Thank you all for your prayers that sustained us through our trip. We arrived safely in San Francisco to be joyfully greeted by our families. We are so grateful for the opportunity for this trip, and we will be sharing our stories and our photos with our families and our communities over the next few months!
Wednesday, July 5, 2023
Tuesday, July 4, 2023
Day 13 Walter
After a late night of reflection we awoke for our drive to Nairobi. We got into our safari vehicles and started our journey. Exiting Masai Mara was an incredible start to the end of our trip. We were lucky enough to see another cheetah, fighting antelopes, and a leopard. After exiting the park we took a rest stop at a a souvenir shop. We were all excited when we were informed of the opportunity to bargain with the salesmen. We practiced our haggling skills for a few hours and then hit the road once more. My safari van entertained ourselves with hours of cards and enjoying the scenery around us. Finally when we arrived at the airport, we checked our bags and passed through security. Our day ended with a meal by our gate and stepping onto our flight to Paris.
Returning to San Francisco marks the end of both our Mission trip, and my time as a youth grouper. As I am writing this reflection on the plane ride home I am praying that our time together doesn't end. I hope the people I have bonded with in the past two weeks, and all those I have bonded with in the past 5 years will stay as lifelong friends. I have so much love and gratitude for the people and experiences I have had in the last 5 years, and I am so grateful I was able to experience Kenya as my final trip.
Returning to San Francisco marks the end of both our Mission trip, and my time as a youth grouper. As I am writing this reflection on the plane ride home I am praying that our time together doesn't end. I hope the people I have bonded with in the past two weeks, and all those I have bonded with in the past 5 years will stay as lifelong friends. I have so much love and gratitude for the people and experiences I have had in the last 5 years, and I am so grateful I was able to experience Kenya as my final trip.
Day 13 Nate
Even though our last day in Kenya was mostly spent driving from Masai Mara to Nairobi, there were still lots of things we got to see and do along the way. In the morning we started with our last drive through the park, seeing tons more animals and even being the first people to spot a leopard in 3 days! From there we exited the park and began our way east to Nairobi. I remember being surprised by the landscape, and specifically by how much it reminded me of places in California, with an arid environment and lots of mountains. Along the way we stopped at a souvenir shop where buyers are encouraged to haggle and bargain for better prices. This was my first experience with a shop like this and I found it to be rather overwhelming, especially with the way shop employees would follow us throughout the store, but there was also an element of fun to it and I think for my first time haggling I didn't do half bad.
After a quick lunch we were back on the road and our next major stop would be at a vista point overlooking the Great Rift Valley, an area where part of East Africa is slowly drifting away from the West due to plate tectonics. The view was absolutely beautiful and I think this was when I really started to appreciate how diverse the regions of Kenya are from each other, and how the nation is far from being one-note. Speaking across the trip as a whole, I have really appreciated that we got to experience Kenya in so many different ways and see so many of its facets, geographically and culturally. This sentiment continued as we got into Nairobi and saw a glimpse of the urban life in Kenya. What surprised me most was when the highway cut through a highly impoverished part of the city and we saw just how large of an area it was. Both the urban and rural poverty we witnessed on the trip has made me hyper aware of the privileges we have in our lives back home and makes me want to do more in the future in service of these communities. Without a doubt this trip has been a powerful experience.
Day 12 Anhai
Today was our last full day in Kenya. We got up early so that we could go out on safari. My group hopped into our jeep with our guide, Frank, who was super nice and funny. We went on a morning safari in which we saw giraffes, lion cubs and a big elephant family with baby elephants taking little baby baths. Unfortunately, we didn't manage to make the trade of my sister and I for a baby elephant that my mom requested (fortunately, I have negotiated Mike and Riley down to only trading my sister and keeping me). Alas, there's always tomorrow.
After having lunch at the hotel, we headed out for an afternoon safari. In my jeep, we prayed to see a cheetah in the next twenty minutes, and five minutes later, there he was. And then another. And then another. Three instead of one, we cheetahed nature!
Finally, at night we had our youth group tradition of appreciating each other, a practice dubbed "crying circle". Each person has a turn in which everyone on the trip has the opportunity to share what they appreciate about that person. It is always very sweet and often quite teary. And so it was tonight.
When we went on safari, we stayed at an isolated resort within the park. We were really shocked when we got there to see the place filled with tourists instead of the people who we had interacted with during all of our time in Kenya. It was strange to think that the people in this hotel had come all the way to Kenya, but never actually experienced it, at least not the Kenya we had. We had visited communities, natural landmarks, and met people who had spent their entire lives in Kenya. People who never left the resort the entire trip never saw what most of the country actually is. I've become so grateful to have gotten to meet so many of the incredible people who make up what Kenya is. Today was a wonderful day of meeting Kenya's more furry, feathery and water-dwelling residents, and it made me even more grateful to have met its human ones as well.
Anhai <3
After having lunch at the hotel, we headed out for an afternoon safari. In my jeep, we prayed to see a cheetah in the next twenty minutes, and five minutes later, there he was. And then another. And then another. Three instead of one, we cheetahed nature!
Finally, at night we had our youth group tradition of appreciating each other, a practice dubbed "crying circle". Each person has a turn in which everyone on the trip has the opportunity to share what they appreciate about that person. It is always very sweet and often quite teary. And so it was tonight.
When we went on safari, we stayed at an isolated resort within the park. We were really shocked when we got there to see the place filled with tourists instead of the people who we had interacted with during all of our time in Kenya. It was strange to think that the people in this hotel had come all the way to Kenya, but never actually experienced it, at least not the Kenya we had. We had visited communities, natural landmarks, and met people who had spent their entire lives in Kenya. People who never left the resort the entire trip never saw what most of the country actually is. I've become so grateful to have gotten to meet so many of the incredible people who make up what Kenya is. Today was a wonderful day of meeting Kenya's more furry, feathery and water-dwelling residents, and it made me even more grateful to have met its human ones as well.
