colors and burns

wooo. ok. been awhile. lots to write about. i'll try not to make it too long... school was good this week. challenging as always. on wednesday i came all prepared to teach a small class, and as soon as i walked in, mary asked if i would teach the babies. ooook. so i had to entertain 55 or so little kids, who speak no english and only know numbers and letters, for 3 hours using only a piece of chalk and a blackboard. talk about exhausting. i drew pictures. we did body parts. i made them dance a little. by the end my throat was aching from yelling over top of all the noise in our little tin school room. but as of thursday, i have my own class. yes! i am working with four kids - vivian, austine, lavine and david. i'm so happy to be working with such a small group, though its still incredibly challenging and frustrating. on friday i tried teaching them 8 different colors. after about 45 minutes they still thought every color was red... then we made a tie-dye butterfly craft and they loooved it. so much fun. it's amazing that although i'm only at school for 3 hours, i'm absolutely exhausted by the end. this week i got to visit another school and an orphanage in kibera. similar sort of thing as st. charles but with even less space outside for kids to play. these kids need to get out of the slums so bad. tomorrow after school i'm going to go help out at a baby clinic and make posters to raise awareness about tb. my weeks feel so busy and the weekends are a much needed break. yesterday i went out to maasailand with some friends. it was a couple hours drive from nairobi, towards the great rift valley. breathtaking scenery. terrible roads. but it was really neat. go here to read more about the maasai people: http://www.maasai-association.org/ one of their beautification traditions is to get burns. (mom, don't read this part...) so about 8 of us indulged... two of the elder men did it. they rub a stick on a piece of wood to heat it up. then press it on your arm for about 5 seconds (oooouch). then they put aloe on it, you wait until they blister up, then pop them and leave them til they heal and leave circular little scars. i know, it sounds weird. not as weird as the kids around us who were eating blood soaked meat chunks (and all the volunteers who tried it!) yuck. ha. it was so cool to spend some time with the tribe and see their little community and eat a meal with them. very intriguing people. today i went to church in the city center with irene. it was... interesting. worship was great. singing, dancing, clapping. so much fun to just let go and worship god however i wanted and not be looked at funny (ok, maybe i still got looked at funny, being the only white gal bopping around in a room of about 500..) i started crying the first song. i didn't realize how much i missed the community of other believers and being able to worship god and give praises to him for all the stuff going on. the rest of church was a lot of stuff i'd never experienced before. very charismatic. anointing. testifying. and laying on of hands - the stuff i'd only seen on tv where the pastor touches someones head and they go into convulsions and fall to the ground. and there was a huge focus on money. i don't know if it always is. or if its because these people have so little that they long to be blessed financially. 4 hours later i left my first african church experience. that's right. i said 4 hours. i don't ever wanna hear anyone complaining about how long their hour and a half service felt..
so here's some more pics from my week. enjoy!
oh, and an update on francis and james - francis called to say that james is living with the pastor of his church and to please send money. it's so hard to know if he is telling the truth and whether james is safe and if it's the right thing to do to send any money. it's hard not to be skeptical in a place with so much corruption (today we drove by a building called 'the integrity centre' - an anti-corruption agency. its such a serious problem here and across all of africa). so please continue to pray for james.

wait

those first two pics should be switched..

pics and weekend

ok, as promised, here are some pictures:


this is my school, st. charles and some of my kids. some can afford uniforms, others cannot.


here is what i see on the walk to school. the slums of kibera.


walking two of the children home. most of the kids have never been out of the slum. this is the only world they know.


and in a stark contrast... here is where is spent my weekend:


