We all know that when exercising, stretching is just as important as running or weight lifting…but, let’s be honest, stretching is slow, sometimes painful, takes patience, and discipline.  Needless to say, moving our family to Africa has been stretching!  But with stretching, comes flexibility, and with flexibility, healthier, stronger muscles, that are less inclined to be injured…

Here in Africa, one must be flexible.

[I am reminded of the toy figure Gumby (made out of clay).  While I (Grace) was a pediatrics intern in the Navy, my program director would point to the toy figure on his desk when he wanted to emphasize how “flexible” we must be: “like Gumby…” he would say.  As a Navy family, we quickly learned how to be flexible as we lived in 5 different states within 7 years.  However, if anyone wants to learn how to really be flexible, join us here on the Islands!]

Even more than the daily rain while trying to dry clothes on a line, or the frequent  power and water outages, or the unexpected visitor while your toddler is having a breakdown…the day before yesterday was a lesson in flexibility.  You may have heard in the news in recent weeks, along with the anniversary of 9/11 there has been some backlash surrounding a recent movie trailer.  Seeing that it was a Friday, where on this side of the world, the men all go to their place of worship to gather, we were told that there was going to be some organized protests.  Here on the Islands, the people on the whole are quite warm and welcoming, and even during their times of public expression, things rarely get out of hand, nevertheless last Friday we were advised to stay out of the street and remain at home from 12 to 4pm.  This week, however, we were called by our team leader to be sequestered at another team member’s house just outside of the city.  A (trustworthy) national military friend was not taking any chances of violence.  He wanted us out of the city, in one house, so that he could send soldiers to protect us.

This seemed a little out of the ordinary, but not knowing what would happen, after a few minutes of processing the phone call at 11:45 am, we left our house a little after 12 noon and got to our friend’s house at 12:15pm.  For the next 6 hours, about 10 armed soldiers duly stood in front of the house.  The occasional truck with people chanting drove by.  A crowd of children and adults walked by holding signs.  We stayed inside, ate, talked and sang… another Friday came and went.  It wasn’t how we expected to spend our Friday, but we are being stretched and learning to be flexible.  I wonder what this Friday will be like…

Abigail helping with the laundry!

Mark and a baby lizard that was living in our bedroom

Coming to Africa, is almost like stepping back into time (a hundred years ago)… Each night we take baths in tubs where we pour in heated water from the kitchen.  Laundry is hung outside on the line.  We buy fresh bread (without preservatives) from the bakery and fresh vegetables from the market… Sounds simple…quaint even…

Until, I am reminded that a hundred years ago, when things seemed “simple” there also wasn’t a sanitation department, running water, or reliable electricity… And then, I wouldn’t call Africa simple any more…

We live in an area of the city where we don’t need to draw water from a cistern and can get running water in our kitchen…until the water stops working (for no known reason and for an unknown length of time) and then we realize that perhaps those that have deep cisterns are the “lucky” ones indeed!

One of the most challenging and perhaps least fixable, most frustrating things (as Westerners we love to fix things…) is the garbage or lack of waste management.  Here, there is garbage everywhere!  In front of our house, in the streets, on the beach…everywhere.  Please don’t ask us what we do with our garbage, because we are still trying to figure it out!

On a happier note, school is going well for the kids!  Josiah potty trained himself on the first day of school!  Little Dale finally got all his books that he needed and Mark’s friend (team member from Scotland) was able to join his class!

Mark and Daniel lining up for class

Dale lining up for class

Our much appreciated hot water heater for baths! (and the occasional cup of tea)

Abigail is now 8 months old!!

Bat flying over our courtyard…one of many!! These are daytime fruit bats!  Some can reach 4 feet in wing span.

Josiah calls them the “yellow headed” bats…Can you spot him upside down in this tree behind our house?

Teamday cake for Josiah!

