Twenty Thirteen

For those who don't receive our email updates, here is a newsletter we sent out re-capping this past year we our Rehma Family. If you would like a PDF copy, please shoot me an email and I can send you one. As you can read, God has been good to us this year and we are so so thankful for all you peeps who keep loving, encouraging, and supporting us!! 

Twenty Thirteen has already thrown us a few curve balls but we are adjusting and managing just fine. 

A lot of people chose a word for their year. A word that they live by, that encourages them to be better people, something to remind them of God in their lives, etc. I was thinking about choosing some sort of word but just couldn't come up with one. How can I put 365 days into one word? However, one word did keep popping in my mind. And that word was change. 

Not that I purpose to change, but I feel like so many thing in our life will change and are already changing.

One of the first big changes in our life is these three precious girls below.

Kelvin's three sisters, Tina, Harriet and Joan. We have taken them in to live with us while they are not in boarding school. They have been with us for almost a month now and it has been a big change that has required some major adjustment for me. Not only did I have to learn to cook for 5 five people, but I had to learn to share my space and time with 3 other people. Kelvin and I have been living alone for a year. Throw in 3 extra girls in the house and your personal space and time minimizes big time, not to mention your time with your husband. But I have adjusted and will really miss them when they head to boarding school in a couple days. It's been nice to have sisters around. 

 We took the girls for a day trip to check out their new school and tour around south coast Mombasa. We took some time to stroll the beach. I had forgotten how gorgeous the beach was!

Another big change is the Rehma Ladies. I have changed the program and my approach with these girls. I am backing off and allowing them to create and form a group that they believe will be empowering to them. I am there to guide and help but they create and make decisions. We had an AWESOME meeting today as they came together to share their visions for the group, some rules and guidelines to follow, and discuss an income generating project they want to start for themselves and the community. I am so so happy to see them so excited to work together.

Their first assignment is to plan and organize some sort of outing, event, or gathering for them without my help. I am usually the one who comes up with the ideas and connects everyone together to make it happen. This time, I have given them a budget and they need to plan and organize something for them to do together. I won't even be apart of it. So I am looking forward to see what they come up with next week.

 It was sweet Aisha's birthday today. In my sad attempt to make something special, I just whipped up some chocolate cupcakes and put some 'sparkler' candles in them. Throw in some sodas and popcorn and you got yourself a celebration!

Kenya will go through a big change in a few short weeks. They are doing their elections on March 4th. No one really knows what is going to happen but everyone is hoping that things will be a lot calmer than the last election five years ago where the whole country erupted into violence and 1000+ people were killed. Keep Kenya in your prayers please.

And finally, this time next week, Kelvin and I will be basking in the awesomeness of an air conditioned hotel room! Ok, so its not a huge change but you have NO idea how hot it is here and how amazing air conditioning feels. My family blessed us with a vacation at a local resort. After the crazy Christmas we have had, we are SO looking forward to a few days of pure relaxation.

More changes are brewing for the Opiyos. We will keep you in the loop!!!

Mini Update

Sorry for the silence this past week and a half. I guess there is just not too much excitement going on around here to blog about.

My days have been filled with lots of cleaning and organizing of our new apartment. We are getting our first visitors come this week and next. I am trying to keep up with all the dust that flies in. The down side of the beautiful breezes that flow through the house is that they bring in lots and lots of dust. However, I will chose dust over a hot and stuffy house any day especially considering how hot Mombasa is getting now. I take two cold showers a day just to cool down my overheated body and rid my skin of all the sweat.

Kelvin is currently directing a week long youth camp for our church. I opted to stay home for a few days and get some work done. I will head out there on Wednesday morning for the last 3 days of the camp. I am looking forward to connecting with the youth as we have just joined this church and are still making friends.

I had my last ladies meeting for the year on Saturday. We started planning and brainstorming for next year. I want to change the structure of our meetings and try some new things. They also have some ideas that they would like to do next year like volunteer in the community and start a small income generating project so that they can earn a little bit of pocket money. I am really looking forward to spending another year with these lovely ladies.