Anhai <3
Day 11 Katherine
Hi everyone! This morning, July first, was a hard one for all of us, and for a few different reasons. Most importantly, it marked our final hours at the Nambale Magnet School, the beautiful campus we have called home for the past week and a half. What made it (significantly) more difficult was that we were brutally awoken at 4:40 in the morning in order to leave the school at 6:00 am. I'm sure that getting a group of fourteen teenagers out the door at the crack of dawn was not an easy task, and it could not have been done without Mike's Phase Three wake-up, the African pancakes delivered at 5:00, and our final prayer led by Madame Director Evelyn. I think a couple of us had tears in our eyes as we rolled out of those gates and away from Nambale, but the anticipation of our next adventure kept our vans (somewhat) lively.
After nine hours of sleeping, singing, and magic tricks, we finally passed through the gates of the Masai Mara National Park Game Preserve, the park which we would be exploring over the next couple of days on safari. Tears once again filled a few eyes as we drove through the park to our lodge and were greeted by elephants, giraffes, and zebras. After a very late lunch at the lodge, we set out for an afternoon and evening game drive, during which we saw more of the beautiful creatures and the vastness of this incredible park.
We closed out our very long day with our typical reflection, this time focusing on our thoughts and feelings as we had moved on from the Magnet School. Many of us continued to share the difficulty of leaving the school and its community behind, but we also reflected on the difference between Nambale (and other rural towns that we had passed through) and the resort that we now found ourselves in. While in a way, we welcomed the change and were excited by the unexpected luxury, we also recognized the complexity of resort culture. We discussed how many people come to places such as Kenya and move from resort to resort, arguably missing the opportunity to truly see and understand the country. While I am incredibly grateful that we are able to stay in such a beautiful place as we explore Masai Mara, I am even more grateful that we were given the chance to see how the vast majority of Kenyan people live. While it wasn't easy, it is what personally made this trip one that will inspire and motivate both service and understanding throughout my life.
After nine hours of sleeping, singing, and magic tricks, we finally passed through the gates of the Masai Mara National Park Game Preserve, the park which we would be exploring over the next couple of days on safari. Tears once again filled a few eyes as we drove through the park to our lodge and were greeted by elephants, giraffes, and zebras. After a very late lunch at the lodge, we set out for an afternoon and evening game drive, during which we saw more of the beautiful creatures and the vastness of this incredible park.
We closed out our very long day with our typical reflection, this time focusing on our thoughts and feelings as we had moved on from the Magnet School. Many of us continued to share the difficulty of leaving the school and its community behind, but we also reflected on the difference between Nambale (and other rural towns that we had passed through) and the resort that we now found ourselves in. While in a way, we welcomed the change and were excited by the unexpected luxury, we also recognized the complexity of resort culture. We discussed how many people come to places such as Kenya and move from resort to resort, arguably missing the opportunity to truly see and understand the country. While I am incredibly grateful that we are able to stay in such a beautiful place as we explore Masai Mara, I am even more grateful that we were given the chance to see how the vast majority of Kenyan people live. While it wasn't easy, it is what personally made this trip one that will inspire and motivate both service and understanding throughout my life.
Final journey home
We safely arrived in Los Angeles, and are now on our final flight to San Francisco! God is good!
Monday, July 3, 2023
On our way to LA!
Our plane from Nairobi landed late to Paris, and we booked it through the airport, and we're the last ones on the plane, but we made it - barely - and we are on our way to the US!
Sunday, July 2, 2023
Day 10 Cia
Well. Happy birthday to me (thanks guys for making it one of the best ever. And thanks to my parents- I made it to (sorta) adulthood, largely because of you).
Today was a very calm day. We went to Lake Victoria, about a two or three hour drive from the Nambale magnet school. When we got there, we went to a sort of beach resort. We waded in the water, played pool, and watched Amy geek out over a bunch if different aquatic animals. We ate fresh fish for lunch and watched as a birthday party played in the sand across from us. After, we drove through the nearby fishing village and waited for some of the people who went with us to buy some fish. We got home at about 7 pm, cleaned the house, packed, and got into bed early in anticipation of an early start the next day.
I found today enjoyable, but it brought up a lot of mixed emotions. It was our last day at the Nambale Magnet school, and though we haven't spent much time there since the kids left, it was strange to think we'd be leaving the house we'd called home for 10 days. Much as we might wish to come back, it is likely that some or most of us never will. It is such a special place, and I know we will hold it in our hearts forever. I'm already missing the kids I grew close to over the past few days, their enthusiasm and love of learning. They are all special, beautiful people, and I am truly blessed I got to know them, even for a short period of time. It breaks my heart to be leaving.
At the same time, I am so, so excited to get to go in the safari tomorrow. And, God willing, this will not be my last visit to this school or to Kenya.
Today was a very calm day. We went to Lake Victoria, about a two or three hour drive from the Nambale magnet school. When we got there, we went to a sort of beach resort. We waded in the water, played pool, and watched Amy geek out over a bunch if different aquatic animals. We ate fresh fish for lunch and watched as a birthday party played in the sand across from us. After, we drove through the nearby fishing village and waited for some of the people who went with us to buy some fish. We got home at about 7 pm, cleaned the house, packed, and got into bed early in anticipation of an early start the next day.
I found today enjoyable, but it brought up a lot of mixed emotions. It was our last day at the Nambale Magnet school, and though we haven't spent much time there since the kids left, it was strange to think we'd be leaving the house we'd called home for 10 days. Much as we might wish to come back, it is likely that some or most of us never will. It is such a special place, and I know we will hold it in our hearts forever. I'm already missing the kids I grew close to over the past few days, their enthusiasm and love of learning. They are all special, beautiful people, and I am truly blessed I got to know them, even for a short period of time. It breaks my heart to be leaving.
