Article 13 Initiative - Blog

Dear Faithful Blog Readers,

Wojciech and I arrived home safe and sound just over two weeks ago, and I think we have both been so busy catching up with our Toronto lives, trying to graduate from university (one of us), and seeing friends and family that we have not been dutifully updating this blog!  And it is now time.

I don’t have enough words (hard to believe, based on the length of my posts!) to describe what SHOFCO, Kibera, and Kenya have done to change me and my perspective on the world.  Since being back in Canada, I have been frequently asked, “what did you miss while you were away?” and aside from the luxury of having a shower and many of the people that I love, there wasn’t much else.  Trying to encapsulate my experiences through slideshows of what feels like millions of photographs just doesn’t do it.  And no matter how many stories I seem to tell, I’m not sure I am adequately conveying my sense of wonder and of love and respect for the people that I met, the community that I was brought into, and the place that I can now call home.

We live a charmed life.  And I hope this sense of appreciation for the world I have returned to stays with me for a long time.  I have returned to Canada filled with excitement, as well, having realized what incredible opportunities lie at my feet.  In an interview at my university this past week, I spoke at great length about SHOFCO and the work I did in Kenya, and after several minutes, I was asked, “so…you’re sort of an experience collector?”  I guess in many ways I am, although it’s not so much about the number of experiences but about their quality.  Of all the experiences in my life, this trip has altered me for the better I think (I want to say changed my life, but every moment you live through does this) and I’m filled with wonder at everything that goes on around me.  I have so much more to learn! And so much time in which to do all that learning!

I want to thank everyone who took a few moments to scribble me a note while in Kenya, or commented on the blog.  Those little messages were sustaining and encouraging and I loved reading each one of them.  As Wojciech mentioned, SHOFCO is now also blogging so please read what they’re up to and comment as well!  I will attempt to get some more photographs posted here progressively since our internet connection now in Toronto blows those of the cybers’ out of the water.

If anyone should be interested in volunteering with SHOFCO, please let us know; they are always seeking new knowledge, new skills, and what you may consider to be trivial where you are could possibly change the life of someone you have yet to meet.  (I explained how to make yoghurt, showed how to knot friendship bracelets, and made Canadian pancakes…all of which will be used for some sort of income-generating activities in Kibera now)  Alternatively, if you have read all of these long blog posts and feel moved to support the organization in a different way, contact us as well!  I am currently searching for some good synthesizer/music recording/production software to send to SHOFCO, as they are filled with aspiring musicians and lack the funds to buy instruments.  But boy, do they sing!As you can see, I am hopelessly enmeshed now in their cause, and have promised that I have returned to Canada as an ambassador for Kibera, just as SHOFCO promised me that they will continue to water the seeds we have planted in their hearts and minds.

Finally, in order to meet some of our unexpected costs, I am selling some Kenyan coffee, accompanied by a SHOFCO article, from which all of the profits will go back to funding meals that we provided for the group while there.  Email me if this interests you! And last but not least, the lulu book is on its way out, and we’ll post more info as soon as it’s ready.  Right now, all I have left to say is that I want to put out a general plea to all to think about what you have, appreciate all that you are accidentally born into (and similarly all that you are not), take time to be generous of word and spirit, and voice your love for the people around you.

Mimi wako,

Hannah

Visitors may have noticed we haven’t been posting much again, but this is simply because we are now back in Canada. After a good, solid seven weeks abroad, we’ve returned home to continue with our projects, our lives, and FMM as a whole. Reflections will be coming, and we’re still putting the photography book together — expect to see it in a few weeks!

Until then, SHOFCO now has a blog as well, available at http://www.11-55.org/shofco/. So please enjoy and comment… We’ll be writing again soon!

Who knows how many blogs remain, but here sit Wojciech and I, printing newsletters for our big launch party with SHOFCO today.  Together with Cara’s Capacity Building and Sustainability class, we will celebrate the culmination of a long journey together, with songs, skits, soda, and fruit!