Well, it's time for me to mop my floors and wash some clothes. See you next week!

FUNdraising

"What is it? Fundraising is forced humility, forced community through dependence on others, and forced action on spreading the story God has called us too. All the tough pieces of FUNdraising are actually really fun. I can say with full honesty that I LOVE being forced to depend on God and His community, I LOVE not counting on my own work but only His favor, I LOVE placing the needs of family and future in HIs hands and not my paychecks."

I read this on another missionary blog this morning. 

I wish I could write the same words with so much zeal and vigour. I want to get there. Actually, I am there at times. I get so excited connecting with people who so generously give and support us and our work. I do love watching God surprise us and pull through when I notice more donations have come in through paypal. I do love that I am forced to rely on God more than my own work, skills, doings. I do get excited when I get to see my husband truly thrive because he is using his passions, gifts, and talents to reach people. 

But there are lots of time where I am tempted to get impatient, nervous, or overwhelmed with all this "FUNraising". Especially when there is a lull in giving or things just keep getting more and more expensive. I get discouraged when I watch TV and see what people are spending in the West on the craziest things for Christmas and yet my sweet girls can't even get  $50 a month to go to college. (Side note: I was at a friend's house who has satellite TV and I got exposed to the show about Coupons. I felt sick to my stomach watching people gather so much stuff for themselves. I, as much as anyone else, love a good deal but do you really need 400 rolls of tissue paper or 80 packages of pasta?)

This morning I am sending out letters to all who have donated to us this past year or so. I am utterly amazed at how generous people have been and how much God has provided. As I am writing each name on the envelope, I am praying blessings upon blessings on these people's lives. I am so deeply grateful for the sacrifices they have made so that food can be on our table and our young people can have a future and a hope. 

My little bundle of inspiration.

Often, my greatest inspirations are our youth. When I see what they go through, how they overcome, and the joy that they still have am in constant awe of them. 

One of them is definitely Munira. 

I have loved this one from the moment I met her. She is a ball of fire in a small package. She is always laughing, giggling, having fun. She seems to never be sad. She has this awesome raspy voice that just roars over the whole room. 

A few months back, she stopped coming on Saturdays. Some of the others told me that she got a job. Honestly, I was pretty sad knowing I wasn't going to see her as much but I was so happy she was able to get work. 

I later learned that she works at an Export Processing Zone, or as we sometimes refer to them, a sweatshop. Conditions are not as harsh as those in other parts of the world and she does get paid minimum wage in Kenya (which is about $100/month). She spends almost a third of that just on transport and lunch. At the end of the month, she comes home with around $70 in her pocket. 

She needed to work to pay off her school fees. Last year she finished high school. In order for her to get her clearing certificate stating that she did indeed pass high school, she needed to clear fees. 

Later on I learned that her father doesn't pay school fees for the girls in her family. In fact, she is the only girl of seven who has finished high school. 

She also has dreams of going to college and becoming a secretary! I have never met anyone so excited to be a secretary (besides my best friend Nikki). She found the college and the course she wants to take. The only issue is the fees. 

Well, yesterday she came bouncing into my office and proudly showed me her high school leaving certificate!!! I was almost in tears!! She worked hard and did it all by herself!!! SO SO PROUD!!

I made a deal with her. I said that if she can save a third of the total college school fees plus some extra money for transport, I will pay the rest. 

So if you want to help ms Munira fulfill her dreams of becoming a secretary, please please donate on the left hand side of this blog. 

She also informed me that it is her birthday tomorrow. She has decided to skip work on saturday, use some of her pay to buy lots of sweets and juice, and come celebrate with the ladies. Can't wait!!

Learning to take good photos

Our wedding photographer, Ben Kiruthi, started a project called the Imani Initiative  where he trains young photographers or photography enthusiasts in the basics of taking a good photo. When I first read about it, I immediately thought it would be a great idea for our youth not to mention that I really wanted to learn from this awesome photographer(seriously, he is one of the best in kenya. Don't even try book him, he's full). 

