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When I look back on my time in Kenya, as I look back on most things, I tend to idealize and say it was the best time of my life. It was also one of the most challenging and frightening times.
In 2006, I heard that Intervarsity was going to Kenya, and I looked up their trip online. There was a picture of a beautiful smiling African child. And that is pretty much what did it for me. Kenya has been ingrained on my heart ever since. I look back on other things which led me to that point, from loving the movie Lion King to doing a country report on Kenya in 7th grade, and wonder if this was not the plan all along. Anyway, I was not able to go with IV, so I began researching mission trips. I found Fadhili online and decided to go with them because it was affordable, and it included a safari, and seemed doable (there was another trip that expressly said you would live without electricity or running water and I decided I could not do that. hahaha)
I did everything last minute, as is my style, from getting 7 shots over the course of 3 weeks to buying my plane ticket the week before I left! Of course, none of this phased Fadhili because although I didn't realize it then, Kenyans have a very different concept on time and deadlines! We had to wire them money, though, and this scared me a lot. My only communication with them had been via email, and I was afraid it might be a scam and didn't know if they were legit.
I packed my bags having no idea what to expect (Africa will be hot, right?) and prepared to leave. If you go by the book, this is not how to do missions by the way! I boarded a plane by myself to go overseas for the very first time! And from there it ceased being me and was all God (it probably was all along). From navigating my way through the London airport to running in to some missionaries also going to Kenya!
I arrived in Nairobi, through customs, to find a huge crowd of people waiting at the airport for passengers to arrive. And there was my name, on a sign being held by some strange African men. It was 11 pm at night there. I got in a car with them and we drove through the slums. I was sure I was going to die and no one would know until 4 weeks later when I had not come home. They took me a to a guest house which was surrounded with barbed wire and essentially left me there. I am not sure how, but I slept. The next morning, birds were chirping and the lady at the guest house made me breakfast and James came and took me to the Fadhili office where I met Shana and some other volunteers who seemed to love Kenya. This helped a lot, though I continued to feel scared for a good week until I began to adjust. I was not tired and hungry at the right times and my host mom fussed over me and told me I would die if I did not eat.
June 16, 2007
I took my first splash bath. I tasted sugar cane for the first time I met some lady who was 109 years old supposedly. We walked through the muddy slums and heard kids chanting "how are you?"
"I don't know what to make of all this. It is sad, yes (referring to the poverty all round). But the people have so much hope and love. I feel like a sponge trying to absorb too much water."
The second time I went to Kenya, I felt much more prepared and confident. I had expectations now of what the trip would be like, whereas the first time I had no idea what to anticipate. I would stay with the same host family, which would be comfortable (I wanted to be comfortable in Kenya, hahaha). I would look around to see if there were long-term opportunities for me there. This time, when I boarded the plane I was not alone and there was a lot of security in that. My Dad was able to come with me, which was amazing. All of our flights went smoothly and we even had window seats! We met a missionary to Africa on the plane.
Withing hours of us landing, we were in a car again, driving through the darkened streets outside Nairobi. Before my Dad had been in Kenya for more than a few hours, we got into a car accident! Thankfully it was very minor and settled with a lot of yelling and the exchange of money (who needs law enforcement?) but still, it was a taste of things to come!
It turned out that we were not able to stay with my host family. James had emailed me a few days before I was supposed to leave indicated this might be the case, but I was praying hard and trusting it would work out. I was frustrated and disappointed to hear this, but it was at this point I let go. I let go of my expectations and of trying to control everything and being in a constant state of worry (for the most part). There were several options of places we could serve, and we chose to stay at an orphanage recently opened by Fadhil. We would stay with the kids, and my Dad could help them do some painting. Oh, and guess what else James told us about the place we were to stay for 2 weeks? It had no electricity or running water!!! God has a sense of humor I am convinced and loves to prove me wrong when I say I can't do something!
June 16, 2009
I took an ice cold shower.
"I feel like I can't even begin to describe the things I've seen today"
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