Bre Dougherty

2 months!

2010-04-05T22:36:00.001-07:00

I was just thinking about Kenya today...well, everyday, but especially today. I am so excited to return in just two months! I've been praying for our summer team, that God would create a sense of community and unity amongst us, and he would use me in whatever way he wants. I've been praying for a servants heart and that I would be prepared for the 8 weeks we'll spend there.

Last day at Oasis...

2009-11-13T10:42:00.002-08:00

Today was my last day teaching at Oasis of Hope. I was just telling Allison that I'm so so happy that I ended up helping Leyla teach everyday. It really helped make up a huge part of my experience here. I wasn't expecting to do that everyday, but I'm so glad that's where God put me. I'm having trouble putting my thoughts into words tonight. I've written about ten sentences...only to erase each one because it didn't come out the way I wanted it to. I am so grateful for my class, knowing their faces, learning their names, and spending 6 consistent weeks with them. Since I'm short on words tonight, I've just decided to post a lot of photos...

Joel wearing Jordan's glasses

Cleophas- I know I already posted this picture...but

tell me you don't want to see this outfit again?

The next 3 pics are hairstyles that I have been given here...

Amlango doing my hair

Tonight...at the girls house...

Amlango doing my hair again, Janet on the right

Peter and sister Lucy

Tonight was SO great! We had dinner at the girl's house. There were 28 of us in total! Rebecca made chipati, rice, green grams, meat and potatoes. She was so laid back about

preparing dinner for us all. Allison and I were talking tonight about how selfless

and greatRebecca is...she's wonderful!

Allison & Alfayo (nicknamed "King of Shimo" by the last Saddleback team)

Me and Dorcas being weird

Eso and me

Me carrying Jennifer with Isaiah on my left

Yesterday we went to the boys house. The 8th graders just finished taking their KCPE test and we celebrated with dancing and sodas and a lot of laughter :)

Jose, Edwin, Pato (in the back), Moses, Martin and Steward in front of him, Shaban (with just his head & shins showing, and Stone being held by them all...

Shaban, Moses and Allison

Me and Moses hanging upside-down

Me and Moses with our new glasses

Oasis pictures...

Emanuel, Sarah, Me and Dan with his face 1/2 cut off

Sarah, David, Kevin, and Emanuel (taken in my class)

Today was my last day teaching at Oasis and I wanted to do something different

and fun. I decided to have the class use watercolors because Leyla said most

of them have probably never used them before. It was a success!

Right: Bevin, Sarah, David, Dan, Emanuel. Left: Brian, Peter, David, and Dan

Here are the 5 siblings who I've blogged about many times...Pato, Ajix, Amlango, Irene and Lucy...they also have 2 younger siblings...Erica and Peter

Art project from my class

My class (w/their finished water-colored projects)

Oasis of Hope kids outside for the flag ceremony before class

Sisters -Alodi and Dorcas

Last Sunday at the girl's house...

Amlango doing dishes

Rebecca taught me how to use a non-electric sewing machine at the girl's house last Sunday. You know, the kind where you have to use both of your feet for the petal. I sewed this apron all on my own! I've been so proud of it, I even dreamt that I was wearing it to sleep last week.

Nancy, me, Lucy, Jordan and Allison dancing/singing to "All the Single Ladies"

Guess what I saw today?

2009-11-09T10:41:00.000-08:00

At 3:00 today I saw a Black Mamba outside the boys house (House 2)!

Of all the African snakes the Black Mamba is the most feared and is known for being aggressive when agitated or confronted and will strike with deadly precision. A single bite can have enough venom to kill anywhere from 20-40 grown men. They tend to become extremely aggressive and will readily attack, especially if they can not escape. Many snake experts have cited the black mamba as the world's most aggressive snake, being actively aggressive and attacking without provocation. If confronted by a large threat, such as a human, the Black Mamba will aggressively defend its territory. When in the striking position, the mamba flattens its neck, hisses very loudly and displays its inky black mouth and deadly fangs. It can rear up around one-third of its body from the ground which puts it at about four feet high. When warding off a threat, the black mamba delivers multiple strikes, injecting large amounts of potent neuro- and cardiotoxin with each strike, often landing bites on the body or head, unlike other snakes. The average length of a specimen varies between 2 to 2.5 metres but an exceptional case was recorded of 4.5 meters.

P.S. It was already dead.

November 8

2009-11-08T03:21:00.000-08:00

On Friday night we went over to the boy's house (House 3) and just hung out. Allison and I helped Anthony prepare dinner while the boys played Uno, danced and took a ton of pictures in their new sunglasses and hat:) It's been so great just going over to their home and spending time with them.

House 3 pics...

