Moving with Compassion

Settling Down

2012-02-01T05:29:00.001-08:00

Today I finally got the sense that my life is settling down.

I never thought I would get here. It was hard to imagine the point where my life would be more consistent, I would build a community around me, I would have a home that I plan to stay in for a while, I wouldn't constantly be looking for the next opportunity or thing to do, I would fall into an everyday life kind of routine. I actually didn't think I could do it. I would look at people with full time jobs that they do day after day, week after week, year after year and think, "I couldn't handle that" but now I get the sense that that is slowly where I am moving.

For those who don't know, Kelvin and I have started a business managing rental homes as well as buying/selling homes. For almost 2 years now, it has been in both our minds to start one. Kelvin grew up managing his family's homes so it was a natural fit for him. We have opened a small office in Kongowea, right beside the pitch. Kelvin is working hard to market himself out there. Today he left the house looking so handsome in his grey dress pants and collared white t-shirt. We are getting lots of interest and slowly people are gravitating towards us. I am doing most of the administration work. I am trying to set up a good system for managing client information, files, cash income and outflow, and general office stuff. I am also designing all the business cards, signage, and website (that will be coming up in the future). It really is a fun venture.

Right beside our office is the youth centre we are opening as well (it is literally the next door beside us). I am trying to maximize the tiny space we have (any tips on types of furniture/set up to make good use of a small space?). We have already handed over the key to one of our boys who manages all the equipment and will soon take over the centre in the evenings when we open it up for people to come and study. I will begin having my girls club in the next couple of weeks!

Today, I went to town to get some signs printed out. I then headed to Kongowea to meet up with my husband, show him the signs, and see what needed to be done in the office. We decided to let one of the boys sit at the desk (something they are proud of) while we went for lunch break. Since when did my husband and I take lunch breaks together??? Never. That is when I realized that we are now settling down.

It feels really good to finally be settled. To feel like we are starting to build our lives. I love that I am able to commit to something long term right now. I love that I can buy furniture knowing that I will use it for a long time. I love that my suitcases are packed away probably collecting dust and cobwebs.

I am sure at some point I will get a bit antsy as most people do. Thankfully I live in a country that I can travel relatively cheap to some awesome places. I do still have some plans. I want to finish going to school. I do want to visit Canada. Babies will come in the near future.

But settling down is what we are doing. And it feels good.

Triumph of Love

2012-01-27T23:19:00.000-08:00

Or Triunfo del Amor as it is called in spanish.

This just happens to be my favourite tv show here in Kenya. Shameful? Yes. But really, there isn't much else on the Kenyan airwaves. I try to catch Grey's anatomy on Monday mornings at 11 (we are talking re-runs for the first and second seasons) but most of the time I am out or, if by chance I am home, some sort of breaking news happens and all the tv stations turn to CNN or some event happening in Kenya (check out what happened this past Monday which cancelled Grey's).

The beauty of this program is that it comes on every evening including weekends. Yes friends, that is seven nights a week! Don't you wish your favourite shows would come on every night instead of having to wait for a week till the next episode? It also comes on at 8pm which is about the time that Kelvin gets home and dinner is ready. So our bonding includes watching a spanish telenova and chatting during the commercials.

It is a spanish program with english voiceovers (some of which have the funniest english voices). It is incredibly passionate and overly dramatic. It's now at the point that everything bad that can happen has already happened. There has been murders, shootings, kidnappings, drunks, car accidents, attempted suicides, mental hospitals, crime, backstabbing, sicknesses, surgeries, love triangles, marriages, divorces, affairs, money made, money lost, illegitimate children, lying, and evil mother-in-laws. (It reminds my of the OC where after the first season, I was convinced that the writers couldn't come up with any more drama since it had all happened. I was wrong. They just kept coming up with new crazier, story lines). One of the main characters, Max, has the worst of it all. It seems that everywhere he goes, he finds trouble whether his child has just been kidnapped or he finds out his real mother is actually alive or his other mother has breast cancer or his father has been cheating on his wife or his sister is now paralyzed or his other baby is not really his baby or his crazy wife is trying to kill him. I don't know how he doesn't go completely insane or throw himself off a bridge.

But we love it. We love it because it is constant and we can follow along. We love it because of how cheesy it really is. We love the suspense (they end each episode with some dramatic event which means we must tune in the next night). We love that we can see the same actors on other tv shows on different channels. I guess they don't have much of a selection in Mexico so they have to use the same actors for everything.

It will end soon I assume and some other soap opera will start (we loved the one that came on before this one. it was called Soy Tu Duena. No idea what that means but it was just as cheesy and dramatic).

In the meantime, we will continue to follow along Max and Maria's twisted, dramatic lives.

Holy Smoke!

2012-01-27T08:15:00.000-08:00

It was the one thing I was dreading living here.

And its happening.

You see, our apartment faces behind the compound. It is much better than the other side which is right on the busiest street in our area. Being along the street is safer than living ndani (inside- meaning off the main road). However, it comes with its faults mainly the noise and dirt and little privacy. However, since our apartment is at the back of the compound, it was facing a large grass patch, and we have a relatively peaceful and quiet life. It is still a bit noisy (there is a school a little ways away and there is a pub downstairs) but nothing compared to the front.

My prayer was that the beautiful patch of grass outside would stay that way for a while. I didn't want anyone to start building on it.

But it is a beautiful space and the owner would be silly not to maximize it's use and get a good profit from it.

So the building has begun.

But before the building started, some of the guys thought it would be best to burn all the grass. BAD BAD idea. The small patch they burned pretty much smoked us into our apartment. I quickly closed all the windows and turned my fans on high. But the smoke just kept seeping through the windows. I was now starting to cough and my eyes were burning so I thought I should step out my front door into the corridor. However, the corridor has no roof and so smoke was entering from the top making it even more smoky than inside my little apartment. My neighbour ran out in her slippers thinking that the building was on fire. I assured her it wasn't but she was so furious that she went down to complain. In the meantime, I waited it out in my bathroom. It was the only place I could hide without my eyes burning from smoke. I sat on the toilet lid and played on my computer.

I think my neighbour wasn't the only one with angry complaints. The fire was put out very quickly and the men were instructed to get out their machetes and start chopping the rest of the grass. When I looked out, only a very small patch of grass was burnt. I can't imagine how much smoke it would have created if the burnt the whole thing.

The dry grass lit on fire so fast that you couldn't see the ground.

I couldn't even see out my window!! That's how bad it was!

The next morning we awoke to about 50 guys digging the holes for the foundation. That was the sound I dreaded to hear.

After the first day, they had made some pretty good progress. They were noisy but they managed to get a lot done and not many returned the next day. Although nearing the end of the day, I could hear a bunch of yelling right outside my window. I think the guy who hired them all was refusing the pay them what he had promised. I would be pretty upset as well.

I am happy that they are only building on that one side which means that I won't have any structure obstructing my view or cross breeze anytime soon (although I do pity the people on the other side of the building). Also, I think the noisiest part is over and they are going to now start lay bricks and allowing cement to dry.

As I am typing this now, they have lit up some of the leftover grass again. Really?? I can feel the heat through my windows although now the wind is blowing the smoke away from my house. Phew! It's a good thing most houses are made of concrete here instead of wood that catches on fire so quickly!

Heartbreaking and Heartwarming Stories

2012-01-26T23:37:00.000-08:00

Kelvin comes home every night with a new story about the boys. After each practice, he usually has a conversation with one or two of them concerning things other than soccer. Sometimes he learns things that are absolutely heartbreaking and sometimes he hears stories that are heartwarming. I love when he comes home, we sit down to eat dinner, and he shares the stories with me.

A couple days ago he came home with a heavy heart. He had finally got the chance to sit and talk with certain young man on the team. Upon finding out who the boy's father was, Kelvin's heart broke. The father is a well known junkie in the community. His mother sells viazi (fried potatoes) and uji (a millet porridge) on the streets to support the family. Amazingly, the boy is incredibly healthy and even finished high school this year. Big up to the mama's in this community! But this is the story of so many youth in the communities who have fathers who are...duds. Complete duds. That's why Kelvin has such a heart to raise young men who will love their wives and children.

Then he told me of another story of one of our boys who was struggling to pay his rent yet neglecting to tell us. He had been running up and about trying to find work but just couldn't make ends meat. He hadn't paid rent in over two months and had a debt of $45. His landlord went and locked his door with all his stuff inside (hence why he wasn't practicing for weeks - all his gear was inside). So Kelvin sent someone to go pay the rent. Sometimes they just need a small break in life to get them going again.

However, the next night Kelvin came home with the sweetest news.

In August, we sponsored one of the boys to attend an agricultural school on the other side of the country. The boy lived with his mom who is a widow. She works hard to provide a life for her and her 3 boys. Right now, all of her sons are out of the house doing well for themselves. Since she had some extra space in her house and few extra pennies in her pocket, she decided to take in two of our boys. One of them we sponsored to go to art school so she just provides him a place to sleep and some food for his belly. But then she took another one in and put him into school! Yes, she took what little she had, took in some young man, and gave him a chance to do well for himself. Not only that, she put him in a Christian school where he does bible study every night! I am always amazed at the generosity of the people who have nothing. I love the 'Let's take care of each other' attitude so many people have in the community. We took care of her son and she took care of a couple of our 'sons'. Such good teamwork.

I am anxious to see what story Kelvin will come home with tonight.

Honeymooning!

2012-01-22T23:53:00.000-08:00

We finally went for our honeymoon! Since my family was here for a week after the wedding, we decided to postpone the honeymoon. Plus, December is high season and rates drastically drop in mid January. So finally, this weekend, we went for a honeymoon.

The advantage of living in Mombasa is that we really don't have to go far to find some luxurious resort to honeymoon at. This place, Boko Boko, was maybe a half an hour drive from our house. Can't beat that.

For my honeymoon, I didn't want to do a beach resort. I wanted a small cottage in the woods. We had looked into a place on the other side of the country in a large forest, but the drive there and the price of the place just wasn't what we wanted. I happened to stumble across this place online and loved it. It's not on the beach but the owner has created a little jungle with little huts inside.

It is owned and run by a lady and her daughter from Seychelles.

It was so lush inside!!

It has some funny cultural touches.

We got this little, secluded cottage for ourselves. The inside was huge!! We were amazed.

We had our own private patio where they served us food.

And a pool! We were the only guests that weekend so we had the whole place to ourselves.

Kelvin is not a water baby like I am. He came in for about 3 minutes, got water up his nose, and called it quits. I just admired the beautiful surroundings and sat dangling my feet in the pool.

On their website, we were told there were crocodiles and tortoises. I didn't really understand what they meant. I got there and couldn't see any crocodiles anywhere. Then one of the staff escorted us to their habitat (which happened to be directly behind our cottage). Seven huge crocodiles!

We even got to watch them being fed cow intestines dipped in blood. Yummy.

Then the crazy caretaker jumped in to collect the remains!! He told us that the next day he was going to actually clean out the pond that they were swimming in while they were still in it. Scary!

And then they had 3 gigantic tortoises. They totally freaked me out. They were about 200 years old and were brought to Kenya from Seychelles. Kelvin loved them.

It took me a bit of warming up to get that close to them.

The whole place had the most amazing butterflies! They fluttered all over the place amongst the jungle.

We spent hours on our private little patio. I found an awesome book on my kindle while Kelvin looked up soccer stuff on his phone. So peaceful and perfect.

We had such a relaxing time. We ate like royalty (who know the Seychelles have such good food!) and relaxing the quiet.

Now back to reality!

Like father, like son?

2012-01-22T23:23:00.000-08:00

Kelvin and one of our boys, Lamlo, watching the game. Kelvin's influence extends to standing postures! Haha. I just thought it was a cute sight.

But I loved this picture! You see those papers in Kelvin's hands? Those are Lamlo's clinic card, ID of his guardian, and death certificate of his guardian! Can I tell you why this is so exciting?

Well this year, Kelvin made it mandatory that all the boys have their birth certificates and IDs in order for them to play on the team. He wanted to push them to take initiative and get their lives in order. Plus, we want to play in some bigger leagues that require that each player has an ID of some sort. Now Lamlo is an orphan. He has no family members. His parents died a while ago and he is an only child. He somehow made it to Mombasa from his home across the country and manages to makes a small living for himself. However, when we told him that he needed an ID, he told us he wouldn't be able to get it. He doesn't have any of his own documents or even his parents death certificates. The best we could think of was that he could travel upcountry to meet with the chief of the area that he came from and see if he could vouch for him. We were prepared to pay his expenses as we know how much he wanted this.

However, on wednesday he surprised Kelvin with all his documents! I guess he had been running up and about, missing practice, trying to get his stuff in order!! It was so awesome to see him take initiative and get his life in order. This ID doesn't just get him on the team but allows him to vote, get a job, go to school, etc. Its kinda a big deal!

So the next day Kelvin took the application form to him (we actually keep copies of the form with us because we hand so many out). I am excited to see his ID!

Who is that chick playing out there?!

2012-01-17T07:31:00.000-08:00

Can you spot her??

That is Ali, a fellow Canadian passing through Kenya. She is a friend of a friend and when she heard that we have a soccer team, she asked what she could do to help. She came loaded with a bag of soccer stuff for the boys and some other kids, something that we always need. Then she asked if she could practice with the boys. "You want to actually practice with them??!?" "Yeah, I do" she replied as if it was no big whoop.

Kelvin was tickled pink to have her come out. And let me tell you, she was fierce. I guess she plays on the provincial team in British Columbia and has even gotten chances to play on the national team. She plays for a big club back in Victoria, BC. So she's pretty darn good. She held her own out there with those boys. I think they were pretty impressed. They kept saying, "Ah! ye in kali!" Ah! she is fierce!

She came off the pitch at the end of practice with a smile on her face. She said it was probably the most intense practice she has had in a long time. She figures that if she was to practice like that everyday, her game would get even better.

Although, she was walkin' like a granny. I think she was quite sore. I bet her muscles are painin' today.

Way to go girl!

Prince of where??

2012-01-16T02:13:00.000-08:00

"I work for the Prince of Hanover."

"The Prince of where?!?"

"Hanover"

I burst out laughing. Hanover? I have never even hear of Hanover.

He began to explain to me where it was in Europe and I just continued to giggle.

Have you seen the Princess Diaries? Well the movie is about a young teenage girl who discovers that she comes from a lineage of royalty in the country of Genovia, a country that she never knew existed. Now, Genovia is a fictional country made just for the movie. So when this fellow mentioned to me that he works for the prince of Hanover, I immediately thought it was a fictional country he made up.

Turns out it is an actual place. (Maybe you are reading this and you already knew Hanover existed so don't laugh at me.)

Last night, Kelvin and I met up with a friends, Kayla, and her friend. They are both Canadians from Vancouver and have come to Mombasa for 2 days to visit. Kelvin really wanted to watch the Arsenal game and we wanted to eat so we went to a bustling beach bar just a little ways from where the girls were staying. Upon arriving at the gate, Kelvin met a guy who he had known from Kongowea. This guy was all blinged out with tiny dreadlocks. The guy also had two kenyan friends who were looking rather snazzy.

Because the place was packed, the three guys sat at our table. I got a bit uncomfortable thinking that they were going to make a move on the girls, but Kelvin reassured me they were harmless. One of the guys offered to buy everyone a round a drinks. All the men ordered beer and we got some sodas. Then the guy offered to buy us another round of drinks. Mighty generous of him. I was beginning to wonder where he gets all this money from. All 3 of the guys had their iPhones and high end cameras on the table. And then he orders another round of drinks (by that time us girls had had enough soda).

As the game ended we started chatting with one of them. That's when he brought up Hanover.

Apparently he works on the yacht for the Prince of Hanover. He grew up in Lamu where his grandfather was the governor. Lamu does attract some pretty high end people, including the Prince of Hanover and his wife, Princess Caroline of Monaco, who own three houses on the island. Having grown up around these people, they paid for his school fees and offered him a job. Now he lives a lavish life cleaning the yacht of royalty. He even showed us that he has the Princes' number in his phone. I guess they are good buddies.

He had some pretty cool stories. He told us that the Prince was set to come to Mombasa in a couple days where he would rent the whole wing of a hotel and have lunch with our new friend. Yah, the guy has got some money.

I actually went home and looked all this up because I didn't believe it (sounded a little bit too much like Princess Diaries). But it's true.

We thanked him for the drinks but he told us it was his friend buying them. We asked what his friend did.

"He is married to the daughter of the biggest share holder of Heineken."

Ah, now it makes sense. The 2 iPhones, eReader and 3 rounds of drinks didn't seem so absurd anymore.

We were all pooped and although these guys were fascinating, I was ready to get my head back into reality. It seemed all too glamourous for me. So we left and giggled all the way home about our interactions. I guess you never know who you are going to meet.

Glorious Washing Machine!

2012-01-13T22:47:00.000-08:00

I caved in.

I finally got my washing machine. I struggled for months whether or not to get one or to keep employing some mama who needs to feed her kids. When one of my friends offered to pay for it (and my family saw what a process it was just to have someone come wash my clothes) I decided that it was a good thing.

Having someone come wash your clothes is not easy. Well at least not for me. Most families have a full time househelp (maid) who is able to wash clothes every day as well as just maintain the house. Since my house is so small, I have the time, and I don't have the money, we don't have anyone who comes in and cleans our house. Therefore, we have to call someone to come wash all our clothes every week.

Depending on the person, you have to prepare a head of time. We had a lady who liked to wash outside. That was great but there is no water source outside so we used to have to fill buckets and buckets of water and bring them outside for her. We couldn't leave her because if she ran out of water, we would have to fill up more buckets. It usually took her all day to do our clothes. I felt like I was babysitting her.

Then we had another one who was quicker and less demanding but he liked to wash in our bathroom. So for hours, we would have this man sitting in our bathroom washing clothes. I am so awkward that I wouldn't like to ask him if I could use the toilet. So I used to hold it till he left (sometimes like 3 or 4 hours!).

I am not comfortable when people are in my house working. I like my space. I also don't feel comfortable leaving people in my house, so I always had to be present. And many of them couldn't speak english, so Kelvin always had to stick around as well to make sure everything was going well. Half of the time, they would show up late or not at all. Then I would be stuck with piles of clothes stinking up my house and going mouldy.

On top of all that, it was getting mighty expensive. I am not sure if it is just that I am white or that the area we live in is a little more upscale, but we used to pay a lot for our clothes to get washed. I used to cringe whenever Kelvin would agree on a price.

SO all of that saying that the decision to get a washing machine was the right decision for us!

And it is glorious.

It's been quite the hassel getting it all hooked up. 5 days later and the fundi still hasn't finished. I have been frustrated so many times with the way they work and their funny little politics.

But its all worth it.

They literally had to bang through our cement walls to hook up more pipes.

Cement everywhere! It flew to all corners of my house. I am still trying to clean it all up.

I know this is random. The day the machine was all hooked up, we celebrated with Kraft Dinner! My family left me a few boxes that I am savouring. Kelvin doesn't think Kraft Dinner alone is real food so I added in some left over ground beef. But oh KD has never tasted so good!