It has been just over one week since we have moved into our house on the islands.  We have to admit, it has been hard…with so many transitions and so many differences.  But, we are settling in, the kids are starting school, and it’s finally beginning to feel like home.  Some of the highlights of our week as been the two packages that arrived!!  Thank you Aunt Sarah and Uncle Josh!  They sent us some needed supplies like socks and underwear for the boys (in the first package) and a amazing assortment of chocolate and goodies in the second package!  Woo hoo!

The boys heading off to the French school on their first day.

Waiting for the school gates to open

Front of our house

Abigail waiting for the boys to come home from school…to eat some French bread!                  (School is from 7:30 to 12:30pm)

Our first package to arrive!!

Kitchen with water filtration system

2nd package to arrive!! Yay! Beef jerky (Beef is very expensive here and difficult and sketchy to buy…)

Bathroom with water bucket reserve (for when the water goes out…)

Yum!

Abigail (now 7.5 months old!)

Courtyard

Our first two weeks here on the islands were long and exhausting.  If you ever have the need to be adventurous, try sharing one room in a hot sticky environment without running water or reliable power, for a month (more or less) with 5 other people (only one of them being an adult)!  Also, try for a week to keep the non-adults from falling into a deep cistern, big ditch or an open fire as they dance around danger in different directions at every waking moment.  Yikes!

Anyway, after a week of orientation and a week of home stay, we are now moving and settling into our house!  (House pictures to come… I haven’t taken any yet… too busy sweeping, mopping and trying to kill mosquitos…Sorry!)

Happy Birthday Josiah! He turned 3 during our home stay and a team member brought over a cake!

The first danger for small children: Open cistern in the back

2nd: Open Fire Cooking

3rd: 15 foot drop off the back door

Host Soulai opening up a fresh coconut for drinking (after he climbed 40 feet to get it with his hands and a banana leaf !)

Brother cutting up some sugarcane for the boys.

New road to come?

Cooking green bananas.

Homestay family and friends

Waterside view…

As we leave our new friends that we made at our orientation, it reminds us of what it means to be in this line of work…denying what comes easy…leaving what is familiar, fun, and comfortable and starting over again.

Some good friends

Josiah and his friends

Good friends don’t let friends take baths alone!

Friendly turkey (at a local Kenyan home visit).  Dale has not lost his touch yet! Island chickens get ready!

Mark and his climbing buddy in a loquat tree.

“Help me climb this tree!”

It’s always hard to say bye for now…

Last week we learned about Cross-Cultural Perspectives and Communication.  What culture do you come from or identify with?  Are you a ‘universalist’ or ‘particularist’?  Polychronic or monochronic? Do you communicate ‘directly’ or ‘indirectly’?  How do you change your style to communicate to a different culture more effectively?  Needless to say, we are being challenged and the final exam is cumulative over a lifetime! =)

Besides the mental challenges, being immersed in a new culture comes with some physical challenges.  Some of us…well almost all 70 of us have been a little sick in one form or another.  A lot of us have gotten traveler’s diarrhea, gastroenteritis (vomiting and diarrhea), runny noses, cough and fever.  Abigail has had diarrhea for the last 4 days and Big Dale got sick last night after a home visit and dinner with a local Kenyan family. Think about us as you talk with the Father today!

This week we leave to go back to Nairobi and on Saturday Aug 11th we will be on the islands!   We will have a little more orienting to do then do a one week home stay with a family from the local culture before we move into our house at the end of the month.  We look forward to finally settling down soon!

Washing hands before eating

Princess Abigail watching the “talent show” as people volunteered to share their talents on our last Friday!

Dale and Mark sharing brain teasers at the “talent show”

We just finished our second week of orientation here in Kenya and our highlight was learning about African worldview and values from African teachers.  We have adjusted to living in dorms as a family and it has been a good transition for us into living a more African lifestyle. We will be here for one more week. We have lots more to learn!

Josiah helping with the wash

It takes a family to do laundry!

Walking into town

Arriving at the local market

We walked to the market and then took a “tuk tuk” back. It is basically a motorcycle with with 3 wheels or a small car with 3 wheels… not sure…

In the tuk tuk

Squeezing in the “tuk tuk”