Yesterday, we (I hope) averted a crisis.  In the name of sustainability of our workshops and SHOFCO’s newsletter production, Wojciech and I assigned each member of the class a leadership position in one of six groups; typing, writing, editing, public speaking, layout, and photography.  Our intentions were well-meaning: to empower the group by identifying their strengths and using these to raise the rest of the team.  Unfortunately, we could not foresee that the division of individuals into departments might lead to some misunderstandings and thus conflict between what began as a united entity.  SHOFCO already has several departments: among them, information/communication, sanitation, sports, theatre, crafts, and women’s empowerment.  Therefore, we did not see how creating additional departments might cause conflict, and since much of what was causing disagreement was taking place in Kiswahili, it took us longer than expected to notice the problem.  That being said, once identified, we held an immediate conflict resolution session, using the Maasai blanket that I had bought as our talking stick (I spoke to them about Canadian indigenous culture and the wisdom and respect that is symbolized through this open and non-violent communication).  The discussion brought a lot of sore feelings out into the open, but I feel it also began to heal the wounds. 

SHOFCO’s strength is it’s community, and if I had felt that I had done anything to disrupt that, I would have a very hard time coming home feeling fulfilled.  Fortunately, Wojciech and I were assured by several members that our creation of teams did not lead to the problem, but rather that personal actions were the main cause of grievance.   David put it aptly when he said, “I’m afraid that we’ve grown old, but we haven’t grown up.”  Speaking in proverbs is a sign of wisdom here, and many lessons have been reinforced for me in this way.  Some of my favourites follow:

No man is an island.

Pride comes before a fall.

It takes months to build a house, but seconds for it to come crumbling down.

A good visitor knows when to leave.

You are not a failure until you blame others for your mistakes.

The only good reason for giving up is death.

Two kings cannot rule one empire.

A happy family is one who understands one another.

We are all not ok.  As soon as you think you are ok, that is when you start having problems.

Water that has been begged for doesn’t quench thirst.

A challenge to a wise man is like breakfast.

A toad does not appear in daylight for no reason.

Not until someone’s absence will you realize the importance of their presence.

Where there is smoke, there must also be fire.

If you refuse to be wise, you will be otherwise.

A problem shared is a problem half-solved.

Through the sharing of our problem, we have come to a happier place as a group, since as Eric said, we managed to catch is while it was still green. To continue our community-building, we played “Darling, if you love me, will you please please smile?” which got everyone laughing and the hilarity did wonders to ease the tensions. Erick Maiko was immensely amusing to watch, as if anyone even so much as approached him (forget about asking him the question!) he would scrunch up his face and start howling with laughter. The afternoon was light-hearted, and Wojciech received his ultimate lesson in cross-cultural communication; having watched John spill some of his drink on his lap, he said, “did you spill tea on your pants?” John gave him a look of utter confusion and so Wojciech self-corrected; “I mean, chai on your trousers?”

Last night we spent the evening in Kibera, where Kennedy graciously took care of us. We cooked together, talked, enjoyed the time spent that was non-workshop related, and made promises that our work together will continue. I think that our staying the night in Kibera broke down any last hint (if there was any such remaining) of concern or nervousness that we may have had. At one point, sometime in the middle of the night, we left Kennedy’s house to find the washroom, and I had a wonderful vantage point of Kibera in the moonlight. It is beautiful and peaceful. All through the night, I could hear murmurs of voices, soft music, the call to prayer, chanting going on for a funeral, dogs talking to each other, a baby’s whimper, and the heavy breathing of my two sleeping friends. Sometimes, in the most unlikely of places, all is right with the world.

