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My six week volunteering is almost over.  I have gained as much as I have given, the opportunity to work alongside Kenyans who work for the good of others above financial reward has been humbling.  I have had to use all my skills and knowledge, from management to teaching, coaching and gardening, cooking and my most developed skill… finding innovative ways to make something out of little or nothing!

The ladies made bread and chapatti this afternoon without my intervention (I wasn’t even in the kitchen).  I am very proud of them all, I hope that they will continue to bake, I personally feel the product is good enough to sell.

I will stay in touch with the staff and check up on the ladies progress, and of course their babies, and when I’m in the area will defiantly pop in but now I’m on the next leg of my adventure….. and I just know it’s going to be fantastic 😊

As most of you know my reason for coming to Africa, apart from being disillusioned with ‘life’ in the UK is to start a fresh in this wonderful country.  Leaving Tyne, Liam and the rest of my family has not been easy, ask Tyne she witnessed me feeling guilty and being and emotional wreck for several months before my departure.  Throughout she has been supportive and encouraging of my decision, my children are so much stronger than I am emotionally.

The withdrawal of senses is how we reach full enlightenment according to Patanjali. The heart is central to all we are, so it is not surprising that we feel overwhelmed emotionally when faced with matters that are important to us.  The ability to think sets us apart from the rest of the animal kingdom as does empathy, a moral compass and duty but the teachings tell us this is not true consciousness.

I now appreciate more fully the power of the mind and how I lacked true consideration and understanding of what it takes to be 100% disciplined, to be unattached and deny the mind and longing.

I see the poverty and struggling around me in Kenya and wonder how best I can help improve the situation.  The answer comes back the same every time, education but I know too well that learning is a choice that can not be forced upon individuals.

I get the feeling that many are not aware they have a choice, and even if they are, are they are unwilling to take control and make brave steps into the unknown, it feels risky, the fear overwhelming especially if you don’t know what to expect or if you can’t guarantee you will be successful.

Staff at the shelter encouraged and lead by example of hard work being the answer to a for filling and worthwhile life, and although I agree with her in principle I am also aware of the damaging effects of work-based stress  which is very common in the West.  Getting work life balance right is crucial to a happy life which we all deserve.  Kenya is on the cusp of developmental changes which will shape its future it is also in a wonderful position where it can pick the best methods and strategies from across the whole world to ensure its people are happy and healthy in all aspects of their lives.

I am so looking forward to being a part of the change 🙂

Today has been busier than usual.  Although I am not required to work over the weekend I am aware this will be most last opportunity to capture some images I require, research some aspects of training I have agreed to deliver and to enjoy some down time with the ladies and the babies.

After the cool wash… I’ve discovered leaving my bathing water in the sun heats up a little, even at 8am, and completing 3 of the tasks on my list which neatly lead to lunch time (beans cabbage and rice as expected 😀) I decided to put a film on for the ladies.  As all the children were still awake and because of their sensitive ages, I opted for Trolls (Thank you Vince for your inspirational present x).  They loved it!  Not a peep out of any of them for the whole movie!

There was a change of plan and two of ladies helped staff in the shamba and the remaining two prepared supper in peace… meanwhile I was able to watch and join in with the children as they rocked and clapped to the music, it was really lovely 😊.

Tomorrow, when the children have an afternoon nap, I will put on something suitable for a more mature audience 😊.

The time has come to start organising my exit from the shelter, this time next week I will be preparing to leave and start the next leg of my adventure with Jay, exploring opportunities which will allow us to remain in Kenya on a more permanent basis.

While I was in town I purchased enough provisions for the ladies to continue baking for the coming month.  I have started to put together and finalise the documentation assigned to me and deliver the training to staff as requested.  When the new volunteer arrives on Monday I will do my best to orientate her and tell her what I have learnt including the best way to support each of the ladies.

What have I learnt about myself during this experience? …well I can rough it … but I knew that already.  I don’t like to witness injustices … I knew that too.  I can be objective and make suggestions to improve situtions … I am fully aware of that too.  What I learnt about myself that I was not aware of before is that I am braver than I thought, I have more resilience, drive and deterimination than I imagined and I am ready to make a difference in Kenya 😊.  What have I learnt about Kenya?  …the people are friendly, curious and mostly hardworking.   They want to improve their prospects, do the best for their families and for themselves and I would like to be part of helping them achieve their potential.

Looking to the closer future I  am looking forward to spending lots of time with Jay and seeing Saffron and Co, the extended family and her lovely friends.  I am also looking forward to a warm shower or even better a bath, a comfortable mattress with an undisturbed nights sleep and a well deserved glass of wine or something stronger  (some things never change).

Anyone who knows me knows I love shopping, especially bargain hunting 😀. Once a month the shelter banks the money made from the sale of eggs, milk and produce and stocks up on essentials for the coming month….and I mean essentials! So when I learnt staff were going to go shopping I asked if I could accompany her (I had a few things on my list too so was keen to assist).

We left in the morning later than anticipated around 10am, and once all the finances were settled we set out to purchase the provisions.  We firstly visited a store selling animal feed and seeds.  It was extremely busy, I think everyone in Naivasha must be a farmer to some degree!  We went into a hardware shop and bought a replacement lock for a kitchen cupboard, and a nut and bolt for a highchair tray that had gone missing.  Next we visited the supermarket, now my local like Tesco at Bakers Arms I know what is where on the isles 😀.  This time I was able to study the prices more objectively and discovered even the most basic items are out of the price range of the majority of working Kenyans.  Next we visited a small outlet to buy toilet paper and a chemist for the cows dressings … by the way it was raining by now… hard.  Next on the list was to pay the generator engineer.  The list was nearly complete 😊.

We walked through a soggy market where traders were selling all kinds of fruits and vegetables, second hand clothes and shoes, pots and pans and chappati’s (the rain was easing off by now).  We continued through the back streets where goats stood under anything they could to keep dry, as we carefully planned our route through inefficient drainage, slipping and skidding our way to the grain outlet to buy the beans and ugali flour that forms the staple of our diet.

Our last port of call was a lady who sells the ingredients to make washing up liquid.. don’t ask me what they were its a closely guarded secret!

I wanted some WD40 for the sewing machine and was not happy with price wanted by the generator guy mainly because it was an enormous can!  As we were buying 2 new jembe’s (spade/fork for digging) I spotted the small cans in a display case.  The shop keeper wanted almost the same price as the previous shop keeper for 1/4 of the amount!  I barterd and got him down to more than half, which I was happy to pay.  Perhaps now I can get the sewing machine working at 100%.

We were done… well almost… just 20 bails of hay for the cow and we could be on our way home.  Our driver who has patiently waited all that time in the pick up drove to the varioys retailers picking our orders we were unable to carry while we had chips from the supermarket cafe…. after 2 weeks solid of maize based dishes they were delicious 😀.  We arrived back just before dark at 6.30pm.  It was a marathon shop even by my standards but staff came back and cleaned out all the storage cupboards in the kitchen and saw to all the basic duties she would normally do each evening…she is amazing.  I however was asleep in bed by 8pm!!