I just returned from a visit to Mitumba slum. I went with the intention of seeing the ministry there, and seeing about my possible involvement in children’s ministry. It is interesting to me that after having mentioned this place to quite a few people here in Kenya, nobody had even heard of it! They didn’t even recognize the name as a place in Nairobi…the word mitumba actually means “old clothes”. It is a place that is hard to describe if you have never been there to actually see something like it, but I will try my best.
It has been raining here in Nairobi for awhile (we are in the spring rainy season), and so everything is a mess…muddy, dirty, messy, smelly…any and all of those words apply. Diana and I drove to Mitumba and met up with Pastor Shadrach. He is a Kenyan man who, along with his wife Violet, have seen the needs of the children in this slum, saw them eating dirt and chewing on used condoms… and have stepped up to the plate and have given themselves to helping the children. He walked us into the entrance to the slum, and pointed out that he liked my shoes because they have good traction to walk around Mitumba…I understood what he meant as soon as we ducked through and around little tin buildings, and sloshed around the puddles and muck, and dodged garbage and waste. I thought I was prepared after walking around Kibera, but in Kibera we didn’t actually go into any houses, and didn’t veer off the main “road”. Mitumba is a much smaller slum than Kibera with only about 17 - 20 thousand people calling Mitumba their home, but a slum is still a slum. It’s not pretty. When the unwanted breeze picks up, it fills the air with smells of waste, sewer, animals…and makes you not want to breathe in… So we go through the maze of tin shacks, on trails only wide enough for one person, and get to a small opening in the middle of a few buildings…and we have arrived. It is a school for the slum children, from preschool age to grade seven. Pastor Shadrach is so proud of what they have accomplished, and at first I could not see any accomplishment. All my mind comprehended was that everything is so dirty, there are so many children crammed into such a small area, and I’m supposed to work here??? I just kind of got this buzzing in my head, and missed some of what Pastor was saying…I must admit I was in somewhat of a panic mode, and maybe still am.
We walked into a few classrooms, greeted the children and the teachers, and then walked into a tiny office off one of the classrooms to discuss what is happening at this school, and where I could possibly get involved. After Pastor Shadrach and his wife Violet began talking and sharing what the Lord is doing in their ministry, I could really see that, yes, great things are happening!! The school has over 270 children, most of whom lead very difficult, young lives, and all of whom need much love and care. They are able to give the children good education, meals, clean water, and a healthy, loving Christian environment. They have also started a couple of small businesses to first of all employ some people who live in the slum, and also sell what they make to raise money for the orphanage they have started…which begun when they realized that the reason so many children were falling asleep in class was because they had no place to go at night and would just sit in the corridors of the slum walkways and rest their head against the tin buildings. So there are many things that God is doing in this place, and is using very dedicated people like Pastor Shadrach and Violet to do it.
In my conversation with them, it is clear that they need a lot of help and support…there is so much work to be done there. So please pray for us as we seek the Lord’s guidance on possible ministry opportunities here…Trevor and I are going to start going to Mitumba on Saturday mornings, and running the youth program there! It was really neat, because at first Pastor Shadrach really wanted me to teach, and I sort of agreed because I didn’t feel that I had a choice…but after praying about it, realized that I felt no peace about that, and called him to discuss this with him…when I mentioned that we would be free to help on Saturdays, his voice lit up and said “I have been praying for this for a long, long time. You can run the youth club, and counsel them, and get to know them and their struggles.” I feel such peace, and so excited that Trevor and I can minister to these broken youth together.
But at the same time, I am also feeling terrified and completely out of my comfort zone… The slum is not a “nice” place to be, and yet the need is so great. Meeting the children was wonderful, though…they are so excited and beautiful, wearing their bright red sweaters and navy blue pants/skirts. My heart breaks when I think about them, and the pain and sorrow they have faced in their short lifetimes…
So please, please pray.
We are also leaving for Korr tomorrow…a desert village in Northern Kenya…we may be staying until Wednesday, unless Trevor needs more time to fix the vehicles there, then we would catch the next flight back, possibly with AIM or with MAF…maybe Friday or maybe the following Tuesday…Please pray for this as well, for wisdom and knowledge for Trevor as he works on their vehicles, and that we would be a help and encouragement to the missionaries living in Korr…
Much, much love,
~A
Friday, October 24, 2008
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
This and That...
One of the most difficult things adjustments for us has been the feeling of always being new, always having to ask questions, not knowing even the simplest things…and one of the ways that this has played out has been in the area of finding a Church. We have been very spoiled at home with such an amazing church family, good solid teaching, worshiping together in music that we really enjoy, and knowing everyone, and knowing how everything works! Going to different Churches here and trying to find one that we want to stick with has been very interesting and enjoyable, and good to see how people worship here, but it’s difficult at the same time. When you’re always the visitor and have to stand up and introduce yourself, when you never see a familiar face…it’s tiring! Trevor and I really want to find a church that we feel God is really working in, and where we feel we can contribute and fit in somewhat. This past Sunday was the first Sunday where we weren’t the newcomers, and when they asked the visitors to stand and say something, we could stay seated!! It was wonderful!! We decided to attend the AIC Ngong again for a couple of reasons…first of all it’s so close and it only takes a few minutes to walk there (and we don’t have a vehicle yet), second thing, it’s small and cozy, and third and most important, we really enjoyed it the last time we attended, and felt very welcomed, and felt that this may be one where we could attend on a regular basis. It was nice that we went again, because it was quite different from the last time we attended! If you’ll remember reading about it a couple of weeks ago, they had the choir lead the singing, accompanied by kids playing violins. This time, the power wasn’t out, so they had a power point for the lyrics for the songs, they had a worship team consisting of a guy playing the keyboard (phenomenal musician!!), a guy playing drums (again, really, really talented!), another man playing base guitar, two ladies singing, and the worship leader also singing and dancing all over the stage! He was very excited and energetic!! It was very enjoyable, and really neat to be a part of their worship service. They sang songs in English, and also sang some Swahili songs, so that was really neat as well!! There are only a handful of wazungu missionaries there, and yet we still didn’t feel out of place. The teaching was good too, solid and Bible based. They also do a thing where they pray for the kids before they go off to Children’s Church, so all the kids go up to the front and someone prays for them and their “service”. All in all…we like it there a lot, and although we have heard about a couple of other churches that have been recommended to us, and may try them out, our goal is not to try every church, and see them all, but our goal is to find a “home” church quickly so that we can get to know people, and become a part of a church family. So we would really appreciate prayer in this, as it will really help to get involved and get to know our Kenyan brothers and sisters in Christ. Something else that made last Sunday feel a little more like home was that on our way home from church, we were just walking out of the parking lot and onto the street, and a missionary lady working with AIM stopped us and asked if we wanted to come over for some chai! It was fun…a spur of the moment invitation to go visit after church…so we went to Ted and Liisa Rurup’s house for chai and soup, and visited with them for part of the afternoon!
