I will add pictures soon. Here is just a little update. Thanks Vonessa and Amy for your encouragement to update. Hopefully we can be more consistant now that we have realiable internet service.
I don’t even know where to begin. It has been a little over a month since we have had a chance to update our blog. Our last update was of our time in Machakos. Since then we have been in Kijabe for about 2 weeks and then we traveled to Cheptebo for 2 weeks and we finally arrived back in Kijabe late on Friday, August 22nd. The first 2 weeks in Kijabe were spent in partly in language learning classes and the remaining time in a home stay with a Kenyan family. The language course was called LAMP which stands for Language Acquisition Made Practical. It was a good course and it taught us how to learn a language. Baxter, Philip and I participated in the course. Most every day we went down to the dukas (small shops) to meet people and practice some words we had learned. We were assigned a language helper who would practice a few phases with us and then we would head off to the dukas. The emphasis of the course is developing relationships which in turn will allow you to learn the language more easily. If you know Kiswahili please don’t judge the spelling of the following phase. One phase that we were learning was “Ninga penda, kunzi funda Kiswahili” which means “I would love to learn Kiswahili”. I kept saying “Ninga punda” instead of “Ninga penda”. Finally my language helper said “Don’t say that again!” I was saying “I would donkey”. Punda and penda are so close but mean entirely different things. The emphasis of the course is developing relationships which in turn will allow you to learn the language more easily. We have a long way to go but we are enjoying it!
Our home stay was spent with two wonderful families, the Maretes and the Mahotas. Most of our time was with the Maretes. We had meals with them and visited each day in order to become more familiar with the culture here. We learned so much from them and really enjoyed their hospitality. The food was wonderful and Mrs. Marete showed me how to make several Kenyan dishes. I am anxious to share them with everyone when we get back or for those who make a visit here! One Saturday, the Maretes drove me into Nairobi to take me to the various markets and to get my hair done. I was very happy to have someone show me around. The market was amazing with the many fruits and vegetables to choose from. The people there want you to buy there produce so they give you samples. This means that they take a knife (washed when?) and just chop off a piece of the produce (washed when?) for you to sample. I didn’t refuse because that would have been rude. I told Philip when I got home that I was sure to catch some kind of bug because I didn’t go through the sanitation process before I ate. I never got sick at all! We all enjoyed the many items that I was able to purchase and bring home.
While we were in Kijabe, the kids were able to visit RVA and get to know the campus. The playground is awesome. There are so many neat things that are not found on any playgrounds we have been to before. There is a zip line coming out of a large tree, a really cool two person swing pole and a huge merry-go-round that is often spoken of with reference to a broken arm or leg! The kids can hardly believe how much fun it is.
On Friday, August 8th we left for Cheptebo for another home stay. It was about 120 miles and took about 5 or 6 hours to get there. The roads are quite bumpy in places but the drive was beautiful and the adventure of traveling across Kenya was amazing! We crossed the Equator and stopped to get some pictures and buy some souvenirs. Cheptebo is an agriculture development center for A.I.C. (African Inland Church). It is a very valuable resource in the arid Kerio valley. We were hosted by Sally and Joseph. They have a one year old boy Immanuel that they adopted about 2 months ago. They are a beautiful family and were very gracious to us. The first Saturday we went to an engagement party for Walter, the pastor at the church and Sally, the office manager of the center. We drove down a dirt road for a little while and then turned off onto another dirt road that I would not have believed was passable. Luckily we were following a small truck and we knew if it made it so could we. We came upon a clearing and then the truck parked under a tree and said “We walk from here”. The phase “It’s not far” has an entirely different meaning in Kenya! We crossed two creeks and then came upon another clearing where the festivities were. We were fed and treated as special guests getting to sit inside and being served sodas. Some of the older women were asking us questions about how engagements happen in our country. They were shocked to know that we don’t have an engagement process like they do. One of the most important things that are settled in the engagement negotiation process besides the dowry is determining whether the bride and groom are related or not. The women wondered how we knew we weren’t related if we didn’t have a big meeting with elders from both sides of the family!
The remainder of our time in Cheptebo was spent visiting with people and sharing God’s love any way that we could. God provided many people for us to meet and form relationships with. As many of you already know Luke came down with Malaria the first week we were there. He had to have contracted it before we arrived at Cheptebo because of the incubation period. He was quite sick for a couple of days but he ended up recovering quite well and there should be no lasting side effects. Baxter got a stomach bug the day after Luke started feeling better. By Tuesday, August 19th, we were all sick with stomach ailments. We felt like God really wanted us to be in Cheptebo or the devil wouldn’t be working so hard to make us miserable. Sally and Joseph and everyone who worked at the center came to the house we were staying in and prayed and sang and then prayed some more. We were so in awe of the level of faith that these people have. By the last day of our stay at Cheptebo we were feeling much better and felt like we learned so much from our time there.
