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As I sit in the cab in traffic to go into Kibera again today, I look around with such fondess for this place on the other side of my world. How could you not have an affinity to a place that has opened its arms up and wrapped itself around you so tightly you can barely breathe? That’s exactly what it’s like - the initial embrace makes you feel warm and fuzzy, but it can start to feel too tight sometimes, a little uncomfortable. As we round the corner to Kibera I realize there are certain disturbing images etched in my mind forever…the man so dirty, in such tattered clothing rummaging through the garbage heap that I have seen everyday; the goats beside this same man, rummaging for the same purpose; the 2 boys playing in a ditch, filling an empty water bottle with sludgy brown water and pouring it out; children defecating beside the railroad tracks since there is no better place to go; the baby ducklings running beside their mother, their soft downy feathers matted with dirt. I will also never forget the very touching images…a protective sister comforting her younger sibling who is crying - I guess
them to be about 5 and 2 years old; 2 young girls surrounded by garbage on a hillside making a bouquet of colourful, fragrant flowers from a bush; the sheer delight the kids exhibit when they can see and hear themselves on video; and the girl that stood shyly behind me while I stood talking only to reach out her hand to touch my hair. These experiences have been etched directly on my soul.
There’s no school today and therefore no kids :0(
I still went into the school though to create a bulletin board and put up all the teaching aids we bought at Scholar’s Choice. Initially when I showed the teachers what we brought they were really excited, but as the days went by no one was making any effort to use any of it. I came to the realization that they weren’t sure WHAT to do with all of it! Margaret arranged for Karen and Elizabeth to come in to meet me and organize their classrooms. We decided what would go where according to age appropriateness for the kids and then set to work. The bulletin board is a masterpiece as you can see in
the photos - bright yellow and the first thing you see when you walk into the classroom. The little pieces of paper you can see on the board are shaped like bugs and butterflies with each child’s name on it. Elizabeth wanted each of the kids to have their own little space on the board to display their artwork. What a great idea!
Over dinner one night, explaining how all of our friends and family contributed to all the amazing things we’ve been able to do at Tenderfeet, I invited Nicole’s boss Andrew to come and visit. He lives in Toronto and does business regularly in Nairobi, but has never been to Kibera. While world travelled, when he accepted I was a bit nervous all of a sudden! I know how I’ve reacted, but it’s hard to know how someone else will. He had a couple of meetings planned, but surprised us by dropping in on his way to the first. He brought 3 huge bags of candies for the kids for Monday and I took him for a tour of the school. He was visibly moved as he tried to imagine 54 children in such a tight, confined
space with no place to run or play. He was also impressed however with the concrete floors, the windows, the electricity, the latrines and realized the kids had a safe and happy place to come to everyday where they would be fed and cared for by great people.
When Andrew left, I opened one of the bags of candies to share with everyone and passed out a few to the children outside the school. Well word travels fast and before I knew it, we had many little visitors coming to the door looking to see if they could have a candy too!
We worked on for a couple of more hours and Andrew came back in with 2 huge boxes. Between meetings, this generous, kind man popped into a toy store and bought 30 cars for the boys and 30 toys for the girls. WOW is all I can say and it was my turn to be visibly moved at this random act of kindness. I wish he could be there on Monday to hand out the toys to the children himself.
Frank and Edwin took Andrew and I for a walk through 3 of the 13
“villages” in Kibera. I’ve been out in Kibera walking everyday, but today I felt like we hit it’s bowels. Every time I think it can’t get much worse, it does. Since today is Saturday, everyone is home from work and school so just the sheer quantity of children and people in general is overwhelming. Cooking, cleaning, and washing are all the orders for the day as people keep themselves busy with Saturday chores. We brought the other 2 bags of candies to hand out to the kids on the way. Andrew and I started to hand them out, but Frank had to take over as we started to get swarmed! Frank and Edwin talked openly with Andrew about life in Kibera and I know now that Andrew too has been affected in such a way that you just want to help in any way possible.
The icing on the cake for today was the dinner at Nairobi’s most famous restaurant called Carnivore. I read about this place before coming and was thrilled to find that Andrew had made plans to take Nicole and I there. This place was like none other! As the name suggests, meat is the highlight
of the evening. The meat is prepared on huge skewers, grilled over open flame. Each table has a little white flag which indicates to the serving staff to keep the meat coming. Once you place the flag down, you have surrendered! There was pork and beef ribs, beef sausage, turkey, chicken, lamb, ostrich and crocodile on the menu. And we tried all of it! The restaurant ironically is beside the Nairobi National Park we visited on Tuesday. Apparently in the past the restaurant served a lot of game meat, but public outcry has changed all that - too bad the same public outcry couldn’t make some changes in Kibera…
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Tanya Hall
non-member comment
No School Today
I have to tell you that as Maria forwards your blogs, I sit and read with tears in my eyes. Your writing style is fantastic making us all feel like we are there with you. Today I am in tears but they are tears of joy knowing that you are doing such an amazing thing. I wish I could be there too. Perhaps one day I will be. Thank you for doing this for these children. Tanya