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| "Every day is filled with countless blessings. "<3 |
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!
to my Dad and my little brother Mikey! I hope you both had a wonderful birthday week and that you were able to celebrate it (rather than waiting the traditional 1-6month O'Malley style birthday!).
Any who! Today is Sunday...and Kate's napping...which means BLOGGING TIME! I absolutely love Sundays here because: a.) We get eggs, a decent cup of coffee, and a variety of bread choices at breakfast....which is a BIG DEAL! b.) It's the only day we don't work, so that means more free time to walk into town or work on my blog or nap or be a bum and go online. c.) Sundays are just AWESOME! Need I say more? Is it sad that seeing french fries at lunch brings me close to tears of joy? Lol.
This was a very full week of work, socializing, and shopping!! We have been making daily visits to see our "neighbors" next door. I think I mentioned this last week...There is a college aged boy named Lucas who is recovering from a broken leg who now stays in the little apartment next to us and his friend Phillip and Alex often come over to bring him his homework and hang out. They are hilarious! They like to make fun of our "accents" (Say whaaat?! I don't have an accent! lol) and crack jokes about random things. Kate usually beings over her hard-drive for them to watch movies while we are at work and then we check in on them in the afternoon or after dinner. It's been so fun to have them around!
And here is the weekly recap!!!
MONDAY
Today, Fred the driver from "Feed the Children" (Dagoretti) was off duty. Hence, the driver on duty forgot to pick us up which means we took the matatu. This kind of stressed out but I was cool as a cucumber. No ride? No big deal. We got this matatu thing all figured out!
It was an exceedingly slow day at therapy! I shadowed Foster and then chilled for an hour or so listening to music while waiting for lunch.
After lunch, we watched "Thumbelina" with the kids. Simon and Alex sat in my lap during the movie and Simon tried to do my hair. The kids love trying to do my hair and mess with my watch. Oh the little things in life! Kate and I also did everyone's nails again. The kids love getting their nails done and it helps them to learn colors which is fun to teach them!
Next, we went outside and the kids spent an hour washing their feet. I learned that "sabuni" is the Swahili word for soup.
We managed to catch the driver, Nicholas, just before he drove to pick the kids up from school. Thank goodness! It felt like a really long day. However, God was totally watching out for us because when we got back someone had already moved the furniture back into the novices' rooms. One less thing to do! GOD IS SO GOOD!
TUESDAY
Kate and I went with Sr. Judy to visit two of the elderly groups today. It's always great going with Sr. Judy on her visits because the conversation and companionship is such a nice change of pace...and getting a lot of walking in is awesome! :)
We got to watch the soap making process which was so cool! We took a taxi to the second village which was near Dagoretti. The elderly meet at St. Catherine's Church which also has an elementary school. We were rushed by a group of school children who all wanted to shake our hands. They watched us as we sat with the elderly during their Bible Study and kept trying to sneak closer to where we were sitting. After the Bible study and general business procedure, Sr. Judy had us introduce ourselves to the group, translating what we said into Swahili. It is so nice because the elderly are always so genuinely happy to meet us. They always want to know where we are from and why we are here. They usually tell Sr. Judy that they think we are tired or hungry and offer to cook a meal for us. I cannot express how kind and welcoming these people are. Even with the language barrier they always do their best to greet us and make us feel welcome in their group.
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| Making soap :) |
WEDNESDAY
Luckily, we only spent a 1/2hr. doing touch up painting on some of the novices' rooms. Boo ya! NO MORE PAINTING!! ...at least I hope that's the end of it! Kate and I walked into town to get lunch at "The Big Square" which is a fast food burger place in Karen.
With a determined spirit, we decided to brave the Masai market! We pass by it every time we go into Karen, but we decided it was the perfect day for some retail therapy!! I love the Masai market because there are so many treasures to be found! There is a lot of beautiful beaded Masai jewelry, carvings, woven bags, cloth, and all sorts of unique things! The best part about it is that you get to meet the person who makes the goods. These sellers sit at the market 7days a week from morning until late afternoon. They were so excited when Kate and I stopped by. At first it is a bit overwhelming trying to haggle for a good deal while being beckoned from every side by the other sellers. Fortunately, the people at the market are very nice and even try to help us haggle with the other sellers who do not speak English. So all in all a very successful day! :)
THURSDAY
Fred and Hannah remembered to stop at Defense College to ick us up! Thank God!
I swear today was "SCREAMING/CRYING BABY DAY" at therapy! Omg. What a headache. A lot of unhappy kids! On the bright side, Dennis let me help out with some of the kids today! I got to walk Shalom around outside and help with Titus on the exercise ball. I also had a nice chat with Sevey (the Spanish journalist/volunteer)! It's nice to have some else around who understands what it's like to experience Africa for the first time and to talk about cultural differences, etc.
