The end of a month in Africa! Wow how time flies here, I can’t believe that the trip is over. We leave in just a few hours at about 11:45pm Nairobi time. Mary Steiner and I are flying through London and then to Minneapolis. Rumor has it there is some sort of a terrorist alert, in London. We were planning to go out into the city tomorrow, because we have an 8 hour lay-over, but we are now thinking it might be too difficult with the security alert at high – we will see.
This is the part of the trip where I start trying to put it all into context: why was I here…what I am taking away…did I do as much as I could to help…how will I do more when I get home…what am I feeling about the poverty now? Those are the hard questions to answer and often are not answered until you have been back at home for some time. This trip being much more administrative than the last exposed me to many things that I was not privileged to see on a volunteer trip.
My last few days have been very busy; we traveled to Uganda for two days of work and meetings. I spent a day with members of the Mari Disabilities group, seeing their homes and getting a glimpse of their lives. I chose to spend the whole day with them to get some good video for our 2010 silent auction. The Mari Group was our designated giving project this last year at the auction and they will be again next year. We are trying to raise funds to build each of them a home outside of the Juba slums, where they live now. So I spent time with Zam-Zam, Christopher, and Goretti on Saturday. I won’t go into each of their stories, they are all compelling and I could write a novel on each based on the few hours I spent – but I will talk a little bit about Goretti.
Goretti was chosen because we had seen her house a few weeks ago and were shocked by the size and condition. She is living in a small home that is actually a woman’s kitchen. Many people have smaller mud homes or lean-to type areas as their kitchens, cooking with three stones and firewood is smoky and it is not generally done in the house, unless there is no other option. Goretti is renting this woman’s kitchen, which is about 4ft by 6ft – at 7,000 Uganda shillings a month (about $3.50 USD). She does odd jobs in town to earn money; she manages to put one small meal out for her 6 children each day. I was there at dinner time; the meal was some ugali and some greens – and not very much of either. She had polio as a child and now walks with a cane, as she doesn’t have the use of one of her legs. Her husband died several years ago, she tells me this was not a significant loss, because he used to beat her regularly. Her small kitchen home is about to collapse, the rains pour in and homes like this have been known to cave and claim the lives of those sleeping inside. She cannot move because she generally can’t even pay the 7,000 rent, she can come up with 1500 to 2000 shillings – that is it. The woman who she rents from sees that she is hard-working and helps her by letting her stay for that small amount. Any other landlord would throw her out on the street.
I could go on and on about the hardships I saw in the few hours I spent with her – but ultimately you cannot imagine the suffering in this woman’s life, you cannot imagine getting up every day to a reality like hers. I cannot imagine how this woman beamed with a smile the entire time I sat with her. I mentioned to her that I could hear her saying that she was suffering and I could see it…but I could also see this light in her eyes and she wore a bright smile on her face. This shining smile, I asked her where she found it, in all of her suffering. She said that she had stayed home all day and she was so excited for her visitor (Me) and that she was this happy just to have me there in her home.
If you have been reading my blog, you may be starting to tire of these stories of people with nothing somehow managing to “afford a smile.” I am really trying to drive the point home though… if they can – you can. People who are coming to Africa on our trips often ask if their money could be better spent on a donation to Give Us Wings, versus a plane ticket. Most Kenyans will tell you that your presence is priceless and that the smiles of the people leave when you leave. So the expense of getting here and bringing hope into these suffering eyes is very possibly one of the biggest gifts you could give. I would encourage anyone who is looking for some greater purpose and meaning in their life to come here and expereince this place and these wonderful people.
I am so excited to get home and see all of your smiling faces…I am hoping you will be able to afford a smile for your friend who has spent the last month in a place where smiles are the only thing that many people can afford. See you all soon, I am home only for a night and then I am leaving for 10K festival to see a few of my favorite bands all in one place. I know I will be tired, but I tend to find some energy when Widespread Panic and Dave Matthews take the stage!
I am going to close this and get ready to board my plane with total and complete gratitude for all that I have and all that lies ahead.
