked (it was an open return) and it is a bit discouraging as it was not expected, pray that the situation could sort itself out and she could get the needed support).
- Susan had to make 3 wedding cakes for a friend that was getting married (someone else was doing the other 4!) so she baked them and then we talked and planned and tested and retried ways to decorate it (the colours had to be navy blue and cream!!!) and we worked on it in the afternoon, the evening and finally Susie, Rahel and I finished at 11.30pm (which is actually very late for us now… a late night is 10.30pm) and then we sat in the dark (the solar panel charge had run out) drinking some hot chocolate! It was a nice experience though! My first wedding cake hehe… pictures to be posted on facebook at sometime in the future.
- The next day I had a sore throat and the start of my second cold here! Now it is almost gone but it was a bit discouraging to get another cold. I had one when I arrived, Rahel then got it, then Rahel got it last week, and I had it this weekend and this week. So hopefully it is getting better and will stay away! And I was bitten by a safari ant, but that is just plain cool (h). Hehe.
- On Sunday we WENT to the wedding! Hehe, it took about an hour to start after we arrived (we arrived 1 ½ hours late) but it was really nice, the bridal procession took an hour to come in (not joking) but after thinking initially that they walked at the speed of snails, you appreciated the way they bounced to and fro, and it meant the people were not craning to see, because you knew they would eventually come into sight. I had some mendazis (Kenyan doughnut, not that sweet) that Susie gave me and was smuggling them to the kids and to Rahel during the service. The service finished at 3 and then the reception (starting at 1pm) would take place somewhere else so we decided to just leave them, especially because we suspected the cakes would be covered up until the end – after all the speeches. So we never knew if the cakes “went” with the decorations but there you have it.
- Cavin Akech… I am definetly more patient with him (ignoring him sometimes works) but he is really behind because he missed a term (no one is quite sure why). The kids have different strengths and weaknesses but its nice to get to know them. James is opening up and smiling more and HEBALYNE was reported to have smiled today… she smiled once when she was skipping and the sun shone (more than it already was).
- Since we are extending our time here, we will renew our VISA’s on the 21st of June so we will travel to Nairobi at the end of next week (it seems too soon!!!) and we may stay in Nakuru for a night or two (a baby orphanage where Rahel worked before she joined SIM).
So that’s all / enough from me for now, it is still lovely and hot here and I am grateful I can be here!
Love, and lots of it!
Kat
Thursday, 28 May 2009
Hello all!
We have adopted an internet café in town, someday I will have to get a picture of us sitting here. How about some fun, random facts?
- Women are named according to their children or their husband… a mother is mama and a father is baba… so Susie is referred to as Mama Annie (as her oldest daughter is Annie) and when I was showing Ruth a picture of my mum I introduced her as “Mama Kat” Xd
- There is a new boy in my class, Cavin Akech and he really should be in primary school. He comments on everything, will NOT sit still and any class discipline there WAS is washed down the drain. He came on Monday and on the first 3 days I lost my temper with him several times but today I was able to cope, in the end he was sent outside for a good 15 minutes and the class was peaceful. I find it hard cause my attention is on him and so less can be given to the other kids, however, I am learning to deal with it – he is probably the biggest challenge up till now.
- I go to the nursery around 6.20am each morning to unlock the doors of the nursery and open the gate for the kids that get there early and have the privilege of enjoying a BEAUTFUL sunrise coming over the mountains EVERY DAY J. I really enjoy those times!
- We started Sunday school last Sunday and now have more responsibilities so we are getting more organized so we can do everything well.
- On Sunday there was an offering taken up after the service so that the land the church is on can be bought (they have to raise 40,000 kenyan shillings) and there were only like 20 – 30 people there and they did the collection. It was very different from what I have experienced, as the people were called up one by one in public and they gave their offering. Many shouts of amen, and clapping and waving of the hands but it made the event more enjoyable and the people were giving joyfully, by the end of it money had lost all its importance, at least in my eyes. The downside was that it last 2 hours. So added on to the 2 hour service (it was actually 3 but we were late cause of Sunday school) Rahel and I were not feeling very well… starving in fact. But there was a huge meal after so alls well that ends well. =).
