JAMBO!! Thursday and Friday were two days jam packed with lots of traveling. Like 26 hours to be exact! We gathered at the Sioux Falls air port at around 12:30 when we checked our luggage in, got our tickets, and prayed before heading through security. Once we all made it through security we had a little time to kill before our first flight to Chicago departed at around 2:50 pm. Two hours later we landed in Chicago and rushed to find our gate. Our next flight departed from Chicago to Frankfurt Germany for an 8 hour flight. Once in Frankfurt we booked it to catch our next flight that would take us to Nairobi!! This was a 9.5 hour flight.. so let’s just say by the time we landed and were done flying, our legs felt like stiff jello and were blown up like balloons. I was so glad to be on solid ground and to be able to stand. Once we landed in Nairobi we walked down the steps of the plane to the outside( yep you read that right no terminal), went inside and headed through immigration. After making it through immigration we proceeded through customs again and then packed everything into our vans and began the drive to our hotel that we would stay the night at. We arrived at the Biblica House at 1:30 am(Kenya time) Here in the beautiful land of Kenya we are 9 hours ahead of Nebraska and South Dakota, which is taking some getting used to. Upon arrival at the hotel, we unloaded our bags and they fed us “dinner” which consisted of rice, beef, chicken, sweet potatoes(way different than the US), and fresh fruit. It was soooooo gooooodddd!! I also tried Kenyan ginger ale- bad idea.. One of the hotel workers told me before I drank it, “take it slow it’s very strong” yeah she wasn’t wrong...
Saturday- January 13, 2018:
Not much sleep happened Friday night. I think it was because I was so anxious and excited about so many unknowns that today would hold. I also maybe slept a total of 3-4 hours the entire travel time (for those of you who wonder what you do when your stuck on a plane and can’t sleep you watch, “The Lion King” twice, and then watch about 5 other movies and then read an entire book) Anyway, back to Saturday- we woke up and had a lovely breakfast of fresh fruit, cereal, sausage(?), hard boiled eggs, kale, and a tortilla pancake type thing that I can not remember the name of. And of course fresh passion fruit juice and coffee. We hung out a little bit, before starting the (supposedly) 6 hour drive to Eldoret. Along the way we got to see so many of the beauties of Africa- from trees and plants to the bright red dirt. Let’s not forget about the wild animals we saw such as zebras, baboons, and antelope. We stopped at an over look sight to see part of the Rift Valley and then also stopped at the equator. Even though our trip lasted more like 8 hours as opposed to 6 we were able to see and experience so much. So much beauty and so much chaos. Speaking of chaos, anyone who thinks I am a terrible drivers can no longer give an opinion, because oh my goodness there are no rules for driving here and no space limit. I’m pretty we almost got in like 20 accidents and the bumps were so bumpy but hey we survived it!! Also I am currently on a strike of eating meat from anywhere that I do not know, because at one of our stops there was a butcher shop in the restaurant and I’m just gonna stop there.. I saw a lot of beauty today but I also saw so much poverty and heart ache. Just from driving, I could see the pain they are feeling.. I saw a mom swaddling a baby on her back, yet carrying jugs of water. I saw broken roads and run down shacks. Places o would never imagine as a livable place, were the homes for many. You see picture on the news and on google of the poverty of Africa, but it will never fully hit you until you see it through your own eyes. I know I have just scratched to surface of the pain of this nation, but y’all, my eyes and my heart saw so much today. I much. I can not even put into words all that I saw nor can I describe how I am feeling. I have a lot to saw, but not right now. Honduras hit me hard, but I think Kenya is hitting me even harder. It’s gonna hurt a lot more than what I felt today, but God is gonna do some cool things.
This has nothing to do with what I’m talking about, but it hit me pretty hard- I peed in a hole today. Whil I was disgusted and slightly confused, the natives did it with not problem. They probably have no idea what they are missing out on which made my heart hurt.
Once we arrived in Eldoret we went to mamas house. She is the director of the school we will have clinics at as well as a very important person to SIMBA ministry. She was so sweet and it was nice to enjoy some more homemade Kenyan food and chat with each other. We were all so exhausted that not much talking took place, but we did enjoy our time! Tomorrow we are headed to church and then to set up the school for the clinics. Once set and ready to go, the rest of the time we get to hang out with the kiddos and love on them. My heart is SO ready to shower so much love on them!
Sunday- January 14, 2018:
Today was our first day at the school and I am at a loss for words.
We started the morning with breakfast and devos at the hotel and then headed to St. Jacobs School. On the way I saw a level of poverty I have heard about and seen pictures of but never fully grasped the depth of it until I looked into the eyes of many as we passed by. Tattered and broken, they continue to push forward. The culture here is beautiful. I wish you could see the images I have engraved in my mind, because the ones I took on my iPhone don’t even come close to how shattered this world is or how beautiful it is. While there is so much loss there is still so much gain for them. So much hope and so much joy.
Upon arrival at the school we heard singing and welcoming from the students. They were so excited to see us! My heart felt in that moment of first meeting them. We received a tour of the school and then proceeded into one of the main buildings for a church service. Half of the service was in Swahili and the other half in English. They put so much passion into their worship and sermons that it’s hard for one to not feel the Holy Spirit during a service after two hours of church and introduction we finally had time to meet and play with the kiddos and I have never felt so loved ever! I met this sweet little girl named Rebbecca and of course we bonded right away. She never left my side the entire day. Something tells me I’m going to have a very hard time leaving. My heart loves this beautiful place so so so much. After hangining our with the children’s we headed back to our hotel for dinner, met for devos and then we headed to bed.
Monday- January 15, 2018:
WOW!
I can’t not begin to describe to you how incredible today was! We met at 8:99 am for breakfast and devotions. We were supposed to leave for the clinic at 8:30, but that was not Kenyan time 😉 our driver did not arrive until 9:15. We piled in the matatus and drove the 20-30 minutes to, St. Jacobs. Once we arrived, we began to set up for the clinic. Today we would see 176 of the students. By the time we finish setting up for the clinic it was tea time so we had chai and then it was officially time to start the clinic. My areas for today were vitals and wound care. During vitals I did the basics: Temperature, pulse, oxygen, respirations, and a few blood pressures. Wound care today was basically cuts and scrapes with a few mystery cases. A few kiddos, one boy who was especially bad, had these, I’m not exactly sure what they were, but open wounds that would harden over. They did not look nor smell pretty. I think that little boy is very sick. We have potentially ruled out diabetes, but it could be possibly something cardiovascular.
My heart aches for these kids. As we exams them and patched them up they were so scared. Many of them have never ever been to or seen a nurse or doctor and they were absolutely terrified. I had to constantly re assure them that they were okay and that we were going to take very good care of them. They were all so prescious and I am so excited to continue my schooling as a nurse. I’m so ready to serve in this way!
Getting to interact with all the kids and play nurse for a day got me so freaking pumped to become a nurse! I also had some time to play with a lot of the kids. We played a game where they would sneak up on me and I would turn around and run around and chase them. It was so fun, but I biffed it hard at one point. I laughed it off, but I’m a definitely a little sore. Tomorrow we go on our first house visit to see a sponsored child, but for now I am headed to bed, because I am exhausted.
Prayer Requests:
- My grandpa was not doing well at all when I left, so please pray for his health and our family as well
- For the kids we meet and their hearts
- That God gives us peace under all the chaos and wisdom to help heal these beautiful people
- For our hearts: that God reaches us so much, breaks our hearts, and help us to love dangerously
- For all of our energy levels- we’re starting to feel the lack of sleep and long days
- For health- I’m starting to feel not the greatest and I know others aren’t doing so well either
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