Sleep, mud, chai, car-sick Kenyans, peace, and family.

That pretty much sums up our vacation.

Sleep- We crashed. Upon arriving in Ilula, we passed right out. Each day we had naps in the morning and afternoon. We had the best night sleeps in the cold, quiet environment. Once we got to Nairobi, we spent the mornings just hanging out in bed sleeping, reading, and having breakfast in bed. Our bodies obviously needed all the rest. 


Mud- The rains have definitely hit Kenya (except Mombasa for some reason). The whole country seems to be flooding. Most of our trip was spent in the village where there is no paved roads, just dirt. And what happens when dirt and water mix? MUD and lots of it. We were covered in it. We had to take motorcycles to the village where Kelvin's mom lives. It was raining which caused our motorcycles to slide back and forth like a car on ice in the winter. I enjoyed the rain thoroughly but could have lived without the mud. The rain was so harsh that it caused huge flooding all across the country (people have died because of it). The night before we left Nairobi for home, a bridge had flooded so no cars could pass making all the buses to be late. Because of it we got nice fancy bus for the ride home since ours hadn't arrived. However, on our way out we hit major traffic as the road had flooded. The water was at least 2-3 feet deep. Thankfully, our bus was high enough to drive right through it. 


Chai- We probably drank 50 cups of chai each in the 10 days we were gone. With the cold weather, it was the perfect thing to warm us up while we visited with our loved ones. We ate some pretty wonderful food along the way too. I devoured every piece of chicken that came my way. 


Car-sick Kenyans- We took a lot of buses. We covered a lot of miles. And I have never seen so many people get car-sick. I can't stand the sound of people vomiting so it was uncomfortable for me. I felt like walking around the bus and handing everyone some of my gravol. We realized that it was mostly people from the village who were getting sick. We also realized that these people would eat huge meals while travelling. Not smart people, not smart. 


Peace- I think our theme for this trip was 'peace'. Before leaving, I started praying to become a woman of peace. Like deep, soul peace in all circumstances. That is what I have been craving the last few months. I am slowly learning how to step into the peace God has made available to me. During our time in Ilula, I had a man say to me, "I just feel an incredible sense of peace about you." I thought that was pretty powerful considering we had only met a couple days before. Kelvin also shared with me during the end of the trip that he is feeling more at peace now as well and that was something God was showing him during this trip. God has been good to us. 


Family- We were so warmly welcomed in Ilula,  Kelvin especially. The people there have been my family in Kenya for the past 6 and a half years and now they have opened their arms to Kelvin as well. They made it very clear that he was indeed their 'son'. The children adored him and adopted him as their new big brother. Then once we got to Kelvin's mom's place, we were privileged to spend some sweet time with his twin sisters who were on holiday from school. Then his other sister and niece showed up which made for a house full of girls. I am pretty blessed to have so many sisters.  


It was a wonderful trip. We are now back in Mombasa feeling refreshed and rejuvenated, ready to continue to do what God has asked us to. We are making some changes in our schedules to focus on what we believe is important. Our boys seem to be in some sort of crisis right now. We just released the coach as we think he was a big part of the problem. And they are at each other's throats like little girls so we have some major damage control to attend to. We are having a big meeting on Monday with all of them to sort it out. It's hurts when your 'kids' aren't happy.  Such is life.

Unfortunately, I forgot my camera at home and was unable to capture the many awesome moments of this trip.

Thanking Jesus for how good He is to us!

Sleep, mud, chai, car-sick Kenyans, peace, and family.

That pretty much sums up our vacation.

Sleep- We crashed. Upon arriving in Ilula, we passed right out. Each day we had naps in the morning and afternoon. We had the best night sleeps in the cold, quiet environment. Once we got to Nairobi, we spent the mornings just hanging out in bed sleeping, reading, and having breakfast in bed. Our bodies obviously needed all the rest. 


Mud- The rains have definitely hit Kenya (except Mombasa for some reason). The whole country seems to be flooding. Most of our trip was spent in the village where there is no paved roads, just dirt. And what happens when dirt and water mix? MUD and lots of it. We were covered in it. We had to take motorcycles to the village where Kelvin's mom lives. It was raining which caused our motorcycles to slide back and forth like a car on ice in the winter. I enjoyed the rain thoroughly but could have lived without the mud. The rain was so harsh that it caused huge flooding all across the country (people have died because of it). The night before we left Nairobi for home, a bridge had flooded so no cars could pass making all the buses to be late. Because of it we got nice fancy bus for the ride home since ours hadn't arrived. However, on our way out we hit major traffic as the road had flooded. The water was at least 2-3 feet deep. Thankfully, our bus was high enough to drive right through it. 


Chai- We probably drank 50 cups of chai each in the 10 days we were gone. With the cold weather, it was the perfect thing to warm us up while we visited with our loved ones. We ate some pretty wonderful food along the way too. I devoured every piece of chicken that came my way. 


Car-sick Kenyans- We took a lot of buses. We covered a lot of miles. And I have never seen so many people get car-sick. I can't stand the sound of people vomiting so it was uncomfortable for me. I felt like walking around the bus and handing everyone some of my gravol. We realized that it was mostly people from the village who were getting sick. We also realized that these people would eat huge meals while travelling. Not smart people, not smart. 


Peace- I think our theme for this trip was 'peace'. Before leaving, I started praying to become a woman of peace. Like deep, soul peace in all circumstances. That is what I have been craving the last few months. I am slowly learning how to step into the peace God has made available to me. During our time in Ilula, I had a man say to me, "I just feel an incredible sense of peace about you." I thought that was pretty powerful considering we had only met a couple days before. Kelvin also shared with me during the end of the trip that he is feeling more at peace now as well and that was something God was showing him during this trip. God has been good to us. 