At the same time, I am so, so excited to get to go in the safari tomorrow. And, God willing, this will not be my last visit to this school or to Kenya.
Friday, June 30, 2023
Next stop: Masai Mara!
With full and grateful hearts we bade farewell to the Nambale Magnet School (at 6am!), and now we are en route to our safari at Masai Mara!
Day 9 Meryt
Monkeys, Safari Ants, and Bats- Oh My!!!
Yesterday was Day 8 of our stay at NMS but Day 1 without the kids :'( While we missed the NMS students so much, it was still an incredible day.
Yesterday we boarded the big NMS yellow school bus to take a day trip into the Kakamega Rainforest. We were escorted by James, the head teacher, and Madame Caroline, the social worker here at NMS. We woke up bright and early at 6 in order to be out of the house at 7:15. It was about a 2.5 hour drive each way, and while it was a very long road trip, there was never a second of boredom for me as I kept my eyes glued to the window the entire rides both there and back. Having never visited a country in the developing world, I had never seen anything like this before our drive from Kisumu into Nambale when we first arrived, and our drives yesterday. The closest thing I had ever seen to the towns that we drove through was the town in the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland. It was interesting to see the buildings that stores were in, the buildings people lived in, and the way of life in these towns. It was also so beautiful to see the many rivers and nature we drove through and the city of Kakamega. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing all the farm animals freely roaming through the towns and roads. Once we finally arrived at the Kakamega Rainforest, we met our tour guide, Gabriel at the lodging area. The lodge area looked exactly like the Presidio in San Francisco where the Walt Disney Museum and the Lucasfilm studios are located. Gabriel did an excellent job of guiding us through the rainforest. Before embarking on our tour, Gabriel told us that the rainforest was the only one in all of Kenya, and what is left is only 10% or what was originally there, as 90% of it was destroyed due to human activity. We spent quite a bit of time walking through the rainforest and saw many different types of monkeys and butterflies. We had to be careful to skip over many colonies of safari ants, which are much larger than the ants at home and give very painful bites (this is where the story takes a bad turn). While running through a colony of safari ants, I took one for the team and slipped in the mud and fell flat onto my butt. I then struggled to get up for a few seconds, and when I finally did get up I began screaming and crying like a toddler as there were many, many ants crawling and biting all over me. Caroline, James, and Gabriel rushed over to help me and calm me down. It took a few minutes but eventually we picked all of the ants off of me. It is okay if reading this causes you to burst out laughing, dear readers, as even though it was terrifying in the moment it is absolutely hilarious now. Luckily, while the bites hurt, they are not poisonous or dangerous.
Soon after that unfortunate incident, we made it to the hill that we hiked up. The hill was covered in beautiful long, golden grass. After a few minutes of hiking, Mike and I discussed how pretty the hill was and how it reminded us of the beautiful Bishop's Ranch. I then stopped for a second to look back at the view and I was absolutely BREATH-TAKEN. The only thing I've ever seen that looked like that view was the views from Diamond Head in Honolulu, just without the city and beach parts. In San Francisco, our views are absolutely breathtaking as well, especially at night when we get to see the twinkling lights of the city. I rarely ever get to see nature views. The views got even more breathtaking as we made it closer to the top. Halfway up the hill, we stopped at a cave with bats in it. The majority of us went in, and some of us opted out before we saw the bats due to being afraid (I was one of those people). But some of us saw some bats! Matthew and Walter even claim that a bat flew right above their heads (I'm not 100% sure I believe them). After we finished our hike we returned to the lodge for a lovely lunch. While we were almost back though, Thorne nearly was killed as an extremely large branch fell almost directly onto him, but we are so grateful that he made it and was not hit. After lunch we soon headed back home. When we arrived back at the school, we settled into our nightly routine of reflection about our day and prayer. After prayer I was so exhausted that I had to tuck into bed early at 9 so I unfortunately missed mine, Charlotte, Thorne, Matthew, Walter, Katherine, and Anhai's nightly girl talk sessions, that we hold for anyone to join after prayer (I hadn't missed a single one until last night).
As someone who is notoriously known for being one of the biggest animal and nature lovers on earth, yesterday was incredibly moving and emotional for me as I marveled at the beauty and wonder of God's creation. Seeing the monkeys and butterflies in the rainforest didn't feel real. The closest things to a rainforest that I've ever experienced would be the rainforest dome at Cal Academy and the Rainforest Café. It still feels unreal that I'm actually in Kenya. It brings me to tears to think about how last year at the end of our mission trip we were riding the Jungle Cruise ride and and exploring the Temple of the Forbidden Eye on the Indiana Jones ride together at Disneyland, and this year we trekked through a real rainforest and are going on a safari together in Kenya! I'm so incredibly grateful to be here, and that Mike and Riley bent the rules and allowed me and Anhai to come as college students, as we were originally supposed to go on the Kenya trip in 2020. While I was devastated at the time when our trip was canceled back in 2020, I am grateful for it as now I feel that I can appreciate it more after having to wait three years and also being older and more mature than I was at 16 years old. Furthermore, having this trip to look forward to with some of my most favorite people on Earth helped me to get through some of the darkest and most challenging times of my first year of college. Being away at college and not being able to see Mike and Riley and some of my most closest friends regularly anymore has been incredibly hard on me this past year, and I'm grateful that I made it through and that I am here now.