On Friday, August 22nd, Joan and Michael came to escort us back to Kijabe. On the way back to Kijabe, we stopped at Lake Bogoria. There is a resort (relevant) there were the kids could swim and we could all eat some more familiar food like chips (French fries). It was quite nice and we enjoyed seeing all of the monkeys!
Since our arrival back in Kijabe, we have been setting up the house we are to live in. It is starting to feel like home! We have made 3 trips into Nairobi to get things for the house. We are so thankful to God for giving us a safe trip into town and back each time. The first trip in, we left Nairobi when it was dark. It is dangerous enough driving on the road between Kijabe and Nairobi in the daylight and is really discouraged when it is dark. We had to make it home because we had left Baxter in Kijabe with a friend because he was sick. I know I will not be able to convey the terror we felt during the drive. It was virtually impossible to see the road because there was a terrible glare from the oncoming cars. You couldn’t see the side of the road either because there are no lights and no bright white stripe to guide you. We were so thankful when we got to the Kijabe turnoff because we felt like we were almost home and there would be very little traffic if any. We have since been told that the Kijabe road is actually the most dangerous part because of carjackings after dark. We thank God for keeping us safe and not letting us know that information until we made it home safely! It is very expensive to set up a home from scratch but we think we are close to being finished buying necessities. We are excited to have a place to call home and would love to have friends come visit!
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
July 23 Update Part 5
When we had a break from class we were able to go into the town of Machakos. The town is very busy. It has one major grocery store and several small shops. There are many tailors in the town. Linda had a couple of skirts made for her. She needed some that were longer. they turned out very nice.
The people are very friendly here. Everyone on the street will great you and many want to stop and talk. Here we are with some friends that we meet walking to the open air produce market. Shortly after this picture was taken a man came and picked up Emily. We were not sure what he was going to do with her, but we asked that she be put down. Our new friends also helped. It was a little unsettling at the time. It is sometimes hard to tell if they are just being very friendly or have other intentions.
Here is the open air produce market. There were many ladies selling all types of locally grown products. We purchased all the ingredients to make guacamole. Linda made it and it was Great. We shared it with the class that evening.
One of our assignments was to go visit a local family. This is the family that we visited. We went to there home to visit. We had a wonderful time. While we were there two uncles, two aunts, and several cousins came by also. The value that they place on the family is so strong. Here is the family that we visited. The father is the one in purple, his wife is to his right.
This is the oldest daughter and her younger sister. The father was in the construction business. He made his own bricks out of the local soil on a small piece of land near the house. They also grew coffee beans and vegetables. Any open spot they have they plant maize (we call it corn). He also had several chickens, goats, one cow with a calf. He milked the cow for milk also. They work so hard, yet seem to be very content and happy. It has been so enlightening to get to meet these families and learn more about their culture. God's creation is so amazing.
The people are very friendly here. Everyone on the street will great you and many want to stop and talk. Here we are with some friends that we meet walking to the open air produce market. Shortly after this picture was taken a man came and picked up Emily. We were not sure what he was going to do with her, but we asked that she be put down. Our new friends also helped. It was a little unsettling at the time. It is sometimes hard to tell if they are just being very friendly or have other intentions.
Here is the open air produce market. There were many ladies selling all types of locally grown products. We purchased all the ingredients to make guacamole. Linda made it and it was Great. We shared it with the class that evening.
One of our assignments was to go visit a local family. This is the family that we visited. We went to there home to visit. We had a wonderful time. While we were there two uncles, two aunts, and several cousins came by also. The value that they place on the family is so strong. Here is the family that we visited. The father is the one in purple, his wife is to his right. 
This is the oldest daughter and her younger sister. The father was in the construction business. He made his own bricks out of the local soil on a small piece of land near the house. They also grew coffee beans and vegetables. Any open spot they have they plant maize (we call it corn). He also had several chickens, goats, one cow with a calf. He milked the cow for milk also. They work so hard, yet seem to be very content and happy. It has been so enlightening to get to meet these families and learn more about their culture. God's creation is so amazing.July 23 Update Part 4
The kids also learned a lot about Africa during the past three weeks. They went to a class everyday also. They got to walk to several of the small shops around the campus. These are called Dukas. They visited a family, a near by school and a coffee bean processing plant.