Family- We were so warmly welcomed in Ilula,  Kelvin especially. The people there have been my family in Kenya for the past 6 and a half years and now they have opened their arms to Kelvin as well. They made it very clear that he was indeed their 'son'. The children adored him and adopted him as their new big brother. Then once we got to Kelvin's mom's place, we were privileged to spend some sweet time with his twin sisters who were on holiday from school. Then his other sister and niece showed up which made for a house full of girls. I am pretty blessed to have so many sisters.  


It was a wonderful trip. We are now back in Mombasa feeling refreshed and rejuvenated, ready to continue to do what God has asked us to. We are making some changes in our schedules to focus on what we believe is important. Our boys seem to be in some sort of crisis right now. We just released the coach as we think he was a big part of the problem. And they are at each other's throats like little girls so we have some major damage control to attend to. We are having a big meeting on Monday with all of them to sort it out. It's hurts when your 'kids' aren't happy.  Such is life.

Unfortunately, I forgot my camera at home and was unable to capture the many awesome moments of this trip.

Thanking Jesus for how good He is to us!

Jumpin' up and down and flailin' all around

I skipped church this morning.

Forgive me.

I chose to stay home and prepare the house before we travel tomorrow. I forgot how much you have to do just so you can leave and come back to a clean, sane, in order house. I admire my mother as I now realize all she had to do to get us ready to leave. I get her now. That's happening more these days: getting my mother.

I chose to stay home from church to clean (gasp! my parents are probably so confused. What happened to their lazy, princess daughter who never liked to clean anything?). I guess that shows you just about how excited I am about church these days.

Recently, I have been coming home from church more drained, tired and cranky than I should be. I think its a combination of the heat, the dreadful metal roof we sit under, and the 3+ hours of church we 'do'. It's not been my favourite day of the week.

So I played hookie today. And I am so glad I did.

The hubby went though. Thats was ok. The minute he stepped out the door, I turned to my iTunes. The first song I played was "I am a friend of God." Within seconds I could feel my spirit lifting. I felt so light. I started moving my hips, then bouncing a little, then, just as the chorus hit, I broke out into full jumping and flailing my arms in the air. It. felt. so. good.

Do you ever have those moments? I thank my mother, again, who always created an atmosphere of spontaneous dance sessions in our house. I didn't want to stop today. I just couldn't wipe the smile off my face, I couldn't stop jumping (even though everything in my body was telling my to), and I felt so FULL. It's that in moment where God reminded me of how awesome He is, He touched me with his Spirit, He came close and reminded me that I, indeed, am His friend.

I needed that.

We are SO ready to get out of this city tomorrow. I am actually looking forward to the 15 hour bus ride ahead of us just cause I want to get away. Kelvin and I crashed yesterday - tired and weary of everything. We need this break.

We are heading to my favourite place on earth:Ilula! I am going to introduce my husband to all the kids. Today, I found a note one of them wrote me last time I was there which read, "You are now growing up & getting married. I hope you will come visit when you are two." I am coming my sweet kids!! We will have a small wedding celebration with them with cake and rejoicing. I just printed off some photos and put them in an album for them to all see. I just can't wait for all the hugs!!!

After that we will head to Kisumu for 2 days just to hang out together. We are going to ride on the back of bicycles and eat fresh tilapia beside Lake Victoria.

Then we will go to Kelvin's mom's place for a few days. Kelvin has told me he wants to dig a borehole when there.....um....fun? I might just watch. It will be a nice couple days of village life, eating fresh food, connecting with family, and fireflies!!!

Seeing how our pockets are holding up, we will decided what to do after that. We might hit Nairobi for a couple days or maybe explore some other little town in Kenya. We don't know. But that's the fun of it all.

I won't be blogging for the next couple weeks. Hopefully you will get a more 'refreshed' Nikole when I return.

A ladies day out

The girls had been asking me for a while, "When are we going swimming?" I think they are just desperate to get out of Kongowea. They probably don't get out a lot. I figured that it was about time I treated them to a day out. 

We went to a local resort and had an absolute blast. We laughed watching each other attempting to swim. We played games. We chatted. We relaxed. We talked. We did girl stuff. 

They all stuck to the wall. They aren't the best of swimmers but ventured into the deep end by holding on to the wall.

Tina had a bit of a scary incident when she got herself a little too deep and couldn't get her head above water. I had to go get her. She was fine. We all laughed. 

We arranged for a conference room and hung out there for a few hours in the afternoon. Go figure that the ONE day that it decides to get rainy and blustery, we go to the pool. I had been praying for rain and some cool weather but not on the day where we were going swimming. It was so nice to have a 'warm' room to hang out in while it poured outside. Rahab came to join us for the day and made us play some silly games. 

 I didn't just want this day to be about fun. I wanted the girls to also learn a bit. I brought in my dear friend Maria to come and talk to the girls. I have been really encouraging the girls to discover their gifts, talents, strengths, and the things they love doing. I want them to be able to use the things that they love to do most and that they are best to make a living for themselves. I find that so many people in Kenya find jobs just for the money yet are so unsatisfied with their lives. I want these ladies to LOVE what they do. And they are at the point in their lives where they can choose what they want to do in life. SO Maria really encouraged them in this direction more. Maria just quit her job as a high end marketing director for a local company that produces palm oil products. She quit her job because it was draining her. Although she was making good money and she was good at what she was doing, she was so unfulfilled. She has decided to pursue  her passion in graphic design and is in the beginning stages of starting her own company. I wanted her to be an inspiration to the girls to follow their passions when it comes to career. Not just go where the money is. 

Maria made every girl come up, write their names vertically, and then write an adjective describing themselves beside each letter of their names. It was a great exercise for the ladies to discover themselves and then to be proud of who they are!

This was by-far my favourite one. Especially the first two. The great part is that it pretty much describes this girl to the tee. Hilarious. 

 At the end of the day we headed to  beach for a stroll. It was easter so the beach was buzzing with activity. 

I came home smiling after a great day with these sweet girls. 