Ta da! There it is! LG Turbodrum wonderfulness. I stared so intently at it the first time I used it. Kelvin said to me, "Goodness! You would think you are a kid who has never seen one before." It has also inspired Kelvin to do more laundry!

I love the way it is done in like half an hour. I love that the clothes are barely damp when they come out (instead of completely soaked when washed by hands which only makes them smell if they don't dry fast enough). I love that we can turn it on before we go to bed. I love that we can chose when to wash clothes so if it is raining, we don't have to wash them. It is such a gift!

Christmas for The Rehma Boys

2012-01-10T05:51:00.000-08:00

First of all, I need to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who donated. I was so humbled by the amount of people who stepped up and gave for our boys. We managed to reach our target and even more!

We planned to hand out the goods on Christmas eve. I was a little hesitant to be honest. I guess I just fear that the boys will feel like they are our 'charity cases' and that we give to them just because it makes US feel good. I always think it makes them feel like they are less than we are which is not what I want at all. I never want them to feel like the 'poor'. I want them to be our friends, sons, companions, community. So I was honestly feeling a little held back from doing this however, I prayed through it and asked God to go before me.

Dad, Mark, Kelvin and I went to the supermarket in the morning. It happened to be the busiest day of the year as we struggled to push our way through the masses of people. We counted out 25 of every food item on our list. Kelvin and I had a budget of what we wanted to spend. It was funny because we actually barely reached the budget. We had a list of things we wanted to buy but we found that they didn't add up to the amount we were willing to spend. We kept coming up with things like, 'Oh yah and we can give them juice.' And then we would add juice and still have left overs. So the boys ended up getting a lot more than we thought they would.

Mark pushing the rice and cooking fat!

Kobwa latched on to my dad. Now Kobwa doesn't even play for our team but is probably our biggest fan. He shows up to every game and practice. I used to see him and always high on something but these days he seems to be clean. Anyways, he is pretty much a part of the team so we asked him to come along as well.

The whole family assembling the food. While this was happening, Kelvin took the opportunity to talk to the boys about it. He wanted to explain to them that this was a small gesture of love. People sacrificed so that they could eat. He kept reassuring the boys that someone indeed cares for them even when it seems like no one is interested in them.

Mallards, in Castlegar, had donated some socks for us so I thought it was a good time to give them out.

Good little workers!

I told you Kobwa latched on to Dad.

There they are looking awesome in their new team t-shirts. I did have a wonderful friends, Klark, offer to make them their own logo that is proudly displayed on their t-shirts. Now they can show up to games looking all official!

I love that my baba is squeezed in the middle of them!!

Kasondra's family sponsors Eric to go to school. It was so awesome to have the two of them meet.

Some pretty happy campers!

They walked home weighed down with tons of food. Ah, my heart rejoices!

So it's a bit of a sad story...I ended up missing the whole thing. Yah, I got stuck trying to send money to a relative. It was THE busiest day of the year so line ups were long and traffic was insane. The boys waited almost 2 hours for us and I wasn't going to make them wait for me just so I could witness it. Then who would it really be about?? It's all for them in the end. However, I did make it eventually and there were a couple who wanted to stick around to see me. I got the low-down from my family after it was all over. I am glad they got to experience it.

At the end of the day, the boys were so grateful. I hope they are beginning to believe that they are indeed LOVED, and WORTHY, and PRECIOUS.

I am resolving to....

2012-01-09T07:28:00.000-08:00

I have never been one to make new year resolutions. I actually can't think of any that I have made...ever. So this year I didn't even bother thinking about it. Actually our new years celebrations included moving into our new apartment and passing out at 9:30pm with ear plugs in (so I couldn't hear any noise from the local pubs). However, there have been a few things rolling through my mind and that have been really pressed upon my heart to pursue this year. There are not so much tangible things (like lose 20lbs by the end of Jan) but are more lifestyle changes.

So here it goes.

1. Be a wife. I don't think I know what that all entails. I know I will make mistakes. I know that I will not be very 'wifey' sometimes. But I want to do the best that I can and figure out how this marriage thing is to work. Being less than 3 weeks married, Kelvin and I are just barely scratching the surface of married life. It's a big shift going from singledom (or being a spinster as my marriage license stated that I was) to the married world. I guess I just wanna keep my eyes focused on Jesus, submit to my husband, be the best helper and homemaker that I can be, and LOVE the Kelvinator with all that is in me.

2. Support my friends and family. I am not sure where this came from but right after the wedding, I felt a strong prompting to start focusing on the people around me. Over the years, I have had so many people support me. That doesn't just mean financially. But just 'being there' for me. Now, I want to 'be there' for my family and friends. I want to open my home to people who need a good chat, a free meal, a family atmosphere, or just a bed to sleep on. I want to attend funerals, graduations, birthday parties, and other events (like my friend Christine Ndela's listening party - will explain at the end). I want people to call me if they need help moving. I want to watch football games of our boys and visit their families and schools. I just want to 'be there' for the people in my life.

Last weekend we went to our good friend's, Senior, concert. He has a wonderful worship band and put on a worship session on January 1st. Once he realized we were there (as it is a shock for anyone to see us as everyone thinks we are 'busy' all the time), he was humbled. He even announced that we were there and asked Kelvin to come up and do the final prayer.

On Saturday we went to a funeral of one of the tenants in Kelvin's house. This particular lady was faithful in greeting me from her kiosk every time I walked through Kongowea. Unfortunately she died suddenly in her room last week and the funeral was on saturday. This wasn't my first choice of plans for the day (it was a beautiful day and we wanted to rent a car and drive around a little) but we felt we had to go. However, when we arrived, we were told that the burial happened 3 hours earlier than they thought it would so we missed the whole thing and she was already buried. Its practically unheard of that anything happens earlier than planned here in Africa.

And then yesterday we attend our good friend's, Christine Ndela, listening party. She is a famous musician here in Kenya and has just recorded her 2nd album. She gathered together her closest family and friends to preview the songs before she did the final editing for the album. She did a mini interview, sang a beautiful hymn and then let us listen to her album. Afterwards we celebrated with fresh mango juice, cake, and samosas. Can't wait to get a copy of that CD!

(Sorry about the dark lighting. I was too lazy to get up and find a good angle)

Our friend, Munga, did a little interview with her before we started listening to her music. It was wonderful to hear her heart and then journey it was to make this album.

She gave us all these sheets to fill out as we listened to each song. We were to encourage her, give comments or critiques, and tell her what our honest opinions. I love that she sought the opinions and counsel of her close friends and family....although I didn't really understand any of the songs since they were all in swahili. I did my best.

Can't wait for her to have her big album launch in a couple months!

3. Bring Jesus into the centre of everything I do. A friend of mine posted this article on facebook just before new years. It really got me thinking. I am definitely one of these people that prioritize my life as 1. Jesus 2. Kelvin 3. Family 4. Work etc etc. And that is not bad but I find that often I put Jesus first yet don't know how to make Him the centre of everything else. What does it look like to put Jesus first in my home? Work? Marriage? I, especially, am good at reading, studying, preaching the bible. I have been in 'ministry' for a few years now. Yet, I struggle to bring Jesus into the other areas of my life. Or maybe I just don't what that looks like (maybe I am doing it). But that is my focus this year - to put Him at the centre. This year Kelvin and I will be working (yes, more of that venture later) and I want Jesus to work in and through me as we work. Yes, folks, a little new for me. I want Jesus to manifested in our workplace, in our daily chores, in our conversations, and in the small, seemingly mundane areas of our lives.

So now that these things are on the big wide web, I guess I am a little more accountable to them. I know I will fall sometimes. Yet I am excited to see His kingdom grow in and around me!

...and the two shall become one flesh.

2012-01-07T00:32:00.000-08:00

"Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife,

and the two shall become one flesh." Genesis 2:24

One flesh, that is what we are now. Hard to believe but so amazing. One of the we things learned in marriage counselling was the concept of 'oneness'. Kelvin and I are now one. And that doesn't mean just physically but emotionally, mentally, situationally, etc. We are to share in time, resources, emotions, material possessions, family, goals, aspirations, finances, etc. I love the 'oneness'. I love that I am no longer an independent person, but one that is attached to another human being on so many levels. It's nice to have a companion.

On to the wedding day...

It really is the day every girl dreams of. Mine was perfect. Of course there was hiccups but it didn't matter in the end. I loved every minute of it.

Some of the highlights of the day:

having the groom and groomsmen come for breakfast. I know its tradition that the bride and groom don't see each other but Kelvin and his guys were staying in our new apartment that had nothing in it except one bed. So I had my lovely ladies help whip up a nice breakfast for them. It was the perfect start to the day.
Relaxing (Yes, I was relaxed) at the resort with my family as we all slowly got ready.
Having my mother do my hair and make up. She cried for almost the whole process.
Walking down the aisle, listening to my friend play my song on the guitar, and having my dad hand me over to Kelvin.
The quick ceremony (practically unheard of in Kenya)
All the colours. The garden we got married in was simply stunning. Add to that the mixture of people and all the different clothes, it was simply beautiful.
Being welcomed at the ceremony by more singing and dancing.
The food! It was amazing.
The cake was even better.
Seeing all our boys, looking their best, acting like princes at a fancy party.
Our first dance. (I was a bit nervous as it is a known fact that white people have no rhythm but I did pretty well. I think I shocked a few people).
Being surrounded by Kelvin's family, my family, and all our good friends all in one place.
The breeze off the ocean made it the perfect temperature.
Kelvin's aunties bringing us clay pots and Kelvin placing them on my head (still don't understand but it was so much fun).
DANCING! Yes, there was loads of good dancing. I remember just looking up and being surrounded by my good friends, my family, Kelvin's sweet siblings, and our boys as we all danced. I just delighted in having such wonderful people in my life celebrating all in one place.
The final hours. The party died down but the band kept playing. Our families and a few friends were the last ones there. I got to just sit and talk with my family while the band played and the breeze came off the ocean. The lights twinkled in the palm trees and a few souls were dancing. It was perfect.
Kelvin and I and Munga, the best man, were the last ones at the party after everyone left. We just chatted and winded down before Kelvin and I left together.

I had 4 goals for the day:

1. Get married

2. Eat good cake

3. Dance to good music

4. Have fun.

I accomplished my goals, that's for sure.

Instead of posting all the photos, my album is open on facebook. You can click here to see them.

The Wedding In Kongowea

2012-01-05T02:49:00.001-08:00

Traditionally, for weddings on the coast, there is a kesha the day before the wedding at the home of the bride or groom. Since our wedding was invite only (so half of Kongowea wouldn't show up), Kelvin wanted to do the kesha so the community could come celebrate with us. I stayed out of it while him and his family organized the whole thing. All I had to do was show up.

I have to admit that it was a blast!

The bride (and her family) are welcomed by singing, dancing and piga vigelegele (making noise with their tongues like cheering) by the women of the family. All the ladies in the above photos are relatives of mine, with Kelvin's mom joyously singing in the middle (with the white top.)

I got big hugs from all my family as I got out of the vehicle. My family also got big hugs as the ladies continued to dance and sing. Then I was ushered into the house.

Kasondra is such a trooper. I don't think she knew what to expect when we arrived.

As I was walking into the house, the ladies covered me with lessos as to hide my face from the groom. I guess the groom is not suppose to see me until the actually wedding. I was a bit confused..I thought this was only a muslim tradition but I guess not. Finally, my dear Aunty came and pulled off the lessos and told me, "well its just tradition but it doesn't mean much to us!" Ha.

So there was a huge party with tons of people...and my family and I got to sit in our own room by ourselves. It was rather ironic that the party was celebrating ME and yet I didn't even get to interact with people. My parents thought it was especially weird. But we ate and were grateful! Kelvin was in the room next to us with strict orders to stay in there and not come out to see me.

Then we danced inside with the ladies!

And my family all got to go outside and dance for everyone.

SO happy the Ronos could make it even for this event!

Baba loved the dancing. I was told she danced more than any of my family.

Meanwhile, I was stuck inside. I could hear all the music and cheering and laughing but wasn't aloud out. Again, I thought it was weird that it was MY party and yet I couldn't really do much. Kelvin snuck out of his room and went dancing. He even came and said hi to me, but then his granny scolded him.

I am so amazed the way the community pulled together for us. They were the ones who made this all happen. I love that the men are the ones serving the food. They are pretty efficient with their long lines of handing over plates. The boy in the middle is on our team. He just came home for holidays after being in an agriculture school in Eldoret. He came back a changed man. He also got to see the Ronos who work for the same organization as his school. It was a really cool reunion.

Some hungry men!

On the left is Kelvin's youngest sibling, Diana (who has a twin brother). And on the right is Kelvin's niece. I always wanted sisters. Now I have six!

Granny herself! The whole shindig went down at her place. Unfortunately, she wasn't feeling great so she hid in her room. She didn't even make it to the wedding the next day. It was too bad as she was one of the people most excited for us.

The food is dished out on these big plates and handed out to people. One dish serves 2-3 people who sit on the floor (or on the dirt) and eat it with their hands. Saves a lot on cutlery and dishes...just gotta make sure your hands are clean..and the hands of the person you are sharing the plate with.

I think Mom and Dad were really touched by the whole event. They didn't know what they were getting themselves into but they totally enjoyed themselves. I think they were more content knowing that I have a family and community that will take care of me.

Days before the wedding and the rehearsal

2012-01-04T00:36:00.000-08:00

Dad, Mark, and Baba arrived on the 19th, just two days before the wedding. In the morning, us ladies went to town to do some shopping and wait for the rest to arrive. Of course we had no end of car/taxi issues (which were sorted out by our awesome friends and my handsome husband) but we made it to the airport on time to pick them up. Baba practically fell over from exhaustion and heat as she got off the plane. But we managed to get her in the car and back to the hotel.

I took the girls to the city market to buy some spices and look around.

Having an early lunch before picking up the rest of the family.

My dad and my brother were such troopers. After over 30 hours of travelling, they still wanted to come to Kongowea to watch our boys play. Unfortunately I didn't get a picture of them, but here is kasondra enjoying the game.

Brothers! Mark and Kelvin got along so great! I couldn't have asked for anything better. I actually got kind of jealous as they would have so much fun together. I have never seen my brother laugh so much.

Rehearsal time! I got just a little teary eyed walking down the aisle.

'Baba in the jungle'

Goofing off with my bridesmaids.

This is Robert, the pastor that married us and counselled us. We couldn't have asked for a better person to bring us together!

Mom and Kasondra in Ilula

2012-01-02T08:19:00.000-08:00

One of the things I HAD to do was take Mom to my most favourite place on earth: Ilula! This is where I started over 6 years ago and has become a treasure to me. Mom has heard countless stories and seen hours of video of this place. My dad went when he was here a couple years ago, so now it was Mom's turn to see my 'home' here in Kenya.

Oh yah, and Kasondra got to come along too!!

Waiting to leave Nairobi. I messed up Kasondra's flight time the night before and thought that she had come out of the gate and got lost. Mom and I frantically raced around the airport looking for her. (I read her itinerary wrong. I though 20:45 was 10:45 when it is actually 8:45 - good thing my friend who was driving us decided we needed to be there early). I ended up asking some older gentleman, who had come through the gate, if he had seen my friend. He goes, "Ah yes, the really tall one? She is still in there." Phew!

Always love when they welcome us. Mom was in tears....Not surprising.

I was so proud of Kasondra. She jumped right in a helped out wherever she could. It didn't take long for her to fit right in. She would wander off for hours and totally enjoy herself.

The children's home has started a new passionfruit project which will hopefully gain an income for them. My mom spent 4 hours pruning the fruits with the kids.

My sponsor child Valentine. How blessed am I that I get to be apart of my sponsor child's life?!

Kasondra fit right in playing basketball with the kids. (Her and I used to play basketball regionally when we were in high school).

Ok, my favourite part of going to Ilula these days is GIRL TALK! The girls are now in high school and quite the amazing young ladies. I LOVE listening to all their great stories from their adventures at school and at home. I am so proud of them. Some of them have experienced some crazy things but have stuck to their guns!

Isn't she gorgeous!?

My mom and my kenyan 'mom' walking to the shamba.

Eva tending to the shamba.

"Ah mzungu! She's actually shaking my hand!"

Mom tried to milk the cow. As you can see, the cow was not impressed and would not allow Mom to do it.

Ladies!

Yep, she fit right in. Her and Apollo (middle) got along great!

Sometimes I wish I could pick this girl up and take her with me wherever I go. I just adore her. We have the most precious talks when I see her.

Our 3 nights there were so fulfilling. Mom was so moved to see the people who have taken care of me all these years. She loved the environment (it actually surprised me how much she loved all the plants and gardens). Next time I will get to bring my husband to meet everyone!

Mama: The first to arrive in Mombasa!

2011-12-31T23:36:00.000-08:00

My mother arrived December 6th. If you had talked to me a week before her arrival, I am sure the only thing you would have heard out of my mouth was 'MY MOM ARRIVES SOON!'. I was almost more excited to see my mom than to get married.

Of course she burst into tears as she exited the gate and saw me standing there. I asked her how her flights were and she blurted out, "I thought I was going to die!" WHY? I asked. " I was SO thirsty" Haha. I burst into laughter. I guess the airlines she took didn't give her enough water so she thought she would die of dehydration. Good thing I had a big bottle of water waiting for her as she got off the plane.

We spend 3 days in Mombasa. I showed her around, we did some random wedding things, we spent a day at the beach, she met some of my friends, and got a glimpse at my life. She thought my apartment was 'rustic' and it took her a while to adjust to my way of living - which she thought was just like camping. But she adjusted well.

My mom loves her eggs! Yummy starbucks and eggs for breakfast.

My mom loved the lady who washes our clothes. They got along well even though they couldn't understand each other. This lady found it hilarious that Mom wanted to take a picture of her.

The clothes drying.

The first day we went into town, I must have run into friends at every corner. I think that was when Mom realized that I do have a life here and that I am apart of a community.

Showing Mom our new apartment that we were slowing moving into. I was happy to see the mosquito netting on the windows!

We spent a day poolside and had lunch at this beachside bar. I got a kick out of the guy carrying a large boat on his head in the back ground.

We got to see a baby goat after it was just born in Kongowea.

Then we headed to Nairobi for a couple days. Unfortunately, Mom got sick one of the days we planned to do some sight seeing. However, she was a trooper. When my Dad was here in 2009, we went to Java House almost every morning. Since then, Dad and I have talked about it a bajillion times at home. Finally I took Mom to taste and see what we had been talking about.

We went to Kijabe for the day. I am saving our seats in the matatu and waiting for the car to fill up with passengers.

Mom makes it to Kijabe! We had the most amazing time wandering through the hospital and Mom meeting my friends. We sat for a couple hours talking with Mercy, the chaplain I worked with while I was there. It was such a good reunion.

This is the view that I had while I lived in Kijabe. Not too shabby eh? Simply gorgeous.

Next up...Eldoret and the arrival of the Maid of Honour, Kasondra!

I'm Back!

2011-12-31T00:26:00.000-08:00

I am back online! Did you miss me?! .... Yah, didn't think so.

