A Day at Matayo's Village

This blog should have been posted several months ago.  I somehow loaded the pictures and put it on hold and never got back to it.  I found it in drafts this morning! 

In early March when I first returned to Kenya, the top priority on my list of things to do was to visit Nendorko, a remote Maasai village.  My acquaintance with this village is through the pastor of the Nendorko Baptist Church.  Pastor Matayo was involved in our literacy training in 2007.  He came to class faithfully for 6 months and impressed everyone with his willingness to learn.  The road to his village is ridiculously rugged.  It is only about 23 miles from our starting point, but it easily takes two hours to get there.

Its very difficult to capture just how bad it is, but trust me, it is a very rough ride.

Of course you do get to see some very intersting creatures along the way.

On this particular trip, we had our driver and friend, Mosses, Jeremiah, and four ladies.  A trip to the local facility is always necessary on these bumpy roads.  I knew of a church at the halfway mark, so we stopped to relieve our burden!

At last we arrived!  This trip was multi-purpose.  Jeremiah and I were here to talk to the Pastor and the men of his community about the possibility of drilling a deep well here.  My friend Zula was here to teach a Bible lesson and just generally have fun with the children at the village school.  Joanna Kelley (another Global missionary here in Kenya and a faithful board member of Starfish Chariities) and her visitor from the states, Debi, came along to assist in any way they could. 

This was our welcoming committee.  You can't enter this village without one as they get so few vehicles here and you can hear from very long distances.

Ladies with babies on their backs is a given in a Maasai village.

The school children were excited to see us and waited anxiously while we exited the car.

You can always count on smiles of welcome. 

The first order of business was the official welcome.  This village faithfully prayed for me during my yearlong cancer journey.  We had an adult literacy class here while I was gone, so officially greeting everyone, reporting my progress, and thank them was a must.

Then we introduced Zula.  The man in the red shirt is the teacher, Noah.  He also acted as interpreter as Zula taught the children.

The adults in the community couldn't stay away.  The ladies came with the babies.  Even men got in on the teaching and activiities prepared for the children.

Zula was in her element with these children.

We brought crayons and color pages.  What a treat for them.

You can see how crowded these children are at these desks.  These are typical school desks.  I have seen as many as 5 children squeezed into these small spaces.

The women wanted to color, so they were also given papers and crayons.

Even some of the men got in on the fun.

The students proudly holding up their completed work.

We took salvation bracelets to pass out to the children.  These are used worldwide to present the gospel.  An elderly woman in a nursing home in Orofino, ID made these for us to pass out.

Love the contrast.

Meanwhile, I was outside along with Jeremiah talking to the men about the water well (borehole)

The umbrella was to keep the hot sun off of me.  We finally had to move under the trees for our discussion.  This community has really sufferred due to lack of water.  We are thrilled at the possibility of helping them with clean water.

We finished our meeting in time for recesss. Zula brought balls, frisbees, and a few other outdoor toys.  Kenyans love soccer and even in this remote village, you don't have to spend any time teaching them the sport.  What fun to see them join in.

Zula brought ball caps she had collected.  The men were anxiously awaiting us passing them out.

Very happy men sporting their new ball caps.

Debi in the midst of the children.

Joanna with her ever present camera recording the events of the day.

The little old lady in the red ball cap (seated on the ground) provided an impromptu market.  Maasai women always have their beadwork handy. 

I bought this headdress -- typically worn by the Maasai warriors.  Jeremiah modeled it for us.  Its made on a cow hide base covered with ostrich feathers.

Time for lunch.  This is the way you wash your hands before eating.  They pour water over your hands.  Very effective. 

This man is proudly displaying the coloring page he did.

The adults were seated and eating, while the children looked on. 

Leaving the village was bittersweet.  It was a productive and enjoyable day, but now we faced that ardulous journey in reverse.

This picture should have been somewhere in the beginning. It is the "signpost" on the road telling us where to turn to go into the village.