Jambo,

It has been quite some time since I was last able to send an email home, which is due to the fact that as the end of this incredible journey approaches, there are skillions of things to wrap up, and I have had quite a rotten cold. Sometime during the middle of last week, the temperature dipped to the lowest it’s been so far (by my untrained licked-finger-in-the-air-estimations) and perhaps this, coupled with the sharing of crockery as well as the constant shaking of hands, caused me to fall sick. I was feeling pretty low for three or four days, but by the beginning of this week I was back to my cheerful self. It also doesn’t hurt that there is a warmer breeze blowing these days…

Of the many pots on the fire, we are hard at work cooking up a new and improved SHOFCO newsletter, which we aim to have printed by Saturday in time for the joint party between the computer and journalism class (ours) and the capacity building and sustainability class (Cara’s). It will be filled with wonderful stories, articles, poems, interviews, and photos that have been created by the group over the past several weeks. Following this, Wojciech and I will be compiling the strongest photos with perhaps some pieces of writing into a book that we are self-publishing through lulu.com in order to raise money for the continued production of SHOFCO’s newsletter, “Spotlight on Kibera.”

In keeping with the overriding theme of sustainability, SHOFCO and FMM have come up with a more solid plan to continue the production of the newsletter as well as to continue workshops even after our departure. I am thrilled with the development of six sub-departments within SHOFCO’s Information and Communications section, which include Writing, Editing, Photography, Layout and Computer Design, Typing, and Public Speaking. Each of these teams has a number of leaders who are quite strong in their respective fields. From the independent work I have been observing over the past two days, I know that SHOFCO will be in good hands.

I am coming to grasp just how difficult our impending goodbyes are going to be. We have come to know each other very well and I feel as though I have a home in Kenya and at SHOFCO now. I will miss the sweet surrogate family I have found, morning hugs, playing Scrabble, folk tales and stories, matatu rides, laugher, fresh milk, crazy hats, discussions about God, reggae, morning chai, quiet jokes, conversations half in English and half in Kiswahili, and the general buzz and camaraderie that bubbles out of the SHOFCO office every day.

The group has taken to teaching me bits and pieces of Kiswahili and as a result I ended up buying a pocket guide to the language to help me along. I wonder if it is in any way portentous that in the “Friends” section that includes a little dialogue, one line reads “And this is Hannah”?? In any case, I have begun to learn the basics, and have excited Noah and Joel by saying “moja kikombe, mbili vicombe, sindiyo?” (one cup, two cups, right?) and “chai ni moto” (the tea is hot), and pleased Marto endlessly by understanding and answering his “kwa nini?” (why?). Who says 20 is too late to learn a language?

Nairobi has been privy to not one, but nine earth tremors in the last four days. The whole country is on alert, and various districts are being periodically warned to clear out in case of a big quake. The Rift Valley fault line is apparently shifting, and many of the structures in the city and country – in fact most – are not designed to withstand the earth shaking! I had never felt an earthquake before, and it has been a funny wavy sensation, much like being on a boat that’s rocking gently. Yesterday’s tremor caused (we think it was the cause) a big accident on Ngong Road; a head-on collision between a matatu and a pick-up truck that blocked the two-lane road for miles. This morning, a section of Kibera was evacuated between 3:00 and 6:00 a.m. for fear of the houses collapsing. I hope that all the hype settles soon!

A rather progressive legislation has been passed in the recent set of by-laws released in Nairobi, which prohibits everyone from using plastic bags. Except for the Nakumatt (grocery store) bags, which are apparently biodegradable, you can be arrested for carrying plastic on the street. Wojciech and I have joked that, our safety and security being absolutely fine, imagine having to explain that we didn’t return to Canada because we were imprisoned for the possession of plastic bags! This same set of by-laws also prevents matatu conductors from yelling, which is practically their trademark. It is interesting to see what is enforced and what social ills are left otherwise unchecked.

On Friday evening, Wojciech and I will be spending the night at Kennedy’s house, in order to smash to smithereens whatever bit of stereotype he thinks we may have left in us about Kibera. I’m looking forward to the evening, as we rarely get a chance to talk all together and when we do, it tends to be logistics. Kennedy will be coming to the United States in the fall (and Canada as well if his second visa application is successful), and it is a nice chance for him and Wojciech to strengthen their bond, as they didn’t click the same way that Kennedy and I did at the beginning of the trip. I can see that SHOFCO and FMM have a long journey ahead together, and even though we are about to go, in a sense we are really only about to start. FMM’s August issue will feature a number of SHOFCO’s articles, and internet-willing, hopefully so will many of our future publications.