I am not sure exactly where to start. Should I tell you about taking my mother to Eldoret to meet all my precious sisters and brothers? Or how she spent hours pruning the passionfruit plants while I got to have precious girl talks with the high school girls? Maybe I should mention that I messed up my best friend's flight arrival time and thought I had lost her in the airport? I wish I could describe my delight seeing all my family (including my Kenyan Family, the Ronos) at the pitch cheering on our boys as they played in the semi finals. Or the sounds of traditional singing and bright colours that welcomed me to Granny's house as they covered my head and ushered me into my own room where my whole family ate fresh goat pilau. Of course, the wedding day must be mentioned from my mother doing my hair and make-up to Dad walking me down the aisle and handing me over to Kelvin to the 'I do's' and the kiss to the yummy food and dancing till the sun went down on the Indian Ocean. Couldn't have asked for a better day. Then we had the the mini honeymoon which we loved;) but family time was the greatest. Lots of card playing, drinking coke, swimming, picking on each other, laughing, and quality family time. Goodness! I almost forgot the boys christmas gifts! Too bad I missed it. Was stuck at the bank but let my family do the honours. Such is life. And now I am nestled in my lovely new apartment, catching up on emails, eating all the yummy treats my family left behind (Doritos, Reese's pieces, energy drinks, cheese, and Mini Eggs) and waiting for my husband to come home.

It was a phenomenal month to say the least. As the days go by, I will add pictures and more stories about all that has happened.

I am blessed beyond belief. This whole month taught me truly how much God loves me, how valuable I am to Him, how He loves to shower me with good things, and how He is always faithful. This past year has been one of my best (but not without its fair share of struggles) and I think I have ended on a high note.

Kelvin and I sat this morning and talked about our favourite moments this year (but we couldn't mention anything from the last month). We revelled in the ways God has used us in Kongowea and were amazed to see how some of our boys are now interning for big companies and turning their hearts to God. We looked at the ways we have grown as individuals and as a couple. I have learned to cook Kenyan food (and absolutely love it too!) which was a HUGE thing for me as well as learning to take care of a household. Kelvin is grateful that God has given him the means to fulfil his role as leader or provider in a deteriorating economy and practically jobless country. And how we have both stretched and grown closer to God's image. And we have loved God with all that is in us.

Happy New Year everyone!

Blogging Break

2011-12-05T10:10:00.000-08:00

Well ya'll, I think I will be taking a break from blogging for the next couple weeks (unless I get the time or have something incredibly juicy to share). Life is getting rather busy right now and I am trying to just focus on my family, my wedding, my future husband, keeping myself cool, and Jesus.

My mother arrives in Mombasa kesho and I couldn't be more excited!! I am tracking where she is at all times and praying her through her long journey to Africa. At least now my family will really understand what I go through every time I come back to Canada. It's not an easy travel that's for sure.

Today I spent the day scrubbing every inch of my house making it ready enough for my momma. This is the first time she is coming to my home. Of course I want her to be comfortable although I know she will have to get used to showering right next to the toilet, having to light the stove with a match, and making sure a fan is always blowing cool air at you from some direction. I am sure she will look at some of my cooking utensils and wonder how I survive. I think she will just love all the fresh fruit and veggies (including the large, juicy avocados she loves to eat every morning). She told me she was brining a large toblerone bar so we can have a chocolate fondue will all the yummy tropical fruits. Oh I can't wait.

I woke up this morning with a lump on my neck. First thing I did was panic. My grandmother just died of cancer. One way she knew the cancer was back was because she would get lumps on her neck. So naturally my first thought was that I was dying of cancer. I called Kelvin and said I needed to go to the doctor this afternoon to figure it out. I didn't want to take my mom to the doctor with me on her first day in Kenya. I calmed down and did some research and deducted that it was unlikely to be cancer. The doctor also said the same. He did some blood tests and said I had an infection (although the blood results were not completely clear.) He prescribed some anti-biotics and told me to come back in a week if nothing changes. I am not completely thrilled at the timing of this but I will deal with it.

Otherwise we had a wonderful weekend filled with lots of friends and fun. I have such an amazing community here. I am so blessed to have a place where I belong.

We were invited to an appreciation lunch by a ministry group that we have helped out with. The food was amazing and the company was even better. Kelvin took this picture of me with his iPhone (an old one I brought back from Canada). Sorry, that's the only picture I took this week.

We really appreciate prayers for these next couple weeks. Pray for ALL our travel plans! We have people coming from Canada, UK and the other side of Kenya. Also, Mom, Kasondra and I are going to Ilula to visit the children's home for a couple days. Pray for wedding plans. Pray for calmness. My purpose is to enjoy this process and not let the little things stress me out. Pray for KELVIN AND I! We are getting MARRIED! Whoop whoop!

Love you all. Next time you hear from me, I will be Nikole Opiyo......

When your day doesn't go as planned

2011-12-02T10:42:00.003-08:00

Yes, I had one of those days where pretty much every plan I woke up with, didn't happen.

I was actually really excited for this friday in particular. I had planned to have some sweet girlfriends over at my house and just have a good girly night of movies, food, and laughter. I think once I get married, these nights will be few and far in between so I wanted to soak up this chance while I had it.

It is also my best friend, Rahab's, birthday on monday so I wanted to make a big, scrumptious brownie cake for us to devour. Naturally, I needed to clean my house and make all the beds. I also had to plan for a nice supper to treat the ladies too (they are all students so when they come over I try treat them- mostly I just feed them meat cause they can't afford it themselves).

I had planned to go to town with Kelvin to finish buying art supplies for our boy who is in art school. He starts his next term soon and needs his supplies ASAP.

And one of the girls from my bible study was going to spend the night with us as she is working just down the road from me for the weekend so I told her to just come to my place instead of going all the way back to her place.

Ok, so none of that happened. Well, that's not true. Some of it happened, but not the way I thought it would.

My morning was slower than usual just getting myself up and out and ready for the day (which in hindsight, I am thankful for). Just as I sent Kelvin to go buy me some eggs for the cake, Rahab called and said that she was being suddenly evicted out of the place she has been living in for 4 years. She needed to be out within the next day or two. She apologized and said she couldn't make it for the girls night. But I couldn't just leave her to do all this by herself. Kelvin and I started making some calls to try hire a car to get all her stuff packed and moved. Well, that turned out to be more difficult than we thought as most of the people we know had already hired out their cars or they were just playing games with us or we had to wait for a few hours to get one. It was frustrating. Kelvin finally got a lead on a car in Kongowea and he rushed to go see it while I met Rahab in town. It turns out the car that Kelvin thought he was getting was on the other side of Mombasa completely. UGH! Anyways, we managed to get someone to get Rahab's stuff and drop at her place in the morning.

Then we went to buy the art supplies. Which was lovely. SO much fun buying all these treats for my boys.

We went to have lunch which I had not planned for. We splurged and went for a pricey lunch too. I had already stuff in the house to make a cheaper lunch.

After that I went to the grocery store to buy some more food for the other girls who were suppose to come tonight. Since Rahab wasn't coming, I scratched the cake idea and just focused on a yummy meal.

I got home and waited and waited and waited and waited for the ladies to show up. I finally call them and they say they are on their way. By this time it was already 8pm and I kindly told them that I would be exhausted by 9pm so no use even coming. I guess there was a big accident which caused a huge traffic jam. Kelvin got caught in it too and it took him 2 times longer to reach home than it usually does.

Then my other friend, who was suppose to come stay with me after her work, didn't show up either. I called and she told me she was home. She explained that she tried calling and calling me but the network wasn't letting her through. It's true - the network has been crazy today not letting anyone get on the internet or make calls. So she just decided to go home.

Its now 9:30 and I am alone with a lot of yummy food leftover.

This isn't abnormal. Things in Africa just don't happen the way we expect. I am used to it by now. And usually God has a good plan for things not going the way WE planned them. Even if it drives my organized, logical, western mind up the wall.

Wedding Thoughts

2011-11-26T20:16:00.000-08:00

Here is just a random mix of thoughts that are running through my head concerning my wedding:

I am less interested in the wedding but more focused on getting married. If at the end of the day, I am married to Kelvin I will be a happy lady.
I am sure that people in Kongowea are more excited for my wedding than I am. It is the buzz in the community. Talk of the town. Women are fussing more over what they are going to wear, how they are going to do their hair, their jewelry, their make up than I am. You would think Kelvin is some sort of politician with all this hype. If we didn't make it an 'invitation only' wedding, I think we would have 600 people there. No jokes.
Speaking of invitations, they seem to be a major issue. Everyone we meet is asking for their 'card'. We have issued all the cards so if you didn't get one, you can't come. Period. So please don't fuss. We invited 320 (yes...320) of our closest friends and family. If you weren't invited, that means you are probably not as close to us as you think. Another thing, please don't ask for a card for you teacher, pastor, friend, etc. I had my sister-in-law tell me I need to invite the teacher of my other twin sisters. I said NO.
We even have people who are willing to pay for their friends to get into the wedding. We have to keep a strict number because we are paying per head (which isn't usually done here). Once we explain that, we have people who are offering to pay for their friend's to get in.
We have invited all of Kelvin's family from upcountry (trust me, they are an army of people themselves) but we are not providing their transport, a place to stay, or a new outfit for them. Because of these 3 factors, most of them won't come. But we still get calls from them asking for money to come. I am blessed to have an awesome mother-in-law who totally agrees with us and doesn't even push us to hand out more money. She is not even allowing her own family to stay with her in Mombasa. I am so thankful for her.
People are admiring how 'simple' our wedding is. We are not doing some key Kenyan things like decorating the cars or hiring professional make up artists or wearing excessive jewelry. We have also decided to put a big bowl of candy as our centre pieces. Never heard of here in Kenya. I love it.
We got our wedding song the other day and Kelvin can't stop listening to it. Honestly, I have fallen in love with it too. The local band we have wrote the song especially for us. It has our names, our parents names, our hometowns and everything. LOVE IT!
I love being called 'Bibi Harusi'. I will miss that once I am married.
Prayers are being offered all over the place for us. My sister-in-law told me yesterday how her church just finished 3 days of fasting and prayers for our wedding (meaning they didn't eat or drink for 3 days because of us). Part of me is so humbled, but part of me thinks it is a little crazy.
I am no longer going to fuss over whether or not my bridesmaid dresses are going to fit properly. I am making all of them even for 2 girls from Canada. Because we didn't get measured properly by the fundi who is making them, they could very well not fit well. However, I was at a wedding yesterday and saw that the majority of the clothes the women were wearing did not fit them properly. It worked and no one cared.
Our marriage license has costed 6 times more than we thought it would. With all the special letters we had to get, my trip to Nairobi to the embassy, a special license to marry outside, a special license to marry a kenyan and a foreigner, and all the other small details, we probably could have put a down payment on a house. Ok, not that extreme but it was a lot of money.
As we sat at the registrar's office to get our license approved, we watched countless young black ladies and white old men come in and get married. Some looked like they were in love, but many looked like it was just convenient. I was just so thankful for my relationship with Kelvin.
Kelvin has been my hero through all of this. When people ask me if I am stressing over the wedding, I can honestly say No. But that's because Kelvin is doing most of the work. He is dealing with everyone who is being fussy, he is making all the small arrangements, he is calm, cool, and collected. I am so excited to be his wife!

Logo

2011-11-22T06:24:00.001-08:00

I am putting a call out to all those graphic design whizz' out there who wouldn't mind helping us out a little.

I am starting to get the Christmas packages ready for the boys. I want to order the t-shirts for them soon. I wanted to design some sort of logo to go on the front of the t-shirt. Actually, I wanted it to be the official logo for the team (cause we know that any great football team needs an emblem/logo).

Now, I thought I could do it myself but after spending hours scrunching my eyebrows at my computer, I realized that I do not have the appropriate programs or enough graphic design skills to do it.

So if you would like to give your time and talent and bless our team with their own official emblem, please let me know. It would be greatly appreciated!

Tea and Chocolate Covered Digestive Cookies

2011-11-21T06:31:00.000-08:00

Sunday morning I got the phone call I had been dreading. I knew it was coming sooner than later but when I saw my home phone number show up on my tiny Nokia phone, my stomach dropped. My precious daddy, keeping it together for me, sweetly told me my grandmother had passed away.

If you know me well, you know that my granny and I didn't have an ordinary relationship. She was more than my grandmother, she was one of my best friends. Naturally, I am completely heartbroken after losing my 'bosom buddy', as my granny used to say about her closest friends.

We never lived near my granny so when we got the chance to go visit, we were elated. Our parents used to drop us off at their house (my grandfather was there when we were younger as well but it was granny who did most things with us), and spoil us completely rotten for a few days. She would take us to the Castle Fun Park and give us $20 to buy tokens for all the games. We would collect tickets upon tickets and granny would take them home, organize them, and save them for us so we could 'cash' them in for a big prize. She would take us to the movie store and tell us we could rent as many movies as we wanted. We would get home and sink into the couch for hours with our eyes glued to the TV. Sometimes she would even come along and scratch our backs lightly with her long, delicate fingers. She always made me a cup of tea, the british way, and adorned a saucer with chocolate covered digestive cookies. Her tea was the best I have ever tasted. Grandma never failed to send us a card for every occasion. She would rarely spend more than $1 on a card but always made sure it gets to us. The last one I received from her was an engagement card that she sent all the way to Mombasa.

She was such an elegant woman. She made everything look elegant. She had beautiful broaches, berets of all colours, beautiful necklaces, and classy outfits. I think it was largely due to her upbringing in the 'Old Country', Wales. Because of this upbringing, she had the greatest vocabulary. I wonder how many grandmothers told their kids to go upstairs and do their "ablutions" before they went to bed. Or used the phrase 'three sheets to the wind' to say that someone was drunk. I wish she had written down all the crazy idioms she used to come up with. We loved her for that. And even after living in Canada for most of her life, she still pronounced 'water' as 'wauter'.

We grew closer as I got older. I used to fight with my dad over who was going to call grandma that day. I loved talking with her. We even knit a whole blanket together one summer. It still sits on my bed. She gave me her car which my brother now drives. She was always there to say goodbye to me when I left for Africa. I always thought it would be the last time I saw her. However, she was always the first face I saw as I stepped off the plane back in Canada. And, of course, countless afternoons drinking tea and eating chocolate digestive cookies.

When I came home from Kenya in 2007, my dad broke the news to me that she was diagnosed with cancer. This broke my heart. The cancer she had was not curable but was treatable. They gave her a couple years to live if she was willing to endure the horrors of chemo. Which she did. I was in Vancouver when she went through her first bout of chemo. It was nerve wracking but she handled it well. Slowly she started shedding her hair and she would complain that her finger tips and her nose would go numb (which also happened when she drank too much). She survived that chemo and the cancer went away from a while. Then it came back and she did the chemo again. It went away and came back. Went away and came. I lost count how many times she did chemo. We thought she would never die. We used to tease her and say she would outlive all of us. Her strength and positive spirit always amazed us. We knew she was suffering. She missed my grandfather every second of her life. It's no fun being sick and alone. But she never wanted to be a burden to anyone and her focus was always our well being even to the very end.

The day before I left to get on the plane back to Mombasa, I spent one last day with her. I think we both knew it would be the last time we saw each. We talked a lot about Jesus and what was waiting for us in heaven (I am still not sure if she made it there). We cried a lot. We watched the Justin Bieber movie together and she even gave me a little dance move or two. We giggled. She told me a few dirty jokes and cackled at herself. She made me a cup of tea and opened up a package of chocolate covered digestive cookies. We talked and prayed. She told me about her younger years and all the things she had overcome. Finally I gave her one last hug goodbye then she pushed me out the door not wanting to turn into a blubbering mess.

Finally the chemo stopped working and the cancer was taking over. Grandma was also tired and not willing to fight any more. She didn't want to be a burden to us anymore. So she went into hospice and slept peacefully until she finally stopped breathing on November 18th.

I miss her already. I wish I could pick up my phone and hear her voice again. So keep us in our prayers. It has been a tough year with losing two grandparents but we are making it through. I am excited that my family will be with me in Mombasa in the next couple weeks where we can celebrate my wedding but also remember my grandma.

A guys day out

2011-11-20T05:31:00.001-08:00

The day at the pool with the boys was a big success. They totally enjoyed themselves, acted like princes living it large in a fancy resort, poured their hearts out in some teaching sessions Kelvin facilitated, and bonded as a team. God did wonders and we are so thankful!

Kelvin told them to be there at 7:30am. We expected they would be late but most of them showed up on time.

Big smiles even before they got in the gates

I just joined them for the sessions that Kelvin held. I wanted to see their reactions to the things Kelvin was teaching them about. This particular session encouraged them to grow as young men, make goals, work hard, and trust God. My favourite part was when Kelvin encouraged them to remain pure aka keep it in your pants until you are married. Kelvin was speaking in swahili but he made some great gestures as he pointed down demonstrating the way 'it' should be pointed until they are married. He then told them that 'it' should not be pointed up and wagging all around. He moved his finger up and back and forth. We erupted into laughter. I think they got the point.

Kelvin told me that, during the 2nd session in the afternoon, the guys really opened up about their self esteem issues. On the outside, these guys seem tough, strong, confident but in reality, it's just a cover. Kelvin was humbled as he listened to their hearts. Some of them told him that they don't like the way people perceive them in their community, that they are embarrassed when they are physically abused by their friends, that they feel like they always fail and never do well even though they work hard, and that (this was the hardest one for me to hear) some of their parents tell them they are worthless no bodies. Is your heart breaking for them like mine is? Kelvin dove into scripture and taught them what God thinks of them and how amazing they truly are.

They had an awesome day. Thanks to all those who helped make this happen!

Beach Day with the Team

2011-11-18T07:37:00.001-08:00

As it is coming close to the end of the year and Kelvin and I are getting busier with all the wedding plans, we thought that we should do something fun with the team. Part of our goal with the boys is not just to be their coaches and put them into schools, but to mentor them, disciple them, teach them, train them in the ways of God and the ways of life. That's what sets us apart from other teams. And the boys know that the team is not an average team. The community also sees that we do more than just coach and give them nice practice equipment. Our goal is to create responsible, constructive, respected, and God fearing men in the community. Slowly, that is what is happening.

Our plan for tomorrow is to take 25 of them to a local beach resort where we managed to strike a deal with the staff there to let us swim, give us lunch, and open up a small conference room for us for a couple hours in the morning. Kelvin has prepared a small workshop teaching the boys about growing into the people they want to and were created to be, growing closer as a team and brotherhood, and growing closer to God. He also has planned some team building exercises and games that they will do before spending the rest of the days chillaxing by the pool.

Pray that this day would be fruitful, that the boys would be receptive to Kelvin's teaching, and that they would bond as a team.

No impediment to marriage

2011-11-17T01:11:00.001-08:00

I am back safe and sound in Mombasa. The trip was successful but extremely draining. I travelled 18 hours on a bus in a 24 hour time period. I was fortunate to get a bus with air conditioning on the way to Nairobi (something I didn't pay for) however it felt like the middle of winter inside the bus. We were all shivering. Once the driver turn off the AC, the bus got all humid and soggy inside as none of the windows opened.

