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