‘Are you excited for Africa?’ a squadmate asks me….. ‘uumm, if there were a route without any African countries, I probably would have taken it.’
In Cambodia last month, it was hot. Really hot. Like, African Dessert Hot. We had to walk 20 minutes in the blazing sun, with no trees or shade, down a dusty, dusty red dirt road to get to the market every day. ‘This is what Africa will be like….all day, every day’, I thought to myself, taking a deep breath, a long sigh, and choosing to trust Jesus and have a thankful heart anyway.
I am glad to report…. Its winter here… rainy season…cold(ish)! Lush greenery, cool breeze, and the sound of rain on the tin roof….every …day.
We live in Mukuru Slum, the second largest slum in Kenya and one of the top most dangerous places in the Country. But we are well connected to the Cana Family Health Center, a clinic that helps expectant moms, a delivery center, and a place for kids to get vaccinated. They also have a house for orphans rescued from unsafe family situations and a school for the most needy.
The slums are dirty. The roads are impassible due to mud, so people hop along rocks or hug the edges of the road to avoid being ankle deep in sludge. Its not clean mud, its contaminated mud. There is no sanitation or sewage system here. People throw ash and dirty water into the streets. In one location we walked through every day, the main city sewer pipe burst in someone’s business and is flowing out the front door and creating a literal river across the street.
Cana has done some significant work in the area to promote hygiene and handing out free soap and educating the people on the importance of showering. It has taken years, but their efforts are paying off and for the most part, people stay as clean as they can. We ate street food that was prepared out in the open with mud splashing by, but thank you Jesus we never got sick.
The house we are living in is the old home for the rescued girls, but the government shut it down because the living conditions were unacceptable (really….have you seen the neighbors houses…..). At the moment, the girls have been sent back to live with their abusive relatives and you can see it all over their faces. I get to counsel with 4 of the girls whom they have seen a drastic change in grades, interaction with peers, or hygiene. One of my favorite activities with them is when I brought some Oil Pastels and had them draw a picture of their life as a garden. Each flower represented a different point in their life and we talked about the hardest and best times.
We spent time playing with dozens and dozens of children in the streets when they were on recess, teaching them songs and speaking life over them. They were only in school 2 of the weeks we were there, and we missed them dearly when they went on school break.
The rest of the day was spent in the clinic, praying over mothers and babies, helping run tests in the lab, giving vaccinations, counseling the girls, and cleaning.
At the end of the month we held a little Women’s Conference for the high school girls called Kubadelishwa Na Yesu (Transformed by Jesus). We shared with them from Romans 12:1-2, 2 of us shared testimonies about we once conformed to the pattern of the world and testified to the transforming power of Jesus to heal and change us. At the end, we went around to each girl and gave her a bracelet and spoke truth over about who God says she is. It was so moving.
I can’t believe I’m saying this…. But…. I Love Africa!