I arrived in the morning, grabbed a quick cup of coffee, and got a matatu to the embassy. I totally enjoyed my time at the embassy. I loved seeing the red maple leaf, pictures of our leaders, some native art, and Canadian documents. The place was clean and friendly. I even had several Canadians, who liked like some pretty serious diplomats, ask me if I was ok and was getting good service. The letter I needed took all of 10 minutes to process. The consular also encouraged me to register online that I am in Kenya so that Canada knows of my whereabouts. I left there just so blessed to be from a country that actually cares about me and my welfare.

I went and booked a bus home for 1pm, had a quick lunch, and waited for the bus. Some guy took my seat and refused to move claiming that it was his. I asked to see his ticket and it definitely did not say C1 but I chose not fight. I took his seat instead only to find that it was soaking wet and stinky. I think they had left the window open and it poured with rain. Thankfully, I brought an extra T-shirt with me that I put on the seat. The bus left an hour late and got stuck behind some slow moving semi trucks. The men in the bus kept having to pee so we stopped the bus every hour or so making me rather impatient. I bet most women had to pee too but because we can't do it discreetly, like men can, we have to hold it. So why don't the men just try hold it like the ladies?? This is so typical of Africa and a huge pet peeve of mine. Anyways, we didn't arrive in Mombasa till 10:30. The dashing and ever-so-handsome Kelvin came and picked me up and escorted me home. I was pooped.

I got what I needed, a document saying I can get married, and I am grateful to be back in Mombasa.

Nairobi and back in 24 hours

2011-11-15T08:05:00.000-08:00

Tonight I am headed to Nairobi so I can go to the Canadian High Commission first thing in the morning. I need a letter from the Canadian government stating that I am not married in Canada in order for us to get a marriage certificate here in Kenya.

I hope to get there in the morning, have a cup of tea, and go straight to the Consulate. I am praying to be done fairly early so I can get back to town and catch a 1pm bus back to Mombasa. I don't want to spend more time in Nairobi then I have to.

This morning I woke up feeling pretty terrible. Throughout the day, I have started feeling better but am still pretty weak, have little appetite, and have a terrible headache. Pray that I would stay healthy on this quick, whirlwind journey.

Improvising

2011-11-14T06:09:00.000-08:00

Kenya just doesn't have the same 'stuff' that we do in Canada. That 'stuff' that makes life just a little bit easier. 'Stuff' that perfectly fits, never breaks, always smells good, etc. There are days where I miss small gadgets (life swiffers and vacuum cleaners) that make life just a little bit easier. But most days I totally love the simplicity of my life.

Today I was quite impressed with my improvising skills. I wanted to bake a zucchini cake as I had this large zucchini in my fridge that I knew wouldn't get eaten. I also had one lonely egg left that was probably going to contract salmonella in the next couple days. So I set my mind to baking a cake.

I have had some issues with my oven. Even on its lowest heat, it burns everything. When I make cookies, I can't let my eyes off of them for more than a minute or else the top or the bottom will burn. The only other things I do in my oven is bake chicken (which turns out great), roast zucchini slices, toast bread, or heat up something.

So I put on my thinking cap and tried to recall everything I have learned about the way my oven works and how I should go about baking the cake.

And this is what I came up with:

Yes, the baking sheet was a tad too big for me to spread out all the batter on to. I ended up taking a piece of cardboard, folding it, and then wrapping it with tinfoil to cut the pan in half. I then greased the tinfoil and the rest of the pan lightly with oil and smeared the batter inside. I also took a large piece of tinfoil and placed it on top so that the top wouldn't burn. I put it in the oven, on a higher shelf, and checked on it every few minutes. Once I saw that the bottom was pretty much cooked, I took off the tinfoil and let it bake another 2 minutes. And voila! The perfect zucchini cake! It sure is delicious!!

Corruption

2011-11-13T07:59:00.001-08:00

"the act of corrupting or the state of being corrupt, moral perversion, depravity, perversion of integrity, rot, pollution, foulness, contamination."

The other night we had an awesome conversation at my youth fellowship about being IN the world but not OF the world. The speaker's question was, "what would kenya look like if all the youth determined to live by God's standards and not the worlds standards?" There were some great answers but the one that really caught my attention was corruption. We would not be corrupt.

Corruption in Kenya is often linked to government and police. However, a pastor in the audience challenged us all with a humble thought. He explained, "Most times we think corruption is for other people yet fail to realize that we are doing it to but in small ways. For example, after this meeting we know there is tea and mahambri (a local donut-type food). The church provides 1 cup of tea and 1 mahambri for each of us. Yet most of you go and take 3 or 4 mahambri which are suppose to be delegated for others. In the end, people don't get their share because you were greedy and took it."

We all laughed because we all know it is true.

My roommate explained to me the other day about the lunch program at his school. He said that they used to be able to go out of the compound at lunch and buy from some outside joints. However, the principal's wife decided to make a business out of it and opened a small lunch program in the school. The principal then banned them all from leaving school property forcing them to buy from his wife. And my roommate said the food is horrid. At the expense of his students, the principal is allowing his wife to make some money. Disgusting.

I then remember volunteering in a small Christian nursery school. The children used to give the snacks to the teacher to keep in her desk so that the monkeys don't snatch them away. At the end of the day, the kids would line up to get their snacks from the teacher. As the teacher handed each snack to the kid, she would take a large sip or bite. If it was a juice box, she would push the straw in and take a few sips. If it was a bag of peanuts, she would rip it open and pour a whole bunch into her hands. I was mortified as I watched this supposedly God fearing teacher taking from her students what has been delegated to them.

Most people don't realize they are corrupt. Maybe they don't truly understand what corruption is. From what I understand from scripture and other definitions, corruption is taking something that wasn't delegated to you in the first place.

So at the end of the youth fellowship, we all headed over for tea and mahambri. As I was chatting with a friend, she blurted out, "I am going to get another one. I'm so hungry. Do you want one?" Appalled, I asked her, "Did you not listen to what was said today? You realize you are taking from someone else what is theirs." "Yes I know but I am so hungry." She replies.

I don't think she was very impressed with my response as she didn't talk to me the rest of the night.

Surprise Bridal Shower!

2011-11-13T07:35:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, Kelvin said that he was taking me somewhere special in the afternoon and that it was a surprise. He was acting funny all day so I knew something was up. Just as we were about to leave, I went to my room to collect my purse, and Kelvin ran out of the house. As I turned the corner from my room, a whole bunch of sweet girlfriends shrieked in excitement! I knew exactly what it was as I had been told I was having a surprise bridal shower but didn't know when exactly it was or what it would entail.

So we all shrieked a little followed by bigs hugs and lots of gabbing. We all sat down in my house and devoured a cake and 3 bottles of soda. Rahab, my best girlfriend here in Kenya, had organized the whole thing. She brought a married woman to come and talk to me about marriage and give me some Godly advice (although I didn't quite agree with all of it but that's not the point.) It was a sweet couple of hours with lovely ladies.

Then then showered me with some random household items including glasses, bowls, cooking utensils, serving plates and spoons, a grater, and a nice photo frame for my house. I was completely humbled that they would get me some pretty sweet gifts (I know its not easy for them to fork out the money for this stuff).

It was a precious afternoon that's for sure. Completely unexpected and totally humbling.

Rahab and Juddy getting ready to start the shower agenda.

I took pictures with everyone who gave me a gift. This is Tina (right) and Faith.

All my gifts. My house is becoming so Kenyan.

A happy "Bibi Harusi" - Bride to be

This was my favourite gift because it is totally and uniquely african. It is called a kifumbu and it is used to make coconut milk. I guess you grind the coconut with a grater or a local contraption called a mbuzi. You put the shredded coconut inside this tube thing along with some warm water and then you ring it out to get the milk. I will have to try it one day. I am so excited to show my mom it!

Martha is also in the beginning stages of planning her wedding. She will be the next one to have a bridal shower.

And the lady who put it all together, Rahab. I thank God for her. She is such a gift to me. I have very few white friends so to find a deep, meaningful friendship with a Kenyan has been a gift straight from Heaven!

The Ant Diet

2011-11-09T03:54:00.001-08:00

I was chatting with mom last night about the frustrations of power outages. I was explaining that, for some reason, our apartment and a select other few in our compound had no power. The apartment next to us and across from us had stima (electricity), but not us. Because of this, my freezer started melting and water started leaking from my fridge. I couldn't boil any water to drink so my water supply was running low. It was a good thing there was a slight breeze so the fan wasn't completely necessary. My computer was almost dead. I wanted to save a little of the battery incase of an emergency.

As I was talking with mom, she blurts out, 'I couldn't live without my computer. It has all my work and everything. I just couldn't deal with that.'

"Yes, it is frustrating sometimes but you learn to live with it. The thing that is really bugging me is all the ants in my kitchen!"

I then continued to tell her how all my food is in the fridge so the ants can't get at it. The sugar, peanut butter, and rice doesn't need to be refrigerated. But in my house it does. Every morning I wake up to a stream of ants flowing in and out of the smallest holes in my kitchen. I have tried to block their little gateways but they find a new one. It drives me up the wall. I have succumb to the fact that ants are now a regular part of my diet. They are small so you can't see or taste them if you cook them, and they are terribly difficult to pick out of your food.

Recently I have noticed these bites on my body. I know they are not mosquito bites. Usually, I feel some stinging sensation on my skin and then a day later a big welt emerges. This welt is incredibly itchy for days until it turns into a small purple dot and then disappears. It then dawned on me that, I usually feel the stinging as I am dealing with ants. The sneaky little creatures not only take over my food, but also attack my skin!

"aw, nik, that is gross! I don't know how you deal with that. I can't believe it." My mom exclaims.

Sometimes I don't know how I do either. Grace, that's all I can say.

Church with Girls and Eid ul Hajj

2011-11-08T06:12:00.000-08:00

My prayer last week was to go to a girls school. I came home one day a little discouraged, after a game with the boys, and just craving to hang out with a group of girls. I prayed about it and even told Kelvin my desire. I absolutely LOVE hanging out with fiery, sweet, girly girls. It's rather ironic because I am totally not that kind of girl. But I love girls who are.

On friday, I went to my regular bible study/youth service meeting that Word of Life puts on. At the beginning of the service, I overheard some people talking about how they are going to lead the service at Mama Ngina girls school this sunday. I didn't show it, but I SO wanted to go. Mama Ngina girls are so much fun, full of energy and zeal for God, and have hearts focused on pleasing Him. Anyways, throughout the service, I kept telling God how much I would love to go but only if He allowed it.

At the end of the service, my old boss from Word of Life pulled me aside and mentioned that they needed more girls to go and someone to do a testimony. Not wanting to show my sheer excitement, I said, "Sure. I would love to. Be there at 8am sunday."

The Mama Ngina girls didn't disappoint. 3 hours of song, dance, laughter, encouragement, love, testimonies, the Word of God and so much more. My heart was full that's for sure. After the service, Kelvin and I stayed behind and had some time to chat with a few of the girls. I value sweet conversations with young ladies who are putting God first in their lives.

Boy, can they ever sing and dance! I will try upload some videos I took of the service. The choir had come and sang an incredible song that sent goosebumps up my spine.

After the service, we headed for lunch in Kongowea. Sunday was a Muslim holiday which celebrated the end of Hajj, the 10 day pilgrimage every muslim is suppose to make to Mecca. With any Muslim holiday, you know there is going to be GOOD food.

And I was not disappointed. The family we went to eat with made amazing goat biryani, probably the best I have ever eaten before. And I am not usually a big fan of goat meat.

However, the meal was about the only thing I like about the situation. It was rather uncomfortable for me. After the eating, everyone started pulling out the alcohol, cigarettes, and miraa. Hmm, not my fancy. Kelvin and I were about the only ones who were participating. However, Kelvin had an advantage as he could speak swahili. He could connect. As for me, I struggled to connect. I don't drink, smoke, chew drugs, or speak swahili so I was a fish out of water. What made it worse was that a cousin of Kelvin's had brought along her much older, european fiance. He was a nice man but, in the midst of all this, the man was handing out money and supplying all the drinks for everyone. Again, not my style. The people were lovin' being showered with cheap pleasures while I sat in the corner, struggling to connect.

I think was surprised me the most was that we were celebrating a muslim holiday and yet they were doing the most 'unholy' of things. I was chatting with one, who had just come from filling up on the local brew, about how he has to stop drinking, wait 40 days, and then go to a mosque because right now he is 'unclean'. He kept telling me how much work it is to stay 'clean' for allah. I took this opportunity to talk about Jesus and how He can make us 'clean'. The guy insisted he could do it himself. I then decided not to continue trying to reason with him, especially as I smelt the alcohol on his breath.

It was tough for sure. Kelvin noticed I was struggling and suggested we leave. My heart hurt as these are the people I so desire to reach and yet we are so disconnected. Afterwards, Kelvin and I went to a local resort to listen to a live band. While sitting there, I burst into tears. The fact is that this week has been hard. More than usual, I have felt out of place and like I really just don't fit in. I have made various mistakes, had people laugh and mock me, and get heckled wherever I went. After a tough week, the tears overflowed Sunday night. I didn't need to be encouraged. I just needed to cry.

Kelvin was great and listened to my cries. Soon, we started talking about ministry, work, Jesus, how to really help the poor, how to really follow Jesus, and how, most times, following Jesus means that life will be tough. It turned out to be a pretty awesome evening as we poured our hearts out to each other, listened to the local music, and allowed the breeze from the ocean cool us down.

This is a brand new mosque that was right next to Mama Ngina girls school. Because it was a holiday, the mosques were full. On our way to church, Muslims were outside praying. Mosques were so full that people were praying on the streets.

Goats lined the streets.

Everyone is suppose to kill a goat and I think they are suppose to give some of it away to the poor. I am not sure how many actually do that but its good in theory.

It was an overwhelming Sunday. I am thankful for a new week!!

Overwhelmed

2011-11-03T04:01:00.000-07:00

Where to start...

Life has been overwhelming the last couple weeks. It has been hard but also it has been incredibly joyful and exciting. I am overwhelmed in a good way.

First of all, I am reading a book that has rattled me up. The Hole in the Gospel is written by the president of World Vision. It is an account of how he accepted God's calling for him to take the position even though he had a high end CEO job. Then he talks extensively about what is happening in the world. The reality of poverty, war, disease, hunger, corruption, etc. That's about when I started to feel overwhelmed with hopelessness. There is SO much need, so how do you even begin to make a difference? How are we so oblivious to what is going on in the world? The West is so disconnected from it. I spent hours reading and my heart shattering into tiny pieces for how little we are helping people who literally HAVE NOTHING. I live in Africa and try to help the poor but even I feel like I don't do enough. (By the way, the book has totally convinced me not to buy a washing machine. I would rather pay some struggling single mother to wash my clothes. I actually tried to compromise and say I would pay someone to put them in my washing machine.) Eventually the author started to turn things around and offered encouragement to me, hopeless at that point, that I was not called to save the world but to obey Jesus and what He has asked me to do for the people He loves. I am called to be His hands and His feet, His love and His compassion, for those who are suffering. I think I am on my way there.

I still haven't even finished the book. I still have about a third left to read.

Next, Kelvin and I have started marriage counselling. I am personally loving it. I am overwhelmed at the way God has designed marriage and what purpose it has. I am overwhelmed that God's gift to me is Kelvin, an amazing, loving, handsome, God-fearing, man. I am overwhelmed at how hard marriage and relationships can be especially as we strive to obey Jesus' commands to love, respect, submit, forgive, stay committed to one another for the rest of our lives. I am in awe of my Creator, that's fo' sho.

On that same note, wedding plans are coming along well! Only 7 more weeks to go! We are having some issues with the invitations. People are just not understanding that, if you are not invited, don't come. We didn't give you a card for a reason. We have had numerous people ask us if they can bring their coaches, neighbours, teachers, and other people. NO! is my answer. People keep calling us asking for their invitation, as if we have forgotten it or it got lost. If you didn't get a card, it probably means you weren't invited. It sounds harsh but, at this point, I have to be.

We have also found the apartment that we are going to move into once we are married!! It is a sweet little one bedroom place just up the road from where I stay now. Currently they are re-painting it and getting it all fixed up for Kelvin to move into it in December. After the wedding, I will join him! It has 24 hour security and bars on all the windows (my top priority) and flowing water (my second top priority). Gosh, 7 weeks can't come soon enough.

On to the boys...

There are days where I am super excited about them and some days I am so frustrated.

I am personally struggling to connect with the boys on a deeper level. My relationships with them are very surface level. Language is a barrier as not all of them can speak in English. I think the fact that I am white and I am a girl puts a bit more of a divide between us. And then I am more of a matronly/motherly figure. They have a lot of reverence for me. I bring most of the finances and they know that without me, Kelvin really can't do what he does for them. I guess it is not a bad thing. I think I like the respect and reverence they have for me. But sometimes I just wish to connect a little bit more. On the other hand, kelvin does an amazing job with them. They just adore him. I have no idea how he does it, but they respect and honour him to no end.

We are having issues with one of them in particular. It's hard when you do so much for him and then he turns around and hurts you for no reason at all. I guess you expect him to change but that doesn't always happen. His issues are so much deeper than we understand or have the capabilities to deal with. We are just praying for guidance in how to deal with the one that has strayed.

But then there are some who are making huge leaps forward and, if I dare say, are becoming some pretty awesome human beings.

And I have been overwhelmed by the response to our call for Christmas gifts! People are stepping up from everywhere to bless these young men. I am so looking forward to doing some shopping for them! Thank you all!!! Asanteni Sana!

Then there is always the joys and tribulations of everyday life. Yesterday, I had a rough time at the pitch watching the boys play. I just got so much unnecessary attention from everybody around that it was exhausting and draining for me. I am white. So!? However, I am looking forward to a great afternoon with a good friend, chatting and chomping on home made cookies. Simple everyday blessings.

All in all, I am overwhelmed. But oh so thankful for all that is going on in my world.

Chillaxin' poolside

2011-11-01T07:39:00.000-07:00

I don't take advantage of the beach as much as I should. I always tell myself that. Considering where I live, I should really purpose to enjoy myself when I can. It's not that I can't afford it, but I guess life just gets busy sometimes.

I pretty much begged Kelvin to take me to a resort for the day. We kept trying to find a day but things just kept coming up. We decided that today was the day and nothing was going to change that.

My main reason for going was to try and even out this ugly tan I have on my back before my wedding. No one likes awkward tan lines in their wedding photos.

I also wanted a day for just Kelvin and I to hang out. To enjoy being engaged. To just have fun with one another. We brought along some of the materials that we had been given for our marriage counselling and discussed it a bit. I am realizing more and more what a gift Kelvin is. A gift straight from God Himself.

Half way through the day, I told Kelvin that we need to do this more often. He didn't agree. He then began to explain that this really isn't his thing. I guess I kind of got that vibe when he kept avoiding coming into the water to swim. I asked him what he likes to do then. His answer, 'play football. watch football. read about football.'