Allison giving Ovi a "zerbert" (Her word not mine)

Isaiah and me

Allison & I. This is my first time firing chipati. I burnt my ankle from hot

oil splattering, my fingertips were super sore by the end of the night, but it

all helped in contributing to my sense of accomplishment

Here is Juliet (from Rwanda & who also lives on our compound), Anthony

(who watches over the Boys at House 3) and Dan our favorite taxi driver

Kamau

Isaiah

Wiki

Ovi

Jon

On Friday morning/afternoon we went with all the Oasis kids to "The Show." "The Show" is sort of like the OC Fair, but with only 3 rides, A TON of agriculture, and a camel ride instead of an elephant.

Pics from "The Show"

Jordan, Allison and me

Joel & Collins (Collins is one of the boys in class)

Etau and Joel (I think the tallest & shortest of Oasis)

Emanuel & Kamua

Sisters-Jennifer & Ester

Sarah, me, and Rael (Sarah is also in my class...I just love her)

Sisters-Ajix and Lucy

Jennifer in front, Simon on the left, Wendy, Joanne, and Celine (and Ellie behind her)

Best agriculture at the show

Me and Sarah

The following pics are misc. that I just want to share...

Lucy and Ester

Me & Steward (holding a stick that Jeffery gave me & I've carried in my backpack for the past 3 weeks...the stick has gone missing & I joking told the boys that there is a $ reward if its found)

This is the road we walk down everyday to and from Oasis...isn't it just so beautiful? Allison took this pic while Jordan and I are racing some kids from Oasis down the street

Clockwise-Me, Cleophas (our night guard...who is SO happy & cheery all the time), Jordan, Emanuel, Hannah and Juliet. Here we are waiting for Dan to pick us up. It's raining outside so 7 of us (Allison is taking the pic) all crammed in this little guard house...about 3 ft x 3 ft in size. At one point, I rapped Fergie while everyone danced. Right now there is this dance club at "The Show" called "Omega 1" (the music is so loud the entire town can hear it and it goes on till about 6 am! ) Allison called our dance party "Omega 2!"

Allison, me and Cleophas

Cleophas in my favorite outfit of his! I just laughed out loud

for like the tenth time looking at this picture

Below are some pics of the 7 boys who attend & sleep at Oasis of Hope. The center just bought them little mattresses this past week. We had dinner with them on Thursday night at Oasis. That night really affected me. We walked into the classroom I teach in everyday to see 7 beds set up. I was so stunned. I knew they stayed at Oasis but I guess I didn't really think through the reality of it. And to think, just 2 days prior they were sleeping right on the concrete floor really just made me so sad. But the boys are wonderful and funny and we had a great time! They gave Jordan, Allison and me nicknames. Jordan is Moses, Allison is the virgin Mary, and I am Princess (hmm...not sure why they have Biblical names and I don't...) Jeffery has called me Princess all week...you are more than welcome to do the same...haha...I just made myself laugh out loud again.

Pics of Oasis of Hope Boys...

The boys getting their mattresses for the first time

Michael carrying his new mattress and me. Michael is also in my class.

Here is a pic of our dinner (french fries and chicken) and sodas taken in my classroom.

P.I.G. (Stands for Peter is Great), Emanuel, Etau, and Ero

Me, Michael, and Paul

Charles, Jackson, and Emanuel

On Thursday we went to a prayer meeting at Kitale Forest for the 8th grade boys who will soon be taking their KCPE test. It was so fun because we were able to watch the boys from House 2 perform a dance! Then we had lunch with the 8th grade class. I said I felt like a proud mother with how many pictures I was taking of the boys that afternoon.

I know this is tiny, BUT I had to include this pic of me and the entire

graduating 8th grade class at Kitale Forest.

Allison, Steward, and me

Here are the boys dancing...So funny...Moses started teaching me the dance last week...I'm terrible at it, but it consisted of a lot of laughing...so it was worth it

Okay...so these two boys (complete strangers) came up to me (Princess) at Kitale Forest and asked to take a picture with me. I felt famous and awesome for a brief moment!

Paul, Jose, Pato, Steward, me, and Moses

Friday-Monday

2009-11-03T04:29:00.000-08:00

Friday: Discover to Recover, TI and Ugali

On Friday we visited Discover to Recover again. (Discover to Recover is a center where kids are either effected or affected with HIV/Aids...There is also a school attached for kids whose parents can't afford school) I met this really sweet girl named Nancy who made me a ring out of beads. She was 14 and spoke English really well. After talking to her for maybe 5 minutes, she proudly showed me her bedroom that she shares with 3 other girls, one of which she shares a twin bed with. It was really interesting to hear Nancy’s take on her friends that are infected with HIV. She personally isn’t infected, and she answered a lot of my questions. An eight-year-old named Derek who is HIV positive hung out with us in Nancy’s room. He was so sweet. I showed him pictures of my family and friends and a picture of me when I was about five-years-old. He was so stoked on it and thought it was so funny to see a picture of me closer to his age. He kept confirming that it was actually me. Since he was taking medicine regularly he looked healthy and I would have never known he was infected if Nancy didn’t tell me. I know I must have spent time with children here who have HIV but this was my first experience of knowing for sure.