The first meeting

I remember seeing a dark shadow walking down the dark hallway. My first thought was that he was short and walked with a kink. Rahab (my beloved friend) had just introduced herself to me and welcomed me to Word of Life. Cheery and welcoming as she always is, she offered to take me around and introduce me to people. She was closing the kitchen door when the dark shadow appeared into the light.

"This is Kevin. Or o-pie-o!" she introduced (yes, Rahab was actually the one who introduced us). They all laughed. I didn't get it.

We all sat on some rocks right near the kitchen and told stories. They made the effort to speak in english but I still didn't say much. They replayed the funny parts on their favourite tv show and burst into laughter. I didn't think it was funny. I remember wondering why Kelvin was laughing so much...it wasn't funny. I didn't think much of him. Nice to meet him. That's it.

A half hour later he invited me to watch the tv show they were all talking about. He practically peed himself in the corner while I still struggled to understand why it was funny. It was nice he was making the effort to make me feel welcome.

I forget the rest of the night but it was the start of the most confusing yet wonderful 3 weeks of my life.

I was going through a confusing time in my life and just wanted to hear from God. I just wanted to reconnect with Him. I was so hungry for some direction from my heavenly Father. But over the next week, I developed the strangest attraction to Kevin or Calvin (took me a while to figure out it was Kelvin). I prayed, repented, and begged God to get my focus away from him. I felt like I was in eight grade again and got butterflies every time my crush passed by my locker.

A week and a half later, we found ourselves in the office chatting after a long day of camp. By the morning, we had literally decided to get married.

Yes, we decided to. We had feelings for each other but it was more of an intellectual decision.

When I look back, it was truly crazy. But I am so thankful for that conversation. Because honestly, I think I would have let Kelvin slip away if I hadn't made a crazy commitment of marriage to a man I barely knew.

I had doubts. We both did. But we both drew near to God and He kept urging us to have faith in the way He directs our steps.

That was 3 years ago this week. March 31st was the day we met. April 7th was the day he took me for an innocent scoop of ice cream. April 10th was the day we decided we would get married.

I remember being so uncertain.

But am I ever glad I had an ounce of faith in me. Cause just look at us now.

Visions and Goals

A couple Saturdays ago, my topic with the girls was "Visions and Goals". As I have talked with Kenyans, I have learned that while they were growing up, they weren't encouraged to think about their futures or to make any goals for their lives. A friend of mine told me, "From the age of seven, my mom was teaching me to be a wife. That was it. We were never told to think of anything else for our lives." I started to wonder if this was the same for my own girls.

I had a little discussion with them about what it means to have a vision for your life, to set goals, and then to plan the steps in how you can achieve your goals. I had made a little sheet that I asked them to fill out and then bring back to me the next week. On the sheet, they were to write 3 goals they want to accomplish by the end of the year and how they plan to meet those goals. They were to write 3 goals for their life time and how to accomplish them. They wrote of the various things that would hinder them from achieving these goals and then they wrote a general vision they had for their lives.

I got back the sheets this week and finally read them today. I was smiling ear to ear hearing the hearts of these sweet sweet girls. I sat and prayerfully looked through them asking that God would help them to accomplish all their dreams. I know their are some that I can help. For instance, one girl wants to write and produce a song by the end of this year. I just happen to have a really good friend who is a famous gospel artist and just finished recording her album. I am going to see if I could hook them up.

So here were some of their goals:
- to write a song
- to be a good mother
- to be God-fear
- to help my parents
- to achieve (certain) grades in school this year
- to finish computer classes
- to have good morals
- to help the orphans and the needy in the community
- to obey my elders
- to be an accountant/secretary/business lady/journalist
- to preach peace all over the world
- to start a netball association
- to unite our family
- to fight poverty amongst their beloved community
- to have my own tv show
- to remain faithful in terms of a relationship (not fooling around with boys)
- to care for the environment (this is so un-kenyan)

Quite a few of them put "having fun" as one of their goals. I think that is such a great goal! Then they talked about the ways they were going to make sure they have fun ie. go to the beach, hang out with friends, play games,etc. Go have fun girls! 

I was surprised how selfless many of their goals were. Most of them wanted to help their families. Many of them wanted to help out their community (especially orphans - we have a couple girls who are actually orphans). All of them want to walk with God. Alot of them wanted to preach peace in the world. Their hearts are beautiful!!

The biggest challenge for them is finances. That is no surprise.

At the bottom of the page, I wrote in quotes:

"*Remember: God has a purpose for all our lives. He created you to do great things. If He puts a goal or vision on your heart, He also provides a way to accomplish it. Nothing is impossible without Him but you must have faith"


Sometimes I just think of all the goals or visions God has put on my heart over the years and of how they have come true. I mean the Rehma Ladies was a vision I had and look at us now! Our God is so amazing.

Pray for these ladies. I really want to help all of them but in my own capacity, I can't. I am trying to think of ways that we, as a group, can make some money. I have a few ideas so far but will let you know when they transpire. 

Tumechoka

Tumechoka. We. are. tired. 

Just after taking this photo, Kelvin says to me, 

"Baby, you need to wipe all the sweat off your head. Your face is shiny." 

People, we are tired. Really tired. 

What do I mean by that? We are tired of just life. Kelvin and I both feel exhausted with everything - work, the boys, the ladies, the HEAT, mombasa, our church, the food, finances, and well, everything. 

This morning, Kelvin woke up with a sore throat and a stuffed nose. The fan is giving him so many troubles at night. The tough part is that the fan is so necessary. I woke up the second the power went out last night and immediately started sweating. In the mornings, I find that I wake up more tired and dehydrated than before I went to bed. Yes, the heat has been horrible. I mean horrible. (Canadians, don't even begin to complain about the snow and rain. At least you have the option of a warm house. We don't have cool air. Ever.)