This trip and meeting the children at NMS has been one of the greatest blessings of my life. My faith has grown so much from living and learning amongst them and from playing and praying with them. I have two really big takeaways that I've learned from these beautiful kids that I want to share. The first is that while life is incredibly difficult, one must remember that it is also sacred and beautiful, and that appreciating the joys of the small things in life are what get us through the darkest periods of our lives. The second is to remember to always to find the goodness and Jesus in everyone that we meet, even when people give us a very hard time. Going back to the empty school was the worst part of the day, but while we miss the kids so much, I am so grateful for our life-changing outing and the opportunity to kind more as an entire youth group.
After four years and four mission trips, this is Meryt signing off her last ever post onto this blog. I am so very saddened as I will miss these trips and the time spent in the places we visited and the communities we served so much. Thank you to Mike and Riley for everything that you do for us and for taking us on these life changing service trips, I love you too infinitely. 💗
Yesterday was Day 8 of our stay at NMS but Day 1 without the kids :'( While we missed the NMS students so much, it was still an incredible day.
Yesterday we boarded the big NMS yellow school bus to take a day trip into the Kakamega Rainforest. We were escorted by James, the head teacher, and Madame Caroline, the social worker here at NMS. We woke up bright and early at 6 in order to be out of the house at 7:15. It was about a 2.5 hour drive each way, and while it was a very long road trip, there was never a second of boredom for me as I kept my eyes glued to the window the entire rides both there and back. Having never visited a country in the developing world, I had never seen anything like this before our drive from Kisumu into Nambale when we first arrived, and our drives yesterday. The closest thing I had ever seen to the towns that we drove through was the town in the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland. It was interesting to see the buildings that stores were in, the buildings people lived in, and the way of life in these towns. It was also so beautiful to see the many rivers and nature we drove through and the city of Kakamega. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing all the farm animals freely roaming through the towns and roads. Once we finally arrived at the Kakamega Rainforest, we met our tour guide, Gabriel at the lodging area. The lodge area looked exactly like the Presidio in San Francisco where the Walt Disney Museum and the Lucasfilm studios are located. Gabriel did an excellent job of guiding us through the rainforest. Before embarking on our tour, Gabriel told us that the rainforest was the only one in all of Kenya, and what is left is only 10% or what was originally there, as 90% of it was destroyed due to human activity. We spent quite a bit of time walking through the rainforest and saw many different types of monkeys and butterflies. We had to be careful to skip over many colonies of safari ants, which are much larger than the ants at home and give very painful bites (this is where the story takes a bad turn). While running through a colony of safari ants, I took one for the team and slipped in the mud and fell flat onto my butt. I then struggled to get up for a few seconds, and when I finally did get up I began screaming and crying like a toddler as there were many, many ants crawling and biting all over me. Caroline, James, and Gabriel rushed over to help me and calm me down. It took a few minutes but eventually we picked all of the ants off of me. It is okay if reading this causes you to burst out laughing, dear readers, as even though it was terrifying in the moment it is absolutely hilarious now. Luckily, while the bites hurt, they are not poisonous or dangerous.
Soon after that unfortunate incident, we made it to the hill that we hiked up. The hill was covered in beautiful long, golden grass. After a few minutes of hiking, Mike and I discussed how pretty the hill was and how it reminded us of the beautiful Bishop's Ranch. I then stopped for a second to look back at the view and I was absolutely BREATH-TAKEN. The only thing I've ever seen that looked like that view was the views from Diamond Head in Honolulu, just without the city and beach parts. In San Francisco, our views are absolutely breathtaking as well, especially at night when we get to see the twinkling lights of the city. I rarely ever get to see nature views. The views got even more breathtaking as we made it closer to the top. Halfway up the hill, we stopped at a cave with bats in it. The majority of us went in, and some of us opted out before we saw the bats due to being afraid (I was one of those people). But some of us saw some bats! Matthew and Walter even claim that a bat flew right above their heads (I'm not 100% sure I believe them). After we finished our hike we returned to the lodge for a lovely lunch. While we were almost back though, Thorne nearly was killed as an extremely large branch fell almost directly onto him, but we are so grateful that he made it and was not hit. After lunch we soon headed back home. When we arrived back at the school, we settled into our nightly routine of reflection about our day and prayer. After prayer I was so exhausted that I had to tuck into bed early at 9 so I unfortunately missed mine, Charlotte, Thorne, Matthew, Walter, Katherine, and Anhai's nightly girl talk sessions, that we hold for anyone to join after prayer (I hadn't missed a single one until last night).
As someone who is notoriously known for being one of the biggest animal and nature lovers on earth, yesterday was incredibly moving and emotional for me as I marveled at the beauty and wonder of God's creation. Seeing the monkeys and butterflies in the rainforest didn't feel real. The closest things to a rainforest that I've ever experienced would be the rainforest dome at Cal Academy and the Rainforest Café. It still feels unreal that I'm actually in Kenya. It brings me to tears to think about how last year at the end of our mission trip we were riding the Jungle Cruise ride and and exploring the Temple of the Forbidden Eye on the Indiana Jones ride together at Disneyland, and this year we trekked through a real rainforest and are going on a safari together in Kenya! I'm so incredibly grateful to be here, and that Mike and Riley bent the rules and allowed me and Anhai to come as college students, as we were originally supposed to go on the Kenya trip in 2020. While I was devastated at the time when our trip was canceled back in 2020, I am grateful for it as now I feel that I can appreciate it more after having to wait three years and also being older and more mature than I was at 16 years old. Furthermore, having this trip to look forward to with some of my most favorite people on Earth helped me to get through some of the darkest and most challenging times of my first year of college. Being away at college and not being able to see Mike and Riley and some of my most closest friends regularly anymore has been incredibly hard on me this past year, and I'm grateful that I made it through and that I am here now.