From the reverse, I think I have been successful in breaking down some of the stereotypes that exist about Canada. I have confirmed that Canada is not a state belonging to America, and that we do have poverty, teen pregnancy, and indeed, even dust! No matter how much we learn in school, there is a certain education through experience and interactions that just cannot be beaten. I’m very fortunate to have been offered this particular experience, which has allowed me to understand things in a very different way; however, I don’t believe it’s necessary to leave the country to make these kinds of discoveries. There is a lot that goes on right under our noses, but there is often a sore lack of wonder and revelry in simple things like good company, that causes us to turn away from the beautiful truths all around us. As I discover the dignity in simplicity, the immense strength in hope, and the great potency of community, I hope that I am able to take my experiences forward to share and to kindle joy in the people around me.

Amani,

Hannah

We’re now uploading photos for the Shoot Nations photography contest. I’m impressed and very happy with the photos because they are very good and we actually managed to get this far.

We uploaded about two thirds of the photos yesterday and today the cyber cafe donated some computer time for us so we can finish this job once and for all. We ended up creating e-mails for most people, then creating accounts on the Shoot Nations website, and finally started uploading the photos. It took us a total of 18 hours (9 hours each) yesterday and today things are moving a bit faster. It made me think about an interesting problem.

When we think of the digital divide, we often think of a lack of access to computers. This is still a major problem because many people haven’t used computers and do not have access to them. One can help solve this problem by donating computers, generators, and other hardware. However, as we move into an age of Web 2.0 online, where most websites require fast internet connections, new computers, and regular updates for the software they run, a second “digital divide” is forming — that of bandwidth. SHOFCO, for example, has a number of talented photographers who stand a chance at winning prizes in a photography contest, and they now have cameras they can use to participate. The only problem now is that uploading a high quality photo can take up to an hour or two, which is much too expensive for almost everyone.

Today has to be the most mundane of our days so far in Kenya. This is because we are sitting, twiddling our thumbs at a cyber cafe, while we try to upload 60 photographs on a slow internet connection to the Shoot Nations photography contest. we’ve been here since about 10:00 this morning and it’s now going on 4:00 pm…and we’re just approaching the half-way mark! I guess this means we’ll be frequent visitors to the cyber through the week.

This past week has been one of incredible highs and lows, what with my exhaustion manifesting itself as a head cold by wednesday, some miscommunications that led to frustrations but happily worked themselves out with some frank discussions, and a fantastic guest visit to SHOFCO.

On Friday afternoon, Ruth Oniang’o visited SHOFCO. She is a member of parliament and a professor, as well as the editor of the African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition, and Development, and the director of the Rural Outreach Program. She was an incredible speaker and gave SHOFCO a nice little boost to morale and spirit that I greatly appreciated. She has promised the whole group a trip to parliament besides taking some time to think about what might be the best way she can help. I am most thrilled about her connection to the group in that she would like to partner her organization with SHOFCO, and I feel that as we puzzle over questions of sustainability, this is one link that we will leave behind that ensures the continued success of SHOFCO.

We have a week left in order to put together the SHOFCO newsletter, and a week and half to get the lulu.com book ready.
As we get busier and busier, we seem to write less and less on the blog, but we will do our best to add information here and there as we come back to the cyber through the week.

It’s been a hectic few days here, thinking and working on a number of different things at once. I think this week is a week of meetings and logistics, visioning and thinking. It’s been an emotionally strange week because of everything we’ve covered during chats, interviews, and meetings. We had two visitors to our workshops this week, ran into a “former visitor” from another day, and are preparing for a meeting with a Kenyan MP tomorrow.

And where is all of this going? Ah, there was a meeting for that too! Okay, I use the word “meeting” liberally because it was much more like a short discussion and brainstorm. We’re thinking of ideas, and we’re covering a lot of bases. Our ideas include starting a cyber cafe, social enterprise focused on outsourcing, and selling the SHOFCO newsletter. One idea that has been on mine and Hannah’s minds a lot lately is the lulu.com book — we started picking photos for it, and are getting people to keep taking pictures in the next two weeks. I think it’ll be a very interesting book mainly because of the mix of photos and articles… The articles we read and photos we see are often meaningful and honest, two qualities one rarely thinks of when reading the travel advisories and warnings about Kibera.