One night the college students had a culture night. They performed skits about their home villages. They had a student from each different tribe come to the front and recite John 3:16 in his or her native language. There were 9 different languages represented. It is not uncommon for a person to know 3 languages, many know more. Here are the girls dancing in front of all the students during the culture night.
The girls enjoyed dressing up in some of the African customs.
Here are the boys standing in front of our laundry. It was drying on the lawn.
Baxter meet a little boy named Sam. His mom works at the college.
One night the college students had a culture night. They performed skits about their home villages. They had a student from each different tribe come to the front and recite John 3:16 in his or her native language. There were 9 different languages represented. It is not uncommon for a person to know 3 languages, many know more. Here are the girls dancing in front of all the students during the culture night.
The girls enjoyed dressing up in some of the African customs.
Here are the boys standing in front of our laundry. It was drying on the lawn.
Baxter meet a little boy named Sam. His mom works at the college. God has such a special way of using children to show his love and kindness. We ask that you keep Baxter, Luke, Tracy and Emily in your prayers.
July 23 Update Part 3
Sunday, July 06, 2008
Today we had ministry assignments. We found out about our assignments on Friday so we had time to prepare. The people in our group were Jason and Roxanne Engstrom and baby Annika, Andrea from Germany and our family. We were doing Children’s Ministry on the Scott Campus so we decided that we would do a skit of the Good Samaritan and sing the dip-dip song (you would have to be here to know that song but we will show you when we get back!). Children’s Ministry began at 7:30 am. We sang to song and the kids loved it. We then did the skit. Luke was the poor man walking, Baxter and Andrea were the robbers, Roxanne was the Priest, Philip was the Levite, Tracy was the Good Samaritan, Jason was the donkey, Emily was the Innkeeper and Linda was the narrator. Baby Annika just got passed around. The kids loved the play especially when Luke was left lying on the floor with no shoes or jacket on. A side note here: Emily was very upset that she wasn’t the Good Samaritan. She finally agreed to be the innkeeper if she could keep the coins that the Good Samaritan gave her to help care for the injured person. We let her do that as it was only 2 shillings (about 3 cents).
We then got to go to the Sunday School classes that the kids would have been in. You will be glad to know that the innkeeper (Emily) gladly put her 2 shillings in the offering hat without any prompting from me.
The next week we went to the Mumbuni Boys School. It is a High School for boys. There are around 1,000 boys in this school. They all board at the school. All of the boarding schools have a Church service on Sundays. Students from the College go to the schools on Sundays to help with the service. Linda meet a student named David while she was hand washing our laundry on day. David helps with this school. He was giving the message the day we went. After the service we were treated to butter bread and chi (hot tea with milk and sugar) which was prepared by the boys in the school.
We want to thank each and every one of you who are supporting us in this mission whether it is financially or through prayer or both. We have already been so blessed by the people here and we haven’t even gotten to our ministry field yet. It is our sincere prayer that you will all feel God’s blessings in your life as a result of your obedience. He is a tremendous God and is capable of so much. We have really learned to rely on His faithfulness in all things. Asanti sana – thank you very much in Kiswahili (my spelling may be off but I will get much better in the weeks to come!)
Today we had ministry assignments. We found out about our assignments on Friday so we had time to prepare. The people in our group were Jason and Roxanne Engstrom and baby Annika, Andrea from Germany and our family. We were doing Children’s Ministry on the Scott Campus so we decided that we would do a skit of the Good Samaritan and sing the dip-dip song (you would have to be here to know that song but we will show you when we get back!). Children’s Ministry began at 7:30 am. We sang to song and the kids loved it. We then did the skit. Luke was the poor man walking, Baxter and Andrea were the robbers, Roxanne was the Priest, Philip was the Levite, Tracy was the Good Samaritan, Jason was the donkey, Emily was the Innkeeper and Linda was the narrator. Baby Annika just got passed around. The kids loved the play especially when Luke was left lying on the floor with no shoes or jacket on. A side note here: Emily was very upset that she wasn’t the Good Samaritan. She finally agreed to be the innkeeper if she could keep the coins that the Good Samaritan gave her to help care for the injured person. We let her do that as it was only 2 shillings (about 3 cents).
We then got to go to the Sunday School classes that the kids would have been in. You will be glad to know that the innkeeper (Emily) gladly put her 2 shillings in the offering hat without any prompting from me.
The next week we went to the Mumbuni Boys School. It is a High School for boys. There are around 1,000 boys in this school. They all board at the school. All of the boarding schools have a Church service on Sundays. Students from the College go to the schools on Sundays to help with the service. Linda meet a student named David while she was hand washing our laundry on day. David helps with this school. He was giving the message the day we went. After the service we were treated to butter bread and chi (hot tea with milk and sugar) which was prepared by the boys in the school.