This trip and meeting the children at NMS has been one of the greatest blessings of my life. My faith has grown so much from living and learning amongst them and from playing and praying with them. I have two really big takeaways that I've learned from these beautiful kids that I want to share. The first is that while life is incredibly difficult, one must remember that it is also sacred and beautiful, and that appreciating the joys of the small things in life are what get us through the darkest periods of our lives. The second is to remember to always to find the goodness and Jesus in everyone that we meet, even when people give us a very hard time. Going back to the empty school was the worst part of the day, but while we miss the kids so much, I am so grateful for our life-changing outing and the opportunity to kind more as an entire youth group.
After four years and four mission trips, this is Meryt signing off her last ever post onto this blog. I am so very saddened as I will miss these trips and the time spent in the places we visited and the communities we served so much. Thank you to Mike and Riley for everything that you do for us and for taking us on these life changing service trips, I love you too infinitely. 💗
Thursday, June 29, 2023
Day 8 Amy
Today was Sports Day at the Nambale Magnet School! From the moment we left the Karibu House this morning, the day was filled with high energy (and high temperatures). First thing, I joined my team, Team Cheetah, in one of the pre-primary classrooms. I was promptly put to work painting cheetah markings onto my teammate's faces. After ample time for team bonding and enthusiastic chanting, Team Cheetah rolled out for our grand entrance. Every team got to march (or run, cartwheel, or dance) onto the field to their choice of music. Then, the games were underway.
The morning was incredibly energetic as everyone cheered on their teammates in sack races and running races. A highlight of the morning was watching a highly competitive game of blindfolded four year olds crawl around the field looking for a ball. As the sun rose higher into the sky, the incredible heat began to set in. Naturally, many learners began to scatter, looking for shade, friends, and food (truly the essentials). I spent most of my morning under a tent, chatting with the many friends that I've made at this school. One thing I truly love about this school is how inclusive the students are of all ages. It's very common to see a group of learners ranging from 5 to 12 years old all laughing and playing with each other. I've made friends with children of all ages, and they're more than comfortable all chatting with me together.
Later in the day, I wandered into the pre-primary 1 class to say hi to the young learners (4-5 year olds) and the head teacher, Madame Petrenilla. Ever since I assisted in her class last Friday, Madame Petrenilla has always enthusiastically welcomed me back into her classroom. She proudly considers me the class's honorary second teacher :) Today happened to be a student's 5th birthday, so I got to celebrate with the class! There were many snacks and sweets for the class to enjoy, lots of songs and chanting, and fun drawings and balloons on the blackboard - quite the exciting celebration.
As the afternoon progressed and Sports Day started winding down (Team Cheetah won! Woo!!), parents were beginning to take students home. I finally had to acknowledge a hard truth: today was the last day, and these were the last moments, I'd get to spend time with all of my new friends. Emotions were certainly high as I said my final good bye's and exchanged heartfelt notes, hugs, and high fives with many students, especially Truphena, Beth, Ruby, and Sawyer. I'll never forget the look on some of their faces as they approached me - the first time I'd seen them teary-eyed.
Without students on campus, the evening was distinctly silent - an uncomfortable reminder of an aching absence in our lives. During our daily reflection, the permanence and gravity of everything that happened today finally set in. An emotional end to the day, to day the least.
As I reflect on my time with the kids, I'm so happy to truly have no regrets. It was incredibly fun and fulfilling laughing, learning, and playing with all the learners here. The kids' boundless, authentic love for everything in their lives - from their school, to their friends, to their food - is infectious and deeply moving, and certainly something I'll bring back to the Bay Area with me.
Wednesday, June 28, 2023
Day 7 Thorne
Hey Everyone,
I'm Thorne, and I'm here to talk to you about yesterday, June 27th.
The 27th was our final full day with the kids, and we made the most of it.
When we woke up, we had Mike's soft-boiled eggs and hung out for awhile. Some of the kids had been in class since 4 in the morning, and they were preparing to head out to the field for their sports day practices.
I went to two eighth grade classes, math and social studies. Some things I learned about were the history of Kenya's colonization and when their first prime minister and president was put into office.
There are four sports day teams, the Cheetahs, the Tigers, the Jaguars, and the Leopards. I was a Jaguar myself, and we looked great out there. We would practice running from goal to goal, three-legged racing, and sack racing.
After lunch, I went to help make posters for my team to raise during our chant. We made some pretty amazing Jaguar drawings.
When that was over, dinner was pretty much ready, and we had just recently learned that there was going to be entertainment around 7 (We had one on Saturday as well). Mike calls it a rave.
We ate rice and lentils for lunch, and we had beans and chapati for dinner. If you haven't heard about chapati yet, it's a type of naan/tortilla bread that you can have with almost anything.
After dinner we went to evening worship and prayers. One of my favorite songs that I've learned from the kids over the days is "I Want To Shine." They sang it last night as well. The rave was right after evening worship, and I danced with a group of kids to songs that we requested ("Stir Fry" by Migos and "Robbery" by Juice WRLD). A few others and I pumped up the crowd with those songs. We used the rest of our rave time dancing with our new friends and taking videos and pictures with them.
At 9:30 we came back for a short reflection and girl talk.
At this point in the trip, I was starting to feel really emotional as we knew the kids would be gone the next day. We used the rave as an opportunity to dance and have fun for the last time with all our new friends.
That's all for yesterday.
Thorne out.