Monday was an extremely exhausting day!! It was a holiday (yes, another one! The month of October has a lot of holidays…this one was Kenyatta Day. Every president seems to have their own day here!), and so Trevor and I, along with six other people went on an adventure to climb Mount Longonot! We got up early, and the plan was to meet everyone at 7:30 am, and leave the city shortly after. Well…as this is Africa, nothing ever happens that way!! One of the girls who came with us, Joanne, was going to just leave her car at the ABC place, which is a shopping plaza, and we would pick her up from there. We met her there, she parked her car, and got in with us in Judith’s car. As we were about to leave, the guard flagged us down, and asked why her car was staying there. She told him that she was just leaving it there for a few hours, and would be back to get it. He very adamantly replied that that was NOT allowed, and she was not to leave it there as something could happen to it. This dialogue went on for a while, until she realized that he just wanted a bribe. Well, she was not about to give him one, and so asked for the management's number and for his name so she could report him. He quickly turned his name tag around, and refused. She asked for it again, and…he refused again…this went on for awhile, until we all realized that nothing was going to change, and he was not going to give in until he got some money, which we would not give. Finally, we just left, and she parked her car somewhere else…it was quite the ordeal! But more than that, gave us a first hand look at the corruption and the way a lot of things work around here. We were also worried as we were driving out of town that we would get stopped at the various police checkpoints set up…marked by rows of barriers lined with sharp spikes to deter anyone from just driving through the check stops! The police randomly decide which vehicle to stop, and can really make your life miserable if the smallest thing is wrong, and will then jump into your vehicle with you and demand that you go to the police station (remember, the policemen do not have cars here!), or if it is a holiday, like yesterday was, then tell you have to go to court, and wait in jail until the court date! There’s no such thing as a ticket, it’s the police station, jail, court, or all of the above! Pretty intimidating! So we prayed about this before we left, and finally got on our way!! And…praise the Lord that we passed by quite a few check stops and didn’t get pulled over at all, not on the way there or on the way back!! We were very thankful!!
So…anyway, we drove to Mount Longonot National Park, which is about a 1 ½ hours drive, saw the majestic Great Rift Valley along the way, saw an overturned semi truck that held up traffic, so we just down into the ditch to get around the accident…!! Aahhh..good times!! We had to pay to get into the park…and now that we are Kenyan residents, we only had to pay 500 ksh each (which is a little over $7), and non-residents had to pay 1500 ksh each (which is a little more than $20)!! It was an exciting day!! We drove to the base of the mountain, got our backpacks ready, and started
the trek. It was crazy…we hadn’t even climbed for 10 minutes, and we were all wheezing and out of breath!! We felt a little ridiculous, until we were reminded that we were at a much higher altitude, and that was a big part of the reason for not being able to catch our breath. (it made us feel a little better!!) It was a long, hard climb, made even more difficult by the thick ash we were walking on as we got closer to the top. Mount Longonot is an old dormant volcano that erupted many years ago, and the evidence of that can be seen by the ash on the ground, the lava rocks, and seeing the amazing greenery fuelled by the lava flow. It was pretty neat! As we climbed higher, and got more tired, I kept hearing the advice we were given about climbing the mountain playing in my head “it’s really difficult, and you’ll just want to give up, but trust me, keep going because it’s worth it! The view is incredible!” So…we kept climbing, and kept climbing, and kept climbing…it took close to two hours 
to get to the top, and as I climbed those last few steps that felt like a hundred, and collapsed on the ground, I looked down the other side…and it really was incredible!! There’s a ridge all around the edge of the mountain, and in the center is a HUGE crater made by the eruption many years ago!! It was amazing! They say that there’s wildlife that lives in the crater…we didn’t see any, but it was very far down, and covered in thick greenery, so it probably would have been impossible to see any animals anyway.
We ate our picnic lunches that we had packed, rested, and took in the beauty of God’s creation…we could see Lake Naivasha, beautiful trees, other mountains, the valley…it is almost impossible to describe the beauty!! After we had finished our lunches, then it was suggested that we hike around the ridge of the whole mountain…and everything in me protested!! My body screamed “NO”!!! But we went anyway. Most of it wasn’t as hard as climbing up the mountain had been…there were many more areas of flat ground, or even walking downhill. We had trekked a little more that a quarter of the way around, and saw the dark rain clouds coming our way, and realized that we couldn’t see the valley anymore for the rain. If the mountain would get wet, all the ash and fine dirt we were walking on would
turn to slippery mud, and we had to get all the way back down the mountain before that happened!! So half of us started back, and the other half wanted to keep going. We made it back to the place where we had eaten our lunch with only a few drops of rain, and started on our way down. It was much easier doing that than going up had been!! We were making pretty good time, and then saw some Kenyan kids who were RUNNING down…and thought “what crazy kids! They are going to kill themselves!” But…the clouds were getting darker, and walking down a mountain is extremely hard on your feet and legs because you constantly have to brace yourself and slow yourself down…so we decided we may as well go with the mountain and run! And run we did!! It was fun…a little scary when the momentum would get the better of us and make it really difficult to slow down…but fun anyway!! We were so thankful to get to the bottom and see the vehicles, and the not-so-sturdy picnic tables, and just crashed there until the rest of the group made it down. On our way home it started pouring rain…so yet again God answered our prayers!! It was a wonderful day, and so neat to see more of Kenya, and to experience and appreciate another part of the world that God has created.
As many or all of you know…I have been feeling a little anxious and impatient to get involved in kid’s ministry, and have had to continually pray for God to give me patience and wisdom, and give all control over to Him, as His timing is always best. So it excites me to tell you that on Thursday I am going to be going to Matumba Slum with Diana Schmidt (her husband is in charge of short term ministry for the Eastern Region division of AIM)!! We are going to be meeting with Pastor Shadrack who is running an informal school for the slum kids of all ages. This slum is really close to Wilson Airport where Trevor works everyday, so that would make getting there really simple. I am really excited about this possibility, and also really scared! First of all, teaching is not my strength, and I know that the conditions and stories I will come in contact with will be difficult and hard to handle. But, we have prayed about my placement here, and I know that many of you have prayed for this as well, and so I want to trust the Lord with this, and know that He will often take us to those places where He can stretch us, use us, and so that everyone can see that it is ONLY Christ doing the work, and that we are just His vessels. I am confident that He is in control, and that He has brought me here for a purpose.