Here is Allison blowing bubbles for the children at Discover to Recover

Here is a picture of Benja and Allison at Discover to Recover...how cute is he? Allison says, "He's like this rad, old fat man as a kid!"

Here are some more kids from Discover to Recover

Here is Me (and my ring), Nancy (ring maker), and Christine at Discover to Recover.

Later that day we went to another compound called TI (Transformed International) for a BBQ. TI is a Christian organization where American’s and Canadians (mostly) stay for some time and work on various projects in Kitale. It was so funny to be surrounded by a ton of white people. I was laughing to myself at the fact that it felt weird at first. It was a lot of fun though, and we got some good laughs out of me rapping “Gangsters Paradise” and Allison trying to “jump” and touch the ceiling. (Side note: If you haven’t seen Allison try to jump, you have to ask her!)

After returning from the TI compound I had my first taste of Ugali (I’m not sure why I feel the need to capitalize all the new foods I try). Ayub calls it “African Cake” (very misleading). It tastes like air. Not good or bad. But he also made this delicious dish with kale. I just enjoyed hanging out with him and trying a new food I’ve heard about for 4 weeks.

Saturday: Halloween

In the afternoon we attended a Bible study that is held at Oasis for some of the older kids. I actually led this weekend and I talked about Ephesians 3:20, "With God's power working in us, God can do much, much more than anything we can ask or imagine," something I've been thinking about a lot since I've been here. Besides that, Halloween pretty much came and went like any other day here. It’s so funny how I saw nothing even remotely “Halloween-ish.” I haven’t even seen a pumpkin. Allison and I watch "Donnie Darko" which has a scene that takes place on Halloween, so that sort of counts.

Sunday: Jordan’s Birthday!

On Sunday Jordan turned 22! It was a fun day! We actually visited this deformed animal conservancy. It’s pretty much exactly like it sounds. There are 3 and even 2-legged goats and sheep. But this was the most shocking of all! A bull with 4 horns and two faces merged into one. Totally creepy! Sorry bull.

Then we took a boat ride in this little lagoon. Emanuel (they guy next to me) is from Rwanda, and someone made a joke a couple weeks ago that he’s my boyfriend, so everyone told him to put his arm around me for our” first boat ride.” He just recently starting learning English so he actually sits in Leyla and my class at Oasis.

Also at the conservancy: Emanuel and my first see-saw ride-haha.

Monday: Oasis of Hope and Jeffery and Olivia's

Yesterday at Oasis I thought it would be fun to do a project with popsicle sticks. Jordan and I gave each student 10 popsicle sticks and some glue. We told them they can make anything that they wanted and to be as creative as they want. After about 5 minutes of the students looking at their sticks with blank stares, Jordan finally made a sample “house.” Then they were all about it, and it was really fun to see them jump in and get really excited about it.

Here is the class I teach with Leyla. This is where I go Monday-Friday.

This is me with Rose on my right shoulder, Sarah in front of her and

Here are the kids working on the popsicle stick project

In the front of this pic is Emanuel. He is so bright. He knows the answer to almost every question I ask in English or Math. He's has such a sweet personality too.

This is Joanne. I love calling on her to write on the chalkboard because she is so very tiny that she has to stretch to reach even the bottom of the board. It's so cute to watch, and sometimes I like to call on her just because it's so cute! She is Centrine's (from the girl's house) sister.

This is Elizabeth...she's so sweet! Last week when we were playing "Heads up 7up" Jordan came into play with the class. He wanted to guess that Elizabeth touched his thumb but he was unsure of her name so he asked me. Elizabeth saw me whisper her name to Jordan and she thought I was cheating by telling him who touched his thumb! I felt so bad because with the language barrier there was no way to explain that we weren't cheating!

Last night we had dinner at Jeffery and his wife Olivia's. She is such a great cook! She made chicken in curry and chicken in coconut milk, chipati, rice, green grams, and this really really spicy dish (carrots and peppers). It was really fun to hang all together. We watched Madagascar and Juno, ate SO much food, and just lounged. I was just telling Allison yesterday I can't believe I've only known Jeffery for a month. I feel like I've known him for years. He just has a very warm and welcoming personality.

Making up for lost time...