We want to thank each and every one of you who are supporting us in this mission whether it is financially or through prayer or both. We have already been so blessed by the people here and we haven’t even gotten to our ministry field yet. It is our sincere prayer that you will all feel God’s blessings in your life as a result of your obedience. He is a tremendous God and is capable of so much. We have really learned to rely on His faithfulness in all things. Asanti sana – thank you very much in Kiswahili (my spelling may be off but I will get much better in the weeks to come!)July 23 Update Part 2
Saturday, July 05, 2008
We finished our stories about our journey to Africa today. I had to give my story and I made it through with only one small amount of crying. This is actually a miracle so I wanted you to be aware of it. I don’t think my story is very good but it is. Everyone of us has a beautiful and unique story about how God is at work in our life even if it seems ordinary to you. This includes all of you who are still back home. You are all very useful in God’s Kingdom.
After lunch today we walked to the top of the mountain behind the school. We opted to go the full distance because most hikes that large groups of people go on are pretty easy if you are in decent shape which we felt that we were. I would like to report that we zoomed to the top with very little discomfort but I would not be sharing the truth. Emily was ready to give up at our first stop where several in the group turned back. At this point we had been on a dirt road that ascended fairly rapidly but it was a nice wide road. We convinced her that we didn’t have much farther to go so she continued. What we didn’t realize is that this was the end of the road and we would now be on trails or going up large rocks. We all struggled up to our next stopping point where several more in the group decided to turn back. Just ahead of this stop we started passing houses just stuck up on the mountain. There were many children and they all came running out to greet us. They were so interested in us because we are different. Before we knew it, they were continuing on the hike with us. Two Kenyan girls got on each side of Emily and held her hand. The same went for Tracy and I think Baxter and Luke had at least one boy much of the way. Anyhow, Emily had her escorts for the rest of the hike up to the top and most of the way back down. The girls were so funny because they kept fixing Emily’s braids if they were in front of her shoulders and brushing the hair off of her forehead. It was as if she were now the Queen of Sheba and she didn’t dare complain about being tired. The Kenyan girls kept smelling her hair and when they let go of her hand they would smell their hand. I’m not sure if this was a good thing or not but it was cute.
We finished our stories about our journey to Africa today. I had to give my story and I made it through with only one small amount of crying. This is actually a miracle so I wanted you to be aware of it. I don’t think my story is very good but it is. Everyone of us has a beautiful and unique story about how God is at work in our life even if it seems ordinary to you. This includes all of you who are still back home. You are all very useful in God’s Kingdom.
After lunch today we walked to the top of the mountain behind the school. We opted to go the full distance because most hikes that large groups of people go on are pretty easy if you are in decent shape which we felt that we were. I would like to report that we zoomed to the top with very little discomfort but I would not be sharing the truth. Emily was ready to give up at our first stop where several in the group turned back. At this point we had been on a dirt road that ascended fairly rapidly but it was a nice wide road. We convinced her that we didn’t have much farther to go so she continued. What we didn’t realize is that this was the end of the road and we would now be on trails or going up large rocks. We all struggled up to our next stopping point where several more in the group decided to turn back. Just ahead of this stop we started passing houses just stuck up on the mountain. There were many children and they all came running out to greet us. They were so interested in us because we are different. Before we knew it, they were continuing on the hike with us. Two Kenyan girls got on each side of Emily and held her hand. The same went for Tracy and I think Baxter and Luke had at least one boy much of the way. Anyhow, Emily had her escorts for the rest of the hike up to the top and most of the way back down. The girls were so funny because they kept fixing Emily’s braids if they were in front of her shoulders and brushing the hair off of her forehead. It was as if she were now the Queen of Sheba and she didn’t dare complain about being tired. The Kenyan girls kept smelling her hair and when they let go of her hand they would smell their hand. I’m not sure if this was a good thing or not but it was cute.
Emily and her friends.
The kids loved to have their picture taken and then look at it on the camera.
Tracy and friends.
The view from the top was very nice and we took several pictures but the real treat was meeting all of the people along the way. The Kenyan people amaze me because they are such warm and loving people and would do almost anything to help you out if you needed it. We are here to show them the love of Jesus and they are the ones showering us with love. It is a very humbling experience and I hope it changes us for the better. I should mention that this hike lasted 4 hours and we went a distance of about 7.4 miles. There are not too many kids in America who would give up a Saturday afternoon to hike that distance and be gone that long to help someone they didn’t know and might never see again. God has created some really beautiful people here.