He agreed to come down this week and spend some sweet hours with a handful of our young people eager to learn something different. Some just wanted to be challenged, some are taking related courses in school, some wanted to learn to take good photos, and some really just wanted to come hang out with us. 

It was such an awesome couple of hours. I learned a TON about photography and was totally inspired by Ben using his gifts and talents God has granted him and totally thriving in life. 

Our youth were pretty impressed with all the celebs he takes photos of and the fact he makes more money than doctors. I hope they are starting to dream big now. 

During a break, he let them use his fancy camera to take a few shots and this is what they came up with:

 Caught me a little off guard. Or maybe this is how I normally look due to the intense heat and humidity.

 Playing with 'depth of field'. See how Irene is clear and Nicky is blurry?

 Oh, now Nicky is clear and Irene is blurry. Aren't they cute?

The whole group with Ben. 

Kelvin and I are using more of our awesome friends to mentor the young people we work with. Our friends are slowly falling in love with our youth and our youth are really begin to grow and develop into the people God has created them to be. We are so proud of them! Almost half my girls started college in the past few weeks! This is a dream many of them never thought could happen but it is happening and they are making it happen. We are so so proud!!

Thanks Ben for coming to hang out with us and share your knowledge!

Ants in my buns

I feel like I have SO much to tell you - you, out there, reading this, whoever you are. This last week and a half has been a flurry of random, overwhelming highs and lows on so many levels. That is how jumbled my mind is about all of it. Let me just tell you a few of the events of the past 10 or so days:

• Two of our phones broke, including the brand new one that Kelvin bought. I had to pull out our old iPhone that doesn't work unless its plugged in. It may sound nice to have an iPhone but its not. This is one screams difficulty. But its what we have until our two other phones get fixed. 
• I discovered one of my girls' sister tried to sell her off to an old man because she needed money. No wonder my girl ran away from home.
• Kelvin and I both have been having tummy issues. We have been taking medicine (including daily injections into our buttocks). The side effects of the medicine are worse than the discomfort we were feeling. We had our last injection today so hopefully tomorrow we will stop limping. Those things are painful! 
• My cat wouldn't let the vet take her stitches out today. The vet said that it is not normal behaviour for a cat to be THAT violent towards other people. He says we spend so much time with her that we are the only ones she trusts. In other words, I baby my cat. 
• Kelvin has challenged our boys to come up with an income generating project for the team. We sat with them today and listened to their brilliant idea to supply cheap satellite TV to people in Kongowea. They have really thought it out and done their homework. We were thoroughly impressed. We admitted that we couldn't have done that good of a job. They are brilliant - they just need the opportunity to use their brilliance. This project will hopefully provide for all the team's needs and more. That would mean that they could be self sustaining and not rely on donations. How awesome would that be? 
• Tomorrow, the photographer who shot our wedding is coming to do a session with a handful of our youth on the basics of photography. I personally can't wait to learn from such an awesome photographer. I hope my youth will show up on time.
• Police have increased in Mombasa these last few days. There is a group in Mombasa who believes that the coast should be a separate state from Kenya and they are causing raucous. They are threatening to disrupt students exams which are going on. So far, all is well just a whole lot more police  carrying around overbearing AK47s. 
• We got news yesterday that Kelvin's twin sisters returned home yesterday from boarding school. Apparently the grade 11 students burnt down the dormitories in protest of something. If the school doesn't find who did it, all the students have to pay 10,000KES ($120) to get back to school. Twins= 20,000KES. We are thankful that they weren't hurt. Unfortunately, in another school, some kids didn't make it out when their dormitories were burnt on monday morning. So sad.
• I have been baffled by the amount of lying that is ingrained in this culture and the people here. It seriously blows my mind how many people blatantly lie about everything and they think nothing of it. I will write a whole post on this soon. 
• Kelvin has been doing the dishes a lot lately. It's been nice. 
• Last night I made some yummy buns to go with our vegetable stew. I wrapped the leftovers in tin foil last night only to wake up and find that an army of ants somehow made their way under the tin foil and into my buns. That was the breaking point. Tears started flowing after that. Yes, I cried because ants took over my buns. 
• I then went and laid in bed to just relax. Meanwhile, Kelvin came and snuggled me. It was just what I needed. I adore him. 