2009-10-28T09:27:00.000-07:00

October 28-Happy Birthday Molly StoeckerJ

Sooo…It’s a quarter to 8pm here, and our Internet is finally up and running again. It’s been down for about ten days, so, sorry for the lack of blogging. I'm really excited to fill you in..I have so much to share!

I’m having a wonderful time here and the past 10 days have been great! I will share some of my favorite memories…

Oasis of Hope

I’ve continued helping Leyla teach at Oasis. It’s been fun (and a little challenging) trying to come up with new ideas. Today we played “Heads up 7up” for fun. I kept laughing because there would be 7 kids standing in front of the class and 6 or 8 kids would stand claiming their thumbs were touched…always one less or one more than the kids standing in front of the class. They eventually got it, and the greatest thing about my participating with them is that I was picked every time. On Monday, Leyla and I also tried this sort of pictionary-like game with English words. They all seemed to get involved...it was just great!

Allison’s Birthday celebrations:

Allison turned 27 this past weekend on the 24^th. We celebrated by going to the “Girl’s House” on Friday and some of the younger boys from "House 1" joined us. Then, “House 2” on Saturday, and out for some great food on Sunday at a restaurant called Pinewood.

The “Girl’s House” was so fun! We ate chipati, green grams (lentils), and rice and drank soda from the bottle (from the bottle-which I love about Kenya). Then after dinner we passed out brownies that Allison had made earlier (which the kids loved). We then danced for an hour with no music. Well, we created our own music, which was so fun. Beat-boxing, spoons drumming on the table, etc etc. I taught a bunch of kids the dance moves to the Macarena (and now I’m asked everyday, literally, to do the Macarena someone,) However, since I don’t know any words to the song (does it even have any words…I think there are two versions, one with words and one without) I just make sounds until I get to: “HEY MACARENA!”

Saturday at “House 2” consisted of Chipati, dancing, and Uno playing. Spending time with these boys has been one of my favorite things about Kitale. They all have unique stories to how they ended up at Oasis of Hope and in their home. They have such high aspirations (judge, lawyer, newscaster, pastor…to name a few) it’s encouraging to me personally.

Sunday we went to Pinewood for dinner. Pinewood is a Chinese/Indian/former dance club restaurant, ha! The food was delicious. I ordered this great soda called Alvaro and it tasted like pineapple gummy bears (Shane-you would have loved it!)

Dinner at Pinewood: Allison, Jeffery, me, Olivia (Jeffery's wife) holding Charlotte (their daughter), Jordan, Leyla, Emanuel, and Dan (our taxi driver...who we see almost everyday...so we are well acquainted)
Olivia, me, Allison, Charlotte, and Leyla

Girl's House: We counted 22 of us that night...all eating and hanging in one room
This is me painting Jon's nails (yes, Jon). I brought nail polish over to the Girl's house and I didn't know it would be such a hit with everyone...the boys and girls.
Here is Wiki, Kamau, me, and Eso
Me and Allison dancing and singing
Me holding Kamau
Me hugging Lucy (Lucy in her same dress that I love & want one of my own)

Oct 19: The Boys House

Allison and I went over to house two and hung out (House two is the house we have been going to on Monday and Wednesday nights to help tutor in math). It was so fun to spend time in an informal setting with no agenda. Allison, Evans, Moses, Justice, Martin and I played Uno for hours, drank soda (again-from the bottle) and ate this really great pastry called Mandazi. It was fun spending time with these boys and laughing with them and totally getting competitive in trying to beat them in Uno. Moses was sitting next to me and every time he had a card that would make me draw 2 or draw 4 he would set it down on the table face down and make some comment about having a gift of present for me and he would make me turn it over. I’m smiling writing this but I don’t know if this will be funny to anyone except Allison and myself.

House Two:

Justus, Steward, Martin, Stone, Allison, Moses, me, and Jose eating dinner together

Allison, Pato (brother of Lucy, Ajix, Amlango) and me

Tree planting:

Last week (Oct 20) was so fun! We were invited to attend a tree planting ceremony at the Kitale Club where 5,000 new trees were being planted. I kept joking around asking if I would be able to plant some trees on my own and lo (it’s not low, Allison and I looked it up) and behold I planted about ten trees! I mean the holes were already dug and all I had to do was place the tree in the hold and put some soil around it, but I feel solely responsible for ten new trees in Kitale. Haha.

5 pics of me planting trees (about 4 pics too many)

Jordan, me and Allison planting our first tree

Me...planting my very own tree
Little baby tree...

Me planting a tree by myself...yepppp, told you I was proud

I know this is a bad pic because my hand is in the way, but I had to add it because here I'm pictured with these men: one of which is a pastor, the other a bishop, the third, I'm not sure. I've never met any of these men but the man taking the photo insisted I get in the photo with them. I couldn't stop laughing.