And where will all of this lead, where will it end? Yes, we have a deadline by which we must be on a plane, and it’s only three weeks away… But what happens next? What will the computers be used for, and have we even taught enough to ensure the workshops can be taught by SHOFCO to others? These are the questions that I’m thinking of now as we’re more than half-way through the trip. No, I’m not worried, but am curious about the future… I know things will end well and all the participants (this includes Hannah and me) will be better for it — indeed, I think we already are.

So where will it lead next? Thinking about this is an adventure all on its own.

Saturday is our practical day at SHOFCO, and this morning while some went out into the field to take photographs and as Wojciech taught programming to a few keen students, I made pancakes.  With the assistance of Anne Chege and then the company and conversation of Dorah and David, I cooked up forty or so of the biggest pancakes I have ever laid eyes on.  As I mentioned in a previous post, when SHOFCO eats, they really eat.  For less than five dollars, Martin picked up some flour, eggs, bananas, and baking powder for me, and we used the sugar, salt, and vegetable oil in the cupboard, as well as the milk we had brought from the Siloma’s family home, where they keep many cattle (in true Masai fashion).  Using a paraffin stove and an aluminum plate to fry them on, we spent a good three hours cooking our pancakes.   The whole point of my pancake pursuit was to give SHOFCO a little taste of Canada…I brought a bottle of maple syrup that disappeared in no time, as it was the piece de resistance on top of the pancake and banana pennies (or banana shillings as we called them today).  Almost as soon as the pancakes were devoured, many of the SHOFCO men asked for the recipe, and one was even so bold as to say, whomever can make pancakes can be my wife!  Dorah and Anne and I told him that David was the pancake connoisseur. : )

Something funny that I’ve noticed in Kibera is the proliferation of people who make their living as shoeshiners.  In a place that is so dusty and dirty, I guess there are many shoes to be washed, but as soon as you step down off the stool, they are almost instantly in need of another shine.  Is this a point of pride?  Or perhaps shoes are indicative of status?  I have yet to find out…  Even within SHOFCO, the moment a person steps inside the gate, they will often stop at the water pump to wipe down their footwear.

I worry that sometimes I may portray Kibera and Kenya in a blindingly positive light, but we have had our few trials as well as triumphs.  Yesterday as we waited for the 111 back to Ngong, we were approached by a man who asked us for a job.  Taken aback - we would have been more prepared had he asked us for money - Wojciech stammered a sorry, we have nothing, but he persisted, and asked if he could tour us around Nairobi.  We said that we have a friend who is doing that for us, and physically moved off down the platform to avoid him.  Later Wojciech pointed out that he had kept his hands in his pockets for the whole conversation, which worried us both…what might he have been hiding?  And would someone be hesitant to be violent in such a public area?  We may have been very lucky with the outcome of that encounter.  Aside from that one little scare, today I nipped my finger in the sliding lock of the gate at SHOFCO and now have a big purple bruise.  Last weekend I was also bitten by a vervet monkey at Keekorok Lodge in Masai Mara, as I was taking a photo of a male grooming a female when another one approached with a mango skin in her mouth from the other side and suddenly territory was an issue and I was too close!  Luckily, the monkey’s bite didn’t pierce my pant leg (thank goodness for jeans) and I am quite alright.

I had a funny moment of culture shock this afternoon with Wojciech, as we walked from Olympic Stage back to Namba Nane, weaving our way through Kibera on our own.  Wojciech was talking about Starbucks, and somehow the idea of this corporation and the cafe culture and richness of the lifestyle that I associate with that coffee struck me as totally ridiculous as we wandered past women cooking maze over small stoves, cages filled with squawking chickens, and children jumping rope.