More random facts on their way next week, we are doing OK, Rahel got another cold and it seems to be getting better. I can’t believe another week has gone by, but it is nice it is the weekend and I can relax – Monday is a holiday too so that’s cool!
Prayer letter to be sent out soon as well, so things are well.
Over and out.
K
We have adopted an internet café in town, someday I will have to get a picture of us sitting here. How about some fun, random facts?
- Women are named according to their children or their husband… a mother is mama and a father is baba… so Susie is referred to as Mama Annie (as her oldest daughter is Annie) and when I was showing Ruth a picture of my mum I introduced her as “Mama Kat” Xd
- There is a new boy in my class, Cavin Akech and he really should be in primary school. He comments on everything, will NOT sit still and any class discipline there WAS is washed down the drain. He came on Monday and on the first 3 days I lost my temper with him several times but today I was able to cope, in the end he was sent outside for a good 15 minutes and the class was peaceful. I find it hard cause my attention is on him and so less can be given to the other kids, however, I am learning to deal with it – he is probably the biggest challenge up till now.
- I go to the nursery around 6.20am each morning to unlock the doors of the nursery and open the gate for the kids that get there early and have the privilege of enjoying a BEAUTFUL sunrise coming over the mountains EVERY DAY J. I really enjoy those times!
- We started Sunday school last Sunday and now have more responsibilities so we are getting more organized so we can do everything well.
- On Sunday there was an offering taken up after the service so that the land the church is on can be bought (they have to raise 40,000 kenyan shillings) and there were only like 20 – 30 people there and they did the collection. It was very different from what I have experienced, as the people were called up one by one in public and they gave their offering. Many shouts of amen, and clapping and waving of the hands but it made the event more enjoyable and the people were giving joyfully, by the end of it money had lost all its importance, at least in my eyes. The downside was that it last 2 hours. So added on to the 2 hour service (it was actually 3 but we were late cause of Sunday school) Rahel and I were not feeling very well… starving in fact. But there was a huge meal after so alls well that ends well. =).
More random facts on their way next week, we are doing OK, Rahel got another cold and it seems to be getting better. I can’t believe another week has gone by, but it is nice it is the weekend and I can relax – Monday is a holiday too so that’s cool!
Prayer letter to be sent out soon as well, so things are well.
Over and out.
K
Thursday, 21 May 2009
Short update
They say pictures say more than 1,000 words and there are about 55 pictures on my facebook so look at them there to get the real feel of what I am doing!
This week has been good, we started teaching Bible stories in the Pastoral time every morning, I did 3 days of Gideon and today Rahel started Ruth and will continue tomorrow! I have been in Kenya a month already and it feels like it should be so much more because of everything I feel I have been through but on the other hand it does seem a long time. I am defintely settling in!
We killed a chicken to have for tea.. around 4pm Susan said: "I don't know what to make for tea" so Vitilus suggested they slaughter a kuku (swahili for hen) so we did just that :). (Pictures on facebook).
Prayer letter will be out before the end of the month. We prayed for rain and boy it came, I am glad I purchased wellies in Nairobi before coming here =). A longer update next time, thanks 4 reading!
K in K
This week has been good, we started teaching Bible stories in the Pastoral time every morning, I did 3 days of Gideon and today Rahel started Ruth and will continue tomorrow! I have been in Kenya a month already and it feels like it should be so much more because of everything I feel I have been through but on the other hand it does seem a long time. I am defintely settling in!
We killed a chicken to have for tea.. around 4pm Susan said: "I don't know what to make for tea" so Vitilus suggested they slaughter a kuku (swahili for hen) so we did just that :). (Pictures on facebook).
Prayer letter will be out before the end of the month. We prayed for rain and boy it came, I am glad I purchased wellies in Nairobi before coming here =). A longer update next time, thanks 4 reading!
K in K
Thursday, 14 May 2009
Kisumu 2
Greetings from sunny and warm Kisumu again!
