Graduation Day

It can sometimes be frustrating to have classes and Monday was one of them. Organizers of the EMPOWER classes get a page of organizing rules in both English and Kiswahili. They also get a list of requirements for the potential participants. Then on the first day of class, the participants get a copy of the sheet, again in English and Kiswahili. We make a big deal of saying that they should have already seen this sheet, but that will go over it to make sure they're in agreement. They're a number of things in it, but one of them is that they must be able to read and write in either English or Kiswahili. The point is made that they can not take the exam orally, etc. etc. Sounds simple enough right.

Well, on Saturday, after our 5th 4 hour class, one of the men came to us and said that he would not be able to take the test on Monday because he was illiterate. The good news, in a way, was that he had recently learned he was positive and wanted to come to the class so that he could learn how to take better care of himself. It was nice that he came and also that he was honest with us.

We decided that we would make a special certificate of Attendance for him rather than a certificate of Completion. It was quite similar, but didn't list the name of the class on it. It just read something like completed an HIV/AIDS program of ICODEI. It then said "Through knowledge we can all learn to live healthier lives." This way, he gets something for coming but it doesn't in anyway disclose his status.

So Monday comes around and we pass out the exams. Only one person said they needed the exam in Kiswahili. We always tell them that we really don't care which version they choose, but if they choose English then they need to understand it enough to read the questions without it being explained to them in Kiswahili AND they need to write their responses in English. Seems simple enough.

But, back to the woman who needed it in Kiswahili. I'm watching them all take their tests and see that she is just sitting there with her paper and occasionally looking around the room. I finally ask Mary the translator to talk to her. Come to find out that she is not only illiterate, but that she really can't even understand much Kiswahili. She pretty much only understands Luhya. So, here she has sat for 20 hours, not even understanding much of what we have said. It makes you want to say "What the _____ (insert your own level of profanity) have you been thinking this whole time

Mary tried to see if she at least understood some of the basics that we had discussed. No such luck. She was able to say that blood transmitted HIV, but couldn't name any other fluids. There's only 3 others so it's pretty bad. You just wonder why she choose to sit there for the whole time. Uggh! Such is life! We were quite close to the farm so I did run back and make an Attendance certificate for her.

So, of the 15 people who were able to sit for the exam, we had 9 that passed. Some of them passed with flying colors whereas others were pretty shabby. The 4 that failed, probably failed because of taking it in English. It was clear from there few correct answers that English was an issue. We're doing a make up on Thursday and they have to take it in Kiswahili. I think that they want to show us that they understand English, but in doing so just mess up. I don't care how they get the information they learn back to their community, but just that they do it.

Yes, All is Fine

Well, it's time for me to get a note out to all of you. I'm beginning to get emails asking if everything is all right. The answer is yes. Frankly, things have been a little boring so I haven't had much to write about. I have been doing EMPOWER on and off this week, so I can right about that today.

The group is actually fairly close to the farm. That being said, it's still pretty far into the interior. It's being held in a very small church with small windows and a tin roof. That should be read as little breeze and heating up like an oven in the midday sun.

There are a LOT of children at this location. More so than any of the other classes I've been to. Not only are there a lot of kids, but there are a lot of kids that are absolute brats. They love to play with the Prado by standing on the running boards, kicking the tires, etc. What this means is that they keep setting of the car alarm. Doing that means that the alarm first tries to call Reuben's phone. If his phone is shut off, then it calls my phone until it gets an answer. What this also means is that it went off 5 times the other day and interrupted class repeatedly. It took the class organizer to threaten them with something bad, because when he came back in the had gone away and stayed there. I'm not the most patient of persons and was ready to get the "big stick" as they say here and go after the children. They definitely believe in threatening with the switch, and so usually you don't have to use it, just show it. One girl in particular was always at the car and giving a defiant look.

The class has been good. They were quite late one day and that's when they realized that we marked them absent for being late. This means that they have to make up the class before they get a certificate. The 4 that came late (only by 10 minutes or so) stayed for the class anyway. We've decided that as long as they make it on time for the rest of the class, we'll give them the certificate as long as they pass the exam. One of the problems is that this is planting season and so they are all out in the fields before coming to class. We've moved the start time back a bit to accommodate this.

We headed down to Kisumu yesterday so that one of the volunteers could get her visa extended. It always ends up taking the whole day, but we got it done. We also picked up some fish for dinner. Kisumu sits right on Lake Victoria so you can get Nile Perch and tilapia. There's a difference between the two but I have no idea what it is and which one we got. All I know is that for about $16 we bought 5 huge fish to take back for dinner. I've done this before, but I have to say that this fish was the best I have ever had. Definitely fresh from that day.