And this is only the beginning of all our shenanigans but I will use some discretion and keep the rest to myself. I can't tell you enough how amazing my husband is. We have walked through all this stuff together and have come out stronger. I am in awe that God has grant me the amazing gift of my husband. 

Rehma Youth Scholarship Winners!

It's time for me to introduce to you the winners of our Rehma Youth Scholarships! We were suppose to only have 3 winners but our committee said they just couldn't pick only 3 but they wanted to choose 4. Here they are...

Nuru Juma

This young lady has a heart for people living with disabilities. Her huge heart literally oozes out love and compassion for these people. Every time I meet her, she never fails to tell me a story about some people she has just helped or some ideas she has for people with disabilities. Her mother is disabled and has overcome huge obstacles so Nuru wants to inspire people to do the same. We are currently praying and researching about the right program that she should go into in order to reach her goals. We are also thinking of starting some sign language classes with her! 

 Asha Ishmael

This girl is feisty! I wouldn't be surprised if she ends up as President one day. She loves to seek justice for all people. Her dream is to become a lawyer and work specifically with women's rights. She is the most vocal of all my ladies and is involved in every program in the community which seeks to better the lives of young people. Her parents both died of cancer a few years ago and she now lives with her aunt and sister. Pray for her as we search for the proper program for her to begin her studies in! 

 Felix Faithfulness

We will miss this young man as he has just left to attend a school on the other side of the country. However, we know that he will be getting a better education and more opportunity to play soccer. His family is the poorest of the poor and truly struggles to put food on the table. For some reason, everyone who knows Faithfulness has the utmost confidence that he will succeed! He has an incredible ability to inspire people around him. We are praying for the best for him in his new school!

Justus Maloba

This sweet young man comes from a family of seven. His parents are divorced and his mother is their sole provider. She makes a small living selling fruits and vegetables. Unfortunately, its not always enough. Justus has had to repeat several grades because there hasn't been enough money to pay the school fees. One thing about this boy is that he is not much of a complainer and tries to keep positive no matter what comes his way. He is a pleasure to have on the team and is a force to be reckoned with on the field. He dreams of being a lawyer and a business man. We are praying for him as he finishes his last  2 years of high school!

Noah isn't one of our winners but is a young man we sponsored to go to school last year. He finished his course and was trying really hard to find an internship. Yesterday he called Kelvin to ask if they could meet. When they met, Noah told him how that morning he had sat and prayed to God really honestly about getting an internship soon. I think it was a really heartfelt prayer. Well, he went to town the same day and went to another company. To his surprise, they hired him on the spot and told him to start now! Noah was just elated to tell us the news last night. I think he was more amazed at the way God really pulled through for him. Anyways, we are super excited for him. 

The team has been playing a lot in the last couple weeks. Here's a few shots from their games.

 Warm up - I am always amazed at how rhythmic even their warm up is! They seriously don't miss a beat. 

 A somewhat dysfunctional team shot. I love how our goalie is saving the ball...

 Our team captain, Lolo. He came straight from school to the game. When was the last time you dressed like this to attend your college classes?

Our faithful servant/coach/co-worker Nicky. I will have to do a better introduction of him in another post. Kelvin and I are so thankful to have him! 

Our boys are getting a little discouraged lately as they haven't won many games. They keep drawing (or tying as we say) and their morale is a bit low. Some have even stopped practicing this week. Kelvin says they are playing the best they have in the past 2 years but its still not enough to put some wins under their belt. We hope they can overcome these small hiccups.

