busy busy busy! wow.. update...

Im so so so sorry Ive taken so long to update this blog, I have only just got on the internet for the first time in over a week = every opportunity that Ive had to use internet has been snatched up by another job - Its hard work here but im enjoying itIve wanted to use the internet SO SO SO MUCH. A lot has been happening, going to the streets and the rehabilitation centre etc etc etc.

I Went on a school empowement day not friday gone but the one before - was so good i spoke to the oldest girls about optimism and using talents - the head teacher was really wanted me to be so firm with them because they were all failing - it was good and I said what I wanted to say and think i empowered them to achieve better, After an hour or so of them bein silent and scared the class teacher left (which was unusual and didn’t happenen to any other team member,) wow their face’s changed! I told them they could all breathe now and then they were laughing and joking and contributing, which was amazing, and such a positive reponse, some of them even ended by saying they were going to work hard to become doctors and stuff, which is awesome especially for girls in remote villages. We had a good day and as a team I think we aschieved a lot. I enjoyed being teacher Rachel. It was proper right out in the sticks and I felt soooooooooooo trravel sick - the car journy was like 4 or 5 hours, I was exhausted.

Yesturday was the worst morning ever, ever ever.. me and some of the team went to the streets, where I hoped to find a little boy that I saw last week- it was sad because he was sniffing glue and was only 10 years old. but he was such a good boy and liked me so much, i hoped to talk to him about his family and how we can get him back home. I’d so so hoped I’d find him! his name was Alan. But when we got there it was a different story…

i had the worst day ever, it was quite traumatic... im feeling ok today but yesturday was hard... went to the street slum place where we go on Tuesdays – milango Kubwa, and there where no kids there,... i was planning to talk to the 10 yr old boy called alan to try and get him back to his family so i was confused cos theres usually so so many kids there (at least 30 or 40 )... all of sudden 6 of the boys including alan came out complately naked bein whipped, then people around where bein whipped so we had to run, turned out this muslim guy had taken it into his own hands and decided the boys should be circumsised, he then took them to a wooden cart, we walked a different way round and found the man, the boys and the cart on the main road, they were putting the cart with the naked boys infront of the traffic and stopping the cars demanding money, threatening with their whips, people are scared of repercussions and getting beat up by the street kids as well as the whips, so the man was getting money out of these poor scared boys.
so to make a long story short we got out of their but the team are meeting with all sorts of people to try and sprt out the issue and find out what happened and what can be done next, it was ok because there was a team of around 8 of us so there is a lot of information that everyone got from it.. but it was horrible, we couldnt do anything, seemed like a hopeless situation. But the team here will sort it out. God tried to warn me before but I didn’t check the bible verse he had been shoving in my face until we got home. I was so confused and shocked, God had been trying to tell me to read Jeremiah 9 verse 24, I even saw it written on the back of a bus – which upon reading it cant have actually been there cos that makes no sense – it was a pure miracle – the verse is about being circumcised in the flesh and not in the heart – and being pure in heart and giving your heart to Christ and not just being circumcised in flesh – but metaphorically circumcised in the heart. – a verse which was weird and confused me especially after those events!! But I told the team, and the team is now taking this verse to the apparently Christian lady who is behind the whole situation.

apart from that news…I now have permenantly stained hands... I have scabs on my knuckles from hand washing my clothes and my hands are now permenanly dirty from all the potato pealing... no matter how much I wash - ive only had 3 hot showers while ive been here - cold showers every day arent good!!! but its ok... 6 am cold showers are a big wake up call! And today I discovered the water heater switch! Hahahahahahaha…… oh man, silly girl!

On the tourist-y side I went on my first touristy trip last week.. was amazing! i went to an animal orphanage last week.. like a zoo animal orphanage with animals from the game park; was amazing!! me and one of hydwyn and lydiah's sons and his friend from swansea went - WE FED LIONS! i had to hold a massive chunk of cow leg..(which was the only part of the situation I felt skeptical about) and we went inside the cage while they were held back.. THEN we got to go inside the cheetah's cage and stroke them! we got photos of us inside patting this cheetah's head!! It was crazy! A real life wild cheetah – and we were patting it as if it were our pet dog.. haha.. wow, it was a surreal but awesome experience – and I welcomed little break.

About the boy from the Joseph kang’ethe rehabilitation centre – the boy who I was planning to trace his family when I got to Uganda- somehow got taken back home apparently, so il try and travel to visit him when im over there, i was upset when he'd dissapeared from the rehab place, i though he'd escaped and gone to the streets without saying bye, and I was shocked because hes such a good boy – and clever! and i wished id got to say bye but im so happy hes got a lift back home, and hope i can see him – he’s about 13 and sooooo lovely with a fantastic smile, the best smile infact! So I hope and pray he’s doing ok and his family welcomed him back – that was something I was worried about. But I hope to follow up whats happening when im there.

Anyway, so, wow, that’s my news I think – as much as I can think of! I now have only 12 days left in Kenya then its time for Uganda – and im so excited to go back although I’ll miss it here. But Uganda, wow,.. im excited to be back. Il find it so hard leaving the family hyddwyn and Lydiah have been good, and my three best friends here – bex – from England who I met up with here, and Jimmy and Mary – who are part of the family who I stay with… and especially the 2 girls will be missed so much. Theyr now awesome at English and are doing so well. Looking smart on Sunday’s wearing the clothes I brought for them.

Oh – and on Monday I was teacher Rachel again! Was amaaazing I enjoyed it, I taught a Christian religious education lessons, that was requested by one of the boys in the government rehabilitation centre. I had a class of 5 boys, and it was so good – they read the bible, I taught them about the basics of the bible = like it being in 2 testaments and how many books in each testament, we then learnt the creation story and they memoprised what was made in each of the 6 days (and about the rest day!) was good J they had a good time, and tried so hard.

I hope that update was ok!!!

Love you all and thanks to those who keep in touch – I wish I could reply all the time but internet is a rare opportunity for me… thankyou though and keep it up, I love them and appreciate them.

Love and miss you all…. Hope your all well… thinking of you all there..

Love Rachel J

rockwivrach@hotmail.com