.getting ready for the rooftop/ Lake Chala.

Okay,

I won't pretend that I am completely prepared to climb mount Kilimanjaro. I also have to admit that along with sadness, the prospect of leaving Africa next week makes my heart palpitate a little too quickly. I am so nervous to return home. I know that I'll be the girl having the freak out in the grocery store and dreaming endlessly of my kids' hands in mine and their precious voices. I also know that there are so many things left to do before I go. Since I decided to "adopt" this new orphanage Bahati, I must start preparing ways to fundraise and support it while at home. I have to plan for school and rush, finish profiles and a proposal and try to get everything packed and ready to go! So, planning/exercising for the mountain has been pushed to the side a tid bit. 



On the other hand, however, I need to be home for a lot of reasons. I need to see my family, I need to physically be with them and give them the love that I was infused with while in Africa. I need to be the changed and hopeful for change me while in America, too. I need to see my grandma and give her a lot of good busus! I hear news about my friends and I know that seeing them will be wonderful. I have never been more of a fb stalker until now - I will repeatedly comb through albums to glean a much as I can out of them in a small effort to be closer. I will also return home knowing that I am coming back. I am currently set for next summer and I know I can get it done :), so it's not kwaheri, just tutaonana baadaye.

So...back to getting ready for Kili. See? I'm putting off even in my blog. I feel as though the experience will be both the hardest and one of the best things I've ever done. I am so happy that Becca, Rachel and Kayla are climbing with me. They are truly an amazing group of girls, and I am so blessed to have them with me! We will have a great time. I just feel that culminating my experience by being on the rooftop of Africa will be, for lack of a better word...incredible. So...we will see, eh? (If you're reading this Amanda, that "eh" is for you).

Anyway,

I never talked about Lake Chala in my posts!! I went to Lake Chala two weekends ago and it was truly one of the best weekends I've had in Africa (which is really saying something!).
Attendees: Chris, Erick, Paul, Katyann, Becca, Rachel, Dana, Kayla and myself!
Location: around 1 & 1/2 hour outside of Moshi, Lake Chala
Accomodation: a bad-a giant tent (don't worry, it was pink and teal and had little "windows")
Transportation: Erick's car
Food: Grocery store buys, food we ordered there.
Main Activities: Walking safaris, tembo trekking, swimming and canoeing in the lake, almost getting charged twice, going to Kenya, getting demolished by thorns, hanging out/getting steam rolled in the tent, sitting and singing by a fire pit.

I wish I could really just take everyone I know there so they can experience it for themselves, but I will try to give it justice here. The lake is surrounded by hiking area/cliffs and it is quite big. 1/3rd of it crosses into Kenya, but you can see the entire lake when you stand high on the cliffs. The area is also home to many elephants (which basically means I should move there).
When we first arrived we put our stuff into our tent and hurried to see the lake. The campsite has nice bathrooms, a kitchen, a bar and fire pit area, places for people to bring their own tents, a tented area and a dining area. The gardens are well taken care of, and it is very clean and nice! The bathrooms are all mzungu toilets and nice (actually warm) showers. The lakeside is a fifteen minute walk away from the campsite, however, they are currently building a new dining hall area on the lakeside. So, next year when I return it might be finished!
At the lakeside Chris and Paul tried to throw things into the water. Unfortunately, due to our height and the copious amounts of monkey-infested trees below they couldn't get their stones into the lake. We then went back to the campsite and got settled before we walked to the bar. While the sun was setting we sat outside and contemplated our food options. We listened to great music (Dave, Jack Johnson, Dispatch...a good shift from our usual African music!) and just spent time together and were...really...happy. It was like taking a good breath of fresh air. That night we ate a delicious meal and sat by the fire with our music. When we got back to the tent we had some fun times with Katyann steam-rolling Becca to the ground (you know, mature stuff) and then Chris, Katyann and I decided  to go tembo hunting. I borrowed Kayla's headlamp and we set off to find ourselves a tembo. Now, before you go judging me because it was pitch black and potentially dangerous - just remember  that elephants are the freaking best.
So, this adventure got exciting when I saw movement in the brush. We shone our lights and low and behold we saw a blink of red - an eye. After this Chris started walking in serious pursuit of our potential friend while Katyann and I tried to convince him otherwise. Then, we heard a freaky growl and a bunch of yelling in the distance that we could of sworn was yelling "Help me!". Needless to say, that scared us back to camp.