So please pray for this placement, that God would show me if this is where I should get involved, and that the meeting on Thursday would go well. Please pray for Trevor as well, as this week is going to be a little stressful for him because James is gone all week, and we are hoping to go to Korr (another up-country village) this weekend so he can fix a missionary’s vehicle, so Trevor has to try and make all the arrangements himself, and get all the parts in time, and figure out all the logistics of travel and all that.
Oh, and another interesting bit of news…we have a house helper! This concept seemed really strange to us at first, and we just thought that we don’t need anybody to do the housework, so why would we get a house helper?? But the more we talked to people, the more we realized that getting Kenyans to come and work for you, whether it be in the house, or outside doing yard work, or whatever it may be is a real blessing to them, and gives them a good job that they would not otherwise have. It’s expected here…even the Kenyans have house helpers, and it’s often just to help out someone who is even less fortunate than them. So we decided to get someone to come one day a week, and she started yesterday! Her name is Salomi, and she makes amazing tortillas!! It was a good day of getting to know one another, and she has already told me a bit about her life and struggles, and I’m excited to continue to build this relationship with her! She’s a very sweet woman! We also have a man named Elli come and do the yard work and cleaning outside, and he works for us one day a week as well.
Anyway, I think that's it for today...till next time..
~A
Monday was an extremely exhausting day!! It was a holiday (yes, another one! The month of October has a lot of holidays…this one was Kenyatta Day. Every president seems to have their own day here!), and so Trevor and I, along with six other people went on an adventure to climb Mount Longonot! We got up early, and the plan was to meet everyone at 7:30 am, and leave the city shortly after. Well…as this is Africa, nothing ever happens that way!! One of the girls who came with us, Joanne, was going to just leave her car at the ABC place, which is a shopping plaza, and we would pick her up from there. We met her there, she parked her car, and got in with us in Judith’s car. As we were about to leave, the guard flagged us down, and asked why her car was staying there. She told him that she was just leaving it there for a few hours, and would be back to get it. He very adamantly replied that that was NOT allowed, and she was not to leave it there as something could happen to it. This dialogue went on for a while, until she realized that he just wanted a bribe. Well, she was not about to give him one, and so asked for the management's number and for his name so she could report him. He quickly turned his name tag around, and refused. She asked for it again, and…he refused again…this went on for awhile, until we all realized that nothing was going to change, and he was not going to give in until he got some money, which we would not give. Finally, we just left, and she parked her car somewhere else…it was quite the ordeal! But more than that, gave us a first hand look at the corruption and the way a lot of things work around here. We were also worried as we were driving out of town that we would get stopped at the various police checkpoints set up…marked by rows of barriers lined with sharp spikes to deter anyone from just driving through the check stops! The police randomly decide which vehicle to stop, and can really make your life miserable if the smallest thing is wrong, and will then jump into your vehicle with you and demand that you go to the police station (remember, the policemen do not have cars here!), or if it is a holiday, like yesterday was, then tell you have to go to court, and wait in jail until the court date! There’s no such thing as a ticket, it’s the police station, jail, court, or all of the above! Pretty intimidating! So we prayed about this before we left, and finally got on our way!! And…praise the Lord that we passed by quite a few check stops and didn’t get pulled over at all, not on the way there or on the way back!! We were very thankful!!
So…anyway, we drove to Mount Longonot National Park, which is about a 1 ½ hours drive, saw the majestic Great Rift Valley along the way, saw an overturned semi truck that held up traffic, so we just down into the ditch to get around the accident…!! Aahhh..good times!! We had to pay to get into the park…and now that we are Kenyan residents, we only had to pay 500 ksh each (which is a little over $7), and non-residents had to pay 1500 ksh each (which is a little more than $20)!! It was an exciting day!! We drove to the base of the mountain, got our backpacks ready, and started
the trek. It was crazy…we hadn’t even climbed for 10 minutes, and we were all wheezing and out of breath!! We felt a little ridiculous, until we were reminded that we were at a much higher altitude, and that was a big part of the reason for not being able to catch our breath. (it made us feel a little better!!) It was a long, hard climb, made even more difficult by the thick ash we were walking on as we got closer to the top. Mount Longonot is an old dormant volcano that erupted many years ago, and the evidence of that can be seen by the ash on the ground, the lava rocks, and seeing the amazing greenery fuelled by the lava flow. It was pretty neat! As we climbed higher, and got more tired, I kept hearing the advice we were given about climbing the mountain playing in my head “it’s really difficult, and you’ll just want to give up, but trust me, keep going because it’s worth it! The view is incredible!” So…we kept climbing, and kept climbing, and kept climbing…it took close to two hours 
to get to the top, and as I climbed those last few steps that felt like a hundred, and collapsed on the ground, I looked down the other side…and it really was incredible!! There’s a ridge all around the edge of the mountain, and in the center is a HUGE crater made by the eruption many years ago!! It was amazing! They say that there’s wildlife that lives in the crater…we didn’t see any, but it was very far down, and covered in thick greenery, so it probably would have been impossible to see any animals anyway.We ate our picnic lunches that we had packed, rested, and took in the beauty of God’s creation…we could see Lake Naivasha, beautiful trees, other mountains, the valley…it is almost impossible to describe the beauty!! After we had finished our lunches, then it was suggested that we hike around the ridge of the whole mountain…and everything in me protested!! My body screamed “NO”!!! But we went anyway. Most of it wasn’t as hard as climbing up the mountain had been…there were many more areas of flat ground, or even walking downhill. We had trekked a little more that a quarter of the way around, and saw the dark rain clouds coming our way, and realized that we couldn’t see the valley anymore for the rain. If the mountain would get wet, all the ash and fine dirt we were walking on would
turn to slippery mud, and we had to get all the way back down the mountain before that happened!! So half of us started back, and the other half wanted to keep going. We made it back to the place where we had eaten our lunch with only a few drops of rain, and started on our way down. It was much easier doing that than going up had been!! We were making pretty good time, and then saw some Kenyan kids who were RUNNING down…and thought “what crazy kids! They are going to kill themselves!” But…the clouds were getting darker, and walking down a mountain is extremely hard on your feet and legs because you constantly have to brace yourself and slow yourself down…so we decided we may as well go with the mountain and run! And run we did!! It was fun…a little scary when the momentum would get the better of us and make it really difficult to slow down…but fun anyway!! We were so thankful to get to the bottom and see the vehicles, and the not-so-sturdy picnic tables, and just crashed there until the rest of the group made it down. On our way home it started pouring rain…so yet again God answered our prayers!! It was a wonderful day, and so neat to see more of Kenya, and to experience and appreciate another part of the world that God has created.As many or all of you know…I have been feeling a little anxious and impatient to get involved in kid’s ministry, and have had to continually pray for God to give me patience and wisdom, and give all control over to Him, as His timing is always best. So it excites me to tell you that on Thursday I am going to be going to Matumba Slum with Diana Schmidt (her husband is in charge of short term ministry for the Eastern Region division of AIM)!! We are going to be meeting with Pastor Shadrack who is running an informal school for the slum kids of all ages. This slum is really close to Wilson Airport where Trevor works everyday, so that would make getting there really simple. I am really excited about this possibility, and also really scared! First of all, teaching is not my strength, and I know that the conditions and stories I will come in contact with will be difficult and hard to handle. But, we have prayed about my placement here, and I know that many of you have prayed for this as well, and so I want to trust the Lord with this, and know that He will often take us to those places where He can stretch us, use us, and so that everyone can see that it is ONLY Christ doing the work, and that we are just His vessels. I am confident that He is in control, and that He has brought me here for a purpose.
