Our first week...

Our first week has been wonderful. It's Sunday afternoon here, around 3:00 p.m. (we're 8 hours later than Mississippi). We went to Tigoni Fellowship Church this morning where the children from the LCC (children's center) attend. We were also able to see friends there from previous trips which was great. Kelvin and Reagan (they've served as translators on past trips) came over to our house for lunch and several hours of great conversation around the fire. They're both 23 years old and grew up together - they are absolutely hilarious and know WAY too much about America through Facebook, movies, and tv.

The rest of the week was busy with visits to the children's center every day (the girls especially like spending long hours there). On Friday, Karen, Anna, and Patrick's wife, Anastasia and I went into Limuru to run several errands. Anastasia took us through the local outdoor market where we bought fresh peas, corn, carrots, potatoes, etc... It was amazing how inexpensive everything was (and much fresher than what we buy in our grocery stores at home). We also went to the local grocery store for the rest of our purchases. It's interesting to me how much more natural all of the food is here - you can't find processed foods at all and very few canned goods and sugary products. We're definitely eating healthier here than at home. I'm finding the culture to be much more environmentally friendly here as well, at least in the community where we're staying. Disposing of trash is a problem, so there is very little packaging used and everything that can be recycled is - I'm finding that between burning, composting, and recycling we're producing an amazingly small amount of trash for five people sharing a home.

Speaking of home, our living situation is absolutely ideal. We've been able to rent the home of missionary friends while they are in the US. They're also allowing us to use their car which has been a huge convenience. They have an amazing staff - Mama Joan cooks and cleans for us, Jacob is the caretaker outside and builds wonderful fires, and Geoffrey is our guard who spends each evening outside patrolling around the house. We feel safe and well cared for.

We were able to have dinner with Pat Dixson who runs the feeding program for the elderly and people with AIDS. She also sponsors several small, poor elementary schools. We look forward to visiting several of her schools in the next week or so. We were also able to visit Cheshire - a home for the mentally and physically disabled. We've been invited back to work one-on-one with several of their residents on learning their letters and beginning to read. We packed lots of pencils and colored pencils to share with Pat's schools and will also bring some to Cheshire where they literally have no supplies at all for teaching and learning.

So far, the major lesson God has had for me has been patience - patience with people, with getting things done (Kenya time works much differently than US!), and patience with differences. I think these are all important lessons for me to learn and hopefully be able to transfer to my home, work, and relationships when I get home (many of you will be glad to hear this!).

Amazingly, for three women and four teenage girls, we're all getting along remarkably well and having a wonderful time together. We look forward to measuring the kids' feet for new shoes this week and whatever else is in store for us. Thanks for your continued thoughts and prayers for us!