In my last blog I talked about being at the precipice of a great adventure and adjusting to life in rural Kenya. Five days later, I realize my experience has almost exactly matched my expectations. And by that I mean it has been like nothing I have ever experienced before. It’s been five days since I was tossed head first the whirling torrent of love, family, and rural simplicity that embodies life in Lusui, Kenya, and I will try to give you a general overview of what life is like.
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| Home Sweet Home. |
Welcome to the Party
The description of the family that I received before moving in listed only two other residents; Mama Emmah, a 50-some year old mother of seven, and Frankline, a 18-year old nephew attending secondary school. Thus, it came as quite a surprise to arrive at my new home on Saturday and be welcomed by 40-50 members of a sprawling extended family that had gathered to negotiate the dowry for Mama Emmah’s oldest daughter, Beatrice. This tradition is basically a negotiation of the “bride-price”, the amount that the family of the groom must pay the family of the bride for marriage (usually in cows, which is a symbol of wealth in Kenya).
Through all of this chaos I felt surprisingly… at home. A loud, large group of extended family for company and a wide variety of delicious food dishes for dinner?...hmmm… yep , I could have easily been back in Mt. Angel at a large family gathering. As an adopted “son” of the family, I was even invited to join in a family picture with Mama Emmah’s five biological sons. The fact that I would be included in a family picture only hours after I arrived at the house speaks volumes about the Kenyan value for visitors and family. Whether it is by Mama Emmah’s sons and daughters, or their relatives in the local community, or various random friends that come calling, I have been warmly welcomed by every member of the community. Going back to a previous post, it’s hard not to feel welcome around a group of Kenyans. Their loud, boisertious laughs and quick smiles make guests feel at home.
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| This is the view from the end of my driveway, overlooking the gentle sloping valleys of Western Kenya. |
After a very active first two days, the rest of the family has returned to their homes and the house has become much quieter. The only permanent residents are myself, Mama Emmah, and Frankline. So far in this much smaller group, life has been going very well.
The Amenities
So what is life like living in a house is rural Kenya? Well, its very, very different. Just a quick rundown of the do have’s and don’t haves of my home in Lusui.
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| This living room is also the place where we watch TV and eating dinner. Couches not quite up to Villa Maria comfort level, but they are still great. |
Do Have: A TV, a working US-style toilet, many coaches and a beautiful living room, a large yard and garden blooming with life (both plant and animal).
Don’t Have: Running water (you fill the toilet with a bucket of water to help it flush), a mirror (that I have been able to find), a traditional US refrigerator or stove, and most foreign of all, a ceiling on the walls.
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| Oh hey rafters, I'm not used to seeing you up there. |
Overall, adjusting to the daily routine has been very different, but not too arduous. I’ll post a photo blog in the future with picture about a day in the life on being in Kenya, but I for now I just wanted to give a short rundown of the most obvious changes. The biggest difference has been the lack of ceiling, shown below. I guess I never realized how much relative privacy we have in the United States. Still, you can talk to anyone, at anytime, anywhere in the house, so it’s kind of fun.
African Sayings Part 2
I really enjoyed writing the last section on African quotes, and I’m been picking them up at a surprising rate, so I decided to add a second installment.
“When you visit a Kenya home, the first day you are a visitor, and the second day they hand you a hoe and tell you to go and weed the garden.” (My transition to helping out around the house has been much slower, but I’m making an effort to play a larger role).
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| Per Usual, African Sayings must be accompanied by a traditional African symbol. In this case: cows. Important as statuses of wealth and supporter of rural livelihoods, cattle are vital to rural life in Africa. |
“Hakuna Haraka Afrika” (Translated: No hurry in Africa. And it’s very , very true. Also, points if you recognized similarities to Hakuna Matata(no worries))
“When Elephants fight, the grass suffers. When Elephants make love… the grass also suffers.” – (proverb about how the little man suffers no matter what is happening with the huge giants in the world)
“Being alone is only good for going to the toilet” – Ethiopian Proverb (Give an insight of the African vision of privacy)
“Mountains never meet, but people… meet.” (I think this saying is more substantial when said in KiSwahili. But you get the gist. Don’t burn bridges, you will see the people again)
I’ll add part 3 when I learn more phrases!
Friends Secondary School Lusui
After moving into my new home on Saturday, I started work at Friends Secondary School Lusui on Monday. It’s only been two days (Wednesday is a national holiday in Kenya to celebrate independence from Colonisation), so I can’t really give a strong overview of the school. But I’ll give a quick do have’s and don’t have’s list like I did for the home.
Do Have: Four classrooms (one for each grade), an office for the teachers (which is shared by all the teachers), a dedicated staff of 14 (11 full-time) teachers and administration, a small mud-hut kitchen for making lunch, and 200 high school students (it’s like grade 9-12 in the US) with varying degree of interest in education (like high school students everywhere).
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| I haven't taken any pictures at the school yet. But this is a scintillating picture of the road leading up to the school. |
Don’t Haves: Electricity anywhere in the school (meaning no computers), Enough room for the classes that take place, a library, books for every students or developed teaching aides (besides a blackboard).
So overall there are a huge amount of challenges. I hope to have a positive impact on the young school (only four years old), and hopefully create some more capacity and add a few more things from the do list. But it’s a very long process, and getting thing to change is difficult. Like the saying says, no hurry in Africa. And it’s very true both for the bad( it makes development or organization changes difficult) and the good (people are carefree, happy, and relaxed).
I’ll talk more in my next blog new insights that I have learned about Kenyan culture, provide more information about my work at the school, and talk about why macroeconomic inequality is keeping Africa poor (so excited for that last one, I know, but I’ll keep it lively).
Much love from Lusui, Kenya!