So please pray for this placement, that God would show me if this is where I should get involved, and that the meeting on Thursday would go well. Please pray for Trevor as well, as this week is going to be a little stressful for him because James is gone all week, and we are hoping to go to Korr (another up-country village) this weekend so he can fix a missionary’s vehicle, so Trevor has to try and make all the arrangements himself, and get all the parts in time, and figure out all the logistics of travel and all that.
Oh, and another interesting bit of news…we have a house helper! This concept seemed really strange to us at first, and we just thought that we don’t need anybody to do the housework, so why would we get a house helper?? But the more we talked to people, the more we realized that getting Kenyans to come and work for you, whether it be in the house, or outside doing yard work, or whatever it may be is a real blessing to them, and gives them a good job that they would not otherwise have. It’s expected here…even the Kenyans have house helpers, and it’s often just to help out someone who is even less fortunate than them. So we decided to get someone to come one day a week, and she started yesterday! Her name is Salomi, and she makes amazing tortillas!! It was a good day of getting to know one another, and she has already told me a bit about her life and struggles, and I’m excited to continue to build this relationship with her! She’s a very sweet woman! We also have a man named Elli come and do the yard work and cleaning outside, and he works for us one day a week as well.
Anyway, I think that's it for today...till next time..
~A
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Thanksgiving in Kurungu
Tribal. Isolated. Hot. These are a few words that explain our Thanksgiving weekend. We had the opportunity to go up-country to Kurungu (a village close to South Horr) with James..and what an amazing time we had! Even though it was not Thanksgiving here, it was a long weekend, as Friday was Moi Day..so we left early Friday morning and flew out with AIM Air. Even that was so neat..to see the Kenyan countryside as we flew by in the small plane, the mountains, the trees, the lone roads here and there..Trevor got to sit up front with the pilot, so that was pretty cool as well! It took 1 ½ hours to fly what would have taken 2 days to drive! We landed in a valley with mountains on either side…small dirt airstrip…greeted by the missionaries that we went to visit, along with some of the local Samburu people who came to see who had flown in. The view was incredible!!
We stayed with W
alt and Monica Middleton and their three kids…they have lived in Kurungu for about two years. There is also another missionary couple who has been there longer, Rick and Carrie Maples, and they have two kids. The whole weekend was filled with so many different things..a lot of visiting, exploring the area, learning about the culture…Trevor also got his hands dirty and helped fix their vehicles, so that was a huge help to them, as the roads here do a lot of damage to the vehicles!! We also went into the town of Kurungu to get some sand to bring to the preschool (the picture on the left shows the guys loading sand...they only had three shovels, so that is the reason there are so many guys just standing and watching!!), and joined in other little projects here and there to experience the daily life of the missionaries who live there.
Trevor with some of the local kids who live in the town of Kurungu. They LOVED being on pictures!!
Kids filling up their water jugs at the well...beautiful, beautiful kids..
We stayed with W
alt and Monica Middleton and their three kids…they have lived in Kurungu for about two years. There is also another missionary couple who has been there longer, Rick and Carrie Maples, and they have two kids. The whole weekend was filled with so many different things..a lot of visiting, exploring the area, learning about the culture…Trevor also got his hands dirty and helped fix their vehicles, so that was a huge help to them, as the roads here do a lot of damage to the vehicles!! We also went into the town of Kurungu to get some sand to bring to the preschool (the picture on the left shows the guys loading sand...they only had three shovels, so that is the reason there are so many guys just standing and watching!!), and joined in other little projects here and there to experience the daily life of the missionaries who live there.
Trevor with some of the local kids who live in the town of Kurungu. They LOVED being on pictures!!
Sunday afternoon...a bunch of Samburu people heard there were more wazungu (white people) who had arrived in Kurungu, and so they brought many things to show us in hopes that we would buy something...In the picture I am trying to barter with a drunk man...it was an interesting event! We ended up buying some neat items from a few different people..
Kids filling up their water jugs at the well...beautiful, beautiful kids..The people that the Maples’ and Middletons are minstering to are the Samburu people..a nomadic tribe who travel with their goats and camels, and live very simply. Most of them speak only Samburu…some speak Swahili, and very few speak English. Only the boys go to school, and it is only those who are considered “useless”, who have no desire to herd the animals and live the nomadic lifestyle. Th
is lifestyle is considered the highest calling, and those who are not interested are sent to school, and suffer problems from their people for it. For a boy, to become a Moran (warrior) (Morani - Warriors) is the greatest achievement…there is a lot of ritual and tradition that comes with it, and it is after the boys are circumcised when they reach adolescence that they can start to go through the process to become a warrior and start their journey into manhood. The Moranis hold their positions for 14 years, until they marry and become elders. The women marry as soon as they reach adolescence, and are in charge of building the huts, collecting wood, water, and cooking. It is a very interesting culture..one that is hard for us to understand. The Samburu are very tribal in dress and tradition…they wear a lot of big beaded necklaces, bracele
ts, earrings…their clothing consists of big pieces of brightly coloured cloth wrapped around them, often in colours of pink and red…their hair is mostly shaved, with the exception of the warriors who have long red hair that is then shaved in a tribal ritual…many of the children are naked, but still wear bracelets and necklaces … everything was so unique and foreign to us, and we were constantly asking questions of the missionaries..”what does this mean? why do they do this? “ and on and on the questions would go!