Habari ya subuhi,

It is now about halfway through our time here in Kenya, and I’m starting to feel the effects of being away from home for almost a month. I am not homesick as I had well expected to be, but I certainly am tired. And I do miss hugs. And with less than one month to go, I’m already beginning to feel a bit nostalgic (if that’s even possible) about everything here and what I will be leaving behind when I go. I have become incredibly close to some of the members of SHOFCO, and while we do have this power of technology and of email, there is absolutely nothing that can compare to the real thing: in-person communication. That being said, I look forward to seeing many of you when I return home to share my stories in person, and hear your stories about the past several months!

Week two of our workshops was eventful, in that the group passed in their editorials on issues relating to poverty and were able to present them to the rest of the group for feedback. Following this, we spent much time discussing interviewing and the second assignment has been for each member to go out ‘into the field’ as we fondly say, and interview a member of the Kibera community. This task has yielded some fascinating results, where some interviewed relatives, while others interviewed salonists, footballers, politicians, and prostitutes. The interviews were all presented today in class, and I was thrilled to see the vast improvement made by some in terms of their confidence and audibility! Hope United certainly has grown together, complimenting one another and encouraging good efforts, while the Dove continues to be more private about their successes, and less generous in their praise of one another. Today, as Peris read her interview with a pastor, she made a joke without realizing it, telling us that she had been part of the church since nine months before she was born, which put everyone in stitches, and I think did wonders for her sense of self. The shy and quiet Peris who began three weeks ago is blossoming!

This week, we have spent some time discussing issues that are pertinent yet often hushed, and so delved into discussion about stereotypes and culture. Apparantly Luhyas are thought to have fat calves because they eat too much ugali, Luos are thought to be very proud and will wear a suit and tie to work even if they are doing janitorial work, and Rastas are presumed to be Mungiki. Yesterday we broke down many of the misconceptions about slum-dwellers in a culture walk, in which we identified what others think about the culture, what the group wants the world to know about the culture, and what others can do to support it. At the centre of all of these discussions was this idea that we are all fundamentally human beings; all the rest of our wrappings and behaviours are secondary, and are not good enough grounds from which to draw conclusions.

On Friday of last week, I surprised Wojciech and Anne with a birthday cake, which Kennedy and I sneakily left to purchase during one of our fieldwork periods. Both were quite surprised and happy, and the whole group was quite willing and eager to share in the merriment by consuming a piece of cake, which is a luxury. Vicky kept asking for the cardboard box, so that he could lick the extra icing from it, but in the end it went to Martin and Victor at Kennedy’s discretion. Wojciech’s birthday is actually on July 1, and the celebrations continued through the weekend.

Wojciech and I took Saturday and Monday off to go with the Silomas (our host family) to Masai Mara National Park. It was an absolutely incredible weekend despite the very long drive to and from the park (7 hours or so each way). We saw hippos bathing in a river, giraffes grazing on thorn trees, hyenas waiting for the leftover buffalo meat just after a kill, lions dozing under the shade of the potent-smelling cranton tree, zebras and ostriches pacing through the savannah grass, a herd of elephants, two beautiful and fast sunsets, one sunrise, pairs of crown cranes who mate for life, impala, gazelles, bushbuck, baboons, yellow pipets, buzzards, and the maribu storks that are so reminiscent of pacing old men. We joked often that we also kept spotting wazungu (white people), because Masai Mara is certainly a tourist destination and suddenly we found ourselves not so ridiculously conspicuous as we had been in Ngong or Nairobi.

On Sunday, as Canada turned 140, Wojciech turned 21, and we were woken up early in the morning by Noah and Joel who burst into the room shouting “surprise!” and singing happy birthday. Unfortunately, Wojciech was in the washroom at the time, but the boys were happy enough to give a repeat performance after he emerged. The Silomas gave him a “happy birthday uncle” card, which I think is the first Wojciech has ever received, and a beautiful rugby shirt with the Kenyan flag on it. At dinner, we also thoroughly embarrassed him as the waiters came singing “Jambo” and “Happy Birthday,” followed by the beginning of a traditional Masai song and dance that then moved out onto the patio for the enjoyment of the rest of the patrons. Noah was somehow swept up with the Masai men, and we recovered him much later, as he stood with them as they sang. It was funny to see Joel suddenly so shy, not wanting to go and join the merriment, when normally Joel is loud and Noah much more hesitant.

