Week Fifteen

How are you?  Happy Canada Day – a few days late….  That means school is out and it’s summer holidays – for you at least!  Enjoy……

The more I am faced with the realities that are Kenya the more I appreciate all that Canada has to offer – in spite of the complaining we do and the decisions our governments make!!  But this week, free health care and free high quality education – to say nothing of good, safe roads – all would have made our Kenyan lives easier!!

First – health care.  As you may know Edina suffers from poor health.  In fact since I met her three years ago she is sick more often than she is healthy.  Colds, headaches, nosebleeds, malaria, typhoid – she gets it all.  I’m sure the stress and worry of being responsible for the welfare of 30 children and 8 staff and all the families that go with them is the main cause of the problem.  And when she is ill, life here at Home of Grace is just not the same.  But when she is well – watch out!  She has energy and ideas to spare.

This week one of the older girls was also very ill.  After several trips to the ‘hospital’ – walk-in clinic, really – and an emergency – and expensive – ultrasound (on a machine that I’m sure was one of the first ever manufactured!)  it was discovered that she has an abcess of some kind – fortunately not appendicitis or something worse.  A few heavy doses of antibiotics and lots of bedrest – we’re hoping she’s on the road to recovery.

We also made a trip to the chemist (pharmacy) yesterday to stock up on cough syrup and ringworm medication.  (I now know more about the various worms and non-worms that circulate around here in abundance than I ever wanted to know!)  Do you know they sell antibiotics and cough syrup in 5 litre jugs here – all with no prescription necessary…..  All I can do is nod, smile and bit by bit do some informal basic health education.

My month of teaching at Kiamabundu Secondary school ended last Friday.  It was a good experience for me – and I think a help to the students and teachers there as well.  The self-esteem art activity that I described last week was a big hit – and will be a lasting memory for me – and I trust also for them. 

I also received some lovely letters of thanks.

One letter I think will always remain my favourite.  Kenyan students are taught to write very ‘literate’, formal, almost flowery letters.  Here is the opening sentence of the thank you letter given to me by form four student (grade 12) Wyckliffe.  It put a huge smile on my face – and reminded me that my work as a composition teacher was obviously not even close to being finished!

Dear Madam Cathy
It is another bombastic moment that God as granted for me to say a word of thanks to you…..

Hilarious!

The children at Home of Grace are on ‘half term’ – they are halfway through the second term. So it means a few days off and, for the boarding school students, a trip home.  But none of the schools have the same holidays – so it is a bit of a surprise, wondering who will turn up at the gate or who can spend the day at home because of their school being closed.  No such thing as coordinated schedules here!!

Monday marked my first day ‘off’ – I decided not to commit myself to regular teaching for July.  Instead Edina and I will use the time to do various things – visiting schools, other orphanages, helping with some administration and book-keeping tasks, meeting people in the community – things like that.  We made a list of things to do – a very Canadian habit! – and we are slowly making our way through it.  So far we have made a small brochure about Home of Grace to hand out locally (Craig’s graphic design skills have rubbed off a bit, luckily!) and worked on job descriptions and updated contracts for the staff.  Yesterday Maxwell, Edina and I met with a prominent Kisii businessman.  I had been connected with him through a friend of a friend in Burlington.  He was extremely helpful to Edina and will be a good person for her to network with in this area.  So slowly, bit by bit some ‘things’ are getting done.

By far the most fun I will have in July is doing some computer training.  Edina was fortunate to be given a laptop several years ago so I am spending some time helping them make the best use of it.  Yesterday three of the secondary students got their own yahoo accounts so they can email back and forth with me when I return home.  And today I also introduced Oleyamo to the joys of email.  That was a special time for me – Oleyamo is our Massai watchman.  He is currently doing his grade 8 equivalent at the adult education program in Kisii.  In spite of never having much formal education he is determined to learn and become ‘an educated man’.  Eager only starts to describe him….  It will be time well spent for both of us!

Finally, an update on my friend Asiago aka Ezekiel (aka ‘cheese boy’)  You may remember him from my last update.  Well, the plot thickens, as they say.  Last Thursday our social worker arranged to travel with him to town to visit his mother in the hospital.  Before they could leave Ezekiel ‘slipped’ away.  It just so happened that Edina was in town that day and later on happened to see him.  As she approached he caused a fuss, screaming that she was trying to steal him.  Needless to say it drew quite the crowd as well as some police….  So.  The conclusion to this story?  He is truly a street boy, with all the survival instincts that that includes.  It is hard to know what to believe – yes, his mother is ill, yes he has no home – but based on how well known he is in the city he has quite a history.  He will no longer be able to stay at Home of Grace – it is not safe to have a boy like that in the home.  And, regardless, I doubt he would re-surface anytime soon – he has ‘blown his cover’.  His case now rests with the village chief and the town children’s department.  There are facilities for boys like him – if he wants to be helped, that is.  It was a learning experience for me – and not terribly unexpected for Edina.  It’s just the way things sometimes are here…

So that was my week.  Nothing profound or earth shattering.  But a week, just the same.

Some of you have asked how my Swahili is coming.  The answer?  It’s not.  I do know a few words and phrases.  But for the most part after the hi, how are you, thank you, you’re welcome and I’m sorry conversation continues in English.  My old brain just can’t hold in the words or the pronunciations and sound combinations.  I try.  The children laugh with me (remember – they laugh at everything!) Then I promptly forget.  Languages never were my strong point – I always left that for Craig.  Another good reason to never leave him behind again!  (I naturally now have quite a long list of these….)

Thanks as always for the comments and questions you send back.  They truly mean a lot to me!
Until the next time…