What A Day

June 11

First thing I have noticed about the place we are staying is that it is taking my toilet a good 15-20 minutes to fill back up after each flush and that even though I have the water heater switch turned on, I still had an absolutely freezing cold shower. That'll make a person take a short shower! But I can't complain. At least I have a shower.

After breakfast we made a stop at one of the model Project 24 sites. This was talked up to be an extremely difficult walk up a hill that even Jeeps and Range Rovers had a hard time maneuvering. Because of this, five of us decided not to climb up the hill. Little did we know the rest of the group would be gone for 2 hours. When they returned they said that the walk was not as difficult as it was made out to be. Because of this, I was extremely disappointed that I did not go with them. Oh well. Those that went said the speakers who gave them a presentation said that Kenyans believe that th United States is like their Heaven. This is really unfortunate because our country has sin, not necessarily in the same ways they do here, but the whole world sins. Our country is focused more on material possessions where here they are focused more on basic needs. It is really sad that they view America like that.

Then we headed to the first Project 24 Rescue Center, Othoro that opened in 2006. This center is home for 36 boys in grades 6-8. There are 33 in the primary school and 3 in the secondary school. Othoro was an eye opening visit for many in the group. Their living conditions were not good. The 36 boys lived in a dormitory with 22 beds; that means 14 of them had to double up and share a twin size mattress. This was the first place we have seen that did not have their own cow to provide milk and such. Instead, they had sheep. We aren't really sure why they chose to buy sheep instead of cows. Their kitchen and dining hall were nothing to be proud of. Yes, the children have a bed, people to love and care for them, food, school, and a church, but the conditions were heart breaking.

The boys were on their lunch break when we arrived. They were very shy and we could tell their English was not as advanced as other places we have visited. This made communicating a little more challenging. To break the ice, we sang Tuna Oomba for them and they sang a song in English for us. After that the boys were a little easier to talk to. One of the ladies in our group had a camera that could print pictures so they thought that was neat to get an actual picture of themselves. The boys returned to school after lunch.

We headed to the seminary after visiting the rescue center. It was interesting to see a working seminary in Kenya. The road we got stuck on yesterday we were able to drive on today. The locals were out fixing the dirt road by filling in bumps and putting sand bags down so we could get over.

Our evening ended with a group devotion after supper. It's been a relaxing evening spending time with each other, talking about life and about the trip.

Because we still don't have Internet today we were able to use the phone to call home. It was nice to talk to my parents again. Especially because today was a difficult day for everyone with lots to absorb and take in. Today was definitely a good reminder why these children need our support and love.