This is actually the resort that my parents will be staying at when they come for the wedding.

I think I might even come by myself one day and just enjoy a day relaxing by the pool. Bring my bible, a couple books, and just hang out with God. That sounds like a lovely idea.

The Kelvinator enjoying the pool on the sidelines.

Christmas for the Boys!

2011-10-31T22:56:00.000-07:00

I had a good friend email me the other day telling me about the World Vision Christmas Gift Catalogue that she received. Many charity organizations send out “Alternative Gift Catalogues” during the Christmas season giving people the option of giving their loved ones a donation in their name. My friend then asked me if we have set up anything like that. She said that she would love to give to something a little closer to home rather than World Vision. She got me thinking.

After a little brainstorming and talking it over with Kelvin, we have decided that we would love to bless our team with new team t-shirts and a large basket of food to take home to their families!

This year has been incredibly tough for Kenyans. Some of their staple foods have doubled in price in the last 8 months making it harder and harder to fill their bellies. While food prices have soared, salaries and unemployment rates have stayed the same. Our boys have struggled big time. Barely a week goes by when we don’t have a couple of them approach us because they can’t pay their rent or they aren’t eating. It breaks our hearts. Even Kelvin and I are feeling it and have had to cut some yummy foods out of our diets. Plus, it’s hard to treat yourself to homemade peanut butter cookies when your friends are eating one small meal a day.

Our goal is to give 25 boys maize meal, cooking oil, sugar, bread, milk, beans, onions, tomatoes, salt, paraffin, margarine and even meat (which they hardly eat anymore). On top of that, we will have team t-shirts made for all the boys. They have been asking for official team t-shirts (that they can show up to games in) for a while now.

We can purchase all of this for only $25 per boy!

We want to appreciate the boys and their commitment to the team. We also want to share Christmas, one of the most important holidays for us, with them.

If you would like to give one of your loved ones a Christmas gift for a deserving young man, you can make your donation on the left hand side of this blog. Please make sure to write “Christmas Gift” under the ‘donation to be used for’ tab. I will then send you a card that you can give to your loved one explaining the donation you made in their honour.

So if you are struggling to find a meaningful gift for someone who seems to have everything (or is really hard to shop for ;)) why not consider the gift of giving? Please pass this on and encourage others to take part.

Thanks for helping us bless our boys this Christmas!

Thankful for Community

2011-10-30T05:47:00.000-07:00

It's not easy to pick up your life in Canada, everything you know and all the people you know best, to come and settle in a completely foreign country. A country where you stand out because you look different, you talk different, your ways of life are different, etc. A country where you can't speak the national language and the culture is so upside down compared to yours. As much as I love it here, there are definitely days I miss home. I miss my family most. But I think I miss things that are easier. Life in Kenya is tough and sometimes I just need a break. A break from the heat, the dirt, the noise, the constant heckling, the poverty that surrounds me, the bland food, and so on.

I think I will be forever torn. Good thing I don't have to be on earth forever but have a citizenship in heaven that I belong to.

However, since I have returned, I have been overwhelmed by the community that God has placed me in. I have REAL friends - not just people that I think I should try help or minister to - but true, beautiful, wonderful friendships. I have an awesome church that is not perfect but probably one of the godliest churches I have ever attended. I have people who love and care for me. I am so honoured that one of my best girlfriends' here, Rahab, is throwing me a surprise bridal shower (she told me she was but I don't know any of the details) and inviting all my girlfriends to come. I can walk through the streets and randomly bump into people I know. I don't feel different from them. I don't feel like the white girl who they have to be nice to. I feel like one of them. And they treat me like one of them.

And I didn't make all these friends through Kelvin. If Kelvin wasn't in my life, I think I would still have this community around me.

Of course, it has taken me 3 years (yes it has been 3 years since I first moved to Mombasa) to build these friendships. I had to do a lot of adapting and learning of the culture and what goes on in their lives. But I have integrated to the best that I can (although I still can't speak swahili fluently - that is my next goal as I am really starting to feel the pressure to learn it). People appreciate when you understand them. People appreciate it when you don't think of yourself as greater or better off than them, or like you are here to come and help them because you are rich and they are poor. People want love, acceptance, friendship, fellowship, care, and to feel like they belong.

And that's what I feel here in Mombasa. Like I belong.

Varnishing Queen

2011-10-27T23:21:00.000-07:00

Ok, so it took me a week to get it finished. Things just kept popping up and days passed without me even realizing. However, today my little wooden stand is finally finished.

I know this is a minor job but it is the first time I have ever done varnishing (or any sort of handy work like this). Kelvin kept giggling at me as all I could think about was getting home to varnish. I just love to learn new things.

As I suspected, I didn't use half the varnish that I was told to buy. So I saved myself $1.50 and half a can of varnish. However, I am still scraping varnish off my skin and had to do a minor haircut after I dipped the tips of my hair into the can of varnish. Whoops!

My house is getting closer to being mould free!

"Wishing You Success"

2011-10-24T10:01:00.000-07:00

"He wants a success card. You must get him a success card." We were told (not asked or requested) by a cousin of ours. Her son is doing his KCPE exam in a few short weeks. He needs a card wishing him success.

In Kenya, students are require to do two national exams. At the end of primary school, they do their KCPE exam which determines which high school they can go to. And then, in grade 12, they must do another exam, the KCSE, which pretty much determines the rest of their lives (aka which university they go to and what kind of job they will be able to get). I personally dislike this system. It takes all that you have learned in school and puts it into one exam that determines everything. In Grade 12, they are actually tested on everything they have learned since gr.9. That's a lot to study. The system needs to change.

So the exams are approaching (actually the gr. 12's have already started theirs). These tacky success cards are found everywhere now. Every street corner they sell them. Prayers are being said all over the country. Some churches dedicate whole sessions just to pray for the "candidates" doing their exams.

I never pray they do well. I always pray that they get what they deserve. If they study hard enough, I pray that they get the result they worked hard for. Sometimes I think people rely solely on prayers saying God will give them the grade they need. It's all in His will. So if they get a terrible grade, "It's God's will". I disagree. Its because you probably didn't study hard enough. God's will is that you work hard.

But I'll save that ramble for another day.

So I bought our cousin's son the tackiest card I could find. These are a big hit. If the card is not completely over decorated and it doesn't play music when you open it up, its a let down to the one receiving it.

I just noticed that the card actually says "Happy Birthday" on it even though it is a success card!!!!! Haha, Kelvin and I are having a good chuckle over that. Only in Kenya....

It lights up inside and plays a keyboard version of "Fleur de Lys" inside.

He is bound to be successful with this card.

I am about ready for a washing machine.

2011-10-20T23:44:00.000-07:00

I woke up early to gather all my stuff that needs to be washed. We had called our guy who washes our clothes to come today. After two weeks of pouring rain and crazy humidity, the sun has finally appeared long enough for my clothes to dry.

All the humidity has made everything smell. And if anything was wet and put into the laundry bin, there is a good chance it started growing mould.

Its now about 9:30am and the guy as yet to appear. He usually shows up around 7am. We have tried to call him but his phone is not working. Now, all my stinky, mouldy clothes are in piles needing to be washed. UGH!!

A few days ago Kelvin and I went to a friend's house for lunch. My friend, who is a swiss lady, said that the first thing she bought was her washing machine and that she doesn't think she could live without it. I had been asked if I wanted to buy one but I figured that I can employ someone to do it, help them support themselves, and just save a whole swack of money.

I am now thinking otherwise. I have been looking at a few machines in the supermarkets and realized they are much cheaper than I had thought. The temptation to buy one is stronger than ever. Maybe we will have to buy ourselves a wedding gift.

On top of all the stinky clothes, my wooden shelves have gone almost completely mouldy. I noticed a funny smell coming from it and when I looked closer, I found a ton of green fuzz all over it. I spent some time wiping it down and decided that I needed to seal it somehow. We went to a local carpenter that said that we just need clear varnish and he will do it for us for about $1.50. Great, I thought. However, after we talked a little more, I realized that he was trying to jip me by making me buy more varnish than I needed. He told me that 1 litre would do. I talked to my dad and he said that he used a quarter of a litre to do 3 coats on his entire wooden kayak. So I was suspicious as to why this guy said 1 litre. In the end, I resolved to do it myself. Why should I pay someone when I could do it myself? Plus, it will be a good learning experience for me!

Then I tried to attack the army of ants that collected in my kitchen over night. Sneaky little brats. I shooed them away, got rid of the source (my garbage), and then closed off their tiny hole where they were escaping from. I watched them scurry around, as if their world was ending. Harsh, I know. But now my kitchen is ant free.

Funny enough, as I was spending time with God today, I randomly asked for supernatural patience today. I don't usually pray like that but God must have known that I will need it.

Praying my washing man will show up soon!

School Progress

2011-10-19T09:48:00.000-07:00

Today, Kelvin and I decided that we had to go check up on some of our boys at school. We currently have four in Mombasa at four different institutes all studying four very different things.

Our first stop was for a boy who needed us to go pay for him to go on a field trip with the school. We headed to the school ready to pay the fee. Once we got there, we had a chat with the dean of students and the boy's teacher who told us that he was not impressed with our young man. Apparently he was caught cheating in one of his exams. He was asked to bring in a guardian and said he didn't have one (we fill in as his guardians as his parents live in another part of the country). They told him he needed to write three apology letters to the school. When I read the letters, I giggled. They read something like this, "I sincerely apologize for being caught cheating in my exams." He was sorry he was caught. Not sorry he cheated. I think it was just an english mistake but I thought it was funny.

The dean made the decision that he would not be allowed to go on the field trip because of his actions. Fair enough. The dean began to explain to us some of the crazy things that some kids do in their school. I started to realize that our kid was not out of the ordinary.

The teacher then let us see some of his assignments and previous exams. We were shocked to see that he was one of the top students in the class. We are not sure why he felt he needed to cheat when he seemed to be pretty bright. None the less, the school handled it well and Kelvin plans to talk to him at practice tonight. There is another field trip in April that he will be able to attend.

We then headed to the art school where our goalkeeper is studying. We have made pretty good relationships with the staff so they were happy to see us. Upon walking in, the receptionist said, "We tried calling you a few weeks ago but you couldn't be reached." I knew this wasn't good as I had given her my number in case something was not going well with our kid. She explained that he had missed almost 2 weeks of school and they were getting worried. After the 2 weeks, he called and said he went upcountry for a burial. Kelvin and I looked at each other puzzled as he never mentioned this to us. I am pretty sure it was a lie. The real issue was that he didn't have the money to get to school and back. That made more sense.

We met with his teacher who said that he is a bright kid with a very natural talent for art. She showed us some of his work (one of which is the picture below) and said that she was happy with his progress. But then she stops abruptly and says, "But he tunes out the last hour of class. The first hour he is focused but the second hour he seems to get tired. He always starts talking about soccer." We kind of giggled just because we know him so well and how he doesn't like to miss practice. We continued to talk to the lady about some other good and not so good things and how we can help. It was a very positive meeting. The teacher seems really invested in him which I really appreciate.

A few things stood out to me with both of these meetings:

1. The boys are naturally quite bright however it is their characters/behaviours that are hindering them. I find this all too true in so many instances around here. In as much as we can help people, if their characters/behaviours don't change, then it's hard to move forward.

2. More often than not, it is poor teaching that makes kids not to do well. As I was looking through some of the marks of the first boy, I would notice that in some classes, no one got over 40% on a test. You can't tell me that all the students just didn't do well. We also had another boy in high school who got all D's and E's on his exams yet he was ranked 11th out of a class of 60.

3. Parents/Sponsors/Guardians rarely check up on their kids. I think all the teachers we have met are so appreciative that we come and take time to check in with the kids. Sometimes there are some real issues that need to be sorted out but there is not effort from guardians. I think it also makes them pay more attention to our boys.

4. Education is so different from the West. Half the time I just smile and nod when I see something I don't like or doesn't make sense to me (and that happens a lot). Growing up a teacher's kid and in a great education system is something that I can't take for granted.

More Pictures of the Weekend

2011-10-18T09:33:00.000-07:00

Ok, finally managed to upload the rest of the photos!

Biryani goodness. It's just too good to be true..mmmm

Old town Mombasa is predominately Muslim and has a strong arabic influence. It makes for good food and beautiful structures.

And its quite dirty. We missed the tourist street and took the back road.

Beautiful Diana!

The sun decided to bless us with it's presence for a couple hours. Just long enough to stroll the beach

Yah, he can be a little girly at times.

Stunning woman.

Smiles after a wonderful day.

Master chef extraordinaire! I was so excited to find broccoli in the market so we ate it every meal for a few nights.

Thanks Diana for a wonderful weekend!

Back in Mombasa

2011-10-18T07:52:00.001-07:00

I had planned to upload a swack load of photos from my weekend with my friend, Diana. However something is wrong with my server and it didn't let me download the rest of them. So this is what you get. I will try upload more tomorrow.

Like I mentioned, I had a sweet friend come visit this weekend. Despite the poor weather, we did manage to have a wonderful time. I totally love entertaining people and always welcome people to come visit (hint hint). It was great to have some good chats about God, life, ministry, africa's overwhelming problems, and what we are suppose to do about it. She is the child sponsorship coordinator for a non-profit that works in Kenya, Sudan, and Congo. She manages about 1000 sponsored children. Pretty amazing eh? I picked her brain on a lot of more logistical things of running a smooth sponsorship program (as we have 7 boys who are sponsored now) as well as some other organizational things. She was a huge blessing to me and Kelvin. And it was pretty sad when we dropped her at the airport yesterday.

She did bring along a pretty fantastic camera and decided to be a tourist, feeling unashamed to whip out her camera whenever and wherever she wanted to. I think I am too proud because I don't want to look 'touristy'. So these photos are not mine.

I took Diana through Kongowea and we sat at the pitch while the boys practiced. To my delight, Zizou brought his baby girl, who they have nicknamed Nikole, to the pitch to have a good snuggle with me.

Mealtime. Yummy!

Old town's narrow streets.

Old town's artsy side.

I will try put up more pics later

Just to clear things up..

2011-10-17T07:51:00.000-07:00

....I am perfectly safe.

I have had a few people contact me asking if I am safe.

the answer is yes.

Today has not been a very good day for Kenya in the news. I am not sure of all the details that are happening but I know that it is far out of reach from where I stay. Most of the action is way up in northern Kenya.

Keep the country in prayers. I guess you never know what could happen. But you could say that about any place in the world really.

For me, I am fine. Actually quite content.

A Flooding Mombasa

2011-10-14T00:37:00.001-07:00

Finally a little glimpse of sunshine has peeped through the clouds today.

At least the rain has stopped. It had been raining since I returned here on Saturday.

You are probably thinking, "gosh Nikole, you are such a baby. It's just rain." You are right, it is just rain. But in Mombasa, it makes everything go haywire. Mombasa is generally really hot, sunny, and humid. They do have very mild rainy seasons where it drizzles or pours on and off for a day or so. However, it does stop and at least let your clothes dry and all the puddles disappear.

Not this week. Mombasa has had torrential downpour. They actually calculated that it poured for almost 24 hours straight a couple nights ago. In a town where everything is dirt and there is no such things as indoor malls or dryers, it just leaves everything messy. Mud, guck, water, dampness...yuck.

It has gotten so bad that it was even one of the top stories on the news last night. Almost 200 people have been displaced in Mombasa because their homes have been flooded. 3 people died in an accident due to the rain. Homes, stores, and schools have been damaged. Mombasa lacks good infrastructure so something so abnormal and extreme as this rain has had some severe side effects.

For me, my house smells. Everything is damp and can't dry. I have pretty much been hiding in my house the last couple days on mould control. And you can't wash any clothes cause they won't dry but yet they will get some mildew if they stay in the laundry bin. I have now laid them out all over the floor in another bedroom as to keep the smell contained and reduce the growth of mildew.

On a more positive note, I have loved the cool weather and the sound of the rain. Who doesn't love to curl up on the couch with a hot cup of coffee and watch a movie??

Today things seem to be a bit better. I am grateful as I am picking up a friend from the airport today who has come to spend the weekend with me. I am hoping to show her the sights, eat the yummy food, and hit up the beach providing the weather holds out.

Oh mister sun, sun, mister golden sun, please shine down on me!

Kidney Bean Sickness?

2011-10-12T03:56:00.000-07:00

Beans are a staple food here in Kenya. They grow well and are cheap as well as nutritious and filling. I personally have never made them because they sell them cheaper on the road outside than I could make them myself. By the time I use all this gas boiling them, I might as well just go buy them outside. However, I came home and found a large bag in my house of beans. Since they were there and I didn't want to waste food, I thought I would attempt to cook them.

I was told that if I soak them over night that they will take less time to cook. So that's what I did.

About an hour later I went to peek on them and found that they had softened considerably quicker than I thought they would. I showed Kelvin and he told me not to soak them any longer or else they will split. Instead, boil them for 15 minutes and then put them in the fridge. So that's what I did.

After they finished boiling I showed Kelvin what they were like. Without thinking anything of it, I took one bean and popped in my mouth. Kelvin freaked!! "You know you are going to be running to the toilet all night if you eat them like that." "It's just a bean. I will be fine" I said. "Sawa, don't call me when you are sick."

So I decided to look up if you can really get sick from uncooked beans.

Turns out you can get very sick!

I guess raw or half cooked kidney beans contain a really strong toxin that, with eating as few as 4 or 5 beans, can cause severe nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.

In order to make sure these toxins get eliminated you must them rapidly for at least 10 minutes. Many people make the mistake of soaking them or just putting them in a slow cooker. But they must be boiled!!

My stomach was in knots thinking about this one bean I ate. I did more research and found that I had to eat at least 3 of them before I could get really sick. Glad Kelvin screamed at me after I ate just one.

So tonight I am going to attempt to make the beans.

I am definitely going to make sure that I boil them fiercely before eating them.

Settling in at home

2011-10-11T03:03:00.001-07:00

I just managed to get my internet up and running this morning. I am now just catching up on emails, facebook, blogs, and tons of other somewhat mindless things on the internet.

It feels so wonderful to be nestled back in my little home in Mombasa. On sunday, I was leaving church with Kelvin and a friend overwhelmed with contentment and peace. This is home. I do not always like it and it seems to get more dysfunctional by the second but its home.