The next day we woke up for the sunrise - orange, big and bright over the Acacia trees and amidst the small clouds. It was truly incredible and it reminded me of the moon rise I saw on safari. There is nothing like the sun rising in Africa. After our nutella, bread and cereal breakfast we followed a guide off into the area by the campsite. He had a machete and a rock....pretty fitting for our non-english speaking guide eh? We began to walk and then before we knew it there were elephants!! There was a family in the distance and it was so incredible to actually BE there and see them outside of a safari car. Then, as we walked in the opposite direction we nearly ran into another big elephant!! It looked straight at us and flared its ears. This made us excited until our guide chucked a rock at it and yelled for us to run. Good thing he was there to recognize it was about to charge...otherwise I think we definitely would have stayed admiring its stature and beauty!

After this exhilarating experience we began our walk to the lake. This was not only long, it was thorny. I honestly have never seen that many thorns, burs and cacti in one area in my entire life. Our good old guide was walking at normal speed with his machete just hacking down things in his way and powering through the land that honestly seemed to resist human existence with every inch. The trees, the bushes and the grasses had thorns, the cacti seemed to enjoy their place either within or next to these thorn bushes and the burs seemed to have no problem with sticking to you and clinging for dear life. We had to stop multiple times for literal catch-ups. My headband was taken off by a thorn tree, as was Chris' hat. The worst of it ended on Kayla's pants, which we had to end up picking at for a significant amount of time after the lake visit ended. However, while walking through this difficult terrain we passed into Kenya. (Okay, it was illegally and we were only in Kenya for a minute). Because the lake crosses into Kenya the land surrounding it contains the border! We walked into Kenya for a moment and Paul got a chance to leave Tanzania!! It was so amazing to see his smile (during the entire weekend, but at this point in particular). He made the weekend so much of what it was :). When we got back into TZ we walked up a hill and you could physically see the border - it was kichizi! Once we got to the lakeside the area became rocky and cool and, believe it or not, thornless. It reminded me a lot of being close to Flathead Lake in Montana.

Once we got to the water we all stripped to our swimsuits and jumped on in!! The water was cool, and incredibly beautiful. It was both very blue and very clear. We swam to feel the sun on our faces and took some good pictures on a large tree/log that was in the water. We also ended up taking a canoe further out into the lake and I just sang while we rowed serenely out onto the water. The surrounding area looked so different from here, it was as though we were within a little natural fishbowl- we were inhabiting our own little spot of the world. After the canoeing we walked back - a walk that proved to be much easier than our trek earlier in the day. We finished the night power-less and sharing the camp with around 20 new people. We ate and hung out and ended up playing funny games in the tent.

The next day was unbelievable. We walked to a watering hole that the elephants of the area frequently use, and then we went out to a large crater. After the crater we began to walk again and we saw a whole herd of elephants! I nearly had a heart attack and we walked and got very close to them so that we could hear and see them throwing dust and also see their immense size. While there we heard a large elephant give out a trumpet - which sounded initially like a deep lion-like growl and then a horn-like sound. It was so loud and it gave us a start! We quickly went the opposite way and got to higher ground. From above we could see that our pack of elephants was actually a GIGANTIC herd of over 60!! We watched them for awhile until we saw four or five start walking and we followed their path from above. This landed us right above a mud/watering hole that contained ten or fifteen elephants throwing mud on their backs and stomping in it! We ended up watching the entire 60+ group (including teeny tiny mtotos and kubwa sana adults) walking in lines, throwing dust and mud bathing in turns. It was ...amazing! There isn't even a word for it. I said I could die then, I could just die happy. We sat and watched these elephants for a long time, until they all ran back away from us because some idiot honked his motorcycle horn at them and scared them away. Ugh, civilization haha. i still can't believe I witnessed that. I kissed my elephant necklace and held it out to the wind throughout the weekend, so that must have helped, right? Haha, just kidding, but truly it was a moment that will be ingrained in my mind forever.

After this elephant trek we went back to the campsite and got ready to go home. The ride home was really wonderful too. We listened to good music and I just sat and reflected on myself, on Africa and on the way fate as weaved its way into the facets of my life and created a masterpiece. More than ever I have felt that things happen for a reason. Each conversation I have been having, the people I am meeting, the things I have experienced and will continue to experience...they all were supposed to happen. We all just felt at peace and I could feel the love just flowing through the van...haha, but really.
 
Since then...