Their ministry with the Samburu is very exciting! Because most of the people are illiterate, they are going through the “storying” technique, which means they are going through the Bible, starting at the beginning and picking stories in chronological order that point the way to Jesus Christ, and then telling these stories to the people. This is the way that the Samburu have kept their history and stories, by telling them to each other and passing them down throughout
the generations…no books, no “technology”. The people are memorizing these Bible stories now, and really, really know them well! There have been many people who have come to Christ, and have a solid foundation of what they believe. It’s so exciting!! The vision is for them to one day be able to have thriving, growing Churches without the foreign missionaries there to constantly lead them, but for them to lead their own people. It is a very challenging ministry, as the Samburu are nomadic, and so they often only stay on one area for a month or two, and then move on to find more grazing land for their animals. Pray for the missionaries working with them…they need a lot of wisdom!
We had the opportunity to go to a Samburu “night Church” on Monday night…amazing, amazing, amazing!!! We left after dark, walked over two kilometres on dusty, dirt roads with the moon as our light, arrived in the village to the sounds of Samburu singing, praising the Lord…were greeted by many kids who were so excited that we were there…joined in the clapping…sat under African Acacia trees…were surrounded by camels, goats, and little Samburu manyattas (huts)…and took it all in as they told the story of Abraham taking Isaac up the mountain to sacrifice him…everything was told in the Samburu language, by a Samburu man who is a strong believer in the Lord. Sitting there in the dirt, surrounded by kids…both Trevor and I could hardly believe that we were actually sitting there, witnessing something like that! We could hear the sounds of goats and donkeys, the sound of fires crackling, the sounds of babies crying and their mothers comforting them, of children giggling as they touched our white skin, birds of every sort chirping loudly…seeing the silhouette of the mountains on either side of us, seeing the huge centipede crawling on Trevor’s leg..!!! Looking around I could see the women with babies on their backs, soaking in the Word of God, and remembering the stories so well, and understanding them because they are told in their heart language. I saw some of the men who are rising up and taking responsibility, and one of them walking over four kilometres just for those few hours to tell the people about God, and then having to walk back that night…we were so blessed to be able to be a part of that. What an amazing God we serve!!
The next
morning we also had the chance to go to this village by daylight..and got to go into one of their manyattas (huts) to see what it’s like inside! The manyattas are portable huts made up of mud, hide, grass, and blankets/tarps, etc. First they wanted to clean it up for us, so we waited for awhile, then they said that they were ready for us, so we ducked through the tiny opening, turned a little corner, and sat down on the mat they provided for us. It’s just tiny, with a fire inside for cooking, goats wandering in and out, the mats that we were sitting on was where they would sleep at night…they were so excited to have us come in, and when I would take pictures, they would want to see them, and would laugh and laugh when they saw themselves!! It was really neat to sit with them…Walt was the one who took us there, and he has learned to communicate well with them, so that was really neat to see as well. (the camping tent in the picture is Walt's tent...he set it up in their village so he could stay with them sometimes...and the other huts you see are the manyattas.)
Throughout the weekend, we also got a glimpse of the daily life of the missionaries living there. The people come to them for a lot of things…we saw a man who’s head was cut open, a baby who had an infected sore on his head, a man with an infected finger, a boy who had a gash on his leg, another guy who got something in his eye…and on and on it would go!! The Map
les and Middletons would stop what they were doing and help whoever was the one in need, spend time with them…it was really interesting to witness. Another thing we noticed was just how much work it is to live there…the town of Kurungu can’t really even be called a town…it’s just a road going through with huts on either side (the pictures on the right are of downtown Kurungu!!)…so they can buy camel milk from the people, some honey, and maybe a few other things, but most of their groceries have to be purchased when they go to Nairobi once every 6-12 weeks!! That’s a lot of planning ahead, saving, being 
very resourceful…I have so much respect and admiration for anyone who can live like that!! It’s pretty amazing! And another thing is the isolation and loneliness that they face…it’s very difficult when there are only two missionary families living there together…and “getting away” means travelling for two days on difficult and sometimes dangerous roads…it really opened our eyes this weekend to see this way of life and the many sacrifices these people have made to work with the Samburu people.
By the way…our Thanksgiving meal was camel meat! It was cooked over an open fire, and really very good! And on that note, Happy Thanksgiving to each one of you…we are so thankful for you, for your prayers, your support, and so thankful to God for all His provisions for us…We serve a gre
at God!!
Oh, and another cool thing was that some Samburu people rescued a baby dik-dik from the mountains on Sunday morning and brought it to the Middleton‘s house!! (a dik-dik is a very small deer, the smallest of the deer family). It was so tiny, just a few days old, and the size of a small cat! The Middleton’s are now keeping it and feeding it milk with a syringe…it was so cute!! And we also saw a couple of chameleons, baboons, monkeys, and a toucan! Just backyard animals when you live in Kurungu, Kenya!!
is lifestyle is considered the highest calling, and those who are not interested are sent to school, and suffer problems from their people for it. For a boy, to become a Moran (warrior) (Morani - Warriors) is the greatest achievement…there is a lot of ritual and tradition that comes with it, and it is after the boys are circumcised when they reach adolescence that they can start to go through the process to become a warrior and start their journey into manhood. The Moranis hold their positions for 14 years, until they marry and become elders. The women marry as soon as they reach adolescence, and are in charge of building the huts, collecting wood, water, and cooking. It is a very interesting culture..one that is hard for us to understand. The Samburu are very tribal in dress and tradition…they wear a lot of big beaded necklaces, bracele
ts, earrings…their clothing consists of big pieces of brightly coloured cloth wrapped around them, often in colours of pink and red…their hair is mostly shaved, with the exception of the warriors who have long red hair that is then shaved in a tribal ritual…many of the children are naked, but still wear bracelets and necklaces … everything was so unique and foreign to us, and we were constantly asking questions of the missionaries..”what does this mean? why do they do this? “ and on and on the questions would go!Their ministry with the Samburu is very exciting! Because most of the people are illiterate, they are going through the “storying” technique, which means they are going through the Bible, starting at the beginning and picking stories in chronological order that point the way to Jesus Christ, and then telling these stories to the people. This is the way that the Samburu have kept their history and stories, by telling them to each other and passing them down throughout
the generations…no books, no “technology”. The people are memorizing these Bible stories now, and really, really know them well! There have been many people who have come to Christ, and have a solid foundation of what they believe. It’s so exciting!! The vision is for them to one day be able to have thriving, growing Churches without the foreign missionaries there to constantly lead them, but for them to lead their own people. It is a very challenging ministry, as the Samburu are nomadic, and so they often only stay on one area for a month or two, and then move on to find more grazing land for their animals. Pray for the missionaries working with them…they need a lot of wisdom!