This week we have started up with our different activities, after looking around last week Rahel decided that she would help in Baby Class and I am helping out in the Final Class. Rahel loves to do crafts so can really help Susan and Lydia (the teachers in that class) with ideas and I am working alongside Susan in the Final class, she is doing most of the teaching but it is after, when they write things down in the books and need help that really, you almost need one teacher per student to help them, I can see why she wanted help. They have their interview to get into school in November so our aim is to get them all ready for it, there are some especially that are having difficulties and if they don’t make the interview it will mean they have another year of nursery before they can try again. We are both enjoying it, and also preparing lessons for CRE (Christian Religious Education) that we will be doing each morning starting next week.
Ruth is another Kenyan lady living with us and she is also teaching in the nursery (Middle Class). At first she was really shy but now we are having a great time with her, she is teaching us some Luo as well J. We have been playing with the kids after school some afternoons (siesta’s are no longer necessary… only sometimes) and I found myself a child at heart as I tore through the bush chasing boys with little fruits to smear it on their feet – last night we played hide and seek in the rain and it was really is amazing. In the mornings when Rahel and I walk to the nursery I feel like Anne Shirley (from Green Gables) – with the long skirt, swishing through the grass, going to teach the kids =). There are other days when we take the guitar up (if we have been using it) and then I feel like Frauline Maria from the Sound of Music with the big case… the hills truly are alive with the sound of music. As for my cold, it has now left me, it went to Rahel, left Rahel and went to Annie and now Vitilus is getting it… Sorry!! =/. But it is not too terrible, after resting about a week it goes…
Right now I am feeling a bit tired… late nights (we talk a lot), early mornings and the heat is most likely the issue but the weekend is soon so we will get some rest. It is hard in the classroom (when I am alone) to get the kids to be disciplined and be quiet and sit down – they are definitely testing us, and because we run about with them at break they don’t see us as official teachers (intimidating ones) but we don’t want to be that really – we have to find the balance between loving them and also teaching them and show them we are higher up the pecking order than they are.
Anyway, that is all for now… in short: We are settling in now, have more responsibilities and are getting used to everything – it is still a challenge with the kids but they are very lovable! I am tired at the moment and probably missing people but Rahel is really great so I am sharing with her and it helps us both! Keep up the prayers and encouragement and thanks for them already.
Until next week!
Kat
This week we have started up with our different activities, after looking around last week Rahel decided that she would help in Baby Class and I am helping out in the Final Class. Rahel loves to do crafts so can really help Susan and Lydia (the teachers in that class) with ideas and I am working alongside Susan in the Final class, she is doing most of the teaching but it is after, when they write things down in the books and need help that really, you almost need one teacher per student to help them, I can see why she wanted help. They have their interview to get into school in November so our aim is to get them all ready for it, there are some especially that are having difficulties and if they don’t make the interview it will mean they have another year of nursery before they can try again. We are both enjoying it, and also preparing lessons for CRE (Christian Religious Education) that we will be doing each morning starting next week.
Ruth is another Kenyan lady living with us and she is also teaching in the nursery (Middle Class). At first she was really shy but now we are having a great time with her, she is teaching us some Luo as well J. We have been playing with the kids after school some afternoons (siesta’s are no longer necessary… only sometimes) and I found myself a child at heart as I tore through the bush chasing boys with little fruits to smear it on their feet – last night we played hide and seek in the rain and it was really is amazing. In the mornings when Rahel and I walk to the nursery I feel like Anne Shirley (from Green Gables) – with the long skirt, swishing through the grass, going to teach the kids =). There are other days when we take the guitar up (if we have been using it) and then I feel like Frauline Maria from the Sound of Music with the big case… the hills truly are alive with the sound of music. As for my cold, it has now left me, it went to Rahel, left Rahel and went to Annie and now Vitilus is getting it… Sorry!! =/. But it is not too terrible, after resting about a week it goes…
Right now I am feeling a bit tired… late nights (we talk a lot), early mornings and the heat is most likely the issue but the weekend is soon so we will get some rest. It is hard in the classroom (when I am alone) to get the kids to be disciplined and be quiet and sit down – they are definitely testing us, and because we run about with them at break they don’t see us as official teachers (intimidating ones) but we don’t want to be that really – we have to find the balance between loving them and also teaching them and show them we are higher up the pecking order than they are.
