Pictures of the work

Upon evaluating this blog, I came to decide that it's high time to show what I'm actually doing here.
Next time I will post some pictures of the super-rad one-night camping trip I went on in the thick, thick rainforest just an hour north of here. I met up with another mzungo who's actually from Edmonton and lives not a block from where I lived last year. Crazy! It was a good time. We quickly set up camp in the rain, on the only tiny clearing we could find, surrounded by quickly growing vines. I wouldn't have been suprised if we woke in the morning with the tent wrapped in greenery. The plants lterally attck each other. It felt like Jurassic park. It was actually illegal to camp there un-reported (as we found out after). Apparently we could have been attckded by a black mamba snake. We saw many monkeys leaping from tree to tree and so many different insects. Biodiversity really is beautiful. Next weekend I'm off to Ugnada to see my dear freinds!! It will be good to be able to connect with them on a lot of the things on my mind.
So if this slow cyber cafe allows me to, I will now post pictures of what I've been involved with through MICH (Maseno Inter-Christian Child Self-Help Group).

Putting up the sign for the cafe. For some reason it was negelected so I hired some men to put it up. I'm happy to report that sales have gone up as a result. My office is in 'the container' behind the cafe. I enjoy eating here every day.

Each Saturday we go out toone of MICH's key areas of work in Enduta. Here we have music, games, art and lesson lined up for them and we serve rice and beans. Usually about 50 kids show up and it is a blast. Many of them are orphans, very hungry and unable to go to school. They are well-behaved, excited and greatful. They are intrgued by my every move, so it's not difficut to keep their attention.

Mmmm. Rice and stew (cooked beans with a few tomatoe skins). Each time it's like Jesus feeds the 5000. I always think we'll be short but never are.

This is the product of our compost lesson. Fun. MICH targets children with this kind of information encouraging them to create an organic fertilizer heap in their rural homes. Some are too young to understand, but many older ones have become very independant farmers with MICH's help. Next week they will all come with something to decompose to make another heap.
This was an art project we worked on. Rather chaotic. But I think it became clear through their drawings that our existence is conditional to the existence of our environment. We discussed basic needs and drew them outside of our self-portraits.

We frequently bring tree seedlings to very poor rural areas.

These are two of the older boys that MICH has encouraged through agriculture. I ride with them through the fields in the back of the truck with the supplies. They are very shy with me, but eager to learn and show me a lot.

One of the MICH tree projects. This banana farm was once the land of barely surviving folk. Now they are living and working with abundance.

There is so much more to show, but this is good for now.

November already?! How did that happen eh? Time is flying.

sawa sawa (o.k.)

I hope you are well.