Yesterday, I had a rough morning before heading to church (I believe it was the devil scheming). I was in tears as I was sweating, trying to muster up any energy, battling a heat headache, not able to find the right clothes to wear, struggling with my bra (yes, my bra), and general weariness. I am so glad I pushed through and went to church. Church was SO refreshing for both Kelvin and I. We really needed it. On the way home though, I was drained. I was so hot, still had my headache, tired, emotional, and tired. I got home and passed out on the couch. We didn't eat lunch till 4. 

We love our work, but we are a little tired of it. We love our house, but we are tired. Mombasa is great, but I am tired of it. I remember other missionaries telling me that after every 3 months, they start to get weary and tired and must get a away even if it is only for a couple days. That is where we are at. 

Every morning, as we are eating breakfast, we do a lent devotional which is preparing our hearts for Easter. As we are walking along with Jesus, as he walks in his final hours, we are amazed at His strength. Particularly, his weakest moment in Gethsemane has really struck us. The moment where He feels He can go on no longer and asks for this cup to be removed from Him. At that moment, He must have mustered up some supernatural strength from His Father above to say, "Yet not my will be done, but yours." He knows what is going to happen. He knows the cup won't be taken away from Him. But He draws strength from The Father to do what He is suppose to. 

Kelvin and I are tired. But in our weak moments, we have decided to draw our strength from God trusting that He will indeed grant us the rest we need and renew our energy. 

The way He places people in our lives...

Today I am thankful for the many people in my life and the way they bless me.

When I think about these people and how they came into my life and the relationships we have, I am amazed at the way God orchestrates our life.

Currently, two of my friends are donating to our youth as their 'party favours' for their wedding. These two ladies (and their future husbands) are sweet sweet friends to me and am so thankful that they have me in their minds as they plan their weddings. One of them entered my life in Gr.2 when I became best friends with her sister. The second one went to church with me, played basketball in some of the same camps as me, and is the cousin of one of my best friends. A darling girl who I adore.

On Wednesday, Kelvin and I are skyping a youth group that is considering sponsoring us. Two years ago, a friend from my church in Vancouver came to Kenya on a missions try. She took time to visit me in Mombasa and brought along some of her friends. One of these friends came back to Kenya last summer and came to see us. Now, he has been getting his youth group at home hooked on missions and is asking the leadership to sponsor us. Um, only God can orchestrate something like.

Finally, I had the most delightful evening with my two neighbours. Kelvin was the one who decided that we would move to this area. I didn't want to at the time. I didn't really know this area very well. The more I stay here, the more I am thankful for Kelvin's wisdom. Over the last year, I have made two good friends. These two ladies actually go to the same church as me but, because we live in the same neighbourhood, we get together often. We all stay at home (or work from home) so we are available at the same time. We all love eating sweet things and talking. We all like swimming, which is what we did this evening.

A friend of ours is in the management of a local hotel (another way God orchestrates our relationships) and he is gracious enough to let us swim (for free) for a few hours in the evening. I can't tell you how refreshing it is in this heat!!! So this evening, Eddah (neighbour #1) and I swam until Ndeal (neighbour #2) showed up with a photographer who was doing a photo shoot for her. Eddah and I  giggled and laughed as we held lighting props. The photographer shot a couple of us too. Some music in the hotel made for a good time showing off our various dance moves. The evening ended with the 3 of us sitting with the photographer and praying for the different needs in our lives. It was a great evening!

SO tonight, I am going to bed thankful for the way God moves people into my life.

End Month

I have been fortunate enough in my 24 years of life to have never lived 'pay check to pay check'. I am a minimalist. Seriously, I don't buy anything I don't need. I have many of the same clothes that I wore in high school. My house is plain as decoration is not important to me. However, the one thing I will spend money on is food. That is something I am trying to get under control.

Most people around here live barely making it through the month. That's why 'end month' is such a popular day. Tomorrow I guarantee that the supermarkets will be packed, restaurants will be buzzing, and traffic will be insane. Everyone is trying to enjoy the money they have just received. I find that a lot of people don't get the concept of saving or making sure your money doesn't run out for the rest of the month. They live large the first couple days and then starve near the end of the month. We actually have a landlord that came to us because he couldn't manage his money properly and wanted us to regulate how much he spends. He is a drunkard and when he gets large amounts of money at one time, he spends it all on alcohol. So we collect all his rent and then give it to him in small portions during the month. Yes, we do more than just manage money - we manage lives apparently.

Today I think is the first time I am ever feeling this 'end month'. Our income will be coming in in the next couple days which will be nice. I thought we would be ok until then but, of course, something has to go wrong.

Two days ago, I discovered that our electric kettle had burnt out. It was making funny noises and I thought it just needed to be cleaned (because our water is salty, it gets some film on it that needs to be cleaned regularly). After I cleaned it, I realized that coil inside had actually burst. It's no good anymore. The worst part is that it does have a warranty on it but we were suppose to register for the warranty when we bought it (which we were unaware of) so we cannot go get it fixed. I have to buy a new one soon. It is probably the most used appliance in my house since I boil all my drinking water.

Then the credit on my internet is about to run out. Gotta top up so I can use the internet again.

And then this morning, as I was boiling drinking water on the stove since the kettle is kaput, our gas tank ran out. I can't do any cooking without the gas. Now I must go unhook the tank, lug it up the road, and exchange it for a new one. Kelvin tells me my caretaker will help me with this. Thank you caretaker!

So my top priority is the stove because we must eat. I think I will do without the kettle for a few days and just limit my time on the internet until we can get our next 'pay check'.

On the bright side, the electricity is here for now. Praying that it will stay the whole day today. That would be nice.

Power Outage Ranting

Power outages are the norm here. I don't understand why they are so frequent and unexpected but they are. Sometimes they go out for brief periods and sometimes they go out all day. If the power was to go out for a whole day at home, you bet that we would have plenty of notice to arrange and prepare ourselves. At times Kenya Power publishes it in the newspaper that they will have power rationing or outages in certain areas on certain days but I find even those reports to be unreliable. They will tell you that 'Bamburi' will be out of power on this day at this time. Bamburi is a big place and it is not all on one power line so its unlikely that ALL of Bamburi will have a power outage. In our old apartments, sometimes your power would be out but the people above you would have power. It's frustrating.