Instead of writing huge paragraphs about my journey, my observations, and thoughts that I have gone through over the past week or so, I am just going to do it in a point form list. Here is goes:

Saying goodbye was easier knowing that I was going to see my family again in two short months.
Saying goodbye to my grandmother was horribly emotional as I am not sure if I will ever see her again.
The flight to Amsterdam sucked. I already hate planes even if they are smooth sailing but I felt like the plane was rocking back and forth for the first 5 hours. Then Amsterdam was having some terrible winds and at one point threw our plane to one side causing everyone to gasp. It was so foggy outside that we didn't see the land until our wheels almost hit the ground. All I could feel was that we were going down. The flight to Nairobi was much more pleasant. There is no better feeling than having your feet firmly on the ground.
Seeing Kelvin again was pure joy. I felt like we could have talked for hours catching up on life.
Found an awesome wedding photographer in Kenya.
Saw a dead body just minutes after it had crashed on its motorcycle. The helmet was completely smashed, blood everywhere, and some innards were sprinkled on the road. Such a raw moment and made me really thankful that I have been safe. Made me ponder about life and how quickly and unexpectedly it could end. I was amazed at how so many people stopped what they were doing just to stand by the road and stare at the dead body. Move along people! I am sure you have some where else to be.
Drove by another accident on our night bus home. I thought we were getting hijacked by a gang because everyone in our bus gasped and woke up. Again, they just had to get a look at others' misfortune.
I thought our bus would be the next one to crash the way our driver was driving.
Mombasa has been gloriously cool since I got home thanks to a small storm that has made its way through the area. It has poured rain all night drowning out the blaring music from the local bars. Although everything has turned to mud and none of our clothes can dry on the line.
Men cannot clean houses. I came home to a very neglected home. I spent my first day cleaning every forgotten corner.
Mould has also started to appear. I guess its gotten crazy humid thanks to all this rain. Just gotta keep on top of things so this mould doesn't get out of control (don't worry, it's not that extreme.)
Jet lag has been terrible. I have never experienced it like this coming back to Kenya. The last few nights I have been wide awake at 1 am spending time with my Kindle and sleeping in till mid morning while feeling groggy till mid afternoon. No fun.
I pulled a muscle in my lower back yesterday trying to move around my new mattress. I try not to bend as much as possible.
I am excited to start writing out my wedding invitations.
Some of my neighbours have disappeared. I am told they went to Europe with their older white husbands.
I have a sweet friend coming to visit this weekend from California. I love visitors!
Kelvin and I are getting more and more ready to get married as the days past. Only a short couple months and we will be husband and wife!

A little glimpse of life for now. Power is out and my computer is about to die. Talk to you all later!

It's Official!

2011-10-03T10:17:00.000-07:00

The Rehma Boys are officially a registered charity!!!

This is such a huge blessing!

We actually teamed up with my auntie and uncle who run a non-profit already. They were looking for more projects to take on as they had shut down some of theirs and we were praying for a door to open for us to register as a charity. It just matched up so well!

We are more inspired than ever to move along with the project. We have some big visions for our team, our boys and the entire community. Kelvin and I spent the better part of the year wondering where God was taking us. As the time passed by and doors closed, it was made very clear that we are indeed suppose to be in Mombasa. And we are so excited to be there.

So what does this mean for YOU?

Well, as a registered charity we are now able to issue tax receipts (to Canadian residents only). I realized what a huge deal this was when many people were hesitant to give knowing that they couldn't get any tax breaks. But now you can! I have also set up online giving which makes giving so much easier and more convenient.

Another huge benefit to being registered is accountability. We now have a board of directors and people to help us with the finances watching to make sure that we are being good stewards of our money. We are also excited to have a team of people who are willing to help and guide us as we make decisions concerning our work.

Uh isn't God amazing???!

So if you would like to give to the Rehma Boys, you can click the link on the left hand side of my blog. I have also updated their site (www.rehmaboys.com) to give you a better idea of what we are doing, where we are going, and how you can help.

Thanks for staying invested in our lives and the lives of the precious young men we love so dearly!

Here are some random videos of the boys that I had stored on my computer and wanted to upload with my awesome internet.

"You don't live here anymore"

2011-09-26T13:08:00.000-07:00

Last week my mom told me that I need to pack up my room before I go back to Kenya.

"But why mom? Most of my stuff is organized in boxes. There are a few books on my shelves and pictures and some other things but my room is pretty organized."

"Nikole, you don't live here anymore. Take your stuff to Kenya."

I wish.

I have some good stuff. I have some awesome books. I have great kitchen supplies that I had when I was in college. I have awesome clothes. All this stuff I could use in Kenya.

It's just getting it all there that is the problem.

I have become pretty inventive with the way I pack so I manage to sneak a lot of little items in. However, with weight restrictions and a 2 bag limit, getting all my stuff to Kenya is a bit difficult.

That is why I am so glad that I have 4 family members coming over for the wedding in a couple months. Each of them get 2 suitcases. My mom will need both her suitcases for her stuff. My dad and brother could probably fit all their stuff in one suitcase combined. My Baba may need her 2 as well but I am going to try convince her to give me her extra suitcase. And then they each get a carry on which they can stuff with my clothes, towels, and other non threatening items.

So today I am packing up my room. My mom just informed me that she doesn't necessarily need me to get rid of my stuff since 'I still am their daughter' but just to organize it. I need to make piles of stuff that I want them to bring and put it in order of priority so that, if they don't have enough room, at least I will get the most important things.

I don't know where I will put all this stuff in my house in Mombasa. Poor Kelvin will be swimming in my Canadian junk.

The Countdown

2011-09-21T09:55:00.001-07:00

Three months today and I get to marry my best friend, the Kelvinator!

Yah...I'm excited!

Two weeks today and I get to hop on a flight and head back to my home, my love, my life in Kenya.

Yup...I can't wait!

Showered Indeed!

2011-09-12T10:03:00.000-07:00

Showered with kind words, well wishes, gifts, hugs, food, and loads and loads of love! Yesterday I was indeed showered at my bridal shower. What an amazing day it was. I will let the pictures tell the story.

A relaxing drink before the guests arrive

Nikki is a super star. She did such an amazing job helping to put this stuff together. She isn't the most eloquent public speaker but she did an amazing job.

So many amazing gifts!

Louise brought me to Africa for the first time in 2005. I don't think either of us thought I would stay there forever.

Such amazing friends!

Baba made my favourite lemon poppy seed cakes and decorated them so beautifully.

The day was an absolute blessing! thanks for everyone who came and made me feel so special. Now on the wedding!

Morning Thoughts

2011-09-11T08:49:00.000-07:00

I was up at 6am this morning. Lately I have been getting up this early, or earlier, after sinking into sleep around 9:30pm and getting a solid eight and a half hours of sleep. On weekdays, I usually find my parents sipping coffee and watching the news at this time. However, today is a Sunday which means that my parents try to sleep in just a wee bit more than the rest of the week.

I quickly grabbed my computer to check what was happening in my life, my friend's lives, and the rest of the world. Yesterday, I had got news that a large ferry sank between Zanzibar and Pemba Island.

You are probably wondering why I would even know that or care about it.

Well, good friends of mine live on Pemba Island. And I have a couple other acquaintances on Zanzibar too. The two islands are less than an hour flight from Mombasa. They also have a similar people group as the people in Mombasa, who I mingle amongst everyday. Recently, the Zanzibar ferry had been coming up in a lot of my conversations (mostly because I heard that is one of the roughest ferry rides and that they actually give people puke bags before they board the ferry) so I was appalled when I saw the news that it had capsized. The boat was heading to Pemba after large Eid celebrations. The boat was 300-400 people over capacity and hit some shaking waters in the middle of the night. The boat is now at the bottom of the ocean, possibly trapping hundreds of lost lives.

I looked at pictures of the tragedy this morning. My heart hurt watching people line the shores waiting to see if their loved ones were the ones jumping off the boats or the ones being carried off wrapped up in fabric, ready to be buried. UGH.

I noticed that the dead bodies were wrapped up in a local fabric called a khanga. It's a common fabric that is used all along the coast of east africa. I have many of them myself. I use them for curtains, towels, bed sheets, etc. I am acutally going to wear one today. Ironic? crazy.

On to today....

Today is my bridal shower! Yes, and I made a beautiful dress from the khanga material before I left Mombasa (Kelvin was delighted when he saw me in it - his african queen). I am just thrilled to have so many close friends and family come to see me today and celebrate with me. I have been overwhelmed with everyone's generosity. I forgot how giving we can be over here. People's main questions are, "where is your gift registry? what should we give that you can take home? Should I give the wedding and bridal shower gift together?" I guess I didn't realize there was so much giving involved with weddings. I honestly just wanted ya'll to come hang out with me for a couple hours, eat good food, chat, laugh, play some games. The gift giving has blown my mind. I am grateful though.

My mom has gone all out for the party. I think that's a mom thing; something she dreams of for her daughter. Yesterday we picked up two dozen baby yellow gerbra daisies for the party plus a bouquet and a corsage. My dad spent the day getting the yard in order. I cleaned the inside of the house. I am looking forward to an amazing day celebrating me getting married!

Speaking of getting married...I am so excited! I miss the kelvinator....big time. We chatted this morning on the phone, like we always do, and I realized how much I miss him and my life in Africa. I will definitely be ready to go back in a couple weeks. Ah dreamy....

Finally my parents woke up. I went to join them on the couch with a cup of coffee. We got a call from an auntie who couldn't make it. I welled-up listening to her beautiful words to me. Family is so good.

Then we turned on the morning news just in time to hear an amazing ending to a heartbreaking story that has been on everyone's mind in our province for the last few days. A young 3 year old boy went missing about a week ago. The police sent out an amber alert for the whole province and hundreds (possibly thousands) of people searched for him day and night for the last week. This morning he was found and reunited with his family. I can only imagine the relief.

Now it is 8:45 and my precious, loving kitty cat is walking all over my computer trying to get my attention (so if there is any spelling mistakes, blame the cat). I am grateful for her affection.

Hope you all have a blessed Sunday! I know I am going to.

Counting Coins

2011-09-08T18:37:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my mom casually mentioned to me that she had found a couple of buckets that were full of loose change. She told me that if I wanted to separate and roll them, that I could have the money.

My parents do this to me often.

They know that I value little bits of money. For me, even a small bit of money goes really far. So my parents will use that to get me to do things for them. For example, when the recycling is full, my dad graciously offers that, if I go down to the depot and sort all the cans and bottles, I could keep the earnings. The profit is small, usually around the $10 mark, but I do it. Because ten bucks goes a long way where I live.

First thing this morning, as I drank my coffee and watched the morning news, I started counting up all the coins.

By noon I had made more money than both my parents did today.

From pennies to toonies, I raked in a whopping two hundred and forty dollars!

I look forward to depositing my riches in the bank tomorrow...

My Best Friend's Wedding

2011-09-05T11:03:00.000-07:00

I am not the only one in wedding season right now. Quite a number of people in my sphere of friends are getting married within the next year or so. Danika, one of my best friend's since Gr.7, became Mrs. Jamie Cominotto this weekend! What a beautiful, lovely, heartwarming day it was to see my dear friend, who I have watched grow into a beautiful woman, become 1 with a great man.

I teared up watching her walk down the aisle so elegantly with her Daddy.

They did a neat ceremony that blended her traditional Doukhobour culture with his Catholic roots.

I loved seeing so many old friends. Jenna (right), Nikki and I used to play basketball together in gr.9 on a regional team.

Bubbles for the Bride!!

Simply Stunning...

Congrats to my beautiful friend Danika!

Family Time at the Salmon Spawning

2011-09-05T08:19:00.000-07:00

When we were little, it was a tradition that, the weekend before school started, mom and dad would take us to Kokanee Creek to watch the red bodied salmon spawn. Since my brother is leaving back to university tomorrow, we decided to take a family day and relive an old tradition.

I guess there isn't much to see but a whole bunch of red fish trying to swim upstream.

Then we found the playground...and became like little kids again.

Mark slayed me on the teeter-totter. He is just a wee bit heavier than I am now.

Mark has this incredible core strength that none of us can understand. He love playgrounds and training himself on them.

We have an old picture of the 3 of us in this exact same spot so we tried to recreate it. It didn't work as well now that mark and I are both giants and can't snuggle on mom's lap anymore.

I adore my family.

Soakin' up the last bit of summer

2011-09-02T11:18:00.000-07:00

The last few days have been a bit sketchy. They start off beautiful but mid-morning they cloud over. Just as you put your bathing suit on and head to the beach, the clouds roll over the mountains. Then you get to the beach and just pray that the sun will break through the clouds. God hears your prayers and the sun pops through the clouds for a couple hours before disappearing behind the clouds that threaten to rain.

Well that's what happened to us yesterday.

In the morning, an old high school friend surprised me and showed up for breakfast at my house. We chatted for a couple hours and decided to pack up and go to the beach. Despite the sketchy weather, we totally enjoyed relaxing at the beach for a couple hours.

Alex, my high school friend, and his buddy blew up some floaties for Nikki and I to float down the river in.

Alex enjoying sitting in the water and catching any rays that bounce off that water.

My brother even motorcycled out and joined us for a few hours. Him and Alex giggled like little girls playing in the water and making jokes.

I was pretty impressed with the sweet rides we all drove. A huge diesel truck, a mercedes convertible, and a slick motorcycle. Not too shabby.

Alex and I actually go all the way back to Kindergarten. I spent kindergarten and gr. 1 at an elementary school out of town before moving to Robson where my dad was the principal. Alex and I were in the same class. In gr. 10 Alex moved to my high school and we got to reconnect and become friends all over again.

Just days after posting this, I was digging through some pictures and found this one from Kindergarten. There I am (the one with the boyish, wavy haircut), and to my left is Mr. Alex himself. So precious!

Pass Creek, Wedding Dress Shopping, and Old Friends

2011-08-31T11:47:00.000-07:00

Today has been the coldest day since I got home to Castlegar. The clouds rolled in early this morning covering the blue sky and making way for some cool breezes. It's the perfect day to stay inside, enjoy some coffee, and work on the computer. With such beautiful sun, you almost feel guilty staying inside. Now, I have a great excuse to continue plugging away on my computer.

A couple days ago, a few friends and I went to Pass Creek Falls, a place we used to go all the time when we were growing up. It's the best summer, friends, rope-swing, secret in the forest. It looks like it should be in a movie. I am just so amazed that I got to grow up in a place like this.

The water fall is a bit dangerous but the pool at the bottom is pretty harmless. Doesn't that rope swing just scream 'Come try me!'.

My childhood friend, Nikki, trying to be playful like we used to be.

On Monday I got to go wedding dress shopping!! It's one of those days that you always dream about and then when it gets here, it's just not as wonderful as you think it is. Ok, maybe that's just my opinion.

The whole process was a lot more exhausting, emotional, and tiring than I thought it would be. It was definitely FUN! I don't want to sounds proud but, to be completely honest, almost every dress I tried on looked awesome on me. I was the perfect wedding dress size and shape. The ladies I worked with thought I was one of the easiest brides to dress. I kept getting dresses thrown at me to try on because they all looked good on me (with the exception of a couple). The only problem was that now I had so many to chose from. I didn't try one on and go, "yes that's the one!"I had to really think and decide between so many beautiful dresses. One of the biggest things to consider was lightness and movability. It will be crazy hot in December in Kenya so I didn't want anything I was going to die in. Also, I really want to dance up a storm so I have to be able to move (and pee) in it. In the end, I think we did find the perfect dress for my Kenyan wedding.

Mom and I exhausted after a long day of trying on dresses.

Nikki and I have been best friends since Gr. 2. Mom dug up this photo of us at a school ski day. I think we were in gr. 4 or 5 in this picture. 13 years later and we are still best friends!

Picking up a Stranger

2011-08-25T10:56:00.000-07:00

I used to work across town during the summers. Every morning I would drive to work secretly hoping that I would get a chance to pick up a hitch hiker. For some reason, I had this heart to pick some person up and give them a lift while pouring out some love on to them in my car. I wasn't going to pick up just anyone. It had to be a girl and I preferred if she was alone. I wasn't willing to drive them past where I worked so I would have had to drop them off there and then they would have had to find a ride further.

After two summers, I didn't get the chance to pick up any one.

After my failed mission, I was driving up to Pemberton, on the coast of British Columbia, with a friend of mine when I started telling her my desire to one day pick up a hitch hiker. She laughed at me and promised that if we saw one along the way, we would pick her up.

To our surprise, we turned the corner and there was a cute girl with high heel shoes and a classy pea coat sticking her thumb out at us. We burst into laughter at the sheer absurdity of the situation and pulled over to let her in. She definitely wasn't the grungy, torn jeans, dreaded hair, smoke in one hand kind of girl I had imagined picking up. Instead she had a suitcase with wheels and a short mini skirt with J.Lo style sunglasses holding back her hair. We gave her a ride till Whistler (we learned she was a professional snowboarder) and then continued our journey.

However, yesterday I got the chance that I had been waiting for for two summers.

I was driving home last night and passed two ladies on the other side of the road of me. They were trying to get a ride to the direction I was just coming from. As I looked in my rear view mirror, I recognized the girl's face. She was a girl that I went to elementary school with and who I hadn't seen in probably 10 years.

Then my stomach dropped realizing that this was my chance. And now I actually have to do it. I kept driving trying to convince myself that it was not a good idea but God kept nagging at my spirit. I put on my blinker and turned around.

I drove passed her and parked in a near by parking lot. I called out her name and she looked at me puzzled. She came closer and said, "Oh my God! Nikole MacGregor?!!" We gave each other a big hug and started chatting about life. I asked where they were headed. It was a town about 20km away (and where I had just come from). I hesitated again not really wanting to drive all the way back (and I had a massive headache and just wanted to get home to some painkillers) but God kept nudging me to take them home.

So that's what I did.

And it was delightful.

They were so grateful for the ride and I was so grateful to catch up with this precious girl. I drove back home (still with a gigantic headache) happy that I obeyed God's nudging, stepped out of my comfort zone, and helped a sister out.

Wedding Bliss!

2011-08-24T09:47:00.000-07:00

It's the day so many girls dream of, me included.

I always had this idea of how I thought my wedding would be. I knew the type of dress I wanted, what the cake looked like, who my bridesmaids would be, where I would go on honeymoon, where the wedding would take place, what my engagement ring would look like, etc, etc.

Now that I am actually at that stage in my life, I really don't care so much about all that stuff.

Nothing I had imagined has actually come true (although later on in life I said that I would love to get married in Africa). I never thought I would actually marry an african. My ring looks much different than I thought it would but now that I have it, I realize it's perfect. None of the bridesmaids I thought would be standing next to me will be there. My colours are navy blue and baby yellow which doesn't quite match the red rose pedals on my cake that I dreamt of having. I don't think I wanted to get married on the beach (I actually wanted a village wedding).

I am in the middle of doing all the planning. It's been tons of fun. My bridal shower is coming up in a couple weeks. Invitations are ready. Venue is booked. Wedding dress shopping will be done next week. Honeymoon is still to be decided.

But can I tell you what I am really excited for?

Getting married.

I am so excited to be a wife! To share life with my best friend, to have a constant companion to do life with, to watch God use our relationship for His glory, to hang out with the Kelvinator all the time.

As much as the wedding is going to be an amazing day of celebration, I am really excited for the marriage.

Glorious High Speed, Unlimited, Wireless Internet

2011-08-22T17:30:00.000-07:00

Today I am totally lovin' my high speed, unlimited, wireless internet. Before I left Mombasa, I made a whole list of things I want to do on the internet while I am home. In Kenya, I have to pay per megabyte that I download so I try to avoid downloading videos, large files, pictures, or Skype. Plus, my internet is quite slow so even if I wanted to watch a video off of YouTube, I would have to wait half an hour for it to download.