Tuesday, June 27, 2023
Monday, June 26, 2023
Day 6 Matthew
Today, we woke up bright and early to go to an assembly that the children were participating in. We got there a little early, so we got to see all of the children running up to get in line. After the assembly, we came back to Karibu house and had some delicious breakfast of eggs and toast. After breakfast everyone got ready for the day. Around 10:00 we left Karibu house to go participate in getting ready for sports day. There were four teams, the leopards, tigers, cheetahs, and jaguars. All the group members were evenly distributed throughout the teams to help cheer on and hype up the members of the team. Today, the teams were practicing for all the events they were going to do. There was a wide range of events, coming from the three legged race and babies crawling around blindfolded, to 100 and 200 meter dashes, and a massive soccer match. All the teams also practiced cheers that they would do on sports day. After preparing for sports day, we had a very tasty lunch of pea stew and bread. After lunch, and after a bit of quiet time, we went back to the kids to play more. While John and Walter played soccer with the kids, I showed some of them some magic tricks, next to Meryt, Katherine, and Charlotte who were telling the kids riddles. After magic, Walter, Thorne, Gloria, Mike, John and I played a fun game of volleyball with the kids. After volleyball came dinner, which consisted of spaghetti, meatballs, and cabbage. Once dinner was over we went to evening devotion, with singing and prayers from the kids. After devotion, we went back to the house and relaxed. Some of us went to the annex and played twister and talked about film and books. When that was over, we came back to Karibu house for some girl talk and bed.
Today proved how happy the kids are to be here, and how much they value their education. I noticed that on sports day which is a day specifically made to have fun after working hard for a full semester. The main thing I noticed, was the expressions on the kids faces. The kids expressions were the same on a day only for fun, and in the classrooms. The kids love learning new things, being in classrooms, and bettering themselves, which is something I'm not used to back in the states. It's really cool to see that, and it's clear with these youth, that Nambale, Kenya, and the world has a bright future ahead of it.
Today proved how happy the kids are to be here, and how much they value their education. I noticed that on sports day which is a day specifically made to have fun after working hard for a full semester. The main thing I noticed, was the expressions on the kids faces. The kids expressions were the same on a day only for fun, and in the classrooms. The kids love learning new things, being in classrooms, and bettering themselves, which is something I'm not used to back in the states. It's really cool to see that, and it's clear with these youth, that Nambale, Kenya, and the world has a bright future ahead of it.
Teaching Grade 8
Riley, Mike, and Liesl were invited to teach Grade 8 maths and English, and stayed for a Kiswahili lesson. The picture below is with the Kiswahili teacher!
Day 5 Cate
Yesterday began in a unique and impactful way. As expected, our Sunday started with a church service. After getting ready and eating breakfast, we headed to the dining hall for what we had heard would be a two hour service. Although the time felt daunting, we were anticipating an engaging and entertaining service as we have noticed and appreciated the common occurrence of music and dance defining their particular style of worship. We had heard them sing and dance to many cheerful songs at their daily evening worship. We were all very moved by and enjoyed those lovely post-dinner gatherings and because of that we were looking forward to, and not dreading what was said to be a very long service. We arrived at the dining hall at 8, joined by the students who were either dressed in long blue dresses or a shirt and tie. The first thing I noticed was the attention and engagement from the student body. Rather than looking bored or like they just wanted to pass the time, everyone was attentive and happy to be there. Many were reading their bibles and some were even taking notes. As expected, the service was very musically oriented. Students and teachers went up to the stage to sing and pray and was a few instruments played by teachers in the back. These instruments were not only used for the many songs sang, but also to punctuate speeches and prayers. The students knew all the songs and were engaging in dancing that seemed to be previously choreographed. One thing that stood out to me were that the boys and girls were separated. I had noticed this before during the dance "entertainment" where there was a wall of chairs that separated the girls and the boys. Midway through the service, Mike gave a sermon containing the scripture of Jesus's presentation at the Temple and related it to one of the songs we had heard each night at evening worship. The song said something along the lines of "I want to shine so when they see me they see Jesus" and Mike spoke about how he saw Jesus in each one of the kids. The service was totally different than those at St. Mary's. However, I think all of us thoroughly enjoyed the fun and engaging format and despite not taking the fall two hours we excepted, I don't think I would have been able to sit through and stay focused on such a long service if it wasn't for the abundance of music and dancing. After returning to Karibu House after the service, we had a short debrief. For the students, Sunday was branded as a chores day, which inspired us to use our extra down time to clean Karibu House and the Annex, where we are staying. We swept floors, did dishes, mopped, and cleaned up any clutter. Afterward we took a little time to relax and play games and around Noon we headed out to help with any of the Sunday classes that were taking place and play with the kids. After lunch and a few more card games, we headed out once again. Many of us played volleyball or soccer with the kids, while others including myself played other camp-like games. A few days ago, Charlotte had taught the kids a game called "Little Sally Walker" that they kids really loved and kept asking to play again and again. It was really moving to see a game that one of us had introduced to them become such a big thing. To me that acted as a symbol that we really do have the ability to make a lasting impact and showed that even if it was just a game, we had started something that could hopefully bring them a lot of joy in the future. The day ended like any other, with dinner, evening worship, and a game of "Oh Heck" (cards). As a whole, the group had a good day.
My main takeaway from the day is how important it is to have a balance between fun and still honoring priorities. I've always felt like there is a time to be happy, loud, and expressive and there was a time to be serious and reserved. And although, that is true and a really important important concept, I appreciated that the kids were able to sing and dance and still practice their faith. Church was just a happy place. It wasn't a chore or something just something forced, it was just genuinely fun and I loved that. I think worship should be a joyful experience and that lively atmosphere is something we should definitely think about incorporating in our services at St. Mary's.
My main takeaway from the day is how important it is to have a balance between fun and still honoring priorities. I've always felt like there is a time to be happy, loud, and expressive and there was a time to be serious and reserved. And although, that is true and a really important important concept, I appreciated that the kids were able to sing and dance and still practice their faith. Church was just a happy place. It wasn't a chore or something just something forced, it was just genuinely fun and I loved that. I think worship should be a joyful experience and that lively atmosphere is something we should definitely think about incorporating in our services at St. Mary's.
