Ngong Hills

This past weekend, with our friend Stephen Ruto, we went to an area of Nairobi called Ngong Hills. We went for a nice lunch at the Jesuit center at the base of the hill then went on a hike up with some other friends. There are seven levels of hills in Ngong and we only climbed the first. We may have gone higher but on the climb up some Masai wuzea (Masai is a tribe, and wuzea is the plural form of wiseman) told us there are some bad people on the second hill and advised us not to go up there.

One hill was plenty because it was so high up. We were able to see all of Nairobi from the hilltop, the National Park, and even in the far far distance some of Tanzania. It was a day of perfect weather and we really enjoyed it. Tomorrow our friend Stephen leaves for Tanzania and we wish him all the best.

Death to kuku

We have a farm in our backyard. We have been taking advantage by working in the fields, helping feeding the pigs, and killing chicken. We both absolutely love the shamba (farm) workers; Alice, Elizabeth, and Mwanike. They invited us to help them prepare the chicken that the school sells and also uses here to eat. I (Pat) took the advantage of this opportunity and here are some pictures.


Permission to kill chicken.

Pat and Alice

These are the female chicken. Bosco Boys has many more of these to produce eggs which we eat here and also sell to neighboring communities, schools, and people who want eggs.

Sorry if this is too graphic for anybody. This is the way they taught me how to put the chicken to rest. Ha, as I'm writing this I really hope no one is offended. I really am sorry if someone doesn't like this but if you want to eat the delicious KFC, they do this the same way.

These were the two I did in.

Mwanike and Elizabeth taught me the process of preparing the chicken. We first cut off the heads of the chicken, then with a huge pot of hot water we put the chicken in to help de-feather, then we de-feathered, cut off the limbs, took out the guts, and what I'm holding is a chicken ready to be cooked.

Elizabeth and Mwanike

Katie decided to help de-feather. She couldn't kill one of them but still wanted to contribute in some way.

Are you ready to RISK it all?

A few weeks ago we went with one of the aspiring Jesuit brothers to a small house in the Kibera Slum. Kibera is the largest slum in all of Eastern Africa and some feel it is the biggest in all of Africa. There are over a million people living in this slum. When you see the slum from a distance is just seems like a sea of "tool shed" like homes packed as tightly as possible next to each other.

We learned while we were there, that there is considered nicer parts of the slum than others, more dangerous, and that is is still expanding. We were in an area seemingly ok but drove through some very poor/dangerous areas on the way out. We took two different buses to get to the other side of the slum as oppose to walking through the less safe areas. We arrived at a small home in an area called "Camp Jesus".

The story of the slum deal with a camp that the British started when they were first colonizing the area. They made these small brick homes and called the area "Camp Jesus". Refugees from other countries in Africa and people from other parts of Kenya all migrated here to start this community. The troops eventually left, the barracks then became homes, and people began building more and more around this area.

We went to Kibera with our friend Stephen Ruto. He is not a Salesian aspirant but a Jesuit one who is doing a year of service at Bosco Boys. He is leaving us soon to go do two years of studies/service in Tanzania. After his two years there, his plan is to then study law at Loyola Marymount University in Chicago. Before he left he wanted to invite us over to his fellow Jesuit's home. They were very welcoming, treated us to a delicious lunch, and then we played the board game RISK.

The director of this small Jesuit community is an American priest by the name of Father Terry, hailing from Indiana. We all had a fun time hanging out then afterwards Father gave us a ride back to Bosco Boys. It was fun to meet some new friends, meet another American, have a nice meal, be exposed to the slum for the first time, and RISKing it all.

Katie and I were the grey team. We did pretty well, we controlled most of Eastern Asia but then got destroyed. We were second out of 6 to lose. It was fun though.

Fr. Terry (the muzungu) and Stephen Ruto (smiling)

RISKing it all



We would like to post more pictures from the slum that we walked in. We would like to show everyone (who reads this) the actual poverty and difference of life between here and in the states. The drastic difference is something words can't describe. It is difficult to get pictures in these types of places though. First off you feel even more out of place when you walk with a camera through these communities. You already stick out because you're a muzungu but when you hold a camera you are definitely a tourist. When you walk, as if you know where you're going, people seem to leave you alone a bit more and have more of a respect than coming in a taking pictures. Secondly, when you hold out a camera you put yourself even more as a target to get attacked for your camera. Since this was an unfamiliar place for us, we didn't take pictures. The community was full of people in the shops, in the streets, and in their homes. It may be a dangerous place at times but is a special place.

An Experience

A while ago, Fr. Sebastian of DBYES, asked me (Pat) to write an article for the Don Bosco African East Magazine. It was recently published and here is the article...