I have become used to it but today, I am really struggling with it.

It went out at 9 this morning and I had a bad feeling that it was going to be out all day. Sure enough, 3 and a half LONG hours later and it is still out. Meanwhile my fridge is melting and everything in my freezer is de-thawing. I have used the little bit of battery I have left on my computer to charge my kindle and write this blog. But can I tell you the worst part of it!? It's ridiculously hot...


It's uncomfortably hot. I was laying on the couch sweating profusely. Don't think about having a shower or wetting your hair, it only makes you hotter in this humidity. Now I am craving some cold water but my fridge is only giving me warm water. I have a headache from the heat. I don't feel like moving or doing anything. I am bored. I don't even want to snuggle with my cat since i know she will just heat me up with her fur.

So I am getting out. I am heading down to the nearest cafe that is air conditioned and has a generator (just in case their power goes out) to sit, have a cool drink, and read. I am actually wearing shorts and a tank top too.

Thanks Kenya Power and Mombasa heat.

My first time on a wedding committee

A few days ago, I got a text message from a good friend of ours requesting that we come to his wedding committee meeting on Sunday afternoon. I have never been on a wedding committee nor did I really understand what it entailed. Kelvin and I didn't have a committee; we did all the planning and arrangements ourselves and had a few friends really help out.

I thought that we were like a select few people that were to come together and do all the planning, arranging, and fundraising for the wedding. I really got excited. Secretly, I want to be a wedding planner  in Kenya. Yes, that is my secret desire.

However, it wasn't at all what I expected.

First of all, they had asked 100 people to be on the committee. Yes, 100. And they counted Kelvin and I (together) as only 1 of the 100.

Second, they had pretty much planned every detail already and had a pretty thorough budget laid out.

Third, as a part of the committee, you are expected to give towards the wedding fund. When you agree to be a member, you agree to giving a set amount that every member is to pay. I knew that we were going to be asked to give and I actually already had a figure in mind that I wanted to give, but I didn't know that it would be required that we give a set amount.

So really, they just brought us together to pray, sing, and talk about giving. We 'discussed' the budget but the budget was already pretty much set so there wasn't really much to comment on. The committee has a chairman, treasurer and secretary. They handed us all out minutes from last meeting (which we weren't even invited to) and a budget. At every meeting we are expected to give to the "Chairman's Kitty" to help with the expenses the chairman will have as the chairman.

My thoughts were pretty mixed after leaving this meeting.

I am usually pretty quick to criticize and think of ways things could be better, but I really sat and thought about this. These were some things I liked about this:

• How communal it is and how every one comes together to support this couple. Although it seemed like they just want money, I know that they really appreciate us just being there for them, praying with them, and being involved. It's like the marriage is not just for them; there are a lot of other people involved. It's kind of nice. 
• Weddings in Kenya are expensive (well, weddings everywhere are) but they seem much more out of reach for the average Kenyan. I am told that even the family members are expected to contribute (which is how our weddings happen) but even with the family contributing, it usually is not nearly enough to cover the costs. So its nice to see friends, churches and other groups come together to contribute. 
• I guess all the different people could bring in a lot of good input so you could have some good ideas. But it also means that there will be a lot of going around in circles. 

Somethings I didn't like:

• There were a few items on the budget that I thought were a little bit ridiculous. If they had to pay for their own wedding, I am sure they would cut out some of these things. But because others are paying for it, they are doing it. 
• That everyone is expected to give a certain amount. Thankfully, Kelvin and I are in a position to give what they asked for (actually we had purposed to give more and probably will) but I would imagine that for many of the people, to come up with that money is not easy. Then, if they can't come up with the money, the members make little cards and go ask their family and friends to 'sponsor' them to 'contribute' to the wedding. Did you follow that? Yah, not so sure I like that. It is like borderline begging.
•  That the members were pretty much responsible to raise ALL the money for the wedding. The groom is usually expected to personally provide for the outfits (the wedding dress, shoes, earrings, make up, hair, tux, etc) but, in my opinion, they have to contribute a little more to their own wedding and not expect everyone else to pay for it. This particular couple has been together almost 10 years. You would think that at some point, they would start saving for their wedding. No?  I am not judging. They may have money that they can contribute. But as I chatted with some others about it, it is common for couples to expect the committee to give all the money and they just sit back and get a free wedding. 
• I am selfish. And I think I have good ideas. I would have loved to be apart of the planning process and not just be expected to give and give input that is not particularly needed. But that is my own selfishness. 

I am really thankful that we didn't have to do this. We managed to pay for our wedding with contributions from both of our families and with our own personal funds. We didn't have a ton of money so we compromised on some things. In the end, we got married and that was the goal of the day.

All in all, it was a good experience. Ultimately we are there to support our friend. This friend played a HUGE part in our wedding. We couldn't have done it without him. So we are willing to do pretty much anything to help them out. Looking forward to another celebration!!!!

Kelvin's Radio Debut

Sorry for the little blog silence. I'd be lying if I said I have been busy. I have just not been motivated to blog. I got some new movies and have been watching a movie or two a day. Then its just been so hot that I feel like a slug. And my back has spasmed out and I am now laying helplessly on my couch in so much pain. But don't feel bad for me, I am having a great week! 

Anyways, on Sunday Kelvin got to make his debut on the local radio station. Our good friend, O'neal, is the DJ for the station on the weeks and hosts the show with another guy. They wanted to bring Kelvin in to talk about Soccer on the coast. Soccer here in Mombasa is lacking compared to the rest of Kenya so they wanted to discuss why that is. Kelvin was a bit shy at first but once he got talkin', he loosened up a bit and had a vibrant discussion. 

