new team in Kenya, new eyes in Kenya

22nd September, 2009 - Posted by Helen Harrison -

I’m in Kenya for a week with some young people from the town where I live, seeing and experiencing at firsthand the work of Open Arms, and through that allsorts of new insights into the realities of life for so many people around the world.
So far we have spent some time at the Village working alongside the houseparents doing the daily chores. So one of the girls got to help do laundry for a household of 18, with not a washing machine, or tumble drier in sight – all by hand and a lot of elbow grease, but a lot of friendly conversation to accompany the work. Another of the girls helped make lunch – sorting through the rice to get the grit out, pulling the carrots from the garden, and preparing a simple but delicious meal of rice, green lentils and carrots. Then there was the need for child care for one of the under-3’s: no TV for the little one to sit and watch while mum does some chores, or a multitude of toys to play with – so lots of ingenuity needed by the carer, but how much more interaction for the child than so many of her age in the West would get. The last member of the team got to help in the fields, weeding, tending to the plants and preparing new seed beds with care and precision. If the plants don’t grow here there isn’t the option to just pop down to the local supermarket instead – you go without instead.
In the afternoon we spent time with 9 boisterous youngsters at the little school Open Arms has on site for the youngest children. The children were so full of energy and happiness and vitality – it was wonderful to spend time with them, but again a stark reminder of how different our life is from theirs. Two of the team are still at school in UK and to see a school room with no electricity, computers, interactive whiteboard etc - quite an eye opener.
In the evening we went out with Morris to see the street kids ministry. There must have been about 100 people living on the streets turn up, including 3 mums with babies under 2-years old, and about 20 boys who can’t have been more than 8 years old. It was a very tough evening for the team, as they came face to face with so many very sad stories in the eyes of each person there. Morris does an amazing job, and it was good to be able to give out the bread and milk, but heart-breaking when we ran out before the end of the line and had to turn some away empty handed knowing that they would go to bed hungry with only the sniffing of glue to ease the pains.
So, a day full of insights into the contrast between life in the West and life for so many in the developing countries. It also gave real-life insight into the difference Open Arms is making to so many children, especially those at the Village who are now so happy, but before could have been those living on the streets. Thought-provoking and challenging for the girls, especially as one has never been out of UK before. And we still have 5 days to go!