Today in Shimo:

This afternoon we visited 12 homes in a nearby slum called Shimo. All the homes we visited were homes where children from Oasis live. We’ve only been home for a little over an hour and to be completely honest the afternoon is still sinking in. It was great to go to these children’s homes and meet their mom, dad, aunt, or grandmother. We brought each family a blanket, flour, bars of soap, and some candy for the children. The crazy thing about this was just to see how poor some of these children's families really are. But regardless, it was a great experience and I enjoyed going.

It was SO funny. When we first got out of the car in Shimo there was a group of kids surrounding us saying "Muzungu" (white person). Jeffery told me it's the first time some of these kids have seen a white person. The kids looked excited, most were laughing and a few looked scared. I put my hand out to shake one of the girl's hand who looked scared, and she slowly crept up to me, touched my hand, and then ran as fast as she could. I laughed for a minute straight...I've never thought of myself as scary!

Shimo...I just had to add this because it's so beautiful

We crossed this bridge...

Back: Jordan, Leyla, Jeffery, girls' mom holding baby Chris, me, Allison,

Front: Jennifer, Ester, Jon, and Celinah

Jennifer, Ester, and Celinah all go to Oasis and they all have great personalities!
Jeffery, me, Lucy (holding her baby brother Peter), Leyla, Lucy's mom with Erica hugging her leg, Allison, and Jordan. Lucy, who I've mentioned many times, is the cutest little thing. She also goes to Oasis everyday. She is still wearing her infamous dress, but it just is covered with a little jacket in this pic.

Here is little baby Peter (Lucy's younger brother)...isn't he just the cutest little guy?

Allison, me, Brenda, Jordan and Nancy. Nancy and Brenda are sisters who also attend Oasis. Brenda is in Leyla and my class.

More pics of the compound we are staying on:
This is right outside our compound...

These are some animals from our compound...they don't look like it, but they're super loud

And finally...this is what I see when I look out our living

room window...isn't it gorgeous?

Love you all!

A little somethin'-somethin'

2009-10-19T10:41:00.000-07:00

Pokot Travel Health Clinic

On Thursday we accompanied Sister Freda and her husband Richard on a travel health clinic. It was a very interesting (to say the least) 2-hour drive with a car filled with ten people on “roads” that barely had a path cleared. When we arrived, we were greeted by a group of 60 or so people dressed in bright clothes singing songs (the only word I understood was Jesus). This was probably my greatest moment of culture shock-I felt like I was in a completely different world. As I looked around in all directions, all I could see were some shrubs, trees and a few huts and mud houses in the distance. Richard told me that we were the first white people some of these people have ever seen. They all surrounded a little church waiting to seek medical attention. We quickly began unloading the medical supplies and setting up inside. Sister Freda and her staff had quite the methodical system. Ten or so people would come in and state what was bothering them. Then they would be written prescriptions that Allison and I would fill into little bottles for them to take home. My afternoon consisted of pouring medicine into little bottles and writing the name of the medicine and instructions on labels. Some children were immunized and some people were even tested for HIV. At one point we ran out of little bottles to put the medicine in, and not wanting to disappoint anyone, Sister Freda and her staff had us wash out the water and soda bottles we used for lunch and had them filled with medicine. The day flew by and was probably one of my favorite days here. It was such a cool experience to witness and take part in. Sister Freda visits this community twice a month because their closest hospital is about a 3 hour walk. The church gave us a rooster to show their appreciation for the clinic and we had to drive home with the rooster (still alive) under our seats (Ah!-Allison and I were officially creeped out)

This is what it looked like in all directions around

the church....
Here is the small church where the clinic was held with patients waiting outside... Here's the medicine we used all afternoon...
Some Pokot women and their children waiting to be treated...
Me, Allison, and Richard inside the clinic...
Allison and I playing pharmacist...
Sister Freda checking the heartbeat of a Pokot child...

Pictures!

2009-10-11T10:16:00.000-07:00

This is me, Kevin, and Shaban at Purpose Driven Academy
Here is David laying on my lap at "House 3" The first day I met David, I played this game where I shook his hand way too long and wouldn't let go...He now does it every time I see him:)
This is a pic of me and a little girl named Irene

How adorable is she? She is sister's with Lucy Ajix, and Amlango from the other pics
Here is a pic of the house we stay in...I figured I'd add it because I always want to know where someone is staying exactly...So, if you're anything like me-here you go:)
Okay, here is me cracking up riding a Piki-piki (or piggy-piggy as I've called it all week) That's Elisha driving, me in the middle, and Allison behind me. I've only rode on it twice and I've laughed hysterically both times...it's a great mixture of fun and tad scary.