Anyway, that is all for now… in short: We are settling in now, have more responsibilities and are getting used to everything – it is still a challenge with the kids but they are very lovable! I am tired at the moment and probably missing people but Rahel is really great so I am sharing with her and it helps us both! Keep up the prayers and encouragement and thanks for them already.
Until next week!
Kat
Thursday, 7 May 2009
Kat in Kisumu
Greetings from Kat in Kisumu!
I am here at last and have been since Saturday at 6.30am. It was an eight hour bus ride and Michelle (our coordinator), Rahel and I arrived pretty wiped out. The bus nearly left us the two times it stopped because we didn’t understand the Swahili being shouted through the megaphone and it was when a couple of guys came with out seat numbers that we jumped up, chased the backing up bus and banged on the side so they would open the door.
Vitilus, Susan and the two youngest, Steven and Daniel came to pick us up and after a few errands in town we went up to their place. I don’t know about you, but I imagined a sort of jungly area but as we drove out the city in their red pick-up, we climbed up these lush green hills and eventually turned off the road onto the bumpiest “road” I have ever encountered, and after a 10 minute climb we reached their home. It is in a clearing, and when we walked up to Joy Nursery on Sunday to sweep and get the three classrooms ready, the breathtaking view took me COMPLETELY by surprise. You can see the city, and the Nandi hills that surround them… completely beautiful. (I will add pictures another day).
The family have really taken us in with all the love in the world, and told us that we would go SLOWLY (pole pole) so this first week has been pretty much just helping in different classes as we get to know the kids, the methods of teaching and get used to the climate. We are, as Rahel says: IN THE BUSH. So I don’t know what temperature it is but it is quite hot so after school (it ends at 12) we have been having lunch and having a lie down in the afternoon because we feel so worn out. I was starting to have a cold before leaving Nairobi and on Monday it hit quite badly, my nose was running like an athlete and it then blocked up but by now is much better, all there is left is a tickly cough but I am on the mend (I think this is the only time in my life I have really RESTED while I have had a cold). Rahel has got the same cough (my fault!).
- take a break, grab a bite, come back -
(There is SO much to write about I can’t decide what to leave in and what to leave out) but I don’t want this to be TOO long. The school routine is this one:At 7.15am we got to have breakfast and leave the house just before 8 to get to the nursery. From 8 – 8.30 we sing songs (going back to my childhood, all those Church songs, like “the wise man built his house upon the rock!” etc.) and they sing enthusiastically. From 8.30 – 10.00 is the first part of lessons and it is English or Maths. I have been exploring the different classes but have helped Susan out in the Final Class (the oldest ones) and today we were teaching them the letter U. Letter “yew” sounds like “uh” (cup / hut / run). English is hard to teach let alone learn! At 11.00 it is breaktime and we run outside in the sun and just tear about, playing games. Their uji (thin porridge) is brought out and it seems some of them don’t have breakfast because after it they perk up considerably). Then there is another hour of lessons and at 12ish we finish off, clean up and head home. I want to learn about the kids, each one of them has his or her own background and they go through so much hardship it is difficult even to imagine, so just being able to smile at them, hug them, hold their hand or swing them around is encouraging, as in some way it shows them love.
In the afternoon we rest, and I need it (this is the person that never took a siesta in her life) and maybe prepare some things for the next day (yesterday found us tracing/drawing cows for the kids to colour in). At 4 it is Chai time (tea time and a sweet something to eat) and then there is always something to do, be in practice guitar, help Susan in the kitchen, play with the kids outsides (the kids from various houses congregate at the front of our house to play) and at 7.00 we eat. Annie and Sarah (the two eldest, 10 and 9 years old respectively) get home about 6.00 every day and so they do their home work and the boys have their baths. After we eat there is a time for singing (in English or Swahili) and then the designated person for the day shares what they learnt in their quiet time. At 9.00pm we finish the dishes and go back to our quarters but by them I feel so exhausted that I generally crash before 10.00. Rahel and I are hoping that it is only because we are acclimatizing and will not feel this tired the whole time!