My experience here has been like no other experience I ever had. I have been in Kenya for almost 11 weeks now and I have never been more out of my element. This has been the longest I have been away from home, friends, family, and comfort. My journey here has taken me to Europe and now Africa. I have seen new countries, new flora, new buildings, new cultures, new people, and new ways of living life. The one thing that has stayed constant for me, though, is my trust in God’s plan for me being here.
It is not always easy to trust, especially when you are so removed from the comforts of home. I came on this trip to Bosco Boys with my girlfriend, Katie. She has been my home, friend, family, and comfort here. Back at home when I have problems, confusions, or need someone to talk to, I have an abundance of people I can turn to. Here I turn to Katie, but she can not fix everything. I truly feel I have been forced to turn to God and what I have received is His word to trust in His plan.
Bosco Boys is truly a special place. The first thing I realized when I came here is that this place only exists because people believe so strongly in Jesus that they have dedicated and focused their lives on helping these street boys. It is a wonderful thing to experience and be apart of. The children are so talented, full of energy, and intelligent in so many ways due to their experiences on the street. I don’t think children in America could comprehend the reality of the lives of these Bosco Boys. I pray these children will focus their “street smarts” towards the classroom. If they can do this, I believe they could be the most successful people, anywhere.
Before I came here I received many books regarding street children in Kenya from family and friends. I have come to realize that each one of the children affiliated with Bosco Boys has a story and each story could be one of these books. It is touching to see these children be happy, playing, and learning. Children here have had a more challenging story than any person at this age I know back home. Seeing the homes, streets, and slums where these boys come from is truly a humbling experience.
These humbling moments makes me appreciate more the blessings I have had my entire life. I know the rest of my time here will be confusing, fun, difficult, enlightening, and will continue to be an experience like no other.

Painting with Baba

These pictures actually are from April but we're just getting around to putting them up. During break, Fr. Makarios, needed help painting his house. Katie offered to put up a beautiful painting, the rest of us all just painted the walls. It was a fun few days, listening to the sound track of Mama Mia (Fr. Makarios's favorite), eating biscuits, and just having fun.

Anna

Fr. Matunga came by to say hello.

Darren Collison

Lucy

This was the main painting Katie did. She painted this entire wall and it came out beautiful. She sketched the entire wall, painted, and delicately constructed this masterpiece.

Baba

Katie enjoying some biscuits and laughing at Baba

Katie painting the base of the palm tree in the kitchen.

Palm tree


Katie did such a beautiful job painting. She has never done anything to this scale before but everyone here has loved it. It really has made Father's house so much more beautiful.

Community Day

Community Day! A new day for us. We have never heard of this day before but apparently it is a day everyone looks forward to every year. It is actually the day where you recognize the "president" of the school but Fr. Seba (our president) has decided to make it a day for everybody. The day begins with dressing his car with ribbons, banners, pictures, etc., him being driven into the school cafeteria, and we all have morning prayers with song. The day continues with games and ends with a costume party/performances.

Fr. Seba's tiny van. Everyone told us they were driving it through the school, the halls, and into the cafeteria through the regular sized door. We thought they were crazy...

BUT they made it through the door.

Our costumes... Katie put on some face paint and dressed more of a traditional African tribes woman. Pat put on his bed sheet, slicked back his hair.

Pat then realized when he finished dressing up that he looks like Jesus. The children all started calling him "Yesu" (Jesus).

There are some donated clothing bags which the children look through to find costume clothing. The only thing is, the clothing is all woman clothing. So, about 80% of the boys dressed as women. They all wore dresses, some wore high heels, and they all stuffed their chests. The other boys just put a sweatshirt in the stomach to look like a "grown-up "man, or stuffed their butt to look like a "grown-up" man.

What's New

School has been back in session for almost two full weeks now. We have been getting back to the everyday schedule of morning mass, assembly, having a few hours off, class, lunch, class, games, dinner, night prayer, and bed time. It is nice to have this schedule again because it allows us to have some free time during the mornings, be with the children, and gives us a routine. We enjoyed the holiday time at Bosco Boys and the "I Want to See Jesus" Camp but we are happy to get back to our daily schedule.

Our friend Anna, from Holland, left two days ago to go back home. She spent, we believe, 6 months here and was had a bitter/sweet feeling when she left. There was a celebration for her the night she left where the children put on performances, sang, and entertained her one last time.

The weather here has been very rainy. It seems at times the rain here comes down harder only because we have metal roof tops, so the sound of the droplets become even louder than on the roofs at home. The dirt ground has become large puddles for frogs and other insects, the cement ground has become a sliding floor for the children, and you can't help but get dirty here. There is a leak in Patrick's roof in his room and he has had to rearrange his room because his bed got soaked the other night. He now has buckets in the room to catch the water but is hoping to fix the problem sooner than later.

We have been away from home for 3 full months now, the longest either of us have been from our families/comfort. We miss everyone but have really felt we have grown together and individually during our time here. We have experienced many new things, realize we will experience even more because this is only a small portion of our time here. Not everything is easy, like anything/anywhere in life, we enjoy the mystery of the day, and become more appreciative of the blessings we have back home.



Pat and red soil

Katie and the girls