Sunday, June 25, 2023
Day 4 Charlotte
While many people consider Saturday to be the beginning of the weekend, students at the Nambale Magnet School are still hard at work in their classes.
This morning, the mission trippers took a break from assisting in classrooms and went out to town with Madame Caroline, a social worker here at NMS. There are two major market days in Nambale, a big market day on Saturday and a smaller market day on Tuesday.
Today we had the opportunity to observe and experience the big market day. As we walked along the path next to the road, we passed fruit vendors, local students from other schools, and several herds of cows. I walked with Katherine and as we admired a few local girls shopping for dresses in a small shop, she brought up the incredibly interesting comparison between their shopping experience and our typical American shopping mall experience.
Throughout my time in Nambale, I've been thinking a lot about consumption and the culture of consumerism that is especially prevalent in America. Walking through the market, there were piles upon piles of t-shirts, jeans, sweaters, and shoes. While I don't know exactly where these vendors receive their products, I can assume that some may be donations from places like the Salvation Army or other similar organizations. Seeing the piles of previously owned clothing sold and displayed in such a way has made me much more aware of the clothes and other items I currently own and use on a daily basis. While I hope that the items I donate end up benefiting someone else, I also believe that creating a culture of conscious consumption, especially in a first world country like America, is so important to keep both our climate and communities beyond that of the Bay Area and our country clean.
Returning to stories of our adventures though, the mission trippers also had the opportunity to stop into a corner store while in town. We have been enjoying so many delicious snacks special to Kenya, including the freshly made snacks at NMS. Additionally, we have become quite big fans of some of the special soda flavors in Kenya including Black Currant Fanta and Bitter Lemon Schweppes.
We returned from our market field trip in the late morning for a brief reflection and some very heated rounds of cards.
In the late afternoon, Anhai, Matthew, and I were invited to teach a 7th grade English class. After a very brief lesson planning session, the three of us headed to the classroom where we taught an hour long lesson about parts of speech.
We started with some introductions and asked the students to share some of their favorite books with us. We then reviewed the different parts of speech, and taught the short chorus of the School House Rock song "Conjunction Junction". Anhai and I were both blown away by the students' excitement and engagement with the lesson, especially when we asked for volunteers to give examples. We ended the class with a couple rounds of MadLibs, including one with a Bigfoot theme, and when the bell rang received numerous hugs and high fives from each of the students.
We ended the day with a fun night of dancing. We listened to pop songs from both America and Kenya and have become obsessed with a song called "Kuna Kuna". All of the NMS students taught us their favorite dance moves and we all participated in a giant conga line. The students have also become particularly interested in the two cameras I carry around with me and took some fabulous pictures of each other at the dance.
Today was the last normal school day of the term before Sports Day preparations begin on Monday. I am so excited to see what the rest of our time at NMS brings and hope to continue building wonderful, lasting memories with each of the students here.
- Charlotte
This morning, the mission trippers took a break from assisting in classrooms and went out to town with Madame Caroline, a social worker here at NMS. There are two major market days in Nambale, a big market day on Saturday and a smaller market day on Tuesday.
Today we had the opportunity to observe and experience the big market day. As we walked along the path next to the road, we passed fruit vendors, local students from other schools, and several herds of cows. I walked with Katherine and as we admired a few local girls shopping for dresses in a small shop, she brought up the incredibly interesting comparison between their shopping experience and our typical American shopping mall experience.
Throughout my time in Nambale, I've been thinking a lot about consumption and the culture of consumerism that is especially prevalent in America. Walking through the market, there were piles upon piles of t-shirts, jeans, sweaters, and shoes. While I don't know exactly where these vendors receive their products, I can assume that some may be donations from places like the Salvation Army or other similar organizations. Seeing the piles of previously owned clothing sold and displayed in such a way has made me much more aware of the clothes and other items I currently own and use on a daily basis. While I hope that the items I donate end up benefiting someone else, I also believe that creating a culture of conscious consumption, especially in a first world country like America, is so important to keep both our climate and communities beyond that of the Bay Area and our country clean.
Returning to stories of our adventures though, the mission trippers also had the opportunity to stop into a corner store while in town. We have been enjoying so many delicious snacks special to Kenya, including the freshly made snacks at NMS. Additionally, we have become quite big fans of some of the special soda flavors in Kenya including Black Currant Fanta and Bitter Lemon Schweppes.
We returned from our market field trip in the late morning for a brief reflection and some very heated rounds of cards.
In the late afternoon, Anhai, Matthew, and I were invited to teach a 7th grade English class. After a very brief lesson planning session, the three of us headed to the classroom where we taught an hour long lesson about parts of speech.
We started with some introductions and asked the students to share some of their favorite books with us. We then reviewed the different parts of speech, and taught the short chorus of the School House Rock song "Conjunction Junction". Anhai and I were both blown away by the students' excitement and engagement with the lesson, especially when we asked for volunteers to give examples. We ended the class with a couple rounds of MadLibs, including one with a Bigfoot theme, and when the bell rang received numerous hugs and high fives from each of the students.
We ended the day with a fun night of dancing. We listened to pop songs from both America and Kenya and have become obsessed with a song called "Kuna Kuna". All of the NMS students taught us their favorite dance moves and we all participated in a giant conga line. The students have also become particularly interested in the two cameras I carry around with me and took some fabulous pictures of each other at the dance.
Today was the last normal school day of the term before Sports Day preparations begin on Monday. I am so excited to see what the rest of our time at NMS brings and hope to continue building wonderful, lasting memories with each of the students here.