Keep praying for our youth. Our numbers are a bit low right now and we are not sure why. Even many of my girls have missed meetings the last few weeks. It's hard because we can't force them to come but we know that they are missing some good opportunities with us. One of our biggest challenges is dealing with stubbornness, pride, lack of perseverance and commitment, and other social behaviours. It's not just a couple of them - many of them have these traits that are just ingrained in them. Pray with us as we try to reach them on their levels and shower them with a lot of love and hope. 

For Girls Only!

When Tuesday came, I was really nervous about this camp. I had this idea on my heart for almost 3 months, we had done a ton of planning for it, and we had done all the shopping for it. Of course, the devil loves to discourage, place doubt and fears in our hearts and minds, and take away our zeal when something good is going to happen. 

It took a lot to get me out of the house. We had been having these pretty intense riots in town. There were tons of rumours flying around about what was happening. At one point, the caretaker for our apartment told us to get inside, lock our doors, and don't go out because the angry mob of rioters were coming up the street. Shops were closing and traffic was turning around. So I went into my house, locked all my doors and waited. I waited 10, 20, 30 minutes and nothing happened. I decided to go see what was happening. I went out and everything was normal. It was just a bunch of rumours! 

I finally left. The streets were pretty dead but really calm. I made it to Kongowea safely. I thought I would be late but I was the first on there again confirming my fears that no one would show up. The first person didn't show up until 2:30 (it was suppose to start at 2).  By 3, we had a good number of girls and started. From that time on, it went smoothly and confirmation consumed my fears that what we were doing was right. 

Here are some pics of the 3 days of crazy fun. 

 We had a good mix of Christian and Muslim girls. It was encouraging as a lot of the violence that was going on had some serious religious undertones.

 Balloons always make for a fun time!

I loved this little girl! She was such a joy. Her name was Damaris and she became my little sidekick. What really surprised me was that she was SO well behaved - something that, sadly, not a lot of kids have in this community. 

Bread-eating and soda-drinking contest!

 My favourite game was Lenga Lenga. It's kind of like reverse dodgeball. Two girls stand on either end and try to huck a ball at girls in the middle. Once you are hit, you have to leave. The last one standing, wins. As you can see above, I was the last one standing! I realized how much I really love to play!

 Lots of girly shoes

I know, I know. This is suppose to be a bridal shower game but when we were planning to camp, this was one of the first games that was mentioned for us to play. Once the small girls caught on, the creative juices really started to flow and we got some pretty awesome designs. I realized half way through that most of these girls, the muslim ones, will never wear a traditional wedding dress. They have a very different attire when they get married. They obviously still knew how wedding dresses look.

 A craft I was planning fell through because the supplies I needed were in town and town was in complete chaos. So I summoned Kelvin to come run some games for us. He is great when it comes to this stuff. We laughed really hard! 

 We had the most dysfunctional game of  soccer I have ever seen. They were having a hard time scoring so one of my girls made every hand ball a penalty kick. Thats how they scored their goals and they were really excited about that. 

 After day 2, we were debriefing about the day when, somehow, we broke out into a full on balloon battle. It got pretty heated. My cheeks were sore from smiling so much. 

We did our version of a fashion show, dancing competition, and american idol. It was a huge hit. Look at this girl strut her stuff!

The winners were presented prizes! (This little girl was actually my flower girl!)

The 3 days were a blast. A crazy, messy, chaotic blast. I was so proud of my ladies who ran the program so well (in fact, I barely did anything). I was happy to be able to connect and build relationships with some of the younger girls in the community. My prayer was that they felt loved, accepted and cared for. I think they left feeling that way. 

Chanting Masai, Crying in the Coffin, and Spitting Brew on Foreheads

Here is how my bible study ended last week with my girls: 

Me "Ok, what should I pray for today?"

Girl "My father"

Me "But your father died a month ago?"

