St. Monica's Day 2012

Our school is named after St. Monica, our patron saint. Unfortunately the feast day of St. Monica is on August 27th when we're not in school. So we celebrate it in third term before the KCSE exams begin.

Our school is under the patronage of the Catholic Diocese of Kitale. That hasn't always been the case. We used to be known as Kitale Girls. At that point, it was a day school and had a poor reputation. The Board of Governors asked the diocese to take it over to help make improvements both morally and academically. We are currently one of the top three girls schools in the area. St. Monica's Day gives us an opportunity to remind ourselves of our history, successes, achievements and future goals.

Bishop Maurice Crawley is the chairman of the Board of Governors and we can't celebrate without him. He has been welcomed at the gate and escorted to the administration building with singing and dancing.

Of course there are the customary greetings to be exchanged before any meeting or celebration can begin.

Construction on a new classroom was just completed, so the day began with a dedication of the new building. We then moved to a shady area for Mass. This was followed by entertainment, a speech about St. Monica, a history of the school, and recognition for achievements this past year.

The day ended with a football (soccer) game between the teaching staff and students. The girls are proud of the fact that this is the third time they have successfully beat the teachers!

Click here to see more photos.

Maize Harvest

We live in the maize (corn) basket of Kenya. The ground is very fertile and we get plenty of rain. The growing season is now over. People are wanting the rain to stop so the maize can start drying and they can harvest. Currently the fields look like this.

The first step in harvest is to cut the maize and put them in shocks for drying.

After the maize has adequately dried, the cobs are twisted off the corn stalks. Then kernels are removed from the cob and set in the sun to further dry. It's a common sight to see tarps on the ground with the maize spread out. You can see women sitting amid the kernels sorting and cleaning. When it clouds up men put the maize into large sacks or move it to the center of the tarps which are wrapped up to protect it from rain. The men sitting under the porch are in charge of this maize. Can you see the empty bags the maize is stored in on the left hand side of them?

Saturday we drove to a nearby town on a shopping expedition.

This is passion fruit. Andrea calls them snot fruit. That's an apt description of the texture of the fruit inside. It is tasty if you can get over the look and texture.

Passing Time

I got home from school one afternoon before 5:00. The afternoon was beautiful and I needed exercise so decided to take a walk. I was about halfway on my route with I met Robina going home from work. Robina used to do our laundry and clean our house when we first arrived in Kitale. However, she works for a couple other people. Their needs changed and so she was unable to work for us any longer. She still cleans Russ's house on Saturdays so is on the compound weekly. She is a lovely lady so we always stop to chat with her. She introduced me to a tailor that I like. She has a friend that goes to Uganda to buy fabric so I occasionally buy fabric from her. It doesn't get any more convenient than that. She brings several pieces for me to look at and if I like something, I buy it.

I was delighted to bump into her on my walk. We walked together for several blocks. When we got near her corner she asked me if I remembered where she lived as I had taken her home once during a downpour. Of course I remembered. I intended to resume my walk when we got to her corner, but she invited me to her home. You don't turn down an invitation like that.

After we reached her house and settled in, she offered me a soda. Again, you don't turn something like that down. Even though you feel bad and know they can't really afford it, it is an insult to refuse food or drink. So, I replied that I'd like one. She didn't have any in the house so left to have a neighbour's child run to the nearest duka (small neighbourhood shop that typically sells bread, soda, eggs, a few pieces of fruit that are in season). The neighbour's children were gone so she had to run to the duka herself about two blocks away. I felt so bad for her!

We chatted and enjoyed our sodas. I enjoyed the conversation very much learning more about her, her family and her work.

As I was leaving I thanked her for the visit and soda telling her that I was very honoured. Her reply was, "No, I am the honoured one. You helped me to pass the time."

This comment pointed out to me how very different our cultures are. Keep in mind we grew up on farms and didn't have close neighbours that we interacted with daily. John and I both like and appreciate quiet time. We enjoy living in a quiet house in a quiet neighbourhood without people and noise around all the time. When we get home from school we look forward to a quiet evening in our own home.

Robina lives on a compound that is probably an acre. Her's is the only house on the nice walled in compound. The rest of the compound is planted in banana trees, corn, sukumawili, pumpkin, etc. that she uses to feel her family. In my opinion, it is a perfect compound: large, comfortable, quiet, just off the main road, etc. They are building a new house across the road from Robina's compound. She had commented during our conversation that she was glad that she would soon be having neighbours. Her landlord intends to build at least one other house on the compound where she lives. She can't wait for that to happen.

It seems to me that Kenyans like and want people around all the time. They like the noise and chaos. Her children are away in boarding school. She is lucky in that her husband now works in Kitale but works long hours at the hospital as a physician's assistant. Her comment that I helped her to pass the time was a sincere compliment indicating that she doesn't like to be alone, doesn't like the quiet. She not only appreciated my visit to her home but it also made her evening more pleasant.

You've Gained Weight

I know perfectly well that I have gained weight over the past year or so. When we were going to language school in Nairobi we were walking at least 5 miles every day. That helped me lose weight. Then there was the fact that we were eating “strange” food, not our typical diet. Thanks to care packages we have been able to enjoy such things as peanut butter (that we like), familiar candy, chocolate chips, caramel apples, etc. Living in our own house and cooking for ourselves means we can eat whatever we like and as much as we like. I’m not getting as much exercise as I should. My clothes still fit although they are a little snugger than I would like.

I haven’t seen the majority of my co-workers for six weeks. When we started returning to work this week, one of the young women teachers who is very nice made the comment that I had gained weight. Then she was explaining to me Kiswahili words to use. You can’t use kunona the equivalent of fat when referring to people. Instead use the word kuenapa that means grow big, healthy.

Yesterday the father to one of my Form II girls brought her to school. We haven’t seen one another for over a year. After greeting and chatting for a few minutes he gave me the ultimate Kenyan compliment, “You’ve gained weight.” Laughingly I replied, “I’m afraid so.” “That’s a good thing@ was his reply, “ it means you are healthy!”
I’ve got the message. Although it is considered beautiful to be a larger person here, that’s not what I want to be and so I need to start watching more carefully what I eat and get more exercise!