day 30 - 31 : )

i have been home for two weeks. it seems like i left kenya sooo long ago. i hit the ground running both directions, it seems 🤪.

for nostalgic sentiment, i want to post the few photos i took. they were good days. saying 'so long' isn't as hard when you plan to return (Lord willing 😊); stephen comes to the dark side after two years and drinks coffee ☕️😁; of course, our drive takes nine hours because of a flat tire which ensures you are pushing making your flight; you see the moon and love that it looks identical to the photos you take 8,800 miles away; you finally make it through three hours of long lines, baggage, security and customs checks, and then you wait at the gate. and wait. 

and after a very, very long day, you are back where you started and sign up to do it again in june. because, how can i not?

days 28 and 29

hakuna matata, i can almost feel you slipping away. all it took was talking with an airline representative about seat selection, and boom! i am entering a different world. time for big girl panties.

it is thursday morning. i am having coffee and sending nyt word games to anne. just like i have done since early january. i am pretty well packed. stephen picks me up at 11:30 for the long drive to nairobi. then 15-hour flight to new york, definitely not for sissies. i have a good book and lots to think about though, so maybe the hours will fly (😆 get it?!)

tuesday was amazing!!! stephen and i went to homabay to meet with the area representatives, almost the same group we met in november. the difference was that in november, it was just talk. big ideas. and now?! they were blown away!!!! in three short months, the big ideas had become big realities! everyone in the village is so very curious about what is happening in their little forgotten village. over and over, we heard "support", "embrace", "welcome", and "we are behind everything that is happening here." we explained the few things we know -- water for the community, a library and programs focused on adult literacy and reading, a donkey mobile library (this was the moment they knew this was awesomely crazy 😆,) and a coffee shop. the rest is wide open for them to decide what can benefit the community the most. it was just a great way to show off that we mean business 💕

everything here just screams, "POSSIBILITIES!!!"

we were gone all day. people just hang around and talk. there is never a hurry. just be in the moment, catch up, laugh. 

yesterday, was just work on many things still in progress -- employment contracts, washing windows, tagging and packing crafts, see cute and dirty faces, be impressed with the cubbies that lucas and dismus are building for the girls' clothes, talk with my family here. it's a beautiful life. 

(alex, judy, and lucy in their new glasses!)

Father, thank you. a million thank yous 🦋💕🥹

days 25 - 27 🥹

100 days. that's about how many days i was here over the last year. that explains why this life feels normal now. it is my extended family. i wish i could capture the sights and sounds and smells and take them in my suitcase. the deep love and joy are tucked safely in my heart until the next trip. the people here have changed me. my hope is i can carry the lessons back to america. the feeling of hakuna matata living may you never ever leave me. 

a sense of, i don't know the word, creeps in at this point each trip. i realize i don't actually live here. i will go back with a knowing that i have family, friends, and animals on two continents. it's a bridge i will cross over both directions many, many times is my prayer. i have no real sense of how God is working ahead and behind and through all of it, but i know HE is. i feel like i am in HIS audience anticipating what the next scene holds. i hope everyone has this same sense... trusting HIM with your future with hope and excitement. JESUS works everything out for our good and HIS glory. even when we don't see it or understand it, HE is. may we rest on that always. 

and now it will get random because once again, the days are busy and my mind gets jumbled. if i haven't taken pictures, then i am hosed 😵‍💫

in no particular order 😆 of days... we hosted a church service here on saturday. it is alex's church where we attend almost every week. over 100 came! we pulled chairs and tables from everywhere,  and somehow it worked really well. the service started at 9 a.m. and ended at 4:15. not.even.kidding. and mostly spoken and sung in swahilii 🤓. i drank strong coffee and changed clothes at lunchtime and settled in because it seemed like there was no end in sight 🤪

{alex, i feel the exact same about you. adore!}

we hired an optician to come onsite sunday. and i got no pictures of any of it 😭. the doctor's name was rehema (meaning mercy). she was such a role model to our girls! intelligent, confident, beautiful, and capable. winny our nurse started with an education session about eye health and medical professions. many of our girls have said they want to be doctors and nurses. they are going to need to work extremely hard in math, english, and integrated sciences to make this a reality. most have not attended school with any regularity.  we wanted to educate them about the numerous specialities that are "doctor". this was career planning in real time. i also wanted to rule out any vision impairments as possible cause to learning deficits. thankfully only one girl (and four staff) need 'spectacles ' as they are called here 🙂

we found donna's future father of her kids 😜

stephen brought me fresh peanut butter (only ingredient: peanuts) and alex brought me honey from his hives. 

alex, bella, and i were on mission yesterday for dozens of odds and ends. every errand is a serious adventure and takes double the time you'd think. and i love that! people everry wherre, and i get so many smiles and waves 👋! i love friendly, happy people 💗 and i love taking street pictures capturing an expression in a moment of time. 

and we got paint samples to take to homabay tuesday!!!!! 

we have been working on tagging the potholders, bracelets, and safari diamond art that will travel back with me. hoping they will sell and money can help take care of these beautiful girls. 

and it has been a crazy amount of printing and collating the national exam assessments all students take before this school terms ends. we have 11 students in 7th grade and 11 in 8th grade. they each take 11 exams over the next four days. the system that kenya uses nationally ranks every student using the exact same grade curriculum regardless of whether they are in private school, boarding school, or public school. scoring performance puts a lot of pressure to do well. most see education as a ticket out of poverty. i know this to be true -- kenyans are some of the most ingenious and hard working people on the planet. they are exceptional. and inspiring. 

one thing i will greatly miss... lucy bringing me an amazing breakfast with large latte every morning. 

one thing i will greatly not miss.... losing power almost every day. randomly. sometimes few minutes, sometimes 24 hours. nope, not sad to leave this one thing 😉