We danced onstage with the rappers at the Serengeti Fiesta!! (Yes me, totally crazy!) We had to say goodbyes to Tyler, Chris and Abby and I have had amazing connections with some of the new volunteers. I miss so many people now, and I am so grateful for the way they have shaped me it is getting overwhelming. While crying on the way to school this morning I thought, how is it that I am living this life? I truly can't believe it. I am so so blessed, and just because it happened that way. Anyway, it is quite late here in Moshi, and I have to get up and do a lot of work tomorrow (well, today)!!

Ninakupenda sana, amani kila siku na lala salama (or siku njema for those in the US).

Leo Huzuni.

This will be brief. Yesterday we took one of our students, Abdul, to the doctor. While we were at school he began to complain about a headache. When I went to him I felt his head and it was boiling hot. We ended up taking Abdul home to his uncle and then to Majengo clinic. Abdul’s mother died when he was 1 (six years ago) due to AIDS. He has been living with his uncle and other cousins since then. He lives in a small apartment area in one room and he often misses school due to illness. We took him to the clinic along with his uncle and Octavio. Here we ended up standing in many lines and waiting for around 2 hours (which is actually considered a short wait0 until things were settled. It turned out that Abdul had never been tested for HIV or brought to the doctor. He was tested and was also given things in order to check for TB and upper respiratory problems.

It ended up that he is positive for HIV and needed to return to the clinic the next day with spit samples for the lab to assess. Although I knew he was positive before, to hear the results while this tiny little boy was sitting next to me holding my hand was overwhelming. I cried when we heard, and we also heard the doctor yell at the uncle about Abdul’s distended tummy and lack of proper care. She told him that Abdul is very malnourished, he is sick continually and he is losing a chance at living a healthy life despite his HIV/AIDS diagnosis.

It is amazing how fragile life is, how things change and move so quickly and while we can walk around having lives that are relatively calm, there are so many people who are living fragile, inconsistent lives. The fact that my student has to live with an incurable illness and worries about food and warmth at night is heartbreaking. Anyway, it was a sad day. It was interesting to be face to face with AIDS in Africa. I hope that we can continue to instill hope and light into his life while we are here. Remember that beauty and love feed off of each other and live a life full of love. 

.iliyopita.

Some experiences in life lend themselves to life reflection and reassessment. I have had quite a few of these experiences since I arrived in Africa on May 5^th, but this one is markedly different.

         Becca had told me a little about the Upendo house and Sibo’s hope to provide both shelter and loving care in addition to education for children in need in the community. So when I went to the celebration for the finished Upendo house I thought I knew what I was heading to. Once we arrived, however, I quickly realized how unprepared I really was. We walked into the house and I saw a painting I had watched Oko paint a mere day before (when we went with Ramsey to Upendo), and I saw the chairs and table, the computer and the different rooms. I was awestruck, to say the least. I sat in the house the entire night with tears threatening to create salt trails down my cheeks.

         When we arrived Sibo showed us around while Madam Salma and Bibi placed candles around and began to prepare our dinner. Chelsea, Becca and I walked around in awe and with our hearts full of love. I wish I could accurately portray what an unbelievable experience this was, but I just can’t find the words that really portray what it felt like to be there, to be part of something so much bigger than myself and to see firsthand a movement that will tangibly change children’s’ lives. The seven children that were formerly living with bibi and the three Uru kids now had a home in which they could be shown copious amounts of love, be fed and taken care of and still be close to school so that they can learn and grow! I sat and contemplated what it would be like for the kids to live there, and tried to imagine the faces of the Uru kids as they entered their new home. Going from a mud and stick shack to a house with beds, a computer, food and other children is going to be a huge shift – but an amazing one!! This was a time I wish I could capture on film, as though my head was a video camera so that everyone could experience even just a piece of what I was feeling.

         Sibo showed us some of his older paintings and mixed media as well. They contained so many messages of hope and conveyed his deep passion for change. One was based around the Kilimanjaro marathon and it showed the different people and organizations that came together to help people and children in need. It was so beautiful to see the both a desire to assess the needs of the people and the ways that the needs were being addressed. I was very inspired by his recognition of the reality of broken homes and children in need that were living on the streets. It also made me reflect on my desire to help children and my love of art. I hope and plan to use my art to change lives and influence children in need. I would love to be a part of a Performing Arts school here in Moshi and to help orphans realize their talents and their dreams.