July 23 Update Part1
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
Today we drove to Machakos to attend Africa Based Orientation (ABO). The drive was about 1 ½ hours long and we traveled about 35 miles. If this seems slow, it was. We are however very thankful that it was slow. It will take some getting used to driving on African roads. The one we were on today was very bumpy. It reminded me of very large cobblestones in a cobblestone street. The road was two lanes one going one way and one the other. The interesting thing is that they can’t see anyone coming at them, they make it a two lane road going one direction. This works great until someone starts coming down their lane right at you. We actually saw a car go between us and another vehicle at one point. So you can see why we were glad were going slow. If we ran into someone hopefully it was not be too serious of a wreck.
ABO is held at Scott Theological College (STC). I didn’t really know what to expect except that I thought it may be a little like a small college campus in the USA. It is much like this but without many of the conveniences. We are in two rooms with two bunk beds each. The kids are in one room and we are in the other. They are really quite comfortable and they smell like a college dorm. This is a good thing because I think it smells good and it makes me feel like I am in college again which would make it quite a bit younger!
Here are a few photos relating to traveling in Africa.
Here is the view from the inside of the car. As you can see the approaching truck is in the middle of the road. It seems that any vehicle that is traveling on the highways is carrying as many people and cargo as it can. Notice the top of the van.
Traveling by bicycle is also an option. These are called bota bota's. As you can see no one wears a helmet. There is a padded seat on the back of a bicycle. Ladies sit side saddle. You can catch a ride into town from the college for about 33 cents (it is about 1.5 miles). This is Philip's preferred method of travel.
There is also a vehicle that is referred to as a tuk tuk. It is a three wheeled motor cycle with a seat in the back for three. Just because it is built for three does limit the number of people they will pack into them. I saw some with up to 5 people in the back. There are police check points to verify the number of people being transported. It has a covering to help keep the wind and sand out. It also costs around 33 cents to travel to town. They are a little faster than the bota bota's.
Another way to travel is in a bus or matatu. They can range in size from a 6 passenger one to a full sized bus. We rode in one back to the college one day. it was built to hold 6 passengers. We had 9 people in it. As you can tell from the picture it was a little crowded.
As you can see travel here is very exciting. it is a common practice to have a group prayer prior to traveling because of the dangers.
Today we drove to Machakos to attend Africa Based Orientation (ABO). The drive was about 1 ½ hours long and we traveled about 35 miles. If this seems slow, it was. We are however very thankful that it was slow. It will take some getting used to driving on African roads. The one we were on today was very bumpy. It reminded me of very large cobblestones in a cobblestone street. The road was two lanes one going one way and one the other. The interesting thing is that they can’t see anyone coming at them, they make it a two lane road going one direction. This works great until someone starts coming down their lane right at you. We actually saw a car go between us and another vehicle at one point. So you can see why we were glad were going slow. If we ran into someone hopefully it was not be too serious of a wreck.
ABO is held at Scott Theological College (STC). I didn’t really know what to expect except that I thought it may be a little like a small college campus in the USA. It is much like this but without many of the conveniences. We are in two rooms with two bunk beds each. The kids are in one room and we are in the other. They are really quite comfortable and they smell like a college dorm. This is a good thing because I think it smells good and it makes me feel like I am in college again which would make it quite a bit younger!
Here are a few photos relating to traveling in Africa.
Here is the view from the inside of the car. As you can see the approaching truck is in the middle of the road. It seems that any vehicle that is traveling on the highways is carrying as many people and cargo as it can. Notice the top of the van.
Traveling by bicycle is also an option. These are called bota bota's. As you can see no one wears a helmet. There is a padded seat on the back of a bicycle. Ladies sit side saddle. You can catch a ride into town from the college for about 33 cents (it is about 1.5 miles). This is Philip's preferred method of travel.
There is also a vehicle that is referred to as a tuk tuk. It is a three wheeled motor cycle with a seat in the back for three. Just because it is built for three does limit the number of people they will pack into them. I saw some with up to 5 people in the back. There are police check points to verify the number of people being transported. It has a covering to help keep the wind and sand out. It also costs around 33 cents to travel to town. They are a little faster than the bota bota's.
Another way to travel is in a bus or matatu. They can range in size from a 6 passenger one to a full sized bus. We rode in one back to the college one day. it was built to hold 6 passengers. We had 9 people in it. As you can tell from the picture it was a little crowded.As you can see travel here is very exciting. it is a common practice to have a group prayer prior to traveling because of the dangers.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Update July 19, 2008
We are still at Scott Bible College. We have been in class for almost three weeks with one day off! We have learned so much about the African Culture, but have so much more to learn. The Internet connection here is spotty at best. We should be able to provide a better update on Tuesday the 23rd.
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