home again

I write sitting under some large trees that shade me from the sun and the wind blowing at my back. It’s a beautiful place to call my office!

I stepped off the bus around 5:20pm last Monday evening and before my feet touched the dirt ground, twenty plus kids came running screaming my name. The normal greeting here is to shake hands but I was welcomed with giant hugs. Tears desire to fall even now as I think back. It’s so good to be here again! The next day I was up and in the classroom again, enjoying the bit of Swahili I know coming quickly back to my thinking. My class, together with another teacher, has over 30 children! The other class has 17 but with two classes combined in one. We praise God that many have come and their parents understand the necessity for education. However we pray that they can bring the 200 shillings a month (about $2) to allow for the two teachers to have an income as well as food for their break provided.

This last Saturday, I attended a funeral for one of the fellow pastors in the village. He had been sick for awhile so his death was not a surprise. The pastor I live with, our assistant pastor and I walked about 20 minutes and I could tell we were getting closer because the music got louder. Winding through dirt paths and between people’s homes under the scorching heat definitely made me realize I wasn’t in Nairobi anymore.

As we approached the ceremony area I wasn’t too surprised to find the majority of the village people present. However, looking back I realize the number doubled by the time it was finally time to go to the burial site. Something I’ve learned about the culture here is everyone gets to speak if he or she so chooses! Combine that with what we would place in a normal funeral ceremony and the service lasts about four hours! By hour three my friend, Elizabeth finally arrived.

Here, another thing I’ve learned, its normal for the men and women to sit separately of one another. Because I had arrived with two men and couldn’t seem to find any of the women I knew, I submitted to following them to the other side and sat amongst the men. As soon as I spotted my friend, I made me my way through the large crowds to greet her. Imagine close to 200or so people and one white person in the whole bunch! (I’m still not sure how I spotted her before she saw me!)

The majority of the people arrived just in time to hear the closing prayer, view the body, and make their way to the burial site about a 10minute walk down the road. After meeting up with another friend, I was asked if I wanted to view the body. Having never met the man nor seeing a dead body before (and it wasn’t on my bucket list of things to do), I said I didn’t need to. She smiled at me with that grin she often gives me and then said, “it’s respectful to do so, come, I will go with you.” So I went. I didn’t faint and it wasn’t that bad but his final look is forever ingrained in my memory.

Walking the 10 minutes or so down the dirt paths I realized I was hungry and had brought a few snacks with me. Sharing them with my friends as we walked, we enjoyed naming the different granola bar ingredients from English to Swahili. I’m not sure why but when the three of us are together we laugh a lot! As we, along with everyone else, made their way to his final resting grounds I realized there was so many people there was no way I was going to see what was happening. I also remembered that I’m a white person who burns in the sun (unlike Kenyans), so I got to sit on the dirt ground and be shaded by one of my friends as they poked my skin to watch it turn from red to white and back again. Gotta love how the white skin is always a form of entertainment, no matter the age!

At the end of the day, I am thankful for the opportunity to support the family and community by being present for the funeral. I am also thankful for the hours I got to be with my friends and the chance to learn more about the culture of the people I live amongst. There wasn’t a lot of tears but there was a lot of people who came out to show their love for the family. One of the many beauties I’ve found living in this village… everyone looks out for each other and is there for one another in a time of need.

As February is quickly approaching, I’m looking forward to having my first visitor from the states come! She will stay for a week and get to live life with me. I’m sure my next update will have plenty of memories of our time together.

For those who have written emails, I just wanted to say thank you! I love hearing from you all and getting to answer the questions you ask.

Until next month…Kwaheri!

Love,

Daniella