         Dinner was delicious, we had amazing company and beautiful times together. It was one of the moments that I felt completely overflowing with love. I have had life-changing moments that have affected my heart – surviving cancer, having my sister as a guide through growing up, talks with my mom and best friends, camps, living through so many things with Danielle, living a life full of music, dancing experiences, losing Paul, living despite feeling like I couldn’t, meeting Becca and others in Africa, and loving children and being able to work with them in many different capacities. This moment immediately made the list (even compared to other things I have experienced in Africa). I remember reflecting on other moments (such as the ones above) and thinking about what a beautiful life I have. I never wanted that evening to end, and it solidified my knowledge that I will never be able to fully leave Africa. I have been changed forever.

upendo kila siku. 

[kuwa mabadiliko unataka kuona katika ulimwengu]- Ghandi Africa status!

.let us love the world to peace.

So I know you all are aware of the fact that I am quite in love with Africa. I also hope you know how much I love my kids at my school. I truly would do anything to help them and I can’t imagine a day without seeing their smiling faces. It is the type of thing that makes you realize your heart has incredible depth and capacity to love. Coming to Africa has truly made me realize that I can love even more than I thought possible, that I am able to achieve things I saw as distant dreams and that it truly is possible to love the world to peace.

            Last week we took one of our students, Ramsey, to Upendo. Ramsey loves to draw and is a very talented artist. The most incredible thing about Ramsey is his passion for art and the way he lights up when he draws. He is also very smart, very polite and loves to learn! Becca and I talked and we organized for Ramsey to meet Sibo and go to Upendo and paint. This was one of the most rewarding days I’ve had here. I brought Ramsey back to CCS from school where we ate lunch and he got to spend time drawing and hanging out with the other volunteers. Everyone loved meeting him and complimented his art skills. We also had Amani come and stand by Ramsey because they look like they could be father and son haha. It was great to see Ramsey having a good time at home base and to be able to just spend time with him. Katyann and I took him over to Mzungu bar and got him a soda and while we were walking he said, “I am so happy”. This made my heart so happy to hear and Katyann and I were so excited to see Ramsey having an amazing day.

            When Sibo came to pick us up we showed him Ramsey’s drawings and he was thrilled to see a new budding artist. I couldn’t have been more excited to have the two meet each other. I knew that Sibo would love Ramsey and I loved that we could bridge the gaps between Faraja and Upendo. I loved that we could be a part the beginning of a connection between two different placements. It is so important to be able to connect the places we work and help Moshi become more integrated and a community that can grow together and support each other. Ramsey had an amazing time painting. He created a picture of his favorite animal – simba – in the grass with Kilimanjaro in the background. It was so beautiful!! Sibo helped him with the background and guided him in how to draw and paint his lion. Ramsey added grass and painted his name and “Afrika Animal” on the top of the painting. I have never seen a bigger smile on his adorable face. We took a lot of photos and I got teary, of course.

            After our painting adventure Becca and I met Amani and Susan and got ready to take Susan to the airport. I wish I could say goodbyes get a little easier just because I’ve gone through multiple, but that would be a complete lie. Saying goodbye to Susan was too hard. Her sweet spirit and beautiful heart really permeating everyone that she was with. It was so strange to feel her leave; I miss her everyday (along with the other people that have left). On the way home in the car the song “I’m Coming Home” came on and I just cried and cried!!

I can’t believe the days keep passing and I move along with them…closer to going home. However, I now have left a part of my heart in Africa, which means I am definitely coming back. I have been given a wonderful opportunity to head volunteerism and aide to a new orphanage here – which means I also have an opportunity to return here and create a tangible project in Moshi with orphans!! Though this is exciting news, this leaves a lot of work for me to do – the proposal for my school, the work with and for the orphanage and finishing the profiles for my kids – and I feel like I don’t have enough time! I do know that I will be able to get it done, however, and that this is definitely not my first and last time here.

