Kuchoka Nayo

I slept until 8:00am.  This is a miracle, by the way.  This place I am staying at, called 'The Smith', is located just on the edge of Kiserian and Ongata Rongai.  This area is booming - each time I return to Kenya, I notice major differences in infrastructure and construction of new 'malls' here.. Mind you, not the kind of 'malls' you may be envisioning.  A mall here can mean three stores with the same rooftop. I don't like this area at all...not because it is not safe; rather it is LOUD. One of the 'advancements' in the area is the addition of matatu buses.  Matatus are the main source of transportation in and around this country.  The last time I rode one, it caught on fire, and I had to shove my body out the back window. Yes, I know...I can only envision the sight, and know it wasn't pretty.  No more, metosha metosha. Enough was enough. Today, buses have replaced the majority of matatus.  These buses are incredibly invasive, annoying, operate illegally and are LOUD. They install 'illegal' horns, if you can believe this. Through the cement walls, I can hear them bellowing at 5:10am each morning, competing with each other as if whoever is the loudest wins the prize: customers.  I absolutely hate these things, and hate the noise they make even more.  Tony keeps telling me that the honking in the early hours of the morning is 'illegal'.  HA. As IF anyone is going to do something about this.  In any case, these buses embody the kind of progress that irritates the majority of residents in ANY city in the world.  That I slept until 8:00am is a sign of my exhaustion and acclimation to the external noises of the morning.  I miss my tent at Whistling Thorns.  

Joseph picked me up after I gulped a few cups of coffee. I'm alone again...no Kathy. I miss her terribly. We headed to the supermarket, where I purchased  provisions not in the monthly budget...due to the fact that I like and need to keep control over the WWC store.  I want to know, down to the eggs on hand, what is in the store.  What I purchase outside of the budget are items that are not necessarily essential - in other words, we don't need them, but they sure are wonderful to have: toilet bowl tabs, homemade laundry soap, bleach, honey, huge containers of antibiotic soap, peanut butter....these kinds of things.  I practically vacuumed up items, in a rush to get out of Rongai.  It was another insane scene I normally love, but today?  No, not amused.  This means only one thing: it's time to go home.  Kuchoka nayo.  I am very tired.

After dropping everything off at WWC and given a delicious lunch by Penina, I headed to Ereteti to pick up all the children in Grade 3 and below: 10 of them.  10 children in the two door vehicle Tony has.  One of the teachers at Ereteti leaned into the car as I was pulling away: "Auntie Simmie, one day you will be arrested for an overweight vehicle."  We both laughed, knowing this is ridiculous.  Police in the bush?  I don't think so!  The children were all sandwiched in, happy and thrilled that that they didn't need to walk the 4km home.  They entertained me for the next half hour, with their lovely voices, singing as if the world is going to end tomorrow.  It was a beautiful moment, one I will always savor.

We had a completely relaxing afternoon, all of us.  We colored, used beads, did homework and some practiced playing their recorders.  It was a wonderful afternoon...all the children got chocolate, some trying their best to finagle additional ways to hoard the stuff. I reorganized the office and gave out excess crayons, duct tape, stickers, story books and coloring books.  We all spent at least an hour reviewing all my videos from Saturday's Showcase.  These kids love to watch themselves on the camera, a constant source of amusement for me.

Tomorrow is my last day.  I will spend it with Tony, going over books and walking the property to assess what needs to be done next. One of our water tanks has a hole in it which practically gave me cardiac arrest this afternoon. We will be replacing this tomorrow.  It is not unusual for these things to wear as they do. The environment here is hard on absolutely everything.  As time allows, we will build permanent tanks.

It was so nice to relax today, and spend a lot of one on one time with the children.  They are so gracious - each of them fully understands what the past three weeks have meant to WWC and have not uttered a word about my  absence.  These children simply amaze me.  I love them all dearly.

                   

                                     Much love from Kenya tonight.

                                               Nawapenda wote,

                                              Simmie and Sheila