The one problem with eating fish is that I have picked up this terrible pickiness (sp?). It comes from my mother who loves to fish, but can't eat fish if it tastes the least "fishy." My favorite picture of my mother is when she was 6 years old and had gone fishing with my grandfather. She is dressed in bib overalls. My grandfather is at one end of a bamboo pole and my mom is at the other end. In between them are a number of fish, hanging from the pole. This is way off track from Kenya, but you'd think that she'd like fish for as much as she loves the process of fishing. Course, it could be the fact that she broke her arm as a child when another kid hit her hard with a dead fish. But, enough of that.

Basically, I'm getting back into the swing of things on the farm. There is a lot of work to do to get things back up and running for the onslaught of summer volunteers. It looks like we'll be at full capacity in July. June and August are just about full. This is all good for the sake of the programs being run. ICODEI provides a great service to the community and that community has been lacking care since things were shut down in January.

The Long Rains

I know you've all seen those National Geographic specials. The ones where the rainy season comes to the African Plains and all the animals are happy. Well, let me tell you, when the rains come they definitely make themselves known. We are in the midst of the rainy season and it has not failed to disappoint. For those of you in Portland, you have nothing on the weather here. It's actually been kind of nice for sleeping. I'm in one of the buildings that has a metal roof so when I wake up during the night I have the rain to lull me back to sleep. Of course, there are also the times where the rain does no lulling, but pounds like crazy. It rained non-stop last night. The good news was that it stopped around 9AM so that I could come into town without getting drenched.

I feel like I needed to write an entry for the day even though there isn't anything to tell you. I've developed a little routine where I come into town so that I can use my laptop where I have access to electricity. So, here I sit at the internet cafe checking email, looking through some training materials on CDs and listening to music. I'll soon head over to the Coffee Garden where I'll order the Steak and chips and a large Crest (a bitter lemon soda similar to Fresca but less of a bite). The whopping bill will be 215ksh or $3.50. I'll pick up The Daily Nation newspaper to read while I eat. Then, it's across the street to either Khetia's or Sharrif's for a little shopping. I need the essentials such as peanut butter and Cadbury milk chocolate bars.

I'll probably start back on an EMPOWER program in about 2 weeks or so. I've held of o doing them so that my fees can be concentrated on vehicle repairs and such. However, I can only spend so much time updating the Facilitator's Guide and Orientation Manual. It's something I've procrastinated on, but it's happening now.

Tomorrow I am headed over to Busia which is one of the border crossings with Uganda. To people who had planned to volunteer with ICODEI have been in Uganda volunteering instead. They are coming here for two weeks and bringing a bunch of medicine for the Clinic. I thought it would be nice to pick them up so they don't have to deal with matatus all the way to Kabula. Plus, crossing at the border is always a little daunting. There are tons of money changers, taxi drivers, etc. vying (sp?) for your money.

Not a Lot of News and a Special Appeal

I thought I'd add type up an entry just to let everyone know that I'm alive and doing well. There really is not a whole lot of news to report other than I'm getting settled into life back in Kenya. The farm is fairly quiet. There are only 3 other volunteers on the farm. Mary, the fantastic nurse that helped care for me when I got sick, Nikki a mzungu from South Africa, and Eveline, a young woman from Hong Kong. Nikki and Eveline are both doing Micro Enterprise Development Trainings. Mary was doing Mobile Clinics but is now doing EMPOWER classes and General HIV/AIDS Awareness presentations. Myself, well, I'm doing administrative stuff. Because of the lack of volunteers the financial state of the programs in precarious at best. Fortunately, more volunteers will be coming in May and June so things should look a little better.

Normally I would not do this, but I'm going to simply because things are stretched quite thin. If any of you are feeling charitable and want to donate, then there is a link at http://www.volunteerkenya.org/donations.html. It takes you to a PayPal site where you can make a donation. Volunteer Kenya is a 501(c)(3) organization so it is a tax deductible donation. Any little bit will help.

I'll write more later as things get more eventful. You know, they always do.

The Lives of Kenyan Children, April 15th

Today really showed the wide range of living situations for children here in Kenya. Normally, schools would be on a trimester break for the whole of April. However, because of the conflicts in January, many schools are operating on a modified schedule. So, Reuben’s oldest daughter, Donna, had to report back to her school for a week of classes. I decided to ride down with Mama Betty and Ben (the driver). It’s about halfway between the farm and Kisumu although also off the main road about 10 miles. During the course of the drive 4 sets of children really caught my attention.

The first set was two boys helping their mother carry what were likely building supplies for a new hut. The one child could not have been more than 8 or so, yet he was dragging two long wooden poles about 4 or 5 inches in diameter. These would be used for making the roof of a thatched hut.

