Jambo everyone!
Here I sit, outside in my new favorite place, a wonderful patio under the bougainvillea trellis, listening to birds, drinking a cup of tea and enjoying the slight breeze. Let’s see if I’m able to focus enough to get you guys updated!
This patio was a gift from an old friend of Jeff’s. I have dreamed of this space since the day we purchased this land in 2007! I remember everyone laughing at me for planting a row of bougainvillea before we even started construction of the house!
The bougainvillea grew quickly and after only a few years, it was necessary to build the trellis for them to climb, creating a pleasant shady area. Unfortunately, because of various projects and expenses that took priority (and rightfully so) over Mama Carla’s desire for a patio, it just never happened. So, all these years, the space under the trellis was a big mud hole during rainy season and a dust bowl during dry season. Not a pleasant place to be at all! Now, it is exactly as I imagined it thirteen years ago! Some of the staff have been calling it, “Mama Carla’s new office”! LOL!
I am ready for the rains to slow down! There are days when I don’t dare leave the house because the muddy roads are no fun! Driving on the mud here is like driving on black ice in America! Although my car is four-wheel drive, once I’ve gone into the ditch, I’m stuck and Jeff has to drop whatever he’s doing to come with the Cruiser to pull me out. Most of the time, it’s just not worth leaving home.
Speaking of the Cruiser… Actually, we have two Cruisers. The one Jeff drives on any particular day depends on which one happens to be road-worthy at the time. LOL! If they are both road-worthy, then it depends on whether or not Jeff wants to take Victor, our Great Dane, with him.
Anyway, one of the Cruisers has a luggage rack painted in zebra print. The boys often make home-made cars to play with so I had to chuckle when I came across this creation… I’m not sure which boy built it, but I’m sure it’s the most popular toy on campus right now!
We had an unfortunate accident recently. (Mom, and anyone else with a weak stomach, you should skip the next few paragraphs.) A group of boys, ages about five to seven years, was playing at the playground. The boys like to see how fast they can slide down the slide and run back around to do it again. This often involves the boy behind the slider, giving him a push. I have never seen any harm in this and have in fact, on a number of occasions, enjoyed watching the boys play this game.
Well, one of these seven-year-old boys, Moses, who just happens to have one deformed hand and one normal hand, was the slider. He obviously depends completely on his one good hand to pull himself up to the top of the slide and get seated, ready for his ride down.
Somehow, in all the rush, the ring finger of his good hand got stuck between the slide and the ladder that you hold on to while pulling yourself up. The boy behind him didn’t realize that his finger was stuck and, of course, Moses couldn’t use his other hand to stabilize himself. The boy behind gave him a push, which is customary in this game, and poor Moses went flying down the slide, leaving his fingertip at the top! It was HORRIBLE! I can hardly imagine the pain of having your fingertip cut off, but to have it literally torn off… ouch!
Nurse Abby was quick to put the fingertip on ice, but when we got to the hospital, they were not able to reattach it because it was just too mangled, or in the doctor’s words, “completely amputated”. Poor kid! We appreciate your prayers for recovery and that this isn’t something that will cause him pain long term.
I may have mentioned in a previous update about how much the girls are loving the freedom of expressing themselves through their hairstyles! The big thing now is to braid brightly colored yarn into their hair! When school is in session, it is required that the girls either be shaved or have their hair plaited in tight cornrows of only natural hair; no extensions, yarn or fancy styles. They are even practicing braiding each other’s hair, trading yarn for different colors, etc. I can only imagine the grumbling that will go on when school starts up again!
On the subject of school, the government is now saying that they aren’t sure when schools will open again. They had previously announced that it would be in January, but are now saying that as the COVID numbers rise, they can’t say for sure. Ugghhh! There’s no online schooling for us, so we are just trying to keep the kids’ brains awake by having two hours of learning per day. It’s hard to keep them serious about their studies when they know that there is currently no end in sight to our present situation. I keep telling them that this is a wonderful opportunity to get a bit ahead, but I don’t think many of them are seeing it that way.
We were blessed to receive two new babies this month! Baby Phil, named after Pastor Phil Paulsen, came to us at just seven hours old! He was born to a twelve-year-old girl who had been molested by a cousin. The family felt it was best to give the baby up, rather than deal with all of the complications and superstitions connected to the birth of the baby. Phil is a very content baby, especially when he is being held!
Baby girl Bahati arrived a few days ago. She was found alongside the road, not too far from our place. An investigation is being done to try to track a family member. If none are found or none are willing to take her in, she will most likely be transferred to a home in another county. In the meantime, we are enjoying her cuteness!
There is quite a bit of speculation about whether or not COVID will bring more abandoned babies. With the hit to an already fragile economy, teenagers not in school, crime rates (including rapes) on the rise during the pandemic, etc., it is likely that we could receive a number of new babies in the upcoming months. Time will tell. Everything is so uncertain at the moment. It’s just such a strange time.
I would like to ask for prayers for my health. I won’t get into a ton of details, but suffice it to say that I am not on top of my game these days. I have been experiencing extreme fatigue along with a variety of other symptoms and I just can’t seem to get it together. I have reached out to an endocrinologist in Nairobi, who has ordered some bloodwork as a starting point. She has agreed to treat me via email and phone calls, unless it becomes absolutely necessary that she see me in person. Thanks for your prayers!
I want to end this letter on a lighter note! Here in Kenya, we have motorcycle taxis called piki-pikis (peekee peekee) because that is the sound they make. (Go ahead, say it out loud a few times and you’ll see what I mean.) These pikis aren’t anything like the motorcycles you in the west are used to.
They only go about 45 mph and are actually a huge nuisance on the road. But, with all that said, it is pretty amazing what a piki can haul! I’ve only got a few pictures to share with you because usually, when we come across a piki carrying a crazy load like a sofa or something, we are past them before we think about taking a picture. It’s just such a normal sight here that you don’t think about it until it’s too late.
Thanks for taking the time to read this long update! We appreciate all your prayers and other support! Our God has put together an amazing team, which includes each and every one of you! Mungu akubariki (May God bless you)!
GIGATT (God is Good All the Time)!
Mama Carla