Carpentry, chickens, and wet pants...

Well it has been a while since my last post, and a lot has happened in the in the in-between time. Things have been great, and I have really enjoyed growing in my relationships with all of the kids through playing soccer to the nightly fellowship to simply sitting with them at meals, it has been an amazing time of relationship building. We have all finally gotten settled into our home, for two months, at Tumaini which has been a good adjustment. We are now cooking our own food (mostly with Katie and Lindsey’s expert training from “Mama”). We all, more or less, can make chapati (delicious flat bread), mashed potatoes, peas, beans, rice, and sukama wiki (cabbage and collards). But, let me fill you in on some of the highlights of the past week and a half.

- “The One!”: As I was walking back to the house one afternoon to do a little reading, I walked by Willfred’s house which is directly behind where Adam and I live, and is also partly a chicken house. Adam called out, “Austin, do you know how to catch a chicken?”. I have actually dealt with chickens before, and said, “Yes actually. But, it’s really just trial and error”. I went to help him out, and we tried in vain for about 15 minutes. We chased it in all directions, cornered it, and I almost caught it once by the wing, but it slipped by to freedom and ran into the neighbors yard/farm. I thought all was lost until Willfred, like a glorious light in a dark night, came running up the yard and yelled “That one! The one!” Adam and I were overjoyed to see Willfred the chicken caretaker, and he proceeded to catch the chicken by it’s legs, saying, “Always he is getting out…always”. He tried to convince Adam and me to let him kill the chicken for it’s bad behavior, and the fact that he was, “Fat! Very fat!”. But we convinced Willfred otherwise, insisting that the chicken should live to fly another day. We learned to always look out for “The One” whenever we went to feed chickens.

- “Doreen”: I’m not really sure where to start with Doreen. But, I will start with a note I put in my journal: Doreen is precious and a sweetheart, little girl with an infectious laugh and a love for tickling and being tickled. Although, during a women's conference, I held her in my lap for around 2 hours while she fell asleep, and I realized after it was over that she had peed on me haha. What was worse is that I had to get up in front of the group of women and introduce myself. One of her favorite things to do these days, besides hold my hand and asked to be thrown in the air, is to play a game where she and her sister Faith and a little girl named Monica yell my name Aus”ton,” and then I chase them around the home. I can’t begin to tell you how this little girl melts my heart. On the way back to Tumaini from church, in the cold rain, she held my hand the entire way. The simplicity, innocence, and joy of the children has been something that has really shown me what God meant in Matthew 18:4-5 about having childlike faith.

- “John (The Carpenter)”: For several days, Adam and I have had the privilege to work alongside a man named John while we torn down a wall and built shelves for Tumaini’s bakery. I can’t begin to tell you what an amazing carpenter John is. First, no electrical tools. He uses a hand saw, hammer, square, planer, and a pencil to get the job done. Second, we used wood that was cut, literally, the day before. Thirdly, he allowed two mzunguus to help him with his work, which he could have probably done faster without us. Also, we straightened out old nails to reuse. I like seeing the the three R's (reduce, reuse, and recycle) in effect. Another side note, he consistently responds in a very grandfatherly way by saying, "hmmm..yes...hmmm," to most questions. More than this though, he is extremely humble and always willing to help and very knowledgeable of everything dealing with carpentry.

Well, I have been back in Nairobi for a couple days, and while it has been great to get some rest and relaxation (American food and movies), I miss the kids, the fresh air, and quiet. I can already see how some of the amenities that I enjoy so much about being in a more modern city, are also a distraction. Although not always bad, I have slacked in my daily reading and journaling. But, it has been a great refresher to be here for a couple days and spend some time with the other missionaries. But, I can’t wait to get back to the kids and learn more. Before I left, I was reading a book called "Spotting the Sacred: Noticing God in the Most Unlikely Places" by Bruce Main; it was about how often we miss God's little signs of his presence in our surroundings, activities, and the people around us. I can truly say that I have seen God in every one of these children.

Below is a picture of my girl Doreen