Oasis of Hope pics

2009-10-11T10:02:00.000-07:00

This is Leyla outside at Oasis
This is the front of Oasis
Another view of the front
This is the classroom at Oasis
Outside at Oasis-beautiful!

Thursday/Friday/Saturday/Sunday

2009-10-11T09:37:00.000-07:00

My initial goal was to update my blog daily but clearly this idea hasn’t been all that successful. So I have opted to give some highlights…

I’m settling in here more each day and I’m thankful that this isn’t just a two-week trip. I’ve just started to get comfortable here and I couldn’t imagine having to leave in 2 days. I was able to help Leyla teach at Oasis again on Friday. We reviewed what we taught them earlier this week and I was pleasantly surprised that the class seemed to remember most of it. (Yay!) Tomorrow, Leyla and I plan to teach them body parts…I’m thinking…”Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes…eyes and ears and mouth and nose…” haha…

On Friday night we went to “House 3.” House three consists of some younger boys who also used to attend school at Oasis but are also now at public school. A really sweet man named Anthony watches over them. Allison and I helped make Chipati. I mentioned before that Chipati is sort of like this homemade tortilla but it’s much thicker, like pita bread almost. I can eat two (max!) because they’re so filling! After dinner the boys danced for us...so fun! I laughed so hard I had tears streaming down my face! The dancing was great and well choreographed, but Kamau, the youngest of the group (5-years-old) could not stay in sync with the rest of them…So instead, he decided to do this belly rub thing and grab his belly (that was sticking out so far because he had something like 4 Chipati and 10 cookies!). My story doesn’t do it any justice but I have a video of it I will definitely share with anyone who asks me when I’m back!

Kamau above in blue with his big belly...and David next to him in Orange (I laugh just looking at this picture!)

Yesterday, we went to Purpose Driven Academy. I really enjoyed it because we were able to talk with some older kids (who all speak English well). I met this teenager named Kevin. Kevin is going to take the KCPE test this year because he is in 8^th grade, and it’s a really big deal in Kenya. The test significantly affects the direction of a child’s future depending on how they score. It would be sort of like colleges looking at only our SAT scores, not our grades, but instead of college, it determines what high school they go to (this is the same test I mentioned in my support letters). Kevin asked me to wish success over him. Not really understanding what he meant, I questioned him further. Then he explained to me that it is tradition for friends/family to write cards to wish an 8^th grader success on their test. I thought it was so cute that he wanted a letter from me only having known me for less than an hour. So Allison, Jordan and I are going to give him a card, and I also think some of the children at Oasis are going to help make cards as well.

Today we went to Oasis church. It was so great! The children led it this week so there was a lot of dancing and singing. I loved the energy at the church and it’s really great to be able to see the kids and know their names (big contrast from church last week having only been in Kitale for 2 days). Today we played “Down by the banks” (Sorry if you’re over 40 and don’t know what that isJ) but we sang their Swahili version and the kids laughed at me trying to learn the lyrics.

Oh, and also today...I did a load of laundry without using a washing machine for the first time in my life! It was actually sort of fun…

You are now officially caught up…Thanks for reading and for your support!

Wednesday

2009-10-11T09:14:00.000-07:00

Today we woke up and headed over to Oasis again. We helped wash the kids feet, and played with the kids. I wasn’t able to teach English today (but hopefully tomorrow). After Oasis we headed into town to meet Allison’s friends, Ben and Christine. We had lunch with them and then they took us to the secondary school they run called Gilgal. Gilgal is a school where students attend (as well as board) and the students pay whatever they can.

The students at Gilgal asked us a ton of questions. It was so funny because they were sophisticated questions like, “What has President Obama done to improve your economy?” “What is the life expectancy in America?” and “How does the climate and environment in America compare to that in Kenya?” Umm...hmmm??? These kids are incredibly smart, and spoke beautiful English.

Tomorrow we will have been in Kitale for one week. It feels longer. One of my favorite things thus far is how warm and comfortable the culture is here. We receive such a warm welcome everywhere we go. Total strangers smile at us and say “Habati?” (How are you?) all the time.

Today as we were driving home from Gilgal our taxi broke down. We had to get out while we waited for another one and literally 15-20 little kids surrounded us saying, “How are you?” A lot of the kids were touching my arms and hands. It’s weird to get attention solely based on my skin color for the first time in my life. They were all smiles and I enjoyed trying to make them laugh.

This is a picture of all the students at Gilgal listening to us answer their questions...

Here's me attempting to answer their question...I was honestly self-conscious that they would notice my grammatical errors! Smart kids!

Yesterday..continued...