- Charlotte
Saturday, June 24, 2023
NMS headbands
Day 3 John
6/23/23
The day started earlier than normal. The night before we learned there would be a whole school assembly where the students would hold a flag ceremony. Watching the kids sing, dance, and be so joyous at 7:30 is something that I would never expect to see at home. After the ceremony ended everyone split off to do their own duties, whether it was in the kitchen, farm, teaching a class, the library (where I was). Working in the library was uneventful and honestly relaxing aside from hearing the librarian watching a show with people constantly yelling at each other. I spent the time with Thorne organizing the fiction and biography section alphabetically. We were impressed by the variety of stories and the quantity of certain books. Over the course of the 3 hours we found 10 copies of "Treasure Island" randomly placed in sections they didn't belong.
Once the kids were out of class a group of us formed the volleyball super team with a member of the faculty and played against the kitchen staff and some teachers. We played four sets to 25 and our super team went undefeated. We played from 3:30 to 6:00 and did ball work. This was all preparation for sports day where our super team will play against the parents or family members of kids at the school.
After a few days here it's been pretty moving to see the constant happiness and happiness it's contagious. It's hard not to smile when walking from dorm to dorm or to the fields and being swarmed by kids saying hello, waving, and just being so excited see us or be with us. Seeing people who live day to day with fewer recourses but are much happier makes me wonder what's actually worth my time, and what will make me happy. Is it cultural? Is it lifestyle? Is it an outlook on life? Honestly I don't know but I'm re-evaluating what brings me happiness at home.
The day started earlier than normal. The night before we learned there would be a whole school assembly where the students would hold a flag ceremony. Watching the kids sing, dance, and be so joyous at 7:30 is something that I would never expect to see at home. After the ceremony ended everyone split off to do their own duties, whether it was in the kitchen, farm, teaching a class, the library (where I was). Working in the library was uneventful and honestly relaxing aside from hearing the librarian watching a show with people constantly yelling at each other. I spent the time with Thorne organizing the fiction and biography section alphabetically. We were impressed by the variety of stories and the quantity of certain books. Over the course of the 3 hours we found 10 copies of "Treasure Island" randomly placed in sections they didn't belong.
Once the kids were out of class a group of us formed the volleyball super team with a member of the faculty and played against the kitchen staff and some teachers. We played four sets to 25 and our super team went undefeated. We played from 3:30 to 6:00 and did ball work. This was all preparation for sports day where our super team will play against the parents or family members of kids at the school.
After a few days here it's been pretty moving to see the constant happiness and happiness it's contagious. It's hard not to smile when walking from dorm to dorm or to the fields and being swarmed by kids saying hello, waving, and just being so excited see us or be with us. Seeing people who live day to day with fewer recourses but are much happier makes me wonder what's actually worth my time, and what will make me happy. Is it cultural? Is it lifestyle? Is it an outlook on life? Honestly I don't know but I'm re-evaluating what brings me happiness at home.
Friday, June 23, 2023
Day 2 Henry
Today was a very relaxed and chill day since we were still jet lagged from our arrival yesterday. I woke up late in the morning and missed most of breakfast because of how tired I was. Right after eating breakfast, we got a very nice tour of the campus from the head teacher, James. He showed us through all the classroom buildings, stopping to visit each class. Every class we visited welcomed us with a very nice greeting which they told to us in unison. Many of the classes also had a motto which which they chanted to us. We also visited the schools farm and saw all of the animals they had including 3000 chickens and numerous pigs and cows. After that we saw their dining hall and kitchen, as well as all the dorms for the boarding students to stay. Soon after the tour we had a very delicious lunch including some amazing bread. After lunch, the kids' classes were out, and so we went out to visit and hang out with the students. I had several very nice conversations with quite a few kids before going to play some volleyball with them. After playing for quite some, it was already time for dinner, a very nice beef stew. After dinner, we went to the school's evening worship where they sang songs and read scripture. Before we knew it, it was already time to sleep. Overall, the day was very nice and relaxing. It was a great way to accustom to the Nambale Magnet School before starting work tomorrow.
Thursday, June 22, 2023
Day 1--Gloria
We have spent more than a day of traveling. 4 flights, two of about 10 hours. After we finally landed in Nairobi, we had a two hour drive to the school and by then we were all exhausted. The entire drive I was looking out the window, fascinated by how different everything was from what I'm used to in America. There were motor bikes and taxis and huge trucks. We passed markets and houses and I was waved to a few times. When we arrived at the Nambale Magnet School we pulled our stuff off of the bus and just stood there for a second not knowing what to do. The Nambale Magnet School is in rural Kenya and is essentially a pre-K through 8th grade school. In Kenya though, they have sections for each group of children like pre-primary, primary, and secondary school. By the time we had arrived my mind had liquefied and it took me a minute to realize that I had just traveled halfway across the world. The littlest kids at the school noticed us and ran outside of their classroom and just waved to us. As we walked to our buildings all of the children would wave to us from their classrooms. Eventually, once we had rested enough to function, we finally went outside and were immediately swarmed by all of the children. When I say swarmed I mean SWARMED. I felt like a celebrity. I had children giving me a tour of the school and playing soccer and one girl even asked for my phone number so that she could call me when I went back home. We had dinner in our Karibo house and then joined the rest of the school as they sang songs after their dinner. It was a really great experience to watch all of them sing and I hope to learn some of the songs before the end of our stay.
Wednesday, June 21, 2023
The Nambale Magnet School
We have safely arrived at the Nambale Magnet School! We were greeted by preschoolers and the Rev. Evalyn Wakhusama. We are settling in, and reveling in the meter fact of being here.
Tuesday, June 20, 2023
KENYA!
We're all in Kenya - all 17 of us - and we are on the final flight of our journey from Nairobi to Kisumu. We are all so happy to be here!
Monday, June 19, 2023
Sunday, June 18, 2023
CCLA Blessing
This morning, at both Christ Church Los Altos and at St. Mary's, trip participants were prayed over and blessed on our journey. God is good!
Saturday, June 17, 2023
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