Radio stations fascinate me. I realized it actually is quite lonely even though you don't get that impression because so many people tune it. But really, it is just two guys who sit in a room together, talk back and forth for hours, and play music. 

I got to be silent and sit behind. They spoke really fast swahili so I didn't pick up very much of their conversation. 

So cool watching how he mixes all the music!

24

On Tuesday I turned 24. I guess I am still somewhat of a baby. It's hard to believe. When I look at that number, I realize it is still quite young. Then I think about what I have done in my 24 years and I feel like an old woman.  I have done, seen, experienced a lot in my 24 years of life. It's hard to believe. 

My dad woke me up at 6am with a birthday phone call. Then my Baba called and then I got to skype with Mom. I miss home the most on my birthdays so it was a good start to the day. 

Kelvin had to work all day which left me all by myself. I know that the cafe down the road has cheesecake, and since it is my favourite and my birthday tradition, I splurged and went down there for coffee and cheesecake. 

I sat in this fancy Italian cafe and pondered life. I looked at all the white people around me fiddling on their iPads. Part of my envied them. Part of me didn't. I jotted down some thoughts and wrote an article that will be published on a online magazine soon. Will keep you posted. 

 Then two of my friends who live in the same area as me dropped in a little unexpectedly and surprised me with a humble piece of cake. It was very sweet of them. 

They sang and I blew out my candle. 

 I am very grateful to have these two ladies live so close to me. We have had many laughs on my couch as they drink my crystal light. 

Kelvin rushed home and got all dressed up. He took me to one of our favourite restaurants on the beach. He had arranged for some flowers and a reserved table. He even had the whole staff sing to me and give me the yummiest chocolate mousse cake. 

All in all, it was a very relaxing birthday. I was just psyched about life the whole day. I felt like I was just celebrating me, life, and everything God has done. Then I thought to myself, "Why don't I live like this every day?" Why is it only on my birthday I am excited about life like this? So I purposed to just celebrate, enjoy, and love life all the time. Ok, easier said than done. But I think I will be enjoying coffee and cheesecake more often. Just because I can.

99.7%

Chatting with my brother on facebook just now and he mentions that my finances don't add up. Of course, only my brother (who is currently in the midst of becoming a Chartered Accountant) would actually sit and calculate my percentages. How many of you just read through it trusting that my numbers were correct? I wouldn't have even bothered counting it up if I were you. Obviously I didn't.

 My brother also mentioned that .3% of 1 million is 3,000 as if trying to show me that it is indeed a big deal.

In my case, .3% is roughly $6. I know that goes a long way here in Kenya. I figure what I did was round up and down my percentages wrong. I didn't want to give you figures like 2.0498793843%

So please forgive me for the missing .3%. It's there, somewhere, I promise. I used it for good.

Transparency

Today, I want to be honest with you all about what we do in Kenya. I have seen first hand many NGO's and how they work in this country. I have read about what they claim to do and have seen what actually happens. I have seen where their money is spent and what they justify as 'aid' or  'ministry'. I have talked with people who work for big organizations and little organizations. There are some organizations that I truly admire. There are some that I question. None is perfect and that is ok. It's easy to critisize, judge, find fault in others, but not always easy to see it in ourselves. So I want to be honest with you about us, our finances, our programs, and where we are headed. 

In Canada, we are a registered non-profit society called One Five One Outreach Association. It was started by my Aunt and Uncle and some of their Christian friends who wanted to reach out to the youth in Parksville. They opened a youth drop-in centre and had art nights and other cool activities. They have christmas hampers, sponsor kids for grad, and other youth things. Recently, they closed the centre cause they felt it was time but still had a few programs and had the organization. I approached them to see if they would take us under (as we were debating registering in Canada but were dreading the process) and, after looking at our goals and their constitution, they agreed we would be a good fit. So here is the constitution for One Five One Outreach Association: 

The purposes of the society are:

(a) To provide counselling service for people in distress.

(b) To provide teaching and workshops on strengthening families (e.g., parenting and marriage).

(c) To establish an alcohol and drug free centre for youth to socialize and have fun.

(d) To provide character development, increased employability and life skills to underprivileged

youth through peer and adult mentorship.

(e) To supply low cost rental housing and home repairs to the poor.

Of course we don't address all these points in Kenya, but most of our programs fall under one or two of these purposes. 

In Kenya, we are in the process of registering as a Community Based Organization. We are waiting for another month or so to solidify the attendance of the girls in my group. Once we know they are committed, we will bring together all our youth, and start applying for this organization. Because it is community based, it requires local members, a constitution, and other legal documents. We want our youth to be involved and feel like this is something they are passionate about. Our draft constitution for our CBO is: 

The purpose of the Rehma Kongowea is:

1.  To provide character development, increased employability and life skills to underprivileged youth through peer and adult mentorship.
2.  To establish an alcohol and drug free youth training centre which will include a study room/library, computer lab, conference room, and lounge.
3. To mentor youth and keep them out of destructive habits through sports (namely football).
4. To provide school sponsorships for youth.
5. To provide a safe environment for youth to talk about relevant life issues. 

As you can see, there is not a direct Christian component in either of these. I have had people ask me if we are a 'christian organization'. That is a tough question because it is not in our constitution. In saying that, we do what we do because of our faith. One Five One was started by my Aunt and Uncle who wanted to lavish youth in their community with Christ's love. Kelvin and I want to do the same. Our youth know our faith and respect it. They know that we will teach them the bible and pray in Jesus name. Kelvin told me the other day that one of our Muslim boys has actually started insisting on saying 'the grace' (2 Corinthians 13:14) at the end of practice. He has memorized it and everything! Our faith is why we do what we do. 

On to finances....

Here is a breakdown of where our finances went last year: 

• Admin 2.4%
• School Fees 32.1 %
• Staff Salaries 9.2%
• Youth Centre 15.3%
• Team Expenses 13.9%
• Extras for the boys 24.6%
• Canadian Bank fees 2.2%

I am really proud when I see these numbers. Our admin fees are down, and most of the money is going to our programs. 