chillin on the shores of the indian ocean. i had the most amazing time, just enjoying god's creation. some highlights:
swimming in my first ocean, staying in amazing little huts for $10 a night, getting sunburned beyond belief, feeding monkeys on the porch of my hut, eating breakfast in a 5 star hotel, getting to know other volunteers better, spending a good chunk of the holy day ramadhan in a very muslim area of mombasa.
sweet stuff, but here was the most touching part of my weekend. on sunday me and 3 other gals went into mombasa to go to some markets and hang out til 10:30 when our bus left. we found a cafe and parked our butts there for a good 5 hours (this was the muslim area. very neat experience to watch them celebrate) we sat at a table and after a string of sketchy characters sitting with us, a young boy came and sat down. he was quiet and polite as we chatted with him. we asked if he was hungry. nope. asked if he wanted a drink. nope. ice cream? nope. anything? nope. finally he said maybe a toy. two of the girls took him across the street and came back with a new outfit. we talked to him some more and found out he is 11, his parents were killed, he is now homeless, has no family, nowhere to go, no longer can go to school. it broke our hearts, we all started crying. he was very quiet and hard to communicate with so we decided to ask our waiter if he could translate for us. he came over and through our tears we were wondering what we could do for this little boy. naturally the first thing i do is pray. and what is stacia's first reaction? she gets on the phone with irene, our program volunteer to see if there's any way we can bring him to nairobi to an orphanage, while the other girls start talking to the waiter to see if he could do anything. after lots of talking, our waiter, francis agreed to take in the boy, james. we gave him some money and some to james. the girls got francis' phone number with promises to call to see how he was doing. and talked to james trying to reassure him that it was safe and that no, francis would not beat him.
it was so amazing to watch these women work to ensure this child was taken care of.
all i could think of was 'it is better to die standing than to live on your knees' as one of the girls has this tattood on her back. though she doesn't take it in any sort of christian context. the words hit me hard. here i am sitting back and praying for god to do something while these girls just do it (with no thoughts of god on their mind). how often do i do that? instead of automatically doing what is right, i waste time praying, waiting for god's words, wondering what god's call is. i'm not saying praying is a waste but sometimes its easier to fall back on and wait for someone else to do the serving. i was absolutely inspired and moved to tears by the outpouring of love by these women who were doing more of god's work than a lot of christians. it was so hard to leave the scared little boy sitting there, trusting that francis would really take care of him. so please keep him in your prayers? there are a million heartbreaking stories like that here. here is francis and james

life here

life is so different here in africa. different from normal. different from what i expected. first off, if you're picturing nairobi like the typical africa scene with the flat lnds and random trees and grass huts(much like my profile pic) then you are waaaaay off. it is green, lush, foresty, with palm trees and the most amazing bushes and trees covered in flowers. its so gorgeous.
and no, i don't live in some run down shack. i'm incredibly blessed to be living where i am. i mean, all the host families are wonderful people with decent accomadations...but some are so tiny and cramped and no hot water for showers. i happen to live with the program director, irene and 5 other roomates (3 gals from mexico, one from toronto and one from cali) in an apartment that would be considered nice by canadian standards. it's amazing.
my days start off at about 7am. i get up do morning devos then hang out with my roomies. have some breakfast- usually fruit, tea, maybe bread or some little donuty sort of things that i forget what they're called. then me and elyse and majo walk to the java hut (africa's equivalent to starbucks - pretty much the mzungu (white people) hangout) to meet up with a few other volunteers and we all start our trek to kibera. it takes about 45 minutes to walk there.
apparently school starts at 7:30 but we come at 9. today i felt much more useful at school which was great. i helped 4 kids - prolly 6 or 7 years old - who were a little behind so couldn't be in the other class. i wasn't really prepared for that so i didn't know what to teach them (there is no syllabus or anything. the volunteers just fly by the seat of their pants and teach them whatever). we learned about shapes today. and the colors of chickens. and some math - basic addition by counting bottle caps. yes, this is reeeally behind where kids should be at this age. some of them can't even write their own name. they are so basic. technically its not a school i work at - its a day centre, trying to prepare kids before they actually go to school. anyways, break is at 10. we go outside to play in the dirt and trash. i brought a soccer ball today (thanks carly!) and the boys went crazy. unfortunately they don't really have anywhere to play except on this hill surrounded by barbed wire that is used by some building next door. but they played and loved it. i had kids hanging aaaall over me today. they all want to hold my hands, or pet my tattoo. i got pulled down to the ground and surrounded by about 20 girls stroking (aka pulling) my hair and chanting something that was either swahili or 'washing your hair'. i couldn't really tell. the kids don't speak much english. another of their favorite things is to count all the freckles on my arms. over and over they count. or look at their reflections in my sunglasses. these kids are amused by the simplest things...
after break (which is also bathroom time...except we don't have bathrooms, so the kids just do their business right there, where they play) we go back in for more teaching. teaching is sooo hard with so many kids crammed in there and so few teachers and so little space. we could definitely use more help there. so if anyone wants to come...? school is done at 12:30. after that i usually go to an internet cafe and java hut with some other volunteers. and we run in to more volunteers aaall over the place or keep in touch with our cell phones which is really great (seriously, if anyone is thinking about doing something like this, i would highly recommend this program). we hang out for the afternoon and make sure we home before dark (6:30). evenings i stay in with my roomates and relax. we're usually in bed by 10. so that's what my days have been like. but i'm hoping they'll change soon. i'm looking to go work somewhere else for the afternoon. there are so many different places that have volunteers/need volunteers so it shouldnt be hard to hook that up.
wow, this is getting long. like i said, i could go on forever about this place...
tomorrow is a holiday so me and 7 other volunteers are heading to the coast for the weekend. should be great.
so that's a general idea about what life has been like my first few days here. but if you really wanna know, you should just come here. have i mentioned that everyone should just come here? in fact, if i could just get all my friends and family and aaron to move here, then that would be perfect. keep that in mind all you reading this..
prayers for: oh wow, everything. all the work going on here. my school desperately needs a new piece of land. there are lots of kids here in need of sponsorship just so they can go to school. we need more volunteers. i'm working with volunteers from all over the world and have been able to share my story with some of them so god is definitely working in those situations as well.
anyways, i gotta get going. have an awesome weekend everyone. much love.