Pastor's Event in Kimuka

When my son Jeremy and his pastor, Keith came to Kenya in late March, they had an agenda.  Kieth wanted to meet people Starfish Charities works with in the Maasai community and see how the training his ministry provides could be incorporated or merged with ours.  Mentorfish.com has achieved a high level of success in the U.S., but Keith wants to go outside the borders of the U.S. with his training and make it available to people in developing countries.  Realizing that Jeremy's mom (me!) was a missionary in Kenya, he chose to start with us.  I felt very privileged to host them on their quest for information and involvement.  We scheduled an impromptu meeting with a group of pastors I have worked with for several years. 

As the pastor's arrived, sweet Maria, served them mandazi's (a puff pastry sort of like a donut -- without the hole) and chai (hot tea).

Keith greeting Pastor Moses

My son's role during this pastor's event was to video and take pictures. Here are two pastors obviously enjoying whatever Keith was sharing.

This was the first meeting I attended in Maasai land after my return from one year in the states. Jeremiah was our interpreter for the day. It was so wonderful to be able to stand before them once again and thank them for their faithfulness to pray for me during my cancer journey.

The pastors did their best to take notes during Keith's presentation. They were so attentive.

Keith was so relaxed with this group. They really had a wonderful time.

Prayer time was very special.  Keith prayed for them individually, and they all joined hands and prayed.  It was a very moving time of prayer. They are so hungry for teaching and training.

This is Keith with Josphat.  Josphat pastors a growing church in that area.  He was one of the pastors in our literacy training in 2007.  At that time he spoke no English.  The literacy training started hin on the road to speaking English. These days, he emails me and we are able to converse. I'm am very proud of his accomplishments. Additioally, he named his first daughter after me!

Maria cooked a fabulous lunch for the event.  We all enjoyed the food and fellowship.

Yummy!  Stew, rice, and chapatis (sort of like a flour tortilla)

A group photo is always a must!  What a wonderful day.

A Week With My Son and His Pastor

I arrived in Kenya the end of February.  At the end of March my son, Jeremy, and his pastor Keith came for one week. I was so thrilled to finally have my son in Kenya!  A favorite place to visit for first time visitors to Kenya is Carnivore.  Its a specialty restaurant that serves game meat.  In earlier years they served alot of exotic meats.  These days, so many animals are protected, so the assortment of meats has decreased.

They cook the meat over an open fire pit on swords.  They bring the meat on a sword and cut a portion right onto your plate.  This is Keith about to enjoy some of the best beef he said he's ever eaten.

The fabulous meal was followed by dessert.  Yum!

A friend of mind took Jeremy and Keith on a walking excursion to an outdoor market.

This is where many buy their clothing, DVD's, fresh fruit and veggies, and almost anything else you might want to find.

The stalls seem to go on forever.  Many of missionary friends buy their family's clothing in these markets.  It comes to Kenya in bales from the US and Europe. 

Cattle corssing the road is not an unusual sight in Nairobi -- especially during the dry seasons.  The herdsboys take their cattle anywhere they can find grass and water.

This is the infamous Kibera slums said to be the largest slum in East Africa.  The statistics are not certain but is estimated there are between 800,000 and 1.2 million individuals living here. 

This young man makes  his living ferrying water on this cart.  These guys are amazing as they run all over with these heavy carts.  Sometimes their feet barely touch the ground. 

We visited a Maasai village.  This Maasai mama is demonstrating a small oil lamp she uses in her "kitchen" in order to see. 

These houses are constructed by the women.  The outside is typically plastered with a mixture of ash, cow dung, and mud so they become waterproof.

Keith had to give high fives to these sweet Maasai children.

Keith and Jeremy stayed out on the property for two nights.    Very brave thing to do for these city boys!

Sunsets in the Rift Valley are stunning!

Washday on the property is always colorful and a busy place for fellowship.

These two adorable children carrying a five gallon bucket of water to their moms for washing clothes.

Goats, sheep, cattle, and donkeys are a part of everyday life in a Maasai village.

My son, Jeremy, carrying a Maasai stick.  I think the smile says it all!  He had a great time and his mama thoroughly enjoyed the week.