A few things that are changing this year (or have just changed in the past couple months): 

• We are hiring people. We have hired a coach to run practices 4 nights a week. We have hired one of the boys to take care of all the equipment and run the centre. We have also delegated a small stipend for Kelvin (about as much as you spend on a nice meal out with your family). 
• We have a centre that we pay rent and electricity for. This is a monthly expense. 
• Our boys have just been accepted into the Kenya Football Federation's provincial league. This is exciting! They are the only team in Kongowea to be in this league. Our boys will be more exposed with more opportunities for sponsorships. We will travel a lot more and further distances. 
• We are not offering school sponsorships. Most of our sponsored youth will be finishing their programs this year. We want to focus on their needs and helping them to finish strong. 
• We are reaching ladies as you can read below. 
• We are opening ourselves up to receive visitors who would like to come and hang out with us and our youth. 
• We are looking into opening a computer lab. I am currently researching the best ways to do this, where to find the funding, and how beneficial this would be for the community. 

It is exciting all that is happening. I don't think we would have ever thought we would be this far. For Kelvin and I, our focus is pouring into the lives of the youth God has entrusted with. I have 12 girls who I will focus on. Kelvin has a team of 30 boys that he continues to love on. They are our 'kids'. 

As for the Rehma Boys website, it is currently down. I will be re-vamping it in the next couple months once our CBO is registered. For now you can follow the happenings on my blog. 

Our needs are unending. Currently we need funds for: 

- A young lady we just put into hairdressing school. We have yet to find a sponsor. 

- The boys travelling and game expenses. They will increase greatly now that they are in the provincial league. 

- We want to stock the youth centre with books so youth can come and study, research and find resources for their school. (Imagine going through high school without text books, a computer lab, or a library).

- Salaries 

- My girls group. I want to treat them to an outing once every month or two. I am now planning on taking them for a day to a beach hotel to swim, eat, and have a few ladies come and talk to them. 

- Miscellaneous. Things come up every week whether one of the boys get hurt at practice and needs to go to the hospital or we need to help pay rent for someone or we need a new ball/equipment. 

If you have any questions, comments, concerns, advices, input please feel free to contact me at nikolemacgregor@gmail.com. We are new in this so I am always looking for people to walk along side and help us. 

As for Kelvin and I, we are busy. With all this, having a new business, and being newlyweds, we are busy. Please pray for us! 

Thanks for all your support! 

Much love

Discovering our Gifts

Every week I try to think of a topic/issue to discuss with the girls to get them to think. This has not been easy. They don't open up that easily and they aren't the most critical thinkers I have ever met. In my opinion, it's a reflection of their school systems where they are taught to cram/memorize information instead of analyze, critical think, learn to learn for themselves. My dad is a teacher and he has told me so many times that most teachers' goals are not to teach their students information, but to teach them to retain knowledge out in the real world. This is not true in Kenya. 

Last week we chatted about gossip and we had some heated debates. This community and particular people group are known for gossiping. Seriously. I will walk through the streets and will listen to Mama's sit and talk about me and my life as I walk by them. It's terrible. So it was a good topic to talk about. 

This week I wanted us to talk about our gifts that God has given us. It is only in the past few years that I have really understood what gifts God has given me. I have discovered what I am good at, what I thrive at, what I love doing, and how I am suppose to use these gifts for God. SO I wanted the girls to really think about what they are good at, what makes them thrive, what is something that comes naturally to them. I find in Kenya that people assume that your gifts are either a) Dancing b)singing c) reading poetry d) football. It's like those are the only gifts you can have. That's why you find so many terrible singers here thinking that singing is their gift when really they don't understand that they are amazing at administration or something else. 

Anyways, I wanted the girls to think outside the box. Eventually they did. It was a bit painful at first. The normal answers came up first (dancing, singing, football) but then I challenged them to think of other things. Gifts of mercy, humour, patience, organization, public speaking, love, giving, etc. 

Then we made name tags to put on our bulletin board. I made them put their name on it and then write one of their gifts underneath. 

 Our favourite game to play is musical cushions (musical chairs but with cushions.) It makes us all bend over in laughter. Cushions make for a harder fall and less precision. I know this picture is blurry but I just love the joy in their faces. 

 Now on to craft time!

There is limited craft supplies in Mombasa so I resorted to different coloured paper, newspapers, and pencil crayons. I also have a budget of about $15 per week with the girls so I try to be resourceful.

 This girl has to be one of my favs. Her laughter and joy is contagious. She is a riot. Her name is pronounced 'myu-nee-rra'. 

 This is mine. Don't laugh. I didn't my best with what I had. I had made one the night before and Kelvin told me it looked like a child did it. So I redid it and this is what I got.

Tina is one of Kelvin's sisters who comes to hang out with us. 

So here are a few things I discovered/noticed during this exercise:

1. My girls have cool names. Tumu, Saum, Miraj, Khadija, Joydeen, Munira, Fatma, etc. Most are islamic names but so beautiful. 

2. "Plainting" is a word. I saw several girls put it on their papers and just couldn't figure out what it was. I wondered if that had misspelled 'planting' or 'painting'. But then I figured out that they meant 'plaiting' which is braiding cornrows. 

3. Kenya schools do not teach art nor do they encourage artistic skills. Honestly, most of the girls made banners that looked like what my 8 year old kids in summer camps would make. 

4. They would rather cut paper with razor blades instead of scissors. 

5. One of my girls has a gift of forgiveness. I thought that was awesome. It wasn't even a gift that had come up in conversation. She thought of it herself. I wish forgiving was easier for me. 

6. This group is bringing together girls who wouldn't interact otherwise. Most of them live near each other but don't interact much. I was delighted to hear two girls, who never chatted outside the group, talking about their deep family issues and encouraging one another. 

