And So It Continues...

So...Linda's prescription for all of you world travelers out there: when GI difficulties arise- as they inevitably will- I recommend my own tried-and-true remedy: STOP EATING for about 24 hours...keeping yourself hydrated, of course. This has worked quite well for me, so I'm passing on the "good news". Actually, it's a good prescription for any GI disturbance, foreign or domestic. But enough about that...

Today was quite lovely here in Nairobi...mixed sunshine with temps in the mid-70s. We stopped in at the Kibera newspaper to tell them about the Harumbee (big celebration) we're having next week at the pre-school, and then went on to Carolina for Kibera in hopes of touring their Tabitha Clinic. Imagine our surprise to find that the new American ambassador and his entourage had arrived to tour the place, with security people everywhere (you know, the ones with the wires coming from their ears? quite obviously bodyguards, Secret Service or whatever.) Needless to say, we were not invited to be part of the group and so we left, intending to return another day.

We then headed to the Nairobi National Museum, a fascinating place in which we learned a great deal about the history of Kenya, the birthplace of civilization. Artifacts, fossils, amazing art, and lots of information greeted us and we spent about 90 minutes absorbed in the world in which we have found ourselves for the past two weeks.

I still find it distressing to read about the attitudes of both colonialism AND Christianity toward these incredible peoples, considering them as "less than", as unable to learn anything more than basic skills like farming or mining, as being totally unable to think for themselves in any meaningful way. The missionaries wanted to wipe out any vestiges of the tribal past as the only way to convert the "savages",
though I suspect some of those good people are turning over in their graves at the ways in which African Christians have retained much of their tribal belief system and incorporated it into their version of Christianity, quite different from our Western version.

I continue to be both astounded and ashamed by the ways in which the history of this- and so many other African nations- has been distorted by our Western press, the stories presented in ways which
seem to indicate that Africans are less "civilized"- when civilization has been here for well over a million years! Yes, the organization of government is different...African democracy wears a different face...
but this grows from necessity, since the history here has been so different from our own in America. And in general, Kenyans seem far more interested, really interested, and conversant in politics than we Americans, perhaps because they see themselves as having more at stake. We have had political discussions with cab drivers, cooks, waiters, and our driver/translater, Julius. With an important election coming up in August 2012 (including the Presidency, as well as all of the ministers and members of their congress), it is the rare Kenyan that does not have an opinion about the direction they want their country to take...and this includes young people, who make up at least 50% of the population. Are there problems here? Certainly! But name me one country on the globe that does not have one sort or another. The thing that impresses me about the Kenyans is that they are determined to make this country responsive to the needs of ALL their people- though, admittedly, they fall far short on so many fronts. I know that I will follow next year's elections with much interest and will be far more discerning when reading and hearing news stories from this part of the world. Pamoja! We are united!