Dear Friends and Family,
We had a very interesting day as it was our first day to leave the compound. The church service was surprisingly similar to DUMC--with big screen lyrics for all hymns and a choir leader! Everyone was dressed up for the service-all the kids looked great. Everyone here in Kenya has been very friendly and accepting of us. They are all good hosts.
We rode to church in a small bus with five mamas and their ten children each. We sat in the third row on the bus-there were 12 children, the bus driver and a mama in the two rows in front of us. None were complaining a bit. We rode through busy, rough roads with many walking along side the road (too close for comfort). The drivers here must be very skilled or we would be seeing lots of accidents. Since I was the last to get on the bus I thought I might stand on the step just inside the closed door. One of the mamas told me that I should sit down or the police would see me. The kids were sitting four to a seat wearing no seat belts and I was breaking the rules!
Last week I was the goalie for a game of futbol (soccer).I started out alright but before it was over one of the opposing players was scoring on me at will. Needless to say my team did not win the game, but they sure ran like crazy and burned off a lot of energy. We are eight hours ahead of you so at 3:30 pm your time it is 11:30 pm here.We have been getting used to their way of conserving energy. Because the electricity bill has been high in this area they now turn off the electricity during peak use times. So there is no power from 6:30-8:30AM, 11:30AM-12:30PM, 3:30 PM-4:30PM, and 5:30-6:30PM. All other times are good! It is most convenient to have coffee made and up and dressed before power goes out at 6:30am. Sunrise is about 6:40am so there is some outside light as we finish preparing for the day.
Today (Monday) we are scheduled to go into Mwiki to tour the town/area for a couple of hours. There are many businesses so we might do some shopping. An employee that works on the maintenance crew here (Joyce) will be our guide. She is nice and always friendly whenever we see her. S he volunteers to do this for us because she knows we would like to learn about the area. When we were out Yesterday we noticed many houses that were partially complete. Jane asked about them and we were told that building is a way to invest money that that the people might otherwise have to give away. Apparently the custom is that you are expected to give money to your friends if they ask for it. To do otherwise would be selfish and no one would want to have others think they are selfish. So they give it. However if the money is already spent constructing something they don't have it to give. When they get some money again the building will get a bit closer to completion.
There are usually three guards at the front gate 24 hours a day. They unlock the gate for us whenever we want to leave or enter but do not allow in anyone who would harm or steal from the Village. Everyone appreciates them for doing their job. Usually one is holding a spear or a bow and arrow. We went to devotions with Bethany cottage tonight. As we walked to the cottage we heard music coming from the dining hall. Kids and Mama Lydiawere singing so we went in and watched them rehearse for a presentation coming up in March. They were having fun and seemed to be enjoying every minute. We played (soap bubbles) with the kids for awhile then it was time for them to get ready for bed. The kids sang songs and prayed, then I read the story of Abraham. We shared pictures of our families then took some pictures of their family. Mama told them that we (their visitors) had listened to God's call and had not been afraid to come to a foreign land just as Abraham had done. It was very humbling to be compared with Abraham... Love from Africa,
Roger & Jane (Dad & Mom, Grandpa & Grandma)
We had a very interesting day as it was our first day to leave the compound. The church service was surprisingly similar to DUMC--with big screen lyrics for all hymns and a choir leader! Everyone was dressed up for the service-all the kids looked great. Everyone here in Kenya has been very friendly and accepting of us. They are all good hosts.
We rode to church in a small bus with five mamas and their ten children each. We sat in the third row on the bus-there were 12 children, the bus driver and a mama in the two rows in front of us. None were complaining a bit. We rode through busy, rough roads with many walking along side the road (too close for comfort). The drivers here must be very skilled or we would be seeing lots of accidents. Since I was the last to get on the bus I thought I might stand on the step just inside the closed door. One of the mamas told me that I should sit down or the police would see me. The kids were sitting four to a seat wearing no seat belts and I was breaking the rules!Last week I was the goalie for a game of futbol (soccer).I started out alright but before it was over one of the opposing players was scoring on me at will. Needless to say my team did not win the game, but they sure ran like crazy and burned off a lot of energy. We are eight hours ahead of you so at 3:30 pm your time it is 11:30 pm here.We have been getting used to their way of conserving energy. Because the electricity bill has been high in this area they now turn off the electricity during peak use times. So there is no power from 6:30-8:30AM, 11:30AM-12:30PM, 3:30 PM-4:30PM, and 5:30-6:30PM. All other times are good! It is most convenient to have coffee made and up and dressed before power goes out at 6:30am. Sunrise is about 6:40am so there is some outside light as we finish preparing for the day.
Today (Monday) we are scheduled to go into Mwiki to tour the town/area for a couple of hours. There are many businesses so we might do some shopping. An employee that works on the maintenance crew here (Joyce) will be our guide. She is nice and always friendly whenever we see her. S he volunteers to do this for us because she knows we would like to learn about the area. When we were out Yesterday we noticed many houses that were partially complete. Jane asked about them and we were told that building is a way to invest money that that the people might otherwise have to give away. Apparently the custom is that you are expected to give money to your friends if they ask for it. To do otherwise would be selfish and no one would want to have others think they are selfish. So they give it. However if the money is already spent constructing something they don't have it to give. When they get some money again the building will get a bit closer to completion.
There are usually three guards at the front gate 24 hours a day. They unlock the gate for us whenever we want to leave or enter but do not allow in anyone who would harm or steal from the Village. Everyone appreciates them for doing their job. Usually one is holding a spear or a bow and arrow. We went to devotions with Bethany cottage tonight. As we walked to the cottage we heard music coming from the dining hall. Kids and Mama Lydiawere singing so we went in and watched them rehearse for a presentation coming up in March. They were having fun and seemed to be enjoying every minute. We played (soap bubbles) with the kids for awhile then it was time for them to get ready for bed. The kids sang songs and prayed, then I read the story of Abraham. We shared pictures of our families then took some pictures of their family. Mama told them that we (their visitors) had listened to God's call and had not been afraid to come to a foreign land just as Abraham had done. It was very humbling to be compared with Abraham... Love from Africa,
Roger & Jane (Dad & Mom, Grandpa & Grandma)
