Despite the lack of internet, the last two days have been incredibly happy days. On Sunday, Cary and I headed to the home around 2:00, when the kids are expected home from church. There were about 15 young adults waiting for us at the home, from a youth group in Matasia, a town not far away. Apparently, these kids come every once in awhile, to spend Sunday afternoons singing and dancing with the children. I had to laugh at our kids. At first, they were intensely shy... this shyness quickly turned into disinterest, and finally boredom. We ended watching each other from opposite sides of the compound. Not exactly a stellar way to spend the afternoon with visitors. But it is what it is. The kids preferred to stay with us, despite our encouragement for them to participate. We spent the rest of the afternoon laughing, playing and generally entertaining one another, while their visitors sat on the swing set.
Yesterday, armed with requests for the most necessary items, Cary and I left for Rongai, with Grace, who is 16 or 17 (not 18 as the DO wants to believe). Grace had never been Tusky's, a medium sized grocery store chain, with several satellite stores in this region. Tusky's has everything from food to cell phones, and the second floor is full of clothes, electronics and household goods. All the children are in dire need of clothing. Most only have one pair of trousers, so we headed right to this department. Usually this task takes an entire day. I had re-re-measured each child's waist and inseam, and we were fortunate enough to find a pair of trousers for each child. Bold, bright, beautiful, colorful trousers!
Eva, Linet, Soila, Grace, Naserian, Lucy, Moreen and Ann:
I have never seen the girls so excited. They rushed to try on their new clothes and asked ME to take a picture of THEM!
Linet, Grace and Njoki:
Josephine (left) received her 1st pair of new trousers, ever.
Josephine is 11
Moving on, we found a pair of trousers for every boy. While this would be a mundane task at home, here it is a major accomplishment. Within one hour, we had 25 pair of trousers in a basket. Everyone was accounted for.
Mturi, with his new pants:
With only one item checked off my list, we went next door to get shoes. Shoes are a real problem here, in that the roads simply eat them up. The children walk 8.4km back and forth to school, daily. It is unreasonable to expect their shoes to last long, even those of good quality. The most I can expect is 4-5 months of life.
We bought the older boys 'best' quality hiking shoes, the little ones sneakers and the girls 'opens' or sandals.
It is always humbling to see the children receive their shoes. Anytime I ask them to prioritize their needs, shoes are at the top of their list. All of them. A pair of socks runs a close second, so I will get these today.
Patrick, holding Jer and Kanini
Moses and his new hiking shoes
Jeremiah
Papa
Gideon
Cary and Mturi
Never, ever let a perfectly good box go to waste!
My friend Anne has been teaching the children advanced beading skills for three days now. I am extremely impressed with their accomplishments. Anne says they are all ready to sell their goods, and I agree. Peresia is making a beautiful Maasai belt, which rivals anything I have seen before:
Peresia, below, is said to be 19, from the dental evaluation. As I looked at this picture, I would have to agree (or guess 21). I sincerely doubt that he will be allowed to stay at the home much longer, but more on this later. We are still at a standstill with the DO.
Soila
Eva
Right now I am working on my application for registration, which shall be submitted after meeting with Lucas, tomorrow or Thursday. Time is closing in, as always. Nothing ever moves as fast as I want it to, and our current dilemma is no exception.
Hopefully I can report back tonight with a blog. Internet has been practically non-existent.
We are all well, happy and having a great time. Helen, the new manager working for free is a delight. She appears to have the children's interests at heart, and more importantly, they love her. Once we transition, I will take her with me. She is knowledgeable, gentle, has a counseling background, and is the mother of 4 children. Helen has a physical disability which makes her all the more sensitive to Njenga's plight and to the children, in general. We agree on much, and have a great deal in common when it comes to the well-being of children and their inherent rights.
Much love from Kenya ~
Simmie, Moses and Simon
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