But today I have had my eyes glued to my computer screen (ok not quite all day but whenever I had a little extra time). I have watched a few episodes of my favourite TV show, Modern Family. I have written countless emails and redesigned my blog (what do you think of the new look?). I have creeped on old high school friends on Facebook.

While I am home I want to download movies, music, and podcasts off iTunes (and I am thinking about getting a Kindle). I want to do some research on some business ideas I have for Mombasa. I also want to update the Rehma Boys website (I will be sharing some exciting news about that soon!) and look at possible funding options for our projects. I need to catch up with some friends across the country on Skype. I might upload some of the video clips I have to YouTube and then share them on my blog. I will try to figure out how to use twitter and finish my online travel writing course. And then I plan to just watch funny videos or useless stuff that my brother sends to me and thinks is hilarious.

I am thanking God for a whole 6 weeks of fantastic internet!

I love that I can take my computer outside on our deck and watching the ferocious river pass by!

Summer in the Kootenays

2011-08-21T21:24:00.000-07:00

One of the main reasons I decided to come home was to enjoy summer in Castlegar. Summer in the Kootenays is to die for! Since I have been home, we have had endless sunshine. Today, my family and I had a little impromptu family bonding when we pulled out some chairs in the back yard, made a pot of coffee, and chatted as we looked out over the gorgeous columbia river. I have spent hours on my deck friends and family catching up on life and all that it entails. I got to see many precious friends and share in lots of laughs. It's been so joyful! (although I am missing the Kelvinator big time).

My mom bought me my favourite flowers and had them waiting for me in the house when I stepped in. Love the gerbra daisies!

My brother also acquired possibly the cutest, most fun loving, playful cats while I was away. The brilliant brother that I have named them fish and sue. Yup, a cat named fish. Try figure that one out.

They love to snuggle and play with each other.

My parents have been really involved in the BC Senior Games this past week. Dad and I went to Nelson to check out the dragon boat racing.

Nelson's signature orange bridge.

I spent all of last night with ear plugs stuck in my ears. Nikki took me to the drag races in spokane. I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Nikki didn't tell me that my arm hairs would vibrate from all the noise. They even had cars that had a jet engine on them. They only went about 350 mph....no biggy.

And I am totally lovin' hanging out with my BFF, Nikki. I love that she is only a quick 5 mins down the road. We are getting a good dose of cards and tea!

I got news today that our new captain, Kadenge, was accepted into an awesome agricultural program! Kelvin called my parents this morning with so much joy and pride to tell them that his 'son' got in. This agricultural program is put on by one of my favourite organizations, Empowering Live International. I know that he will be in good hands for the next year.

I am looking forward to another great week in the sun!

Feet Firmly on the Ground

2011-08-14T12:05:00.000-07:00

I made it! I landed early this morning in my hometown of Castlegar. My parents anxiously stood inside as I walked off the plane. Big hugs and a couple tears followed that. My brother stayed up after working a night shift just to come and say hi to me. We quickly grabbed my bags and went home to sit on the deck as a family, drink a cup of coffee, and catch up. My heart is glad.

The trip was good. My stomach took a day or so to settle once I landed in Vancouver. I stayed a couple days with my grandma and then hopped on a plane this morning to Castlegar. I praised God the entire flight home! I plugged my iPod in and sang praises to him (silently, of course) as I soared in the skies. What an amazing country I was born in!

We had a visitor from Canada just before I left. He was so kind to bring Kelvin a team Canada soccer jersey. Kelvin screeched like a little girl when he saw it. He loves it! I am proud of my Kenyan/Canadian man.

My grandma has to be one of my favourite people on earth. When I went to college, she became one of my best friends. I love drinking tea, eating chocolate covered digest cookies, and watching a movie in the afternoon with her. The last couple days were a blessing.

In Vancouver I got to catch up with a few friends. Patrick and I went to high school together and were grad dates. He live in Vancouver now. My mom offered up her season tickets to the BC lions football game and I invited Patrick along knowing he loved football. We had an amazing dinner and a great time at the game.

The game was terrible. The BC lions were awful to watch. People actually started leaving half way through the 3rd quarter. Nevertheless, it was a fun experience for me.

Thanks for your prayers. I am happy to have my feet firmly on the ground again.

On flying and my stomach

2011-08-10T02:19:00.000-07:00

My stomach does not do well with flying.

I don't get nauseas with the turbulence or anything.

I get anxious.

I dislike planes greatly. It is not a comfortable feeling at all. Thousands of meters in the air being held up by a man-made machine? Yup, awful.

I have read up on the safety of planes. They truly are one of the safest modes of travel. But that still doesn't calm my anxiety.

I had hoped to sleep on my flight to amsterdam but my mind was wide awake knowing that we are going 500kph miles above ground. I didn't eat anything except some fruit, crackers and water.

Now, I am waiting for my flight to Vancouver, anxious as can be. It's been almost 18 hours since I have eaten anything substantial.

Phillipians 4:6-7 keeps running through my head ... be anxious about nothing, be anxious about nothing, be anxious about nothing.

Pray with me would ya? Pray that I would start to enjoy flying. Pray I would find it relaxing rather than nerve wracking. I know God can do that for me. Pray that my feet land in Vancouver safely in the next 12 hours with a sound tummy.

I am gonna miss him

2011-08-06T22:06:00.000-07:00

I asked God that, next time I fly home, I will have Kelvin with me. I guess that God's answer was No.

So I will be leaving him behind as I head back home for a short 2 months.

I am going to miss him terribly.

New shiny equipment!

2011-08-06T22:03:00.000-07:00

Thanks to some awesome donors (and great bargaining skills by Coach K himself), we were able to purchase this nifty training equipment. Our boys love it! Even some younger boys have asked Kelvin to come earlier and train them for his practice with this equipment. He has given them to a couple of the boys to take care of and when he gets to the pitch, he notices they are covered in sand. He assumes the boys take them to the beach to practice in the mornings. If it keeps them out of trouble and doing something constructive with their time, then I am all for it!

My first piece of art

2011-08-03T01:03:00.000-07:00

Wachira made this poster especially for Kelvin and me. All the names in green are the nick names of the boys on our team. He even spelled my name right. It is the first piece of art that I have displayed in my house. I look at it and smile.

"Go back to Germany!"

2011-08-02T08:32:00.001-07:00

I had a really strange encounter today.

I was waiting on the side of the road for a matatu (a public transport vehicle) when all of a sudden this older, muslim woman came out from under a shade and started yelling at me.

"Who do you think you are? Why do you come to Kenya?! You come and ruin us! Stay away from my husband! Are you a citizen? You think you can come here and disturb us? I will kill you! Go back to Germany!!"

She probably went on for a good 7 minutes just yelling at me words of hate. Meanwhile a large bus a school student pulled up right in front of me. All these heads popped out of the windows to see what the commotion was and started giggling to themselves as this woman blasted me. It was terribly embarrassing. Some people stopped just staring at her and staring at me and wondering what was happening. One guy asked me, "What happened?" I said, "I have no idea who she is. She just started yelling at me." She was getting really angry and I refused to give her the attention she was wanting from me. I thought she was moving closer to me and would try fight but she didn't. Eventually she settled down and went back to sit in the shade.

The whole thing broke my heart.

I know I didn't do anything. I had never seen the woman in my life. But she was obviously hurting. I suspect that she had been hurt by a white person somehow, maybe something to do with her husband because she kept telling me to stay away from her husband. I didn't know if it was some crazy satanic attack or just a woman who had gone mad.

I went to my friend's place for lunch and told her the whole story. She told me that she was probably chizi (literally insane in the head). I didn't know because most crazy people I have encountered don't make sense when they talk. I actually had some crazy guy push me with his right hand in the middle of the street last week. I thought it was a friend who was trying to get my attention but it wasn't. I also had a guy tap my butt once. I turned around, gave him a stern look, and wagged my finger at him. I felt I could have slapped him or yelled at him but what would that do to a crazy man. However, this woman was speaking full english sentences and clearly knew what she was talking about.

It did make me think about how people see us whites. There are a ton of white people in Mombasa. A lot of people come for holidays (tourism is the main industry here). Many of the older ones come and settle here seeing that life is cheaper and they can usually find a cute, young Kenyan to enjoy (note I said 'enjoy' not 'love'). Right now there are lots of young white people who have come on short volunteer things. I think it is great but there is definitely that feeling that they 'come to help the poor' and that sort of makes them superior (although most of ones I meet don't have that mentality at all but for some reason Kenyans just assume that about them). At my bible study the other night, the girls told me that, when a white is in a church, they assume they are a missionary, but when a white is wandering the street, they assume that they are sleezy.

These assumptions don't come from no where. There are whites who definitely make a bad reputation for all of us.

However, I want to be different. I think and pray about this a lot especially because I am marrying a Kenyan. We can't hide the fact that we are in a cross-cultural relationship but we do have the power to show people what a loving, selfless, Christ-centred relationship should be like no matter what the skin colour is. It will take a while to establish ourselves but it will happen eventually. Just the other day, one of my neighbours told Kelvin, "She isn't pregnant yet? Now I really believe you are Christians." This came from a young, sexy kenyan girl who married a rich, older white man who owns a few clubs in Mombasa. She sees the difference in us. Even as I walk through Kongowea, I am no longer just a white girl passing through. I belong to Kelvin and am respected for that. We still get cheeky comments here and there that hurt us, but we just shrug it off and keep going.

That woman is on my heart. I will keep praying for her and what even pain she is feeling. I will also be more careful of how I conduct myself in this city so I can portray Christ's love.

Things I am looking forward to

2011-08-01T07:54:00.003-07:00

I leave for Canada in one week now. Since I booked my ticket last week, I have been dreaming of all the things I am looking forward to in Canada.

Here are a few of things I am really looking forward to:

A really good cup of coffee while sitting with my parents on our deck in the morning
Seeing my brother's new kittens, Fish and Sue, and hanging out with my old dog, Lucy
Going see-doing on the river with my brother
Shopping for a wedding dress with my mother and close friends
A BC Lions game with my high school grad date
Having an afternoon of tea, cookies, and movies with Grandma
FOOD! Doritos, berries, cheese, steak, desserts, cookies, bagels, etc. This needs to be a list of it's own.
High speed internet
Catching up with all my friends
Getting some new podcasts on my computer and looking at videos and pictures and other fun things that you just can't do with the internet in Kenya
Playing crib with my best friend Nikki
Beautiful hikes (I know that this has never been a desire of mine but now that I live in Mombasa, I am totally craving trekking through the mountains)
Getting my laundry washed and dried in machines
Wearing clothes that are a little shorter and a little tighter
Driving
Collecting some equipment for the boys and connecting with people who are sponsoring them
Planning a bridal shower
Attending one of my best friend's, Danika, wedding
Skyping with friends from all over the world for free
Catching up on all my favourite TV shows (especially Modern Family)
Preparing to leave my family and be joined to my husband!

I guess it's only fair if I list a few things I will miss in Mombasa:

The Kelvinator!
My thursday night bible study group
The music (there are some really good tunes that are circulating right now)
All my sweet friends
The gorgeous beach
Having a drink or two in the small, shady bars around my place
Cheap street food
Spending the evenings watching the boys play as the sun sets
Quiet afternoons in my house filled with coffee, reading, catching up on emails, and just being
The Kelvinator!

Biriyani and Beggars

2011-08-01T05:15:00.000-07:00

Kelvin and I hunted high and low today for biryani. There are only a couple of restaurants in town that make really good biryani. We knew that Ramandan was coming up fast and most of these awesome restaurants close for the entire month of Ramandan.

We raced down the street to my favourite place, Tarboush, only to find that they closed today for the next month. Then Kelvin said that he knew of another place in Old Town Mombasa. Kelvin hadn't been there in years so we searched through the tiny streets trying to find the place. Once we finally found it, we saw that it had closed too, so had the great restaurant beside it. We continued to walk up the street realizing that all the shops have closer. We came to understand that Ramadan started today. We missed it by one day. We thought of another restaurant, that wasn't run by Muslims, that had awesome biryani. After traipsing around in the hot sun for half an hour, we got to the restaurant only to be informed that they only make biryani on weekends. Tired and hot, we just settled for a random restaurant that had so-so biryani.

There was also an influx of beggars today. In Ramadan, Muslims tend to give more than usual. I remember a few years ago, a Muslim friend even gave to me after I told her about all the things in our house that needed repair. So beggars know they will earn more money this month so they are our in full force.

If you don't know what Ramadan is or have ever looked deeper into it, I would strongly urge you to do so. Muslims (approximately 1/3 of the world's population) are fasting for an entire month. Maybe in Castlegar you won't see the effects of it but in many other parts of the world, it's a big deal. The ironic thing is that more food is consumed during the month of Ramadan than other months. You see, Muslims only have to fast from sunrise to sunset. So first thing in the morning, they eat a large meal, and then at sunset, they eat another huge meal. Today, I was being pushed and shoved around in the supermarket by all the Muslim women preparing for the opening night of Ramadan tonight.

The league that the boys are in has been postponed till after Ramadan. Half of the players are Muslims and don't eat all day so they can't be expected to play a good game of soccer on a hungry stomach. I am also guessing that most of our boys won't show up to practice for this month.

Anyways, I guess I will just have to wait till I return to Mombasa to get my delicious plate of biryani.

Planning a cross cultural wedding

2011-07-30T02:38:00.000-07:00

Traditional Kenyan weddings are quite different from Canadian weddings.

Kelvin and I have decided to put away our cultures and just do what we want to do.

We have gotten a few raised eyebrows with some of our decisions.

We met our wedding decorator the other day and I told him that I want one of my colours to be navy blue. He looked up at me, raised his eyebrows and gave me a puzzled look. Not a colour he is used to working with I assume.

I have had a lot of people ask me the colours of the wedding. In fact, it is often the first thing they ask (even the men). They ask so that they can dress to match my colours. My eyes brows raise as I looked at them like, "huh? You want to match my decorations?" Why should I even pay for decorations when they can just be my living, breathing, moving decorations?

Our wedding is on a wednesday. Up go the eyebrows again.

Our guest list is about 350 people. When I told my parents that, they both were like, "What!?" I couldn't see their eyebrows but I am sure they were sky high.

The reception is going to be a bit later than most Kenyan receptions. It is going to be almost like a Canadian one where they eat supper and then there is a dance afterwards (but our dance will end at around 10pm). Whenever I tell people that, they go, "Oh?.....that sounds cool..."It's new concept that, after thinking about, people really like. It takes a while for them to get it though.

We want to do a private ceremony outside in a garden or backyard. We have gone a couple of places to see what they would charge and what the conditions are. I explain to them that I just want it for the ceremony. They start talking about food, a band, a high table, etc. I say, "no, no, no, just the ceremony." Kelvin then pipes in and says, "she means the church service." I guess that is what it is called here. The person we are talking with then goes, "Well we don't have a church here." I say, "No, we don't want the church service in a church. We want the church service outside." Eye brows raise, eyes roll to the sky as the person processes what I just said. A few seconds later he says, "Ok, I think I understand."

It's only been a week since we started planning. I can't wait to see how many more eye brows will raise in the next couple of months.

Home is where...

2011-07-30T02:13:00.003-07:00

....the heart is.

....your family is.

....you sleep.

....you grew up.

I have been pondering lately what makes home, home.

I am heading to Canada in a week and a half. When I tell people this, this is what I say, "I am going home in a week and a half and will return home on October 6th."

What I mean is that I am going to Canada in a week and a half and will be back in Kenya on October 6th.

As I am about to officially become Kenyan (ok I don't know if I will become a citizen or not), I am starting to think about where I will really call home. What will make Kenya my home? Is it my husband or my group of friends here? I definitely don't fit in with my skin colour and english accent. I have a set up a little place here in Mombasa when I have all my stuff and get to take care of. Its my own little house. It is home in Mombasa.

Kelvin calls the village where his mom lives home even though he didn't grow up there or has never spent a huge amount of time there. In his culture, you have to at least build a house up there so you have a place to stay. But you build this house and maybe spend a few weeks a year up there. We never go to visit his mom just for a visit. We are going home and expected to help out just like it is our own home (that was a big cultural concept that I had to get used to).

I usually call Ilula my home in Kenya. I have been visiting since 2005 and the Rono's have become my Kenyan family. When I go up there, I am just like another one of their children. I am expected to clean, cook (ok not really but I should be doing it), and contribute to the household. When Angelina calls me, I answer, "Hi Mum" and then she asks me, "when are you coming home my daugher?" How did this amazing african woman become my mom and this tiny village in the middle of Kenya become my home?

But I grew up in Castlegar. That small town in the mountains of British Columbia largely shaped who I am today. It is where some of my closest friends and family is. It is where the majority of my things are. It is where my wonderful parents, brother, and dog is. But its not necessarily where my heart is. I don't plan to go back and stay there again for a long period of time.

I want to say the right spiritual thing and say that earth is not my home. Ultimately I am just passing through on my way to heaven. That is where my ultimate citizenship is. That is the truth.

But still there is that warm and wonderful feeling of home here on earth.

What about you? What makes home, home? Where do you feel most at home? Is it family, stuff, heart, where you grew up, or something else?

Yes, I am eating

2011-07-29T08:05:00.000-07:00

I have had numerous people ask me if I am affected by the huge drought in northern Kenya. Just to clear things up, I am indeed eating.

Things here in southern and central Kenya are just fine. Our prices of regular food have gone up (some staple foods doubling in price over the past 4 months) but I don't think it is due to the drought. Fuel prices keep rising slowly which, in turn, makes everything a few cents more. Sugar is also scarce these days. I don't think they harvested as much sugar cane as they usually do. It will be back soon though (and to be honest, Kenyans could do with a little less sugar in their tea).

The drought is heavy on all of us here. Every night it is the top story with news of yet more deaths. It's hard to believe that is happening not to far from us (a plane from Mombasa to Dadaab, one of the largest refugee camps in Kenya, would take less and 2 hours). Yet we seem to be so disconnected from it. There has been speculation that this massive drought was predicted at the beginning of the year but not taken seriously. The Kenyan government has been criticized for not doing much to help their people. They claim they are doing the best that they can (yah...right).

However, Kenyans have stepped up to take action. There is a service in Kenya called MPESA. MPESA allows you to transfer money from one phone to another. Safaricom, the company that offers MPESA, has opened an account where Kenyans can transfer money right from their cell phones to the Red Cross who will distribute it accordingly. In the last day or two, Kenyans have sent over $200,000!

If you can, give a little to help out. Over 6 million people are starving. That is the population of Vancouver times 2. Try find an organization that is collecting donations. I know I will be sending some money through MPESA today.

Just a little proof that I am eating. Kelvin took me for some yummy ice cream at the beach a few weeks ago.

Quite the week

2011-07-28T22:34:00.000-07:00

It has been quite the week.

That is a good thing.

A week and a half ago we got the news that we had been dreading: Kelvin was denied his visa.

We were surprised that we found out so soon since they told us we would know end of august. Kelvin traveled all the way to Nairobi to pick up his denied documents. It wasn't fun. I did cry for about 20 minutes but then got over it.

