Hope

It's Friday night here in Kenya. Despite what you may be imagining, it is quite cold. In fact, I have worn a sweatshirt every day I have been here and currently there is a fire burning in the room I am in. I have to say that I am pretty spoiled in terms of my accommodations. But it is nice to have a place to relax at the end of the day.

Today we went to Hope School in Limuru, which was only a short drive from the volunteer house. School is not actually in session now, as it is "holiday," but that actually makes it a better time to haul in a bunch of volunteers to do some work. We had been told that the objective for the day was to "plant a hedge." When we arrived, it was discovered the "hedge" (the plants) had not arrived yet, so we decided to clear some debris and trash while we waited. Immediately, the kids began to come. Pretty much wherever the "mezungus" are, the kids follow. They were actually quite eager to help us, although seeing young children with machetes in their hands was quite alarming. The debris we were picking up and collecting in a pile contained all sorts of things. I found clothes, shoes, bottles, cassette tapes, wrappers, corn cobs, broken glass, among other things. Once we had a decent sized pile, it was doused in some lighter fluid and lit to burn. I guess when you do not have any waste removal system in place, this is the best option.

While the trash collecting was in process, some donkeys trotted by pulling a cart full of small green plants. We dug holes along the perimeter of the barbwire fence enclosing the school and planted probably around 50 or so plants. I got quite dirty, but had a great time. It is very satisfying to beautify a place that seems so thirsty for new life. I hope that the plants take root and grow big and strong, and are present for many children to see as they come to school.

Now the number of kids just exponentially increased as the morning wore on. All ages, from infant babies being held by their siblings, to 12 and 13 year olds. They were so happy to see us. They just wanted to hold my hand, touch my hair, be picked up. One little girl, Joyce, was mesmerized by my watch. She was probably only 5 or 6 years old. She just loved pushing the buttons on the side to make a short beeping noise. She did it over and over again. At one point she looked up at me and said "I want it." Now, I am not necessarily attached to my watch as a possession, but as it currently serves as my alarm clock and only way to keep time, it has become sort of a necessity. I shook my head, but man was she persistent. She eventually surrendered her efforts and seemed content holding my hand, even fighting other kids who tried to hold my hand as well. We did the Hokey Pokey with the kids, and then played some of their games. They were all smiles and having so much fun. In those moments it didn't matter that their clothes were falling apart or that they smelled of urine or their heads had patches of a fungal infection. It just mattered that we are share a common thread....we are human, we have a soul, we long to be touched, we need to be loved.

Even as I type this, it brings tears to my eyes. I find it so hard to know what the best way to help children like these is. They clearly lack some essential material goods, but does providing those things for them on a short-term basis really help? And who am I to say that I really know what things they need. And if you treat the fungal infection on their head, what about their lack of good nutrition, their high risk of developing other tropical diseases, and even compliance with treatment? Then a part of you thinks it must be best just to support the projects and organizations that work with these kids...but is that the easy way out?

I guess the two things I have come to learn thus far are 1) I need to learn Swahili if I am ever going to come back here. It is just a must. It is so difficult to have a language barrier and really know people's needs and 2) I will never be able to help everyone. There is no program, organization, project, hospital, etc. that can meet all people's needs. And that is really hard to come to terms with, but I think God just asks us to be faithful in the work we are given to do.