Last night, after we said goodnight to the children, Tony told me he ran into some of the Nagolie children and they ignored him. "They WHAT?" I asked. "They came over to the car, looked in the windows and walked away. They were looking for you." I felt horrible for Tony, simply horrible. "Tony, we both know that the children are being told to stay away from us. I have also told them that I cannot contact them or meet them at school or on the road, because Helen has said I will be 'arrested' for doing so. She has threatened the children as well...I imagine she has told them all that they will be thrown out of the home if she hears that they have spoken with either you or me". We both know this is most likely the case, but that does not mean Tony didn't feel pain from this slight. If it had been me? I would be simply devastated. Then Tony handed me a note from Lucy and Grace which said: "Auntie Simmie. We love you so much. You will always be our mum. Love, Grace and Lucy."
Tony and I were heading back to WWC this afternoon without the two new children, because they had not yet been officially released from their schools. It kills me that the DCO stresses the urgency of these rescues, but then fails to make herself available to follow through on each case as urgently as I think is needed. They have been placed. Get them out of their situations NOW. Never mind what I think, because it is irrelevant... I am no longer dealing directly with the authorities, which is a good thing. I am simply frustrated by the usual glacial pace at which things move here. Anyway, Tony told me on the way that he had been questioned by Alice, the social worker who is helping place all the children with us, about Tony's motive. "Why do you do this, Tony? Do you do it for money? Or are you working from your heart?" I bristled, but Tony waved me off. "I told her my story, Simmie. It is not one I have shared with you. It is time for me to explain why these childrens (deliberately spelled) are so important to me."
In 2002, Tony was married to another woman who began spending time with all the wrong people, and became increasingly involved with drugs. Late one evening, Tony was held at gunpoint by two men, while sleeping in his bed. His older daughter (12 at the time) overheard the commotion and came into his bedroom. This daughter ran for help, which disrupted the robbery/crime. Neighbors heard the commotion and came to help. As it turned out, this attempted robbery was the brainchild of Tony's wife, who had devised a scheme to have Tony killed so that she could be the beneficiary of a large plot of land he was planning on using for his retirement. The gunmen were arrested and held, while his wife escaped. Tony never saw her again. She left him with two young daughters and a baby. As Tony told the story, he recounted the desperation he felt at having been left to raise these children alone. It was difficult for him to find work, as he was afraid to leave the children alone, fearing his wife's return. "My children were abandoned by their mother. It took me 3 years to get over this, and I vowed to never look at another woman again. I did all the shopping, the laundry, the housekeeping - everything a mother does. I never left my children's side. When Jacinta (Tony's wife today) and I met, I was very careful.. she came to love my children very much, though. One day my oldest daughter told me I should marry her. I did, and today she is the mother of all my children. I have three children from my first wife, one boy I adopted from the streets of Nairobi, and Silas, our child together. You see, Simmie, I know what it is like to be left with children who have lost their mother. I know what this does to children, and I know what it feels like to be abandoned. I tell you my story and today our hearts are joined together."
I do what I do best here under these kind of scenarios. I cry. Peter asked me once: "You cry in front of Tony? Don't you know that all men hate to see women cry?" I laughed at this of course, and said "It's too late for THAT! I am certain Tony does not care!"
We got back to WWC and all the children were at school, except for Sheila and Tiff. Pauline, ever the disciplinarian, put these girls down for a nap. This is what I found when I went to peek in on them:
Pauline and I stood there laughing at this scene. It was just too cute.
These two girls, by the way, have adapted beautifully.
I spent the next hour or so in the office doing paperwork and working out the glitches in our budget. Stating the obvious, Kenyans are a frugal bunch, and do not like wasting money. Neither do I, I told Pauline and Tony. So keep cutting!!
The rains came screaming across the sky just when it was time to go get the little ones from school. Tony looked at me and said "Twende (lets go), we don't want to be stuck here." Anyone who has ever experienced black cotton soil in the rain knows exactly what this means: mud. Serious mud. The kind that needs to be scraped off the shoes every 10 steps, because it's like carrying 5lb weights on each boot. Never mind...these rains are very welcome. It is hot and dry here...this is about to change, and I'm glad I'm here to watch it!
Lots of love from Kenya ~ it was a wonderful day.
Nawapenda wote,
Simmie and the gang
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