Girl "Yes, pray for him"

Me "But he is gone, I can't pray for him"

Girl "Yes, you must pray his soul will rest in peace. He is still not at peace"

Me "Well once he died, he went somewhere immediately. It depends where he was with Jesus. That determines whether he is at peace or not."

Girl "He was crying in his coffin!"

Me "What!? Thats not possible"

Girl "Yes, he had tears down his face"

Me " OK, well I don't understand that. I know your culture has some spiritual things that are around that i don't fully understand but I do know that he is gone so I am not praying for him."

Girl "No, we dont know which heaven he is in so we have to pray"

Me "What do you mean which heaven? There is only one"

Girl "No, there are three levels of heaven"

Me "Ok, I am going to pray that we understand." 

I left there and talked to Kelvin about it on our way home. He understood where they were coming from as he is from the same tribe and understands all their traditional beliefs. Then I asked about the crying in the coffin and he laughed. He said it is simple science: if a body stays in a freezer for a while and then is taken out, it melts. Ha! I never even thought about that. Then another friend told me that most people don't embalm the dead because it is so expensive. I began to understand but it just showed me how we have a long way to go with these girls to start thinking and believing God's truths instead of what they hear out there. 

This wasn't the only crazy cultural thing I have encountered this week. 

Lately, we have been having this group of Masais gather just below our window in the evenings. Just before they head out to work (they are typically night guards) they come together to do their traditional chanting, head bobbing, and jumping. It's pretty cool. A lot of tourists pay money to watch them do their thing but we are privileged to watch it right outside our window. 

However, it's getting a little annoying. Last night a friend dropped by quickly and their chanting was so loud we couldn't hear each other talking. Plus, they tend to congregate outside in the early mornings as well and light a fire to cook a big pot of uji. I woke up at 5am this morning to the sounds of them howling and the smell of campfire lingering in our window.

Here they are this morning. One was cutting a tire probably making a shoe. The two pots looked like they were boiling blood which wouldn't be surprising since they are known for drinking animal blood. However, I think it is this medicinal concoction that they walk around with in jerry cans and sell to sick people. Kelvin has had it several times but I wouldn't try it if I was on my death bed. 

Finally, we are in wedding season. Kelvin and I have been busy busy busy doing all things wedding. We are actually heading out in about an hour for a wedding upcountry! We are on the 'wedding committee' for another wedding. It has been quite the learning experience for me. I am the official treasurer which means I collect all the money (which is fundraised) and I disperse it where it is suppose to go. On top of that, Kelvin and I are both apart of the planning, decision making, and organizing of the wedding. 

What has shocked me the most was how incredibly difficult the bride's family is. Kelvin told me it's normal for most girls. The bride's family is VERY demanding. There are so many different ceremonies, gifts, home visits, and conversations that have to happen before the wedding. So this week, being the week before the wedding, the groom must take the sanduku to the bride's home. This is a box which has the wedding gown, some clothes, shoes, make up, and other things. He must come to the house with some money and some friends or else he will not be allowed in. The bride's brothers and male family members will be at the door to hassle him. Once they satisfy the family, he drops the sanduku and leaves. 

Two days after that ceremony, he has to go to the kuhaswa. This also happens in the village very late at night. The groom goes to the brides home where he is welcomed by the family. He has to identify his wife to be who is covered by lessos along with other women who are covered. THe only thing he can see is the eyes. Once he choses the right girl, they sit and receive counsel from the women in the community. 

Sounds nice right? But get this: while the ladies are giving counsel, they take the local brew, called mnazi, swoosh it around in their mouths and then spit it on their foreheads! They are not allowed to wipe it off either! Ca-razy! Once this is finished, the groom is officially welcomed into the community. I like that part. 

Culture is cool. God is so creative in the ways he created all these different cultures with these traditions that have deep meanings. Unfortunately, we have distorted some of these traditions to be about money or greed or pride. For instance, I don't believe all the Masais are actually Masai. I think some are from other tribes but pretend to be Masai to make money from tourists. It's common in Mombasa. 