I am so grateful for the love and support I have been given prior to and during this time in my life. My mom is my role model and my hero – if she had not given me a chance at life and provided copious amounts of opportunities for me I would not be here. I am fueled by her love and guidance even when she isn’t with me – so thank you mama for being you. My sister and grandma – both of you have shaped who I am and I am so thankful for your continual strength! My other friends and family back home – I am always in awe of how you continually change and grow and I love that we can remain close despite any distances. And my friends here in Africa- you all have shown me how to love in many different ways and how to face all kinds of circumstances. I feel so lucky to have met people with hearts that mirror mine in many ways and people who really understand where I am coming from. I know that together we can change the world and become ambassadors for those in need.  Last but certainly not least I would have to put my kids and the people of Africa – I cannot put words to this experience nor to the amount of times they have stolen my heart! Coming to Africa has proven to me that I will be serving children forever and that helping people in developing countries is going to be a part of my life permanently. It is as though I finally did the thing my heart was waiting for – that sounds oh so cheesy – but it is definitely the truth. Asante san asana Afrika, una iliyopita maisha yangu milele.

Upendo and amani. Ninakupenda sana. 

I felt like posting a poem.

Clouds at ground level.

We drive
small,
incongruent silence
through the evening’s
twilight hour.
I am fascinated by the shadows -
crunchy tan leaves
articulating the
wind’s shape,
voices echoing after-dinner
elation to
unseen listeners.

The awful thing is,
I haven’t found any
reason for asking.
I can’t seem to care about the colorful
how’s and why’s of your
unspokens.

When traveling through fog,
our light
merely brightens the
dense, grey-cold air
around us.
(Perhaps when we quiet the light,
we’ll finally see in the darkness)
You say sure,
we’re not lost,
without any reason

Over one billion people
understand English
and yet,
we find ourselves yearning for
reciprocal, unspoken
moments
the most.

Kaloleni/A catch up post.

This week has been quite fun and also, surprisingly, relaxed. Even though I have stayed up late (past one) during the week and of course was up late at La Liga on Friday – I have found myself feeling more relaxed. My kids are unbelievable, as usual. Everyday Glory and Angela make it even harder for me to think of leaving this place. I have to apologize because I haven’t been blogging lately. I have found it hard to commit myself to sitting down and really typing out a decent blog. I am so consumed with the everyday events and with trying to cherish my stay here.

            So, where to begin? I will start with my first trip out to Kaloleni. Kaloleni is an area out near a gigantic dump on the outskirts of town. The people that live out here have either been ostracized or forgotten about due to where they live. The community is literally a hedge away from a huge dump. The dump is just piles among piles of trash. Sibo found this community and had a desire to help the people here by starting a women’s group in hopes that educating the women will give them opportunities to get jobs and to then help their community economically. Sibo always amazes me – from UPAA to Uru to Kaloleni – he sees a need and immediately works to change it. I admire him very much and aspire to be like him. I want to work here and do something truly meaningful for the children. I hope that when I see what I want to do I will just do it and not be inhibited. So…that being said, Kaloleni is a great location for volunteer work and it brought me to tears the moment I saw it. The women here used to dig through the trash each day and bring back things for their families to eat and use. With Sibo’s help and the infusion of volunteers the women now have a chicken coop full of chickens and they receive education in English every other day. The classroom is a small square area where they lay tarp for carpet. It is open and has a ledge lining it where the women sit. There is a board that one would tack messages and it was painted with black paint that can be used as a chalkboard.

            My first day there we taught the women introductions and worked on singular and plural pronouns. We taught him/her, us, we, me…etc. The women here changed my life. They range in age from twenty something to seventy something and they are incredible. I don’t even have words for how amazing these women are. They are warm, loving, funny and they have a huge desire to learn. I immediately fell in love with them and decided to go once a week with Becca. I cannot explain how beautiful and wonderful this community is. The women love to learn, they love to laugh and joke and they are surrounded by impenetrable warmth. It’s so refreshing to be around people that don’t speak your language and be able to fully communicate and connect with them!! After teaching the women we walked to the chicken coop and then when Sibo arrived we stopped at the dump. The dump is just around a set of tall hedges. It is so massive and overwhelming. The moment I saw it I began to cry. Not only was it HUGE and next to Kaloleni, one of our women was digging through the trash (along with others who were standing on top of the hills of trash) to find food and other items. I couldn’t handle seeing this…it not only broke my heart but it really inspired me to keep helping these women. It made me want to do everything in my power to improve their lives.

            So…basically being anywhere that Sibo is affiliated with has really affected me and I admire him so much!! I want to be like him…to see a need and do what it takes to address it and take care of it. I also just do not want to go home. This is where I want to be!! I am going to start planning my next trip out here (hopefully for next summer). Sibo said that’s not soon enough, but I think it will be June because of school.