2009-10-08T07:39:00.000-07:00

Continuing…Yesterday was so great! After helping Leyla teach English we went outside and played with the kids. I met a boy named Peter who was about 4-years-old. His skin was really dry and cracking so Leyla suggested we wash his face and put oil on it. I went looking for Patrick (who was supposed to give me oil) and accidently opened a storage room door. Out ran a dog and a little baby puppy. Of course, I went for the puppy. I swooped up the little guy and then I heard screams of fear & laughter as the dog ran through the yard. The kids were going crazy! It was quite the event. After all the craze, I was able to wash Peter’s face and rub oil on it. I know it sounds like a very simple thing, but it was so precious. He just sat there with a cute little smile on his face while I did it. He found me today and I sat and held him for a while. I’ll have to get a picture of him to show you.

Last night, we went to “The Boy’s House,” to help tutor them in math. I helped them make Chipati for a little while and then the power went out, so we hung out in the kitchen using candlelight. The boys all used to attend Oasis but are now in either 7^th or 8^th grade at public school. A man named Robert looks over them. It’s been really great getting to know the boys and hearing some of their stories. They are a funny group with a lot of potential…I’m looking forward to getting to know them better.

PICS from the BOYs HOUSE

(So far everyone has guessed that I'm either 16 or 17 years old.) Stone thought I was "cheating him" when I told him I was 22 last night:)

Stone and myself cooking in the kitchen.
Allison, Martin, Stone, Justice and myself with Moses in the background with the hat.

More pics

2009-10-07T23:25:00.000-07:00

This is me at Discover to Recover...I let a boy named Peter play with my camera and he took this photo.
This is Lucy, Amlango's sister, from the previous picture. She's been wearing this same adorable dress all week. Lucy and her friend, Ester, have been carrying each other over their shoulders all week for fun, and today Ester tried putting me over her shoulder:)
Here is a pic of me, Richard (Freda's husband) and Allison at the Health Clinic. Richard told us he tries to walk the property (over an hour walk) every day...incredible.
Here is Amlango, Ajix, Alice, and Dorcas...making funny faces. These are the girls I met at the "girls house" our first night here.
I just had to include a picture of the property surrounding Sister Freda's clinic. It was incredibly beautiful.

Habari-How are you?

2009-10-07T23:20:00.000-07:00

I woke up today in the best mood! I feel so much better today (cold wise) than I’ve felt all week, and I’m excited to start the day. We are just about to leave to head out to Oasis but I figured I’d try and post a few things. Today I read Psalm 143:10 “Teach me to do what you want, because you are my God. Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground.” I love this verse, and this is my prayer for my time here in Kitale.

Two days ago we went to Sister Freda and Richard Robinson’s health clinic. We walked around their beautiful property and then shared lunch with them. It was great to meet them because I have heard so many wonderful things about them for years. Sister Freda gave me some medicine because I was feeling pretty sick that day…but thankfully it worked☺

On our walk, I carried an adorable little girl, Dot. Dot is 5 years old but she was so malnourished as a baby that her growth was stunted. She is oh-so-cute!

After lunch it started pouring. It may have been the hardest downpour I’ve ever witnessed. It was beautiful.

Yesterday, we headed over to Oasis. I was able to help Leyla teach again (yay!...I loved it). I taught the days of the week, which maybe half the class already knew. I also made the mistake of trying to teach the children the different seasons. But, I soon learned that they don’t acknowledge 4 seasons like the U.S. does; they only have the dry season and rainy season. My bad! It’s difficult because the class seems to be at all different levels. But I’m looking forward to figuring out new techniques that are most effective.

Leyla lives in the other house on the compound with us. Leyla is Jeffery’s (from Oasis of Hope) sister-in-law. We’ve been eating dinner and spending a lot of time with her and Emanuel (who also lives in the other house on the compound). Emanuel is from Rwanda and is trying to learn English so he sits in on Leyla’s English class.

Okay we are leaving now…more to come later!

2009-10-05T23:27:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of Janet holding a baby named Verity...every time I even looked at Verity she would burst into tears! AH! Sorry! (Sorry = Pole, but pronounced Polley)

Here we go!

2009-10-05T23:00:00.000-07:00

Here is pic of Janet holding Verity, Sarah, Kamau (with the awesome fighting pose in front) Sarah behind him, Alice holding the cups to her face, Ajix, Amlango, David and myself. Janet, Sarah, Alice and Janet are all from the girls house that I mention below. I promise to upload more pics, it just took forever...

We are here! Yay! I’m so excited to be here…the past five days have been SO great (except for my tiny-baby cold). I’m so sorry it’s taken me almost a week to update everyone…it’s been part procrastination part Internet problems…but mainly just procrastination. So much has happened in the past 5 days and I honestly don’t even know where to begin….but here it goes. Sorry if this blog sounds a little mechanical, I’ll get better at this whole blogging nonsense I’m sure (no disrespect to fellow bloggers).

