Friday 2.13.09

I don't think it is possible to have a bad day here.
Yesterday morning's meeting with Naseem went really well. She is building a new nursery school right behind Jiendeleze in Majengo. Hopefully by next year it will be up and running, which only means great things for my students. She runs the nursery school in the morning, but in the evenings and weekends she does extra tutoring sessions for primary and secondary students. She also will be providing English classes for the primary students. I talked to her about the project I was working on, and she was really excited. Hopefully by next year I will be able to enroll my sponsored students into her classes for English.
We had a good walk around Majengo, and I have come to the conclusion that I will never be able to find my own way through the alleys and foot-paths. Even if I know the language myself, I will always need someone to help me with directions.
After heading back to Step-Up (Naseem's current school) I hitched a ride back into town with Athumani, the driver from CCS. Luckily for me we stopped by Jiendeleze to pick up the volunteer, and for the first time since being here I was able to see a lot of my students from last year. They have all grown up a lot. I don't know if they remember me, but I remember them, and that's enough for now.
Driving away from the school we passed Asia on the road, the girl that I was really worried about last year. She didn't see me sitting in the van, but I saw her standing there with a few friends, and she had an amazingly huge smile on her face. All I wanted to do was scream to Athumani to stop the van and let me out so I could hug her. It was a slow motion movie in my head. If I had stopped, I would have had a long walk back home through a not so great part of town, and I was not willing to do that. I had to take her smile as a sign that she was doing ok. I fought back the tears, swallowed the lump that was growing in my throat, and promised that next year I would make the time to find her. Next year she might even be ready for primary school. Now as I type this, I am really wishing I had gotten out of the van.
I made it back to the hotel in time to get ready to head to Upendo with the girls and Isack. Walking into that orphanage was like walking into a palace compared to Tuleeni. They obviously have a lot of outside help, and I am glad I got to see that first hand. I feel like our money would have slipped by unnoticed there. We wouldn't have made the same impact as we have sponsoring the children in Majengo. However, that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy my time with the children.
I spent quite a bit of time attached to Godlizen (Gody), playing on the swings and running around the playground. After about an hour or so of play, it was bath time. I didn't know where I was going so I set him down on the ground and had him lead the way. He grabbed my hand and took me into the boys room, where we stripped him down to nothing. Just like any little boy would, he began jumping up and down and dancing around glad to be out of his clothing. He grabbed my hand and took me into the "bath room" where we were greeted by about 15 other naked little boys. They were all giggling and running around waiting eagerly for their baths.
After bath time the sisters rub the kids down with some really delicious smelling baby lotion and dress the kids in clean clothes. Gody and I sat in a chair and he let me hold him for a long time. It was quiet and calm and he was happy to be there. I was happy to be there. It was really hard to put him down and say goodbye. I think I will definitely be checking in on him next year.

This week is winding down, and all of our work has been completed. I am ready to head home. I think if I had a lot more time here, I wouldn't be quite as ready to leave. I have too much time to sit around and wait, but not enough time to find more families and do more work. It's a little frustrating. Next year should be easier.

We are heading to Tuleeni tomorrow for their Valentine's Day party, and will likely spend much of the afternoon with the kids. I'm really excited to have a day to let loose. Sunday we will be returning to Majengo in the afternoon to drop off the sweaters for the kids, and say goodbye to the families. I expect Sunday will not be such an easy day.