            So, after this first experience of Kaloleni I had a pretty normal weekend. Normal meaning we went out a lot and I cried a lot because people were leaving. The Friday before TaChyla and Amanda left we all went out and it was so amazing. I will never forget my nightly soulmate chats on TaChyla’s bed or my moyo to moyos with my Canadian Amanda. We all had an amazing bonding moment at La Liga this night because we all did the line dance together. This line dance originated in South Africa and it really is the most atrociously boring dance I’ve ever done. It is a diluted verson of the Electric Slide and the Africans LOVE IT. I truly do not understand it. It is so boring and no one ever does it all in the same direction and it literally lasts for a minimum of 10 minutes once it starts. The songs will run and run and continue and people will just keep doing the dance. Oh my goodness. It’s awful, but in a funny way. Afterall, TIA. So on this particular night all of my closest friends and all of our local friends were on the floor and we all did the line dance together and to be honest – it was just magical. The next day I cried a ton and we said goodbye to TaChyla and Amanda…I still miss them terribly to this very day.

            One weekend we went on a free coffee tour with Kira and her mom. This was amazing!! We went with Oscar (from Pristine) and we had quite an “organic” experience. The coffee tour begins with an explanation and of how coffee originated and how they began to make it. Then, you get to see a coffee plant and the beans on the vine. Next, you get to make the coffee by going through the process of de-shelling the beans, picking out the bad ones, roasting them over a fire and hand grinding them!! After this we drank our coffee and began to hike to the waterfall. The waterfall is unbelievable!! It is 80 meters high and the face of it is smooth rock. When we walked up to it we all lost our breath. It was truly unbelievable!! When you stand near the waterfall you get drenched in its spray due to the wind. We drank hot coffee at the base of the waterfall, took a million pictures and then began to walk back. The day was such a beautiful one and we saw a bunch of chameleon, yuka leaves and a banana slug while on our way back. I also got to talk to Kira’s mom which was really great. She is an amazing woman and she has been through some incredible experiences. I really hope to be adventures and fun like her as I get older and become a mom!

            My placement/school has been running well. Not too many hitches except that some new volunteers came and they had no interest in being with the kids or working with us. I won’t lie – I am very protective and possessive of my kids. I know I don’t own them or anything, but after 7 weeks with them I truly would do anything to help them out and each one of them has a place in my heart. So, when a set of volunteers came (volunteers that were actually PAID with our tax dollars to come and paid to go on two extravagant safaris) it was hard to have them be disinterested in the kids and their learning progress. I am very invested in helping the kids at my school and making sure they have individual profiles, test scores and ways to track their progress. This is something I have been working on since I arrived and I’m very passionate about it. So, I am very tied to them and like to keep them moving forward and the other volunteers were a little bit difficult to work with. Otherwise, things have been great!! My kids are fun, they all like to yell “Teacher Jennica” when we are walking or driving away and they will always say they miss me when I’m gone. J I am in love with them, truly. I can’t even BEGIN to imagine leaving them.

            Things went pretty smoothly the following week until Wednesday. On Wednesday Becca was walking to Kaloleni by herself and a few children accompanied her. Becca has walked to Kaloleni alone quite a few times and it has never been a problem. This time, however, there was a young man waiting a mere 100 feet (if that) outside of the town’s edge on the path. This guy said hi to Becca and she said hello back and went on her way. A moment later she felt a tug on her shoulder and then saw the same guy running away with her purse. He had cut the strap of her bag with a knife and stole it!! She chased him quite a way until he disappeared into a forested area and then she ran back as fast as she could to Kaloleni. The minute one of the women heard what happened the ENTIRE community went out looking for this guy. They searched and searched and after Becca came back to Home Base they found a way to trap the guy and then Becca had to go back out to meet him. This meeting consisted of a Sibo, Ibrahim and Daniel taking Becca and Chelsea out to where he was (in the CCS van, mind you) and then accosting the guy and throwing him in the van and taking him to the police station. The entire day was so crazy. There was a lot of yelling and confusion and Becca was caught in the middle of it. It was a really PFS day…so we made sure the take good care of Becca after that.

            Since then we have done a lot of wonderful things and spent a lot of time with wonderful people!! I have been really glad that I can talk to people at home and stay plugged in.  It is also really great to make local friends and connections. This facilitates coming back next year (or anytime) and aids in my hope to pursue continual work here. I have to write a separate post about Ramsey’s day at Upendo with Sibo, the Upendo House and my feelings as of late. Amani na Upendo.