We had the opportunity to go to a Samburu “night Church” on Monday night…amazing, amazing, amazing!!! We left after dark, walked over two kilometres on dusty, dirt roads with the moon as our light, arrived in the village to the sounds of Samburu singing, praising the Lord…were greeted by many kids who were so excited that we were there…joined in the clapping…sat under African Acacia trees…were surrounded by camels, goats, and little Samburu manyattas (huts)…and took it all in as they told the story of Abraham taking Isaac up the mountain to sacrifice him…everything was told in the Samburu language, by a Samburu man who is a strong believer in the Lord. Sitting there in the dirt, surrounded by kids…both Trevor and I could hardly believe that we were actually sitting there, witnessing something like that! We could hear the sounds of goats and donkeys, the sound of fires crackling, the sounds of babies crying and their mothers comforting them, of children giggling as they touched our white skin, birds of every sort chirping loudly…seeing the silhouette of the mountains on either side of us, seeing the huge centipede crawling on Trevor’s leg..!!! Looking around I could see the women with babies on their backs, soaking in the Word of God, and remembering the stories so well, and understanding them because they are told in their heart language. I saw some of the men who are rising up and taking responsibility, and one of them walking over four kilometres just for those few hours to tell the people about God, and then having to walk back that night…we were so blessed to be able to be a part of that. What an amazing God we serve!!
The next
morning we also had the chance to go to this village by daylight..and got to go into one of their manyattas (huts) to see what it’s like inside! The manyattas are portable huts made up of mud, hide, grass, and blankets/tarps, etc. First they wanted to clean it up for us, so we waited for awhile, then they said that they were ready for us, so we ducked through the tiny opening, turned a little corner, and sat down on the mat they provided for us. It’s just tiny, with a fire inside for cooking, goats wandering in and out, the mats that we were sitting on was where they would sleep at night…they were so excited to have us come in, and when I would take pictures, they would want to see them, and would laugh and laugh when they saw themselves!! It was really neat to sit with them…Walt was the one who took us there, and he has learned to communicate well with them, so that was really neat to see as well. (the camping tent in the picture is Walt's tent...he set it up in their village so he could stay with them sometimes...and the other huts you see are the manyattas.)Throughout the weekend, we also got a glimpse of the daily life of the missionaries living there. The people come to them for a lot of things…we saw a man who’s head was cut open, a baby who had an infected sore on his head, a man with an infected finger, a boy who had a gash on his leg, another guy who got something in his eye…and on and on it would go!! The Map
les and Middletons would stop what they were doing and help whoever was the one in need, spend time with them…it was really interesting to witness. Another thing we noticed was just how much work it is to live there…the town of Kurungu can’t really even be called a town…it’s just a road going through with huts on either side (the pictures on the right are of downtown Kurungu!!)…so they can buy camel milk from the people, some honey, and maybe a few other things, but most of their groceries have to be purchased when they go to Nairobi once every 6-12 weeks!! That’s a lot of planning ahead, saving, being 
very resourceful…I have so much respect and admiration for anyone who can live like that!! It’s pretty amazing! And another thing is the isolation and loneliness that they face…it’s very difficult when there are only two missionary families living there together…and “getting away” means travelling for two days on difficult and sometimes dangerous roads…it really opened our eyes this weekend to see this way of life and the many sacrifices these people have made to work with the Samburu people.By the way…our Thanksgiving meal was camel meat! It was cooked over an open fire, and really very good! And on that note, Happy Thanksgiving to each one of you…we are so thankful for you, for your prayers, your support, and so thankful to God for all His provisions for us…We serve a gre
at God!!Oh, and another cool thing was that some Samburu people rescued a baby dik-dik from the mountains on Sunday morning and brought it to the Middleton‘s house!! (a dik-dik is a very small deer, the smallest of the deer family). It was so tiny, just a few days old, and the size of a small cat! The Middleton’s are now keeping it and feeding it milk with a syringe…it was so cute!! And we also saw a couple of chameleons, baboons, monkeys, and a toucan! Just backyard animals when you live in Kurungu, Kenya!!
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Stories..
We went to the Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage last Saturday...it's in the outskirts of Nairobi..and it was a really fun afternoon! They bottlefeed the baby elephants...!
One of the entrances to Kibera Slum...the other day when I said it was the biggest slum in Africa...well it's actually the biggest slum in the world!
Markets set up beside the road...I apologize for the bad quality of pictures...these are taken while driving past!
~I think we, when we moved here to Nairobi, had to go through more than just culture shock due to moving from Canada to Africa. I think we have gone through culture shock moving from small town Canada…to big city Africa!! There have been so many adjustments just due to moving to a city…I mean, we’re both small town kids…hey I’m a farm kid! There have been so many adjustments!! And then there’s all the things about Nairobi that are not so pleasant…the corruption, the violence, the smell of burning garbage everywhere…We have heard some interesting comments from different people here…describing Nairobi:
-“it’s like a pit.”
-“it’s a dark hole…”
-“you don’t come here for anything but work.”
-“it’s all business, no pleasure”
And finally…my personal favourite.. -“as soon as you come into the city limits, the matatus (mini-buses) try to kill you!”