I got a little dose of Canadian culture today in the supermarket. I found whoppers and twizzlers there for first time! Plus, they had Bob the builder flushable wet wipes on sale. Ah, Canadian culture. 

What happens when the girls take over my camera

I learned my lesson. I can never expect my girls to take decent photos. We went bowling yesterday as a fun treat. I handed over my camera (since these girlies love love love taking photos) thinking that I could get some decent shots. In the past, some of my greatest pics have been when I gave the camera to someone else (like small kids). However, this was not so. I had turned off the flash so most pictures turned out incredibly blurry. As Kelvin was sifting through them this morning, he actually asked if something was wrong with my camera! Funny enough, while the girls were taking photos, they didn't seem to mind that they were blurry. They thought they looked pretty awesome - blurry and all. 

Here are the best of the bunch. We had a blast! Most of them had never been before so it was a new experience. They were pretty hesitant at first but managed to get the hang out it pretty fast.

Most of the girls actually got better scores than me. I believe it is because the gutters were up and their strategies involved hucking the ball so it purposely knocks against the raised gutters and bounces nicely into the middle making a strike. Whereas I am trained to try get it down the middle and not try hit the gutters. They beat me...

 Kayla came down from Nairobi for the day and got to come with us. 

 One thing I love is when the Muslim girls take off their buibuis. They wear them mostly outside and in public but when inside, they take them off. I love seeing their own personal fashion come out. Aren't they cute!

I got a text from Irene in the morning asking if she could wear shorts since bowling is a sport and all. I giggled and told her to wear whatever she was comfortable in. She made bowling look sporty.

My bowling style - all blurred up. 

It was an awesome time!! I just adore these young women. If you would like to support them and our activities, please click the link on the left and donate online. 

It's Canada day today! Happy Canada day to all my lovely canadians! Every year that I spend in Kenya, I am more and more grateful for my Canadian citizenship. I only remembered in the middle of church that it was Canada day and then tried to figure out how I can celebrate. My first thought was food - what food could I make that is distinctly Canadian? The only thing I could think of was pancakes with maple syrup. Since it was an after thought, I didn't really want to put the effort into making it plus I know that Kelvin wouldn't get full on pancakes. So we are celebrating Canada with some good ol' Kenyan ugali and sukuma while watching the finals of the Euro cup. How canadian of us, EH? 

The Best Expression of Love is TIME

.... And the best use of life is LOVE.


I want to LOVE and love HARD. That's my heart's desire. I truly believe the best way to use my life is to LOVE; to love GOD and to love OTHERS.

I just read Day 16 in The Purpose Driven life and it spoke exactly into my life today.

I realized a few days ago that meeting with the girls on Saturdays just isn't enough. Some of them really want to connect during the week. I opened our little centre on Wednesday and was pretty amazed at how many people just dropped in to see me once they realized I was inside. I had a group of young girls from the local primary school walk by and ask if I would play some games with them. I had some other young women ask how my day was. I had a couple girls show up early for our weekly bible study. Then I had one of my young ladies come just wanting to chat. Since it was late, we didn't have a ton of time but, by the way she sounded, I knew we needed to meet again this week just to chat.

So today I went to Kongowea early with Kelvin. It was pretty boring. Kelvin and I bickered over who plays sudoku better and then went on to a mean game of UNO. I was just about to give up and go home when my lady walked in.

I opened our centre next door and got right to asking her what is going on. Well, two hours later we were still chatting. I listened mostly actually. I listened to the crazy things that have happened to her this week. I listened to her as she explained to me how hurt she was when both her parents passed away. I listened as talked about the things she is learning about God (Allah, to her). I listened to her as she tried to explain to me how to make samosas. I did very little talking which, if you ask my husband, is abnormal for me. As we closed up and we went our separate ways, she said, "Thanks Nikole. At least I feel more relaxed now."