First off, we made it here safe and sound. The traveling was actually not that bad…I met some nice people on the plane (a nun…actually my first time talking to a nun) and I was able to sleep some.

We arrived in Nairobi on October 1st and spent the night there. The next morning we took a 1-hour flight to Kitale, getting us here in the late morning. The moment I got off the plane I noticed that everything around was lush and green and the weather was lovely (not too hot or cold). The air had a sweet smell…Jordan thought it smelled like Nutella (just to give you a mental picture). We drove the short distance from the airstrip to Pastor Steve’s compound (absolutely beautiful…pictures to come later), quickly put our bags down and walked to Oasis of Hope*

When we arrived at Oasis, Jeffery**warmly welcomed us. (Karibu =Welcome…I’ve been working on reinforcing the 5 Swahili words I know). We poked our heads into 4 different classrooms and I saw a sea of adorable faces smiling at us. They were beyond excited to see Allison and to greet Jordan and I as well. On their break we played games with the children. It amazed me how quick the children took to total strangers. Within minutes I had several girls around me holding my hand and walking me around the center.

Later that night we headed over to what’s called “The girls’ house.” The girls’ house is where 10 girls who used to go to Oasis of Hope, but are now enrolled at public school, live. They all live with a sweet woman named Rebecca who watches over and cares for them. They cooked us potatos, lentils and Chapati (which I’ve been calling Chabati all week)…imagine a delicious homemade flour tortilla-ish thing.

That’s just day 1…I’m going to have to learn how to not be so specific.

I’m getting quite tired so I’m going to have to cut this short, but let me tell you the highlights of the past 3 days.

I’ve loved loved loved getting to know the children at Oasis. It’s only been 3 days but learning names and faces and little of their stories has been incredible. A lot of time is spent just loving on them-giving them hugs, playing games with them and today I was actually able to help teach an English class which I absolutely LOVED. They were so attentive and eager to learn and I really hope I’m able teach often.

We also went to a center call Discover to Recover today. Discover to Recover is a center where many children are either infected with HIV or have parents who are or were infected and have passed away. I totally got choked up there for my first time in Kitale. As soon as we entered, I was blown away at how many children wanted to be held and to be hugged. I don’t know any of their specific stories but my heart broke a little today in seeing the need for physical touch (for lack of better words). These kids are so wonderful and I’m so happy I’m here.

I have left out so many details about so many other great people I’ve met*** and all the wonderful things God has begun to do in my heart. Jordan, Allison and I keep praying for God’s will to be done and that we would serve God in which ever way He desires. I’m loving being here already. Thanks for your prayers…I can feel them!

Much much more to come later, but I’m off to bed for now:)
(Hi Angela…I love you and miss you!)

*Oasis of Hope is a drop in center for street kids. The majority of the children who are at the center attend Monday thru Friday from about 9 am to sometime after lunch and return to life on the streets at night

**Jeffery is the co-founder of Oasis of Hope, and I’m sure I’ll be mentioning him many times

***Dan, Leyla, Ayub, Emanuel…just to name a few…but I won’t do them the injustice of blogging when I’m exhausted...they deserve better.

My first offical post!

2009-09-23T18:57:00.000-07:00

Last night Allison, Jordan and I all met with Pastor Steve Rutenbar to discuss final preparations for our trip. As many of you already know, our trip has been shortened to 6 weeks, and I officially leave 1 week from today!

Time has gone by SO quickly, and I can't believe I'm leaving in 7 days! Reality is just now starting to sink in. Last night Pastor Steve said something that really resonated with me. He told us to remember that we are going to Kenya “to serve, not to solve." He shared that our job is not to fix problems or find a solution to the many heartbreaking situations that cross our path; but rather, to go with an attitude of servanthood.

We also talked about a disfigured animal sanctuary in Kenya (or something like that) with animals that have 3 eyes and 5 legs and some other crazy stuff, needless to say, we added this to our to-do list!

So, I’m super new at this whole “blog thing” so I’ll keep it short and sweet for now. But if you come across this, can you please pray for Jordan, Allison and I. Specifically, that we would unite and stay focused on where the Holy Spirit is guiding us, that God’s will would be done and not our own, that we would stay physically as well as spiritually healthy, and that I wouldn’t be homesick.

Thanks for all your love, support, encouragement and prayers!

Oasis of Hope

2009-06-02T10:46:00.000-07:00

Oasis of Hope

http://web.mac.com/oasisofhope/Oasis_of_Hope_Kenya/Welcome_____.html