Haha…no, before you think that this is completely negative and cynical…we don’t feel all of these things ourselves (except maybe the one about the matatus!!). We are feeling quite good about living here, but do realize that we need to take those times to get away before we go crazy!! We’ve had other interesting conversations with people here as well, that perhaps capture the struggles people have living here, and how difficult it really can be…these are some of the tidbits of conversation that we’ve had with people who have either grown up here (Kenyan) or people who have lived here for a long, long time…
…you don’t trust anybody. Nobody. Everybody is out to get you. You look out for yourself. Never trust a cop…if you have a choice between running into a thief or a cop, choose the thief…it’ll be better for you…
It’s hard hearing this type of mentality…we’re here to minister, and yet everyday you run into situations that just make you shake your head and say “are you serious??” Another example of the differences here is the village justice type of mentality…because the cops really are not here to help the people (by the way, a big reason for dirty cops is because they get paid next to nothing, and so are expected to do their own business on the side…like ask for bribes, steal, take advantage of people in any way that will benefit them financially…and plus, they don’t have cars…so if you need to report a robbery or are in trouble or something…you actually have to go and GET the cops and bring them back to “help” you…!!) anyway, because the policemen don’t help the people, the people feel that they have to get justice themselves…the other day we heard a story of people in the village who just burned two thieves to death last Saturday…or if someone steals from you, you better think twice before yelling “mwezi!” (thief) or the mob will go after them, attack and often kill them right there in front of you…can you imagine??? It’s pretty crazy…but we have been learning a lot!! If God can use two people like us here in Nairobi, two people with no experience with this sort of thing…then I think He can use anybody!!
As Trevor has been getting to know his co-workers, he has been learning a lot about their stories, and what they have been through and come out of. There’s Benedicto…an older man who’s family doesn’t live in Nairobi with him, they live in their up-country home, and he just works here in the city to make enough money to support his family, and goes home when he can…while he’s here he lives in Kibera Slum because he can’t afford anything else…the other day when he came to work he told Trevor that he was really tired and hadn’t gotten much sleep…and when asked why, he replied that during the night there had been a fire in the slum very close his house, so he had taken some things out of his house to save them from getting burned…the fire didn’t get as far as his house, but it burned a huge section of Kibera, and he was up most of the night because of it….this is life for him. He does it to support his family, who he doesn’t get to see very often…
And there’s Steven…a younger man with a wife and daughter…he is Kikuyu, and she is Kamba…during the election violence, he had to run for his life because of the tribe he belongs to…rioters came to his apartment building looking for any Kikuyus…they asked the landlord’s son about the Kikuyus in the building, and when he wouldn’t give them any information, they beat him to death…meanwhile Steven took his daughter and ran into the forest and hid until it was safe…this is his life…
And then there’s another young man…a teenage boy from the Darfur region of Sudan, where all the atrocities are happening…he had to flee his home…spent time in refugee camps, and is now living in Nairobi…he speaks his tribal language, and Arabic, and also a little English…Trevor is spending a lot of time with him…helping him with his English, being a support to him…he is a great kid, a really hard worker…trying to save up to buy a bicycle…his life has not been easy…
Trevor is really enjoying getting to know these people..hearing their stories..hearing about their faith in God..trusting God in the midst of these awful and trying times…faith so strong…it’s pretty amazing. God is raising up good, good people in this country, people who have been through so much hardship, and yet can still say that God is good…
So in the midst of living in a sad, corrupted place…it is so encouraging when you get to meet the heart of why we’re here…for the people…for those struggling to get by…for those needing encouragement…for those who work so hard for their family…to be able to be God’s hands and feet…to make what may seem like a small difference, and yet in one person’s life, it may be all the difference…What an honor.
~A
Friday, October 3, 2008
Fresh Air and a Renewed Vision..
Yesterday we got to get out of the city for awhile!!! It was so nice…we hadn’t realized how tired we were of noise, traffic, pollution, and busyness until we got away. AIM has/had a division called AIM Tech that was based out of the city, on the outskirts of Nairobi. The reason I say had is because last year the main building burned down, and now they’re trying to figure out where God is leading, and what changes they should be making. James goes out there about once a month or so, to make sure that the property is being looked after properly and to visit and pay the men that take care of the property. He asked if Trevor and I wanted to come along…and of course we did!! They left work at about 3:00, came and picked me up, and off we went! Along the way, we stopped at a few different places…James would point out different areas
that are Kikuyu country or Luo country…and how these places were affected during the election violence earlier this year. So many sad stories…so many lives that were ruined or completely up-rooted…so many hard feelings. Driving through just gave me this funny feeling…all the things we heard about on the news…it happened right here. This is where reconciliation needs to happen…this is where people need the Lord…this is where families lost everything…It’s given us a lot of food for thought.
The area where AIM Tech is based is so beautiful…lots of trees, rolling hills, not so city-like, but more village-style living…it felt so peaceful and calm. We got to meet a few men who work there, and gave them snacks of bread and
coke. Walking around the property…seeing the burned-out building…it was so sad! Just last year it was full of people and activity, lots of things were happening, families were living there…and now the main building is just a shell of what it once was…you could almost feel all the memories that the property holds…and now it’s like a ghost town…deserted. It was a really neat time of discussion with James, talking about the vision AIM has, talking about where God is leading his life, and where God may be leading us. He is really encouraging us to go up-country, to go see people up north, to take a week here and there to help out where needed (and believe me…
Trevor is needed in any and all of these places! So many of them are desperate for good mechanics.), and to just really get the experience and see the bigger picture of AIM outside of the city of Nairobi. We are so excited…we will be taking a few trips up to Hurri Hills, which is in Kenya, but right up by the Ethiopian border…a desert place, tribal, semi-unreached people group, hot…very different from where we are right now. James has also really encouraged us to take advantage of the invitations we get to go to southern Sudan, go to all of these places if at all possible…he said that even helping out 
for a week would be such an encouragement to the missionaries who work in these remote places. The future goal of the Tam shop is to possibly put a mechanic up in these places, maybe even a “travel mechanic” who goes wherever needed…to give the much needed support to the missionaries. It’s exciting to get in on the ground floor of the brainstorming and planning, to see the vision, to catch the fire…Trevor has been really encouraged, knowing that the skills God has given him are useful, and are very needed out here in the mission field, and that he can be a part of building the Kingdom of God in this way. God is so good!!
On our way home, we decided to have supper together. We went to Village Market…it’s a mall, but definitely not your average cookie cutter building…it’s all open, you can see the sky, little buildings everywhere that connect, waterfalls…it’s so neat!! It’s a nice place to go visit if you need to get away for a bit! Everything is too expensive for us to buy, but it’s fun to just walk around and enjoy it! It’s also about a half-hour drive from where we live, so not a place that we’ll be frequenting on a regular basis.