At 1pm, we had Zumba! The kids were more into dancing this week then last week which was a riot to watch! After lunch, Kate and I joined the kids over at their cottage. Nail polish once again! I think it's funny how much they love getting their nails done! I remember loving it as a little kid...but these kids just get so excited! Plus, it's a great way to teach them colors! While we were doing nails, "Daisy" (the fluffy little pet dog) was wreaking havoc running around the kids with one of their shoes. The kids were running every where and squealing which was a hilarious scene. :)
<3
We then went to the "Early Learning Center" where I read some books with some of the boys. One of the "Mamas" had the kids do "threading", basically making necklaces.
When we got back to the convent, Kate went to work creating an FB event and fundraising page to help raise money for the elderly. [If you haven't seen it yet, I will provide the link at the end of this post!!] Since there is no money in the convent's budget to provide the annual Christmas package for Sr. Judy's elderly group, we decided it would be a good cause.
BIG SHOUT OUT to Kate for figuring out all the computer stuff for our fundraiser! She put a lot of time into setting up the pages and figuring out the bank situation, and for that I'm truly grateful. :)
FRIDAY
Another crazy day at Cottolengo! The mamas in charge kept leaving us alone with the kids which can be very overwhelming with about 16 toddlers screaming, fighting, and causing general chaos whenever you look away! I feel like every time I turn around someone was either climbing the grate over the window or trying to escape out the door! Crazy minions!
Today, I got to spend some time with Karanja today. He is a very sweet boy, probably about 7years old. He is usually pretty quiet but can be quite mischievous! Next week I'll work on providing more pictures and descriptions of the Cottolengo kids. :)
We ended up leaving before lunch so that Kate could get back in time to talk to her Mom about the fundraising site. The girl at "The Big Square" recognized us...embarrassing? Maybe a little. haha
We took on DAY2 of Masai Market Shopping! The market people were soooo excited that we kept our promise to return! I'm sure they are used to people telling them they will come back and not following up on it. I tried to buy things from the sellers that I had not purchased from on Wednesday. Anne, one of the main sellers who speaks English fluently and is very upfront, was very helpful, translating to the Masai woman who didn't speak English. Anne also took the time to explain the meanings of the different color beads which I thought was really interesting! The women kept telling me that I look like a "Masai princess" when I put on the jewelry...They clearly realize how much I love the jewelry and being called a princess as well! I got a lot of cool different carvings and beaded things. The people are very friendly and I made sure to talk with the ones I didn't buy from about the things I was interested in for round 3of shopping. Gosh it is addicting!
SATURDAY
Kate and I went with Sr. Judy again to visit the elderly at St. Catherine's. The group was made up of all women or "Grannies" as Sr. Judy calls them. Sr. Judy encouraged us to take lots of pictures to use for our fundraising effort. The grannies let us help mix the soap!! It was so fun!! It gets boring just watching, so it was great getting to be a part of the process and knowing that we are helping them out.
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| Oh just learning to make soap...NBD. ;) |
"In cases like these, I have to act!" ~Sr. Judy (She is truly an inspiration!)
After the group meeting and lunch, we visited Teresia at her home in the village a short walk away. Teresia is in her 70s or 80s and is wheelchair bound since she broke her leg a month ago. [Note: Her wheelchair is basically a plastic chair with wheelchair wheels on it...not your typical American cushioned type.] Sr. Judy explained that she spends most of her days alone and that her family and neighbors often forget to come help her prepare a meal or take her to her doctor's appointments. Fortunately, her neighbor was helping her today. It's heartbreaking to think of how alone she is. As Sr. Judy has told us, often it is not the physical disabilities that hurt these people but the mental and emotional problems that develop due to neglect and loneliness
The home visits, for me, are a very powerful experience. Not only do I get a glimpse of village life, but I also get to see the raw emotional pain of what it means to grow old and be forgotten. This is a very important lesson in my eyes. The elderly are a forgotten group of people. It is easy to think of the children and the women affected by poverty. But what about the elderly? They are a very neglected group. I see this as a problem in Africa as well as in the U.S. and other countries. We say that we treasure the elderly for their wisdom and experience. However, we often forget them in their times of need. This is one of the main reasons that Kate and I are lobbying to raise money to provide the annual Christmas packages for this group. No one deserves to be forgotten- especially not at Christmas time! I encourage you to think about this and find it in your hearts to make even the smallest donation to our cause. A little bit goes a long way! And I cannot begin to tell you how grateful these people will be (as well as Kate, Sr. Judy, and I) to have your love and support! <3
"BVC Project: Helping the Elderly of Kenya!"
http://www.facebook.com/events/410549189011206/?notif_t=plan_user_joined
YouCare Donation Site
http://www.youcaring.com/fundraiser_details?fundraiser_id=10844&url=bvchelptheelderlyofkenya
THANK YOU!!!
Love always,
Caitlin
::Quotes of the Week::
"I am a monkey...now I can say I met a goddess!" ~random guy along the road...say what?!
"You are very beautiful!" ~one of the Grannies to Kate and I...best compliment ever :)
"You look smart."...People use "smart" to describe pretty much anything. lol
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