Books to Kids

This primary school is unusual in that it has a mini collection of library books. But they were not being circulated. Being the book lover that I am, this was a painful thought. So I put my hand to the plow and with a couple of good helpers have gotten a library project underway. They are categorizing and labeling the books and we've gotten library cards made for the kids. Once we started, 20 more boxes of books materialized from the storeroom. What you see in this picture is the white lady reading a library book to one of the classes in the hopes that students and teachers will get turned on to reading. It's also an excuse to wheedle my way into interaction with these great kids. Really fun, although the American accent is hard for them to understand. I'll have to brush up on my E. African accent while I'm here. The was one I brought to use with my lesson....it's the only one that I've seen in the school. Tim and Jenna have a plan now to get a map into every class in this school.

Kili Climb

Yes, there is now irrefutable proof that I don't know how to act my age. I tried to be sensible up until two days before the other four were due to leave for the Mt. Kilimanjaro climb. At that point I couldn't stand it any longer and decided that in spite of my temperamental I T band (if yours doesn't hurt you probably don't know what your I T band is.....) I was going too. Some people just never grow up. I had brought a knee wrap and a back wrap.... which ended up on my other knee... (necessity really is the mother of invention). Along with a bottle of ibuprofen I was set. Thank goodness the oft repeated directive was to go very slowly in order to allow our bodies to acclimate to the rapid increase in elevation. No one had to tell me twice. Rain forest, moor, heather, and portions that looked like a lunar landscape were all included in the scenery we passed through. Enchanting. By law, we had to hire guides, a cook, and porters. Yes! So the only thing I had to carry was my own carcass. It was common to see our porters welcoming us into camp with rousing African call and response singing and dancing. WE LOVED THAT! Keiper team made it to the summit. Amy, Matt, and Jenna actually set foot there while Tim and I stayed at the high altitude camp to "watch over the equipment" (translated as watching over the inside of our eyelids).  It was an experience to remember....especially since I will not be doing it again. Thank you God for allowing us such a unique and delightful experience.

Home

We waved goodbye to Amy, Matt, and Jenna today - Matt back to Kenya, the girls to the U.S. Jenna says that home is wherever we are together.        I miss "home".                                                                                                  

Enjoying the beauty in Africa. A morning at the Mennonite Guesthouse. September. Nairobi

Hi Andie, Pam, Tara, Sherryl and Nic! (people who have this blog linked to their email via Reading List or Follower) Hi Debbie and Sid! (friends who check in to this blog and respond via email) Hi anyone else. I love hearing from you. At this point home seems like a tiny speck on the horizon with the big wide ocean of Africa surrounding us. I'm not complaining, mind you. It's just how it feels sometimes and hearing from you keeps me connected. I woke up to the chir-up, wahwahwah, hooo-hooo, and rup-rup-rup of the birds. As I set the laundry outside I saw this other worldly sky through the trees. It was something out of Star Wars or Lord of the Rings. Set in a pink and blue morning sky, the full moon was setting over the mountains. This scene was framed by our trees which feature leaves that flutter like feather dusters in the breeze. Thorn bush hedges, a low bunch of clouds dressing the tops of the mountains.... it was enchanting. I'm often captured by the beauty here and God waters my soul with it. A friend from Uganda once said, "Don't you have beauty in America? Visiting Americans are always exclaiming how beautiful the mountains are and taking endless pictures (which we also had done)." This gave me pause. Mmmm... is this a characteristic of Americans? I think, yes, valuing the beauty of nature is a common characteristic of Americans. I like that about Americans. I also like that Americans are often very generous, like to laugh, and are hard working. That would be you who are reading this. Yeah. It's nice living in a country where generally the U.S. and Americans are appreciated.... which, comments about picture taking aside, is true in Tanzania. A professor here told me," If America and other Western countries removed their support, Tanzania would fold." (I don't refer to the "United States" because many people don't know us by that name. We're known as "America" here.) Because the Europeans were colonizers in Africa the relationships with those countries are a little more complicated. Mmmm...from feather duster leaved trees to the colonizers of Africa. I've taken you on a mental rabbit trail.Good morning!