So…that’s a bit of a taste of where we’re at right now in our hearts…being excited that God is doing great things, seeing possible future opportunities, and just wanting to join God in the work that He is already doing..it’s scary..but wonderful at the same time! We really want to make the most of this year..and though we are missing home..we really don’t want to wish our year away..to wish we were at home with family..but to really just see this for the amazing opportunity that it is…we get to be in Kenya!! We get to experience new things!! We get to meet all these amazing people!! We get to be a part of what God is doing here!! Wow!
We do also have a few prayer requests as well:
-please keep praying for ministry opportunities for me…I am trying to not get anxious, but I do really want to get involved in kids ministry soon…please pray for direction and divine appointments..
-pray for Trevor…he is trying to be very deliberate about building relationships with the people he comes into contact with at work…just pray for lasting relationships..
-continue to pray for safety
-and I think most important…pray that we would have sensitive hearts, and that we would always be open to the Lord’s leading, and that we would be people that He can use to further His Kingdom..
Much Love..
~A
that are Kikuyu country or Luo country…and how these places were affected during the election violence earlier this year. So many sad stories…so many lives that were ruined or completely up-rooted…so many hard feelings. Driving through just gave me this funny feeling…all the things we heard about on the news…it happened right here. This is where reconciliation needs to happen…this is where people need the Lord…this is where families lost everything…It’s given us a lot of food for thought.The area where AIM Tech is based is so beautiful…lots of trees, rolling hills, not so city-like, but more village-style living…it felt so peaceful and calm. We got to meet a few men who work there, and gave them snacks of bread and
coke. Walking around the property…seeing the burned-out building…it was so sad! Just last year it was full of people and activity, lots of things were happening, families were living there…and now the main building is just a shell of what it once was…you could almost feel all the memories that the property holds…and now it’s like a ghost town…deserted. It was a really neat time of discussion with James, talking about the vision AIM has, talking about where God is leading his life, and where God may be leading us. He is really encouraging us to go up-country, to go see people up north, to take a week here and there to help out where needed (and believe me…
Trevor is needed in any and all of these places! So many of them are desperate for good mechanics.), and to just really get the experience and see the bigger picture of AIM outside of the city of Nairobi. We are so excited…we will be taking a few trips up to Hurri Hills, which is in Kenya, but right up by the Ethiopian border…a desert place, tribal, semi-unreached people group, hot…very different from where we are right now. James has also really encouraged us to take advantage of the invitations we get to go to southern Sudan, go to all of these places if at all possible…he said that even helping out 
for a week would be such an encouragement to the missionaries who work in these remote places. The future goal of the Tam shop is to possibly put a mechanic up in these places, maybe even a “travel mechanic” who goes wherever needed…to give the much needed support to the missionaries. It’s exciting to get in on the ground floor of the brainstorming and planning, to see the vision, to catch the fire…Trevor has been really encouraged, knowing that the skills God has given him are useful, and are very needed out here in the mission field, and that he can be a part of building the Kingdom of God in this way. God is so good!!On our way home, we decided to have supper together. We went to Village Market…it’s a mall, but definitely not your average cookie cutter building…it’s all open, you can see the sky, little buildings everywhere that connect, waterfalls…it’s so neat!! It’s a nice place to go visit if you need to get away for a bit! Everything is too expensive for us to buy, but it’s fun to just walk around and enjoy it! It’s also about a half-hour drive from where we live, so not a place that we’ll be frequenting on a regular basis.
So…that’s a bit of a taste of where we’re at right now in our hearts…being excited that God is doing great things, seeing possible future opportunities, and just wanting to join God in the work that He is already doing..it’s scary..but wonderful at the same time! We really want to make the most of this year..and though we are missing home..we really don’t want to wish our year away..to wish we were at home with family..but to really just see this for the amazing opportunity that it is…we get to be in Kenya!! We get to experience new things!! We get to meet all these amazing people!! We get to be a part of what God is doing here!! Wow!
We do also have a few prayer requests as well:
-please keep praying for ministry opportunities for me…I am trying to not get anxious, but I do really want to get involved in kids ministry soon…please pray for direction and divine appointments..
-pray for Trevor…he is trying to be very deliberate about building relationships with the people he comes into contact with at work…just pray for lasting relationships..
-continue to pray for safety
-and I think most important…pray that we would have sensitive hearts, and that we would always be open to the Lord’s leading, and that we would be people that He can use to further His Kingdom..
Much Love..
~A
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Holidays and Food
Yesterday was a holiday here in Kenya…a Muslim holiday called Id. So Trevor had the day off!! We were invited by James to go to some friends of his for lunch. They’re an Indian family…originally from India, but born and raised in Kenya…they’ve never actually been to India! (Many Indian people have settled in Kenya…having been brought here in the early 1900’s to work on the railroad that was being built at that time.) This is a Christian family, and they attend the same Church that James attends. We were a little nervous to go…meeting new people again and all that…but we had such a wonderful day! When we got there, we were introduced to them…Panjik and his wife Tina, Tina’s sister Cynthia, and another sister whose name I can’t remember! Such hospitable people!!! They were cooking the meal outside over a little coal fire…and it smelled so good! We visited with them…and then the feeding of the visitors started!! Oh my…they made so much food and made us eat and eat!! First they started with Indian cake (it was hot and spicy), and sausages. Then we waited for the main course to be ready, and I went to the kitchen to visit with Tina and Cynthia, and see how they made naan (sort of like tortillas or chapates..only better!!). It was really nice to visit with them, as Cynthia is really involved in kid’s ministry in the Church, and so we had lots to talk about!! Trevor visited outside with James and Panjik. The main course consisted of chicken masala (a spicy chicken stew/sauce…very good!!), rice, and a salad, and everything was eaten with our hands, using the naan to pick up the food. Wow, so, so good!! When they were satisfied that we had eaten enough, (and by the way, we ate far too much but they wouldn’t let us stop!!), then they brought out ice-cream and watermelon. When we had lots of that, then they brought out some sort of seeds/grains that they said helps aid with the digestion…!! We were about ready to leave, and told them that, and they were horrified that we hadn’t yet had any chai masala (spicy tea) and cake!! So….we couldn’t very well leave without eating more, so we stayed for that as well!! What a day! All we could think of when we left was how incredibly full we were, and that we would never eat again!! But we sure have acquired a taste for Indian food!! They made everything really mild, and said they would keep making everything more and more spicy so we could get used to it! I also bought a traditional Indian outfit that Tina was selling for a friend who makes them…it’s very beautiful! We felt so blessed to have met these dear people yesterday, and really hope to be able to continue the friendship with them.
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