first day of school

today was my first trip into kibera. i strongly suggest you check out the wikipedia link although it does nothing to tell you what kibera is really like. tin shacks, garbage everywhere, animals running lose, burning trash, mud roads.. i'll try to post some pics sometime. it was quite a shock walking through there.. we got to the school - i use the term 'school' lightly.. its a tin shack prolly the size of my living room back home. we fit 100-150 or so kids in there ages 3-7 (about 50 of them are orphans). there are no partitions and there are 4 classes going on at once. it is loud - especially when its raining - and its dark. i helped with the babies (3 and 4 year olds) today. they are learning numbers and letters. i write a row of letters in their book, they copy it and then crowd around me to write another row. over and over. while others are at the front pointing and repeating the numbers on the board. 'numbers are 1, 1, 2, 2...' in their cute little accents. at break time the kids all went outside. to play in the dirt and trash, right next to the railroad. there are no bathrooms so kids just squat right outside. the girls did singing and dancing, which was great, and the boys kinda ran around and hung onto all the volunteers. we had to leave class early today because it started to rain. and apparently getting out of kibera once it pours is impossible because the 'roads' turn to pure mud.
i wish i was a better writer and could really illustrate what its like here. but i'm not. so i'll really try to post some pictures soon. please pray as i start this teaching business because it scares me. and for the kids. there is so much corruption in this place it is ridiculous... they have police stops often and try to catch drivers making some sort of 'mistake' so that they can demand money instead of being taken to the police station. back home we think of the police as being a safe place to go.. not here. and there is corruption even in the schools and orphanages. the directors asking volunteers for money for rent, and then stealing that money.. gifts for the children being taken by the teachers.. teachers charging children money to go to school with the promise of buying supplies or food, but never following through. it is truly heartbreaking.
i feel like i could go on forever about this place and i've only been here 4 days...

quick update

ok, i don't have a lot of time but i thought i'd update quick about my placement. i'm super excited about it. starting tomorrow i'll be teaching at a school in kibera called st. charles. i'll work there for 4 weeks, then the school is going on break so i will go to an orphanage for the last 2 weeks.
crazy, i never expected to be teaching, but i am sooo looking forward to it.
anywho, i'll update more after i've been there a few days.
bye bye :)

i'm here!