Our plan was that, if we didn't get the visa, we would get married in December.

So this week has been full of wedding plans!! We have the venue, the date, the colours, the guest list, and the band. I am meeting with a lady about invitations and we are going to look at decorations with a wedding designer. It has been so much fun!

I have also decided to go home for a couple months. Since the wedding will be in December, not many friends and relatives will be able to attend so I wanted to go home to celebrate with my peeps there. I leave in a week and a half and will return to Kenya in the beginning of October. I will spend a few days in Vancouver hanging out with my granny, catching up with some college friends, and going to a BC lions football game with my high school grad date. I will then fly to Castlegar on August 14th to spend the rest of summer in the beautiful Kootenays.

I look forward to doing some wedding dress shopping with mom and a few close friends. I can't wait to sit on my deck and drink coffee with my dad in the mornings. I am dreaming about artichoke and asiago cheese dip with pita bread and steak with broccoli. I want to do some of the local hiking trails in the beautiful mountains and go sea-dooing down the river with my brother. I am looking forward to my time at home.

Keep us in your prayers as to what our next steps will be as a married couple. We are not exactly sure where God wants just yet and we don't know where we will get the money to do what He asked us to do. But we stand on His promises that His plans for us are indeed good, He will supply all our needs, and He will never leave us nor forsake us!

Can't wait to see your beautiful faces in a few short weeks!

'He will eat you!'

2011-07-21T02:15:00.000-07:00

I was sitting beside the pitch yesterday, watching the boys practice, when two little sisters came up to me and struck up a conversation.

They didn't speak english but their swahili was simple enough that they could talk and I could understand and even respond a few words here and there. (Actually, at first they didn't think I was white. They thought I was a Kenyan because I could speak swahili back to them. At some point, a group of about 10 school came over to analyze me and see if I was truly a white person or if I was an Indian. It was quite humorous listening to them debate and watching them stare at me intently.)

I was reading a book that had a picture of a shepherd and a sheep on it. They asked me, "who is this?" I told them, "It's Jesus. Do you know Jesus?" The older girl said, "Ah yes. I am a Christian, Islam is not good."

I just smile and nodded.

Then the younger sister started asking about Jesus. The older one started to explain to her about Jesus, loving Him, and knowing that he is the only way to get 'up there' to heaven.

"And Satan?" the younger sister asked.

"He will eat you!" The older sister scolded her.

I burst out laughing. And so did the little girls.

School, Babies, and Goals

2011-07-20T01:11:00.001-07:00

I realized that it's been a while since I wrote an update about the Rehma Boys. Let me tell you a few tidbits about what has been happening over the past few weeks.

School

We now have 6 boys in school! Last week, the sixth boy started his Clearing and Forwarding course (it has to do with moving shipment through the port) and is already loving it. We still have boys doing mechanics, art, high school, driving and computer classes. Some are struggling as they have been out of school for 5+ years and only made it to gr.8. But they are slowly learning that hard work is key if they want to do well.

We now have two boys that we are working with to start school. At the end of August, we will take one to the other side of the country to interview for an awesome agricultural program. The other one wants to begin with taking a driving course and then work his way to getting into a mechanics course. If you want to help us by sponsoring these young men to go to school, please let me know.

Keep praying for these boys. I know that life gets tough for them especially now that they are in school full time. At time, the temptation to quit is strong. Pray they will have perseverance as they look forward to their futures.

Babies

We got news that another one of our boys gave birth to a healthy baby on friday! We knew that his 'wife' was expecting but didn't know that she was almost giving birth. Funny thing was that, the boy, showed up to the game on friday and didn't say a word about it to anyone. He said that he had been saving up for the hospital bill for months now from the small money he gets doing house chores for a family.

Pray for this young man, his 'wife', and their new baby. He is working hard to be able to support them. The lady is living with his mother for now just for some extra help for the first few months of being a new mom.

I am going shopping in a couple days to buy all sorts of fun food and baby stuff to give to our boy. A baby is worth celebrating!!!

Goal!

The local MP has put on a large (free) league for teams in his constituency. We were able to get into the league when we got news that another team dropped out. The league has 28 teams and 4 pools. So far, our boys are kicking some serious butt in their pool. Like I keep saying, they are really good.

Thanks again to all those who pray and support us in one way or another. Kelvin and I keep falling in love with these boys over and over again. They break our hearts with some of the poor decisions they make but overall we can see them transforming into some amazing young men. Pray for finances for us to keep supporting these boys. Pray for wisdom in making decisions and guiding these young men. Pray that our relationships with Jesus would become more intimate and pour out on the the lives of these sweet young men.

Whistle while you work

2011-07-18T07:16:00.000-07:00

This morning we had our 'guy' come and wash all our clothes. As he sat in our toilet (the toilet, shower, and laundry is all in one tiny room) for almost 3 hours (we had a lot of clothes to be washed) he whistled and sang sweet songs to himself. At times, I would just stop and tune into him as he softly sang melodies in his vernacular language.

As I thought about it, I realized that most of the people who come and work in our house whistle while they work.

Last week we had a plumber come in to fix a leak in our sink. He too passed his time clanking away at the metal pipes while whistling a tune to himself.

We had a friend of ours come and fix a bed that had broke. He didn't whistle as much as he sang all sorts of different songs while he banged our bed back together.

And every morning the caretaker of our compound gets out his broom and sweeps the compound, waking us all up as he whistles while he works.

Wazungu Season

2011-07-13T02:27:00.000-07:00

There has been a flood of white people that have arrived in Mombasa. It's wazungu (white people) season. College students are travelling and volunteering during their summer holidays. Entire families are taking their yearly 2 weeks paid vacation and hitting up Mombasa's resorts. Expats are returning to their homes for a few months and hanging out with their Kenyan wives (our neighbour has been gone for a few weeks now leaving her child at home with a friend. We suspect she is in some hotel with her white husband).

I have been able to meet some cool people as they discover Mombasa. I like hearing what they are learning, experiencing, seeing, processing, etc.

However, I have noticed that I am being treated differently by the locals.

All of sudden, I am getting a lot more attention from people (especially men) asking for pretty much anything. I have to fight harder not to pay higher rates in the matatus, often making sure that I have the exact amount ready so they can't 'forget' to give me my change. I am using my swahili more to show them that I am not a tourist and indeed know my way around this town. The kids at the primary school where the boys practice have started following me around and chatting away with me thinking that I am one of the 14 volunteers from Ireland that have come to teach for the summer.

It's a little exhausting.

But such is life. I will just have to get over it for the time being.

In other news, Mombasa has turned cold! Alright, it has become cool. During the days, you are still likely to sweat but at nights, a harsh breeze blows in bringing cool air and thick clouds. I can actually feel a cold (sore throat, sinus headache) coming on as I sit in a long sleeve shirt and long pants on my couch.

It's delightfully refreshing.

And this past weekend, we got the pleasure of seeing Juliani come and perform at a rally that Kelvin was the MC for. Juliani is probably the biggest musician in Kenya. His witty rap lyrics are all Christ focused. His stage presence is overwhelming. His signature dreads whip back and forth as he flings his head around. He is one of a kind, that's for sure.

I think 40% of Kenyan male youth think they were born to rap like Juliani. And I would say that about 1.5% of that 40% are actually somewhat talented. That makes for a lot of terrible musicians. I have had so many young men show me their stuff. I just nod and smile while trying to decide if I should be honest with them and tell them it's terrible or if I should just let them pursue their dreams and allow God to show them that music isn't their gift.

The first time I saw Juliani, I was disgusted. At that time, his biggest song was, "I want a piece of your ear like Mike Tyson." I looked at my friend and asked, "Is this boy really a Christian?" She quickly assured me that I needed to understand the rest of the lyrics (that were all swahili slang) in order to understand the gist of the song. After listening to his music and seeing him perform half a dozen times, I have realized that he truly is a follower of Christ. And a humble one to take time out of his day and put on a (free) concert for a crowd of school students.

The students went wild.

Practicing Head Shots

2011-07-09T00:12:00.000-07:00

Our boys are very talented. They are truly one of the best teams around. But one thing they are terrible at is finishing. They get so close to the net after some brilliant passes and footwork but then they fumble the ball or get a weak kick on net or miss the net completely. I watched them play a brilliant game the other day but they just couldn't hit the net. They should have won by 5 goals but they only got one (and won the game!).

Yesterday at practice, Kelvin tried to get them to practice aiming their shots by placing different coloured cones in a line and giving the cones a worth. If they hit the cone, they got points, if they missed the cone, they lost points. They started off kicking, and then they went to head butting. That's where I got these hilarious pictures.

I just had to sneak in this picture of the handsome coach.

Nicky

Riise

Kadenge, leap froggy, leap!

And my favourite. It's none other than Andrea! He almost looks like he is giving the ball a high 5 or something. Actually, I took many shots of him and they all look like this. It's quite the technique.

They play a game on Sunday. Maybe I will get to see more of these awesome head shots.

Wachira's Self Portrait

2011-07-08T05:27:00.000-07:00

We asked Wachira, our goalkeeper in Art school, to draw something for his sponsors. This is what he came up with:

Impressive? After one month of art school, I think it's pretty awesome. It is actually one of his assignments. It is a self portrait. We feel like proud parents.

Jack of all trades, Queen of none

2011-07-05T08:41:00.000-07:00

Today I had a bit of a pity party.

I woke up and checked my online writing course only to find that my teacher was thoroughly displeased with my latest assignment. I was crushed. I thought the piece was fantastic and I had had some other writers think it was pretty wonderful as well. But this disappointing feedback really broke my heart.

I guess I thought I was decent at writing. Now writing is just proving to be incredibly difficult. For my instructor, my writing is always 'good', 'nice', 'ok'. But I want it to be 'great' 'fantastic' 'amazing'. I never get those kind of comments from my teacher or peers. I see others getting these praises and even better ones but never me.

This eventually spiralled my thoughts to this: Jack of all trades, Queen of none.

I actually didn't come up with that phrase myself but found it on a blog of one of my peers. This is how I have always been. I have been good at everything. There is not much that I can't do well(maybe with a little time and effort). I was always a really good basketball player, a good citizen, a good student, a good friend.

I have never really excelled in anything though. I have never been GREAT at one particular thing.

I am not sure being great at one thing, and lousy at other things, is better than being good at everything and great at nothing. But part of me just wants to be great...at anything.

As I was just wandering through some of my frequently visited websites, I came across a video on shelovesmagazine.com. It is called 'Obvious to you. Amazing to others.' The whole idea of the short video was that often we think others are amazing. They have an amazing talent, idea, gift, skill. We just wonder how they get these amazing things. But that person thinks that their idea, talent, gift, skill is no big deal to them. It is without thought. It is nothing special. It's like engrained in them. It comes naturally without effort. It's too obvious to them, but it's amazing to others.

What is obvious to me, but amazing to others? What are people amazed by when they think of me but I seem to think it is no big whoop?

Then it clicked.

I get the most praise for my heart, love, ability to survive, endurance, work, and compassion for Africa.

It seems like a strange talent or gift or skill. But that is my amazing.

Even yesterday I met with some other missionary friends who were amazed at how Kenyan I have become and how I utterly delight in my Kenyan life (most days) and the Kenyan people. I am constantly being told 'You are doing amazing things. I don't know how you do it Nikole. You have such a heart.' For me, my heart for African comes so naturally that I don't even think about it.

So I vowed to myself not to allow those thoughts of 'poor me', 'I have no talent', 'I am great at nothing' enter into my mind.

My next assignment for my writing class is to write a short bio about myself in less than 50 words. This is what I have so far:

Compassion is what moves Nikole to leave her small town in Canada and grow roots in Kenya. A laughing orphan, an empowered widow, a former street boy in school, a healed baby is what makes her thrive. She shares their stories hoping to inspire change, generosity, compassion, and love.

Yup. That about sums up my amazing.

Coffee Guilt

2011-07-05T05:09:00.000-07:00

I have been walking around feeling a little guilty lately. Shameful, really. Almost like I am sinning against the coffee gods.

I have succumbed to instant coffee.

When I grew up, I didn't even know how to make instant coffee. It was simply a no-no in our house. No exceptions. Taboo. Practically sinful.

It wasn't till last year in Kenya that I tried my first cup of instant coffee. I had to ask someone to show me how to do it. I had no idea how much to put in. I had never seen coffee just dissolve like sugar in water. I didn't mind the taste but it definitely didn't compare to home-brewed coffee.

However, after a year of drinking instant coffee on and off. I have to admit...

I actually... kinda...like it.

I have found a good one that I look forward to every morning (although the Starbucks VIA is my all time favourite but cannot be bought here). I do have coffee grounds but have yet to figure out a way to make a good cup of coffee without a coffee maker or french press (if anyone has any ideas, I am willing to try it.)

Instant coffee is the only coffee in Kenya. If you order a cup of coffee in a restaurant, they will bring you half a cup of hot water, a small cup of hot milk, and a package of instant coffee. It is very rare to find brewed coffee which is ironic since Kenya is known for coffee. Much of the world's coffee (including Starbucks) comes from Kenya. Have you ever heard of Karen Blixen or the movie/book Out of Africa? The best cup of coffee I have ever had is in a coffee shop in Nairobi called Java House where they serve amazing, brewed, Kenyan coffee. Kenya has good coffee, but for some reason they have succumbed to instant.

But for now, I will enjoy my instant coffee.

Feeling Motherly

2011-07-02T06:36:00.000-07:00

I am in my room on my bed with my perky laptop perched on my lap. I am listening to Kelvin and six boys from our team talking in the living room.

Today I feel motherly.

Kelvin told me he wanted to have some boys come over so that he can do a bit of a leadership talk with them. Since we don't know if we are going to Canada or not, Kelvin wants to prepare them early to take over the team and take on more of the responsibilities just in case we do end up leaving quickly.

So I went into mother/wife mode. I first started thinking about what I would cook and how I should arrange the house. I counted all my cups and plates (since we are only 3 people living in this apartment, I don't have a lot of dishes.) This morning I started cutting up onions and tomatoes as to have them all ready to go. I butchered two chickens and then marinated it before baking it in the over. Meanwhile making sure that my kitchen is spic and span by washing all the dishes once I was finished using them and constantly wiping the counters. I had everything prepared, warm and fresh, and clean when the boys finally arrived. I was so impressed with myself.

The boys devoured the food. It made my heart so warm watching 'my boys' fill their bellies with good food. I started to realize what my mother feels like when she cooks and feeds us. Its such an amazing satisfaction.

After lunch, Kelvin wanted to have a chat with them about the team, life, responsibility, respect, being a man, etc. I decided to take a break and head into my room to let them relax a bit (I know they are a bit intimidated when I am around). I can hear them talking about keeping time and respecting one another. Kelvin is encouraging them to hold each other accountable and take care of their bodies (ie, no drugs). Amongst the serious talk, Kelvin cracks a joke and they all burst out into that young-dude-too cool for school- laughter.

My heart is smiling.

I think they are wrapping up now so I am going to go tune into their conversation.

Momma

2011-07-02T06:24:00.000-07:00

My beautiful, outgoing, bold, strong, loving, caring, compassionate, courteous, inspiring mother turns 49 today.

So I must wish her a very happy birthday! I was I could be there with her, sitting on our deck, while indulging in her traditional birthday cake: a homemade strawberry tort.

I love my momma.

Oh Canada!

2011-06-30T23:04:00.000-07:00

After living in Kenya for almost 3 years now, I have never been more proud of being a Canadian.

Canada is truly an amazing country.

I am grateful that God chose me to be born in a country that has a government who actually takes care of it's people, has some of the most gorgeous landscapes in the world, and has an incredible blend of beautiful, humble people.

Don't get me wrong, I do love this quirky country of Kenya (Kenya ranks #16 on the failed states list for 2010 - not something to be particularly proud of.)

I haven't decided what I am going to do today to celebrate Canada day. Unfortunately, I don't have many canadian friends here in Mombasa to celebrate with. I think I will make my dad's famous camping burritos (which he usually makes this time of year when we do a big family camping trip to Summit Lake). I was also given a huge bag of Jolly Ranchers (I know they are not specifically Canadian but they remind me of home) that I plan to suck on all day. And maybe I will give my family a call later on and say hi as all my aunts and uncles will be celebrating at my house in Castlegar.

Happy Canada Day!

He still died for me

2011-06-29T04:21:00.000-07:00

I sat in my bed this morning, like usual, to spend my time with God. Recently, I have been working through a study from the book Bad Girls of the Bible by Liz Curtis Higgs. I am almost at the end of the study. The last Bad Girl we study is the sinful woman in Luke 7:36-50.

This is by far the most powerful woman I have studied in the bible. Over the last few days I have found myself almost in tears, my heart so moved by Love and compelled to worship.

I was going through various verses in the bible that talk about how truly amazing our God's forgiveness is. I was led to a familiar verse.

"But God demonstrates his own love for us in that, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8

My study book asked me to put it in my own words so this is what I wrote:

God loves me so deeply that, even though He knew that I would never stop sinning nor would I ever be worthy, He still sent Christ to die for my sins.

Jesus knew that I would never stop sinning when He gave His life for me. It is rare for someone to love someone so deeply to actually give up their life for that person. And if that is the case, the person they would be dying for is probably a pretty noble person. But oh no, Jesus died for all people whether they were worthy of it or not. Not only that He died knowing that they would never cease to sin.

I am just in awe of God's great love for me.

This compelled another thought in my mind concerning the young men we work with.

There are days that I see them making huge leaps forward. Their behaviours are changing, they are more interested in Christ, they are becoming respectful and loving towards one another and their community, they are gaining hope and responsibility, and so on.

But then there are days that I feel like they are going no where.

This weekend we had a game in town. As the boys were getting dressed, Kelvin smelled marijuana. One of the boys was smoking (which we do not tolerate at all). He went over to where they were sitting and tried to see who it was but they all denied it. He came back to sit with me. I turned around towards the boys and saw a huge puff of smoke coming from behind a tree. I couldn't see who it was but some of the other boys could see. I told Kelvin and he went over again to try confront them but they all denied it.

I was so hurt. We do so much for them and yet they have the guts to break the simple rules that we have made and lie to us?

Then I found out today that one of them took some plastic cups out of Kelvin's bag and decided to take them home (they are the only cups that I own in my house). Seriously? Why must you steal my cups?

One of our boys, who we put into school, has been skipping (for some legit reasons and some lazy reasons) and we have been notified that he has also been getting into marijuana. Ugh!

It just hurts. After we put so much prayer, love, finances, time, effort and emotions into them.

But then I think of what Christ did for me. He gave His entire life for me knowing that I would still sin against Him. It probably hurts Him too.

And you know what baffles me even more? The fact that Christ knew that I would never stop sinning! Yes, I may become like Him but I will always hurt Him with my sins.

I do all this for the boys with the hope that they will become amazing men of God. But I do not know if they will really turn out that way. And I wonder that if I knew what they would be like in 10 years, would I still do these things for them? If I knew that the one boy we put into school was going to end up being a drug dealer, would I still support him? I honestly don't know.

But Christ did it for me.

And that's amazing.