At SHOFCO this week, I have begun to receive ‘formal’ Kiswahili lessons from Eric, who has taken it upon himself to tutor me. I now have a good five pages of words to revise, as he reminded me that I must practice if I hope to learn anything…and I am certainly tested frequently. I think they think it is fun to quiz me on words, and often people will turn to me and accidentally talk to me in Kiswahili, which makes me feel very much a part of the group (despite not actually being able to understand it!). They must somehow sense that I am feeling at home with them and forget to catch themselves and speak to me in English. Dakika tano kabla ya usiku wa manane is Five Minutes to Midnight in Kiswahili!

There is a new movement afoot at SHOFCO due to the fact that many of the members who are not involved with our workshops have been feeling mildly put out. Thus, a woman named Cara has arrived from Northern Ireland to run workshops on management, leadership, and sustainability. These workshops will be taking place over the course of the next two weeks, but will occur down at the other SHOFCO office. We are now beginning to plan for a joint ceremony for a certificate presentation for the other group and a ‘launch party’ of our group’s newsletter on the last Sunday that we are here. I am really looking forward to spending some time just being with the group, without the pressure of having to teach or be a reference.

Yesterday during our chai break, we had the privilege of watching Jeff Ochieng give a repeat performance of a fun story he told during one of my classes. I had asked him if it would be ok to film him, and he happily obliged. With the assistance of Erick Maiko, Maurice, and Vicky, Jeff narrated the sad tale of Nyola Amnyolole Kombo and Osontoto and the difference between living in the city and living in the village. I have yet to see if it was properly recorded, but Jeff has promised us a few more stories before we go, so hopefully I will be able to catch those on film as well.

There has been a striking change in the comfort level of the group this week, in that we are feeling more at ease and more familiar with one another. Hence, we have started to see a laxness arise, whereby many are coming late in the morning, or failing to arrive back in time. As well, there is a new flirtatiousness among everyone, which is harmless but certainly makes some of the sessions more electric. I found myself doubled over in gales of laughter yesterday when I read an update from a friend of mine in France, talking about the imaginary boyfriend she had created for herself in order to dodge amorous French men. She says that sometimes he is in Canada waiting for her, while other times he is around the corner, getting his knives sharpened at the nearest hardware store.

Eric has now taken to calling me Ms. Banana because of the sweater I have that says “Hannah Banana” on it. It’s kind of sweet the way everyone seems to nickname each other, and the mood has become light-hearted because of it. Erick Maiko is Mr. Embargo because of how often he uses that word, Vicky is Mama Flava, and John is Speedo. Everyone also seems to have their own little catch-phrase, which when used properly can elicit storms of laughter. “Yeahmon” is Martin’s, “Okee Okee” is Quizzer’s, “Shooah” meaning ‘sure’ is Maurice’s, “You get?” is Kennedy’s, and “multitudinous” seems to be Wojciech’s new favourite word.

This morning on the matatu ride to namba nane (number eight), we met a woman who tried to convince us to come to her church on Sunday, and moreover, to study the Bible. She told us that she didn’t start living until she found God, and asked me if I believed in God? Not wanting to get into a big long conversation on the bus, I skirted the question by asking her another question about her church, but I find myself coming up against this question frequently! I can only avert the issue for so long by explaining my Jewish father and Christian mother, neither of whom are particularly religious. I have been told by some here that my confusion over or lack of religion is a mistake on the part of my parents, but I think I’m grateful for the freedom that this has given me to explore and to understand religions in an unbiased way. Who would have thought that a white woman would arrive in Kenya to be coaxed into Christianity by the locals, where even until today, many mzungu missionaries are here to do just the opposite!

It’s time for me to sign out, since Wojciech and I are going to sort through photos and make some decisions about what is going into the book! Until next time…

Mimi wako,

Hannah