I got home and opened my book and read all about LOVE and how the BEST expression of love is giving up some of my time - time that I could be making more money for myself or indulging in self pleasures - and focusing my attention on someone else, forgetting for a little while about myself, my needs, my problems, my wants, my desires, me.

Like I said above, I was about to give up and go home. I thought I would rather be sitting at home on my computer than wasting time in Kongowea. But I waited until she showed up and I am so glad I did.

I really LOVE my girls. I so do. I need to give them more of my time.

Just want to tell you a funny story.

The other week, our topic with the girls was dating. It had come up in one of our conversations a few weeks back and I thought we should explore it better. I asked the girls, "What does dating look like in your community? As in, what are some things you and your boyfriend do?"

One girl piped up, "We exchanged phones."

A little confused, I correct her, "You exchange phone numbers?" thinking she had a problem with english.

"No, we trade phones. I give him my phone and he gives me his."

I started to giggle. "Ok, so why do you do that?"

"You know, so we can admire each others photos and songs on the phones."

I guess its a big thing here like going out for dinner and a movie with your boyfriend back home. Well, that's how my girls do it!!!

My favourite night of the week

Wednesday evenings are my fav.

I started a small bible study with a handful of the girls in my saturday ladies group who were keen on learning more about the bible. I started my first week with only three girls. Now, we are in the fourth week and I have 7 girls. Yipee!!

I love it.

First of all, I love studying my bible. So many treasures in there. Greatest book ever!

Secondly, I love seeing my girls so interested in Jesus. They are so hungry to understand and know God. They have grown up in a society of pretty radical bible teachings (and teachers). Most of them don't even own their own bibles so they just soak up every word every preacher tells them without actually checking if it is true. Hence why they have the craziest ideas about God.

We have started really simple. We are learning the basics right now. But its been so wonderful watching it click for them. I can see it on their faces when the bible verse makes sense to them or one of their personal questions has been answered.

And trust me, they have A LOT of questions. Crazy questions that make me so angry at the people who are teaching them the craziest things.

One of them will ask a question like, "Is it true that God's spirits are more alert and awake to hear your prayers in the morning?" Then, before I get a chance to talk, they will all chip in their two cents. With this particular question, they all agreed that Yes, God will listen to us more closely in the morning. After they debated it amongst themselves, I stepped in and pointed them to scripture. I don't have to say much before it clicks and their answer is clear. I love that!!!

So I must go get myself ready to meet my precious ladies this evening. Our topic today is forgiveness.

Girly Fun

Our girls group is still going strong. We have had a few come and go. Some have gotten jobs or gone to school. Some have moved or been told they can't come till the holidays so they can focus on school. It's been a bit challenging cause I never know who or how many are going to show up. I try plan for games but sometimes we don't have enough people or it just isn't as fun with so few people. I plan things with specific people in mind but then they choose not to show up that day. Nevertheless, we are still havin' fun and being girls. 

I introduced them to the famous bridal shower game of making a wedding dress out of tissue paper. They thought I was nuts at first but they ended up totally enjoying it. They were also much more creative than I thought they would be. 

 Pheobe was a good model. Her team decided to put a 'tiara' on her which ended up looking more like a flight attendant hat. It didn't go over so well with the judges. 

And they had a little troubles with the train. 

 Irene and Susan did a good job. Irene ended up winning with their creative earrings and knot design. 

Then I brought out the balloons....who knew ballon could be so much fun! I came up with a whole bunch of games to do with balloons. This was one of the best.

 They girls had to keep the balloon in between their bodies and race. The trick was that they couldn't touch the balloons. 

These girls ended up winning. They were speedy! 

Like always, we laughed at the sheer absurdity of our games. Embarrassingly, I usually come up with these games that I am terrible at! I usually stand to the side for the first few rounds to be the judge or ref but then i join in. Once I join in, I totally ruin things or lose so quickly. 

Anyways just to show you that we are still having fun. I am planning a fun outing for them in the next couple weeks. I am thinking bowling...or beach picnic...or a local play. Something fun for these precious girls.