I am beginning to fall in love with these ladies. Truly. I love my saturday afternoons with them. I am constantly looking for new ideas, games, discussion topics, etc. If you have any ideas on how to get them to think or team building exercises, please pass them this way! I am open to ideas! 

Proud Parents

I fear we have become like those families who post endless photos of their kids doing pretty much the same thing all the time. But we are so proud of our Neema girl and want to show her off. In all honesty, I feel like I have a family now. Last night, we sat on the couch, all three of us together. I was fixing some of Kelvin's pants and he was on the computer. Neema was squished between the two of us while the nightly news was on the tv. Not to mention our awesome christmas lights were twinkling creating a warm atmosphere. Ah..the Opiyos...

So I have had quite a few people ask me to post more photos of the cat. Go figure, I live in Africa and see awesome things everyday yet people just wanna check out the kitten. 

 Kelvin has warmed up to her. And she adores him too. 

 I had this box for her kitty litter for the last couple days until I bought a real bucket. She loved playing peek-a-boo under the boxes flaps.

 She hangs out under the glass table and still can't figure out that it is glass and she can't get through it.

She is a little terror as most kittens are. Yesterday she latched onto the fan that was oscillating and she went back and forth with it. 

We love our baby. 

Looking for a home

Yesterday we had a sweet visitor come into our office to hang out. This tiny little kitten came in and wouldn't leave. We fed it some milk and loved on it. I had been begging Kelvin for a cat after I fell in love with the cats my brother recently got. Kelvin declared that this was the cat we were going to take. We kept her in the office all day. I locked her in there as we went for lunch expecting that she would be scratching at the door to get out by the time we got back. To our surprise, she had made herself at home and was fast asleep on our chair. She came in looking for a home, like most people who come into our office, so we decided to give her one. 

Of course I took her to the vet first because she is a street cat in Kongowea. Who knows what kind of yucky things she could be carrying. The vet was impressed how clean she was for being a slum cat. She's about 2 months old and we called her Neema. Kelvin has warmed up to her already (as cats for pets is not something many Kenyans consider). He refuses to let her sleep with us; that's too much for him. But so far she has been easy peasy. No noise, no mess, no fuss. She is not super needy and seems pretty content. Perfect cat for the Opiyos. 

She is definitely a mixture of many colours. 

Kelvin told some kids he would pay them to fill a bucket of sand for her kitty litter. Once they were done he turned into a drill Sargent and told them all to line up nicely from shortest to tallest. They were very obedient. He then handed them each 5 shillings (about 7cents) and they ran away with big smiles. 

So Neema and I have been hanging out today. She's been chillaxin' as I have cleaned the house. We had a little nap together. And she even watched Joyce Meyer's sermon with me this morning! Good kitty!

Watching the game

I loved this sight as I walked out of the office the other day. There was a school sports day happening and hundreds of kids flooded the area. These kids thought that sitting on the wall was the best place to watch the game.

Random thoughts this friday morning

Just thought I would share, in point form, what I am thinking and what is going on in my life this friday morning. If you don't care, that's ok. I will blog something more interesting another day.

• I got a cold in this heat. Only less than a month ago, I had the same nasty head cold. Why do we assume cold's come from the cold? Mom used to say, "Put on more clothes. You are going to catch a cold." I can only imagine when I am a mom, "Kids! Take off all those clothes. You are going to catch a cold." Who knew the heat could make one so sick?
• The workers just poured the cement for the foundation of the apartment building that is going up in my backyard. I am  hoping that means that the work will slow dow a little and my life will be quieter as the cement dries. 
• I have yet to think of a topic to talk about at my girls meeting tomorrow. I also need to find a recipe for a plain, white cake. 
• I have to pay my electricity bill on monday. 
• It's friday which means the mosque somewhere behind our house is calling out prayers all morning. I asked God a few weeks ago why He allows all these prayer calls that are so annoying, eerie, loud, and boisterous? He quickly stopped me and said, 'Nikole, these are mere mutterings to me. I can barely hear them. Don't mind.' Our God is big. 
• I think I will have the leftover pojo for lunch. Its like green lentils. Yum. 
• We are planning our little vacation in April. So excited to go visit family and friends as a newly married couple. 
• My husband cracks me up.  He is so jovial. Seriously, nothing brings him down. He makes light of everything. I just can't help but giggle at the little things he says every day. Brings a smile to my face. 
• My mind is churning with ideas for a computer centre in Kongowea. I am thinking of what it would look like and how it would run. Today I plan to do some research on computers, prices, and other organizations who have done something like this. I really think the youth need basic computer skills. I guarantee half of our boys couldn't type their names on a keyboard. 
• I still forget that I live in Africa. 
• Kelvin has discovered Angry Birds. Like I mean he has really discovered it. It has been on the iPhone for weeks now but only yesterday had he really found out how addictingly awesome it is. He downloaded a bunch of free versions. As I was washing the dishes last night, I could hear him flinging those birds and crashing them into all sorts of things. Then I would hear him giggle and cheer when he passed the level. He even stayed up to finish the game. About 20 minutes after I had went to bed, he barged into the bedroom and said, "Is 0.99 dollars alot? I want to purchase another version on your iTunes. What is your password?" Thanks for waking me. No, it's not a lot. Go ahead and buy it. 5 minutes later he yells from the living room that it is declining his purchase. I then remember that my credit card had expired and I have yet to change the information on my iTunes account. Another thing I gotta do today. 
• I think I want to really focus on writing and submitting articles. Writing is hard. But I kind of like the challenge. I am waiting for the day that I get my first paid published article. It's coming soon. I can feel it. 
• I love my husband. I am so proud of him and everything he is doing. I watch the way he does his business and just marvel. For being so young, he is incredible. I observe the way he leads to boys and am amazed. And then I just see how he provides for me. Do you know how rare it is to find a kenyan providing for a white? I only know a handful of kenyan men who provide for their whites. It's usually the other way around. 
• I gotta go. Kelvin just called and told me he forgot the keys to the office on the table. I am still proud of him.