Anyway, we are at the internet café and so I think I will stop writing now although I am sure that by next week I will have even more to tell. So for now, I thank you for your prayers and interest and if you got all the way to the bottom of this, CONGRATS!
Lots of love,
Kat
I am here at last and have been since Saturday at 6.30am. It was an eight hour bus ride and Michelle (our coordinator), Rahel and I arrived pretty wiped out. The bus nearly left us the two times it stopped because we didn’t understand the Swahili being shouted through the megaphone and it was when a couple of guys came with out seat numbers that we jumped up, chased the backing up bus and banged on the side so they would open the door.
Vitilus, Susan and the two youngest, Steven and Daniel came to pick us up and after a few errands in town we went up to their place. I don’t know about you, but I imagined a sort of jungly area but as we drove out the city in their red pick-up, we climbed up these lush green hills and eventually turned off the road onto the bumpiest “road” I have ever encountered, and after a 10 minute climb we reached their home. It is in a clearing, and when we walked up to Joy Nursery on Sunday to sweep and get the three classrooms ready, the breathtaking view took me COMPLETELY by surprise. You can see the city, and the Nandi hills that surround them… completely beautiful. (I will add pictures another day).
The family have really taken us in with all the love in the world, and told us that we would go SLOWLY (pole pole) so this first week has been pretty much just helping in different classes as we get to know the kids, the methods of teaching and get used to the climate. We are, as Rahel says: IN THE BUSH. So I don’t know what temperature it is but it is quite hot so after school (it ends at 12) we have been having lunch and having a lie down in the afternoon because we feel so worn out. I was starting to have a cold before leaving Nairobi and on Monday it hit quite badly, my nose was running like an athlete and it then blocked up but by now is much better, all there is left is a tickly cough but I am on the mend (I think this is the only time in my life I have really RESTED while I have had a cold). Rahel has got the same cough (my fault!).
- take a break, grab a bite, come back -
(There is SO much to write about I can’t decide what to leave in and what to leave out) but I don’t want this to be TOO long. The school routine is this one:At 7.15am we got to have breakfast and leave the house just before 8 to get to the nursery. From 8 – 8.30 we sing songs (going back to my childhood, all those Church songs, like “the wise man built his house upon the rock!” etc.) and they sing enthusiastically. From 8.30 – 10.00 is the first part of lessons and it is English or Maths. I have been exploring the different classes but have helped Susan out in the Final Class (the oldest ones) and today we were teaching them the letter U. Letter “yew” sounds like “uh” (cup / hut / run). English is hard to teach let alone learn! At 11.00 it is breaktime and we run outside in the sun and just tear about, playing games. Their uji (thin porridge) is brought out and it seems some of them don’t have breakfast because after it they perk up considerably). Then there is another hour of lessons and at 12ish we finish off, clean up and head home. I want to learn about the kids, each one of them has his or her own background and they go through so much hardship it is difficult even to imagine, so just being able to smile at them, hug them, hold their hand or swing them around is encouraging, as in some way it shows them love.
In the afternoon we rest, and I need it (this is the person that never took a siesta in her life) and maybe prepare some things for the next day (yesterday found us tracing/drawing cows for the kids to colour in). At 4 it is Chai time (tea time and a sweet something to eat) and then there is always something to do, be in practice guitar, help Susan in the kitchen, play with the kids outsides (the kids from various houses congregate at the front of our house to play) and at 7.00 we eat. Annie and Sarah (the two eldest, 10 and 9 years old respectively) get home about 6.00 every day and so they do their home work and the boys have their baths. After we eat there is a time for singing (in English or Swahili) and then the designated person for the day shares what they learnt in their quiet time. At 9.00pm we finish the dishes and go back to our quarters but by them I feel so exhausted that I generally crash before 10.00. Rahel and I are hoping that it is only because we are acclimatizing and will not feel this tired the whole time!
Anyway, we are at the internet café and so I think I will stop writing now although I am sure that by next week I will have even more to tell. So for now, I thank you for your prayers and interest and if you got all the way to the bottom of this, CONGRATS!
Lots of love,
Kat
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