We had to stop at the store in Kakamega to pick up some things for Donna. There I saw the more depressing lives of small children. Sniffing glue is a huge problem in Kenya. It’s always (or at least I only see) boys begging for food or money. One hand outstretched and the other hand clutching a glass bottle with thick yellow glue in it. The three boys waiting outside the store were likely 7 or 8 years old. They were handing out flyers for a “Miracle Revival.” I hate looking into their eyes because they are always blood shot and simply glazed over. It fills me with both anger and pity. Angry because they are so young but live in a world where they are not cared for enough to be kept from entering a life of addiction at such a young age. Angry that, for some, their parents have sent them to the streets to beg. Angry that they will die at an early age. Then, for the same reasons I feel pity. The situation really tears at my emotions. What should I be feeling?

The next set of children were two boys I saw in the market place at Shimakhokho. In case you are wondering, “kh” is pronounced as a kind of guttural “heh” sound. You place your tongue against your bottom teeth, which makes the back of the tongue, raise it a bit, and then you exhale. I can picture you all trying this at your computer. Anyway, the boys were walking arm in arm, laughing, and looking full of innocent mischievous. A look I am sure you are all familiar with.

And finally, a young boy entertaining himself with a homemade toy. I think I have written before of the toys that seem to make children very happy here. And, the toys that make me think that children and youth in the States are very spoiled. This young (5 or 6) boy had a ceramic spool used as an insulator on a power line at the bottom of a U-shaped wire rod used for reinforcing concrete. It was basically a wheel on a stick that he pushed around on the ground. Can you imagine taking away an American child’s Playstation and giving them this toy? I can see the temper tantrum as I type.

Finally, to end on a very funny note, I saw a vehicular sighting as I have never seen before. Cars here are often overloaded whether it is with passengers or with cargo. We were passing a small compact car and I looked and saw to people sitting behind the wheel! There was the driver sitting in the lap of another adult. They saw us looking at them and laughing and they laughed back. Definitely not a safe driving situation, but it was funny to see none the less.

Nairobi to Kabula, April 14th

It was an early morning for me. I had to be ready for pick-up from the hotel at 6AM. Fortunately, the kitchen was ready enough that I was able to get a small pot of “white coffee” and rolls before leaving. No, white coffee is not what the serve to us mzungus. It’s simply black coffee with warmed milk served on the side. It’s about as close as one can get to a latte. Also, the hotel served fresh brewed coffee and not Nescafé. Almost all of Kenya’s home grown coffee is exported, so one usually ends up with packets of Nescafé. I travel with a little can of Africafe instant coffee which is actually pretty good. But, enough of coffee.

The flight from Nairobi to Kisumu is only 45 minutes. The plane was bigger than I anticipated as there were probably about 30 passengers and it was not a full flight. It was fairly clear so you could look down at the Great Rift Valley. The Rift Valley runs for a couple hundred miles and is the dividing line for the Western Province. We also flew over Kericho which is the home to all of the tea plantations. The airport in Kisumu is a simple little building. They unload your bags onto a big luggage cart and then two guys have to struggle to pull it over to where the passengers are waiting. I ended up waiting about an hour for my ride to come.

Kisumu is once again buzzing with activity. We drove through town. The good news is that most of the businesses that I watched being looted are back open. The obvious exception is the building that we watched burn up. The other good news is that the hotel we watched from was not burned as we had once heard. The market place was packed with people.

I received a very warm welcome when I got back to the farm. The younger kids came running across the lawn to give me big hugs. The most surprising was Joshua because he is normally such a comedic little boy. He was the first to arrive, followed by Wendy and Pauline. The older children along with Jennifer and Rose gathered around as well. I met up with Reuben and Mama Betty later on in the day as they were in town.

Internally Displace People (IDPs)

I arrived safely in Nairobi on Friday evening. I’m spending the weekend at the Silver Springs Hotel just resting up. This is the same place that Geri and I stayed in when I was hospitalized. It’s a bit outside of downtown in what seems like a fairly quiet neighborhood. The time difference is 10 hours so it’s a bit of a challenge to get adjusted. I was good about staying awake through the most of the day, but my afternoon nap turned into a 3 hour snooze.

Wachira, who was the mechanic in Bungoma, is now living in Nairobi. He came to visit me last night. If you remember from my previous postings, we picked up Wachira and his family and had them come and stay at the farm where it would be safe. He is Kikuyu and his neighbor, a Luo, had been killed in some protests. Wachira feared for the safety of his wife and two young children.

Wachira worked for Total gas station and they transferred him to a station in Nairobi. Although he is not technically an Internally Displaced Person since he is living in a home and not a camp, it is clear that he is still upset by what has transpired. He had been in Bungoma for 7 years and enjoyed it. He’d even bought the small plot of land where he lived. All that is now gone.