after a 25 hour trip, i arrived in nairobi. was picked up at the airport and taken to a hotel with 3 other volunteers. this morning we were picked up and me and one other volunteer were dropped of at the host house we will be staying at for our orientation which starts tomorrow. it is in jirumu(?) which is a suburb of nairobi, very near kibera, one of the biggest slums in the world. we've been doing a little wandering today, seeing sights i can't even explain. this place is like nothing i've seen or experienced. its crazy. my first thoughts on the place - parts of it are so much more westernized than i expected, while other parts are the exact opposite; there are more white people than i expected; there are palm trees!; it is so sad and so beautiful all at once; the smell is.. interesting. those are the thoughts from my first half day in nairobi. i'm still not sure whether my placement will be in nairobi or somewhere rural. i guess i find out tomorrow. if i'm rural, i won't be posting much, but if i'm in the city, there are internet cafes near by and they are cheap. well, that's all for now. i'm looking forward to sharing some sweet adventures. thanks for the prayers!
much love
kwaheri

one more week

God is in the slums, in the cardboard boxes
where the poor play house.
God is in the silence of a mother
who has infected her child with a virus that will kill them both.
God is in the cries heard
under the rubble of war.
God is in the debris of wasted opportunity and lives.
and God is with us if
we are with them.
-Bono

These were the final words in a book i just read called 'Hope in the Dark'. Amazing book.

Brief outline:
Twenty-five years ago, AIDS was unknown in sub-Saharan Africa. Today it’s overwhelmingly the continent’s biggest killer. In Hope in the Dark, photojournalist Jeremy Cowart documents the hope and pain of Africa’s AIDS generation—a generation beset by poverty and fear, a generation in which children in some countries are more likely to die of AIDS than not. But despite the sickening odds, Cowart captures brief glimpses of beauty, optimism and joy as he makes his way across the continent. Through this collection of startling, remarkable images, his lens uncovers not just the magnitude of the problem, but also the places where God is undeniably present in the midst of it.

Check it out. Buy it even. Part of the proceeds go directly to African relief agencies.

Flipping through those pages brought tears to my eyes. I look forward to checking it out when I'm back, when the images and words will likely have a whole new meaning.

wake up billie joe

goodbye september.
what a weird month it was.
it started off great. my birthday, brianne and arlen's wedding, nice long weekend with the friesen family. then on the 7th, things got strange. the company i worked for was having some issues, so in the middle of the day, they kicked out their employees and locked the door. that happened to be the day that means was heading out on tour - i figured i might as well join them since work was on a hiatus. so we hit the road. from banff to winnipeg and everything in between. a lot of laughs, good times and memories later, we ended up back in regina where i found out that the company had been seized by revenue canada. (did you catch it on the news? fraud, jail time, missing accountant.. straight outta the movies)
officially unemployed.
and out 2 paychecks. yikes. not the best time to be flat broke and in debt. but its been good in a sense. definitely has me living simpler and re-evaluating want vs need. and hey, it'll all work out, right? bahaha. you know when something crappy happens in your life and you're just lookin for a bit of time to wallow in the suckiness of the situation, but everyone just keeps saying 'oh, it'll work out'; 'trust god'; 'don't worry about it'. of course i know it'll work out in some way or another. of course i know god's got it under control... but it sure sucks right now and the glass is half empty so let me just be grumpy for a bit... don't worry, i'm over it and a-ok with it all now, feel free to encourage me all you want. i promise i won't give you a dirty look (sorry to anyone who was on the recieving end of that look a few weeks ago..)
anywho. last weekend i got to volunteer at a friendship retreat for refugee women and children. such a cool experience. i met some really great women (and adooorable kids) who have overcome so much hardship and tragedy and are smiling so big just to be in this country. helping out with the kids program definitely gave me a taste of what it will be like in kenya as far as language barrier goes. but hey, smiles, hugs, laughter and high-fives are universal, so i should be ok.
here's a pic of one of the kids who stole my heart last weekend. this is andre. he is from congo and came to canada 5 months ago with his brother and 4 older sisters after their parents were killed. oh man, his smile makes me melt.


the rest of my september has consisted of sleeping in, finishing up final preparations for my trip, spending some quality time with aaron before i go, battling the flu and doing some odd jobs like painting wilf's house. doesn't seem like i did too much, but the month sure flew by.
and that brings us to october. and 11 days til my departure date. woo wee. i'm excited. i'm scared. i'm nervous. i'm a lot of things. mostly just pumped to have this awesome opportunity to serve god, to serve kids, to serve the least of these. thank you soooo much to all of you who have been praying and encouraging and supporting me. maybe if you could continue to pray for everything to work out, for safety and that my plane doesn't crash (note to self: don't watch plane crash movies two weeks before you fly...), for rent money and for the 45 other employees who were suddenly left jobless with bounced checks. thanks so much. xo