Although it has been traumatic for him, there has been some good news. His wife gave birth to a son 3 weeks ago. Both his wife and the baby are healthy. I think that this is great news when compared to some of the stories that I read in the newspaper, The Daily Nation. For those still living in camps, giving birth to a child could be quite a burden. The conditions the IDPs are living in is quite deplorable. This is the rainy season and so some of the camps are flooded. Add to that, the fact that sewage and sanitation is poor and you have a very bad mix. I guess that I would equate it to the conditions for people that were in the Superdome after Hurricane Katrina.

Wachira is quite resilient. Even though I could see sadness in his eyes as he talked about life here, he is determined to make it work for his family. The cost of living, which is increasing throughout the country, is much higher in Nairobi. It’s a city of several million versus a town of about 20,000 or 30,000. He spoke of the need to make it work for his family. I’m sure that he will do well, but there are certainly challenges.

I guess that this shows part of why I love the people here in Kenya. Despite the adversities that they face, they seem to take the challenges head on and fight their way through them. And, more importantly, they maintain a wonderful spirit about them rather than letting it overwhelm them. I’m not naïve enough to think that sometimes the strain is too much, but it is a fighting spirit that inspires me to fight as well.

Headed Back To Kenya

• Post-election violence in Kenya has prevented 2,391 HIV-positive people from accessing antiretrovirals, the country's National AIDS Control Council recently said. (2/28/08)
  
  
• Over a month after Kenya’s disputed election, the repercussions continue to be felt throughout the country. According to the Kenyan Red Cross, more than 1,000 people are thought to have been killed and 300,000 displaced. (Doctors Without Borders, 2/6/08)
  
  
• According to a 2007 UNAIDS report, HIV prevalence in Kenya has decreased from a high of 14% in the mid-1990s to 5% in 2006. Mutie said that if the violence is not "urgently contained, we expect a sharp increase in infections and death of patients due to the poor conditions in the camps and lawlessness that makes it easier for sexual offenses to be committed." He also noted that the economy will suffer as people who cannot access their medicines become ill and are not able to work. "If the situation does not go back to normal, Kenya is going to suffer very much in the fight against AIDS," Mutie said (Business Daily/AllAfrica.com, 2/25).
  
  
• About 1,000 people in Nairobi have been infected with HIV since post-election violence broke out. (The East African Standard, 1/29/08)
  
  

Despite these ominous headlines, I am excited to know that I will be stepping off on an airplane in Nairobi next Friday evening. Some may say to themselves, ‘Is he crazy?’ And my response would be, ‘yes, of course I am.’ However, that has nothing to do with my desire to return. It is hard to convey the peace and calmness that I feel in knowing that I will be able to reunite with friends overseas. The gratification and personal growth that I gain in doing volunteering allows me to be more effective in my local volunteering here in Portland.

In the 2 months that I’ve been home in Portland, I’ve had the opportunity to rest up from volunteer commitments for the first time in 6 years. My return is something that, deep down inside, I think I knew I would have to do as long as my health allowed. Fortunately, I can say that I am probably in a better place health wise than I have been for several years. Those massive doses of antibiotics seemed to have had the added benefit of boosting my immune system. My family and friends are mostly supportive (albeit still a little worried) about my return. I hope that they understand the intrinsic drive that feeds my work at the international level.

The programs are going to be slowly starting up during the month of April, but really won't take off again until the middle to late May. It will be interesting to see what has happened on the ground since I left. From reading the paper online each day, it seems that things are returning to normal. I'm sure there is still much uncertainty in terms of resolving all of the political/tribal issues, but there is an understanding that it needs to be done. It's also good to know that the US Embassy has lifted their travel warnings. Stay tuned for my new entries.

Where Have I Been?

Well, many of you that read my blog, probably already kknow that the last 3 weeks have not been good ones. I will write a very long entry once I return to the United States this coming Sunday. That's right, it is with great sadness that I am having to leave Kenya earlier than planned. However, that just means that I will be coming back all the sooner.

To make a long story short, I continued to have problems with seizures. Then, I had the wonderful opportunity of being in Kisumu the day that the election violence broke out and the downtown was looted and partially burned. Ben the driver and I were hold up in a hotel where we watched the building across the alley burn and such. Then it was back to the farm where we had additional violence in the Bungoma area.

One day, I went into a series of seizures -- 7 in all and was taken to St. Mary's Hospital for an overnight stay. The Flying Doctors airlifted me out the next morning and I went off to Nairobi Hospital for a 10 day stay. I think it was 3 days in ICU and 2 days in the step down unit, but will have to confirm that with Geri. An induced coma finally stopped the seizing and so I am resting up in a hotel this week. I am slowly learning how close I came to not making it. Had they not been able to stop the seizures with the 24 hour coma, then it would have been a 5 day induced coma. Fun, fun, fun.

Poor Geri has been a great friend and suffered through the actions that I had no idea were occurring. My brother Bill was on the other end of daily phone calls. As I said, I will write much more next week from my home in Portland. There were actually some comedic moments within all of the mess.