Worlds Apart

The other day I was reading through a People magazine that my mom sent to me in a care package. I was reading a wonderful article about a woman who learned of school children in her community that went hungry over the weekends when they were not receiving subsidized or free meals at the school. I felt a kinship with this woman because much of what she does is what I am trying to do here in Kenya. She identified a need in her community and came up with a creative way to solve the issue.  I can think of so many times I had money left over at the end of the month from my nurses salary and didn’t do anything meaningful with it. I have much respect for this lady and what she is doing to help her fellow Americans.

That being said, I turned to the next page in the article which featured a picture of one of the families packing up their belongings in their house that was foreclosed. The caption reads “A family’s struggle.”  Amidst their belongings this family poses next to a pile of shiny toys, a 50 inch flat screen TV with sound system, and a second smaller TV. My mind flashed back to the picture I had constructed of the similarities between the charity work that I had in common with the woman in the article. Suddenly the similarities did not seem as in-line as I had previously thought. In my village most children survive on porridge for breakfast and Ugali (which is cornmeal and water cooked together to form a flavorless blob of carbohydrate) and some sort of boiled leafy greens (usually kale and spinach).  Secondly, the only people who own televisions are the incredibly rich and successful business owners. And the TVs that they own are what we Americans refer to as a “boob-tube.” It is a huge status symbol to say you can afford a 1980’s style chunky 12 inch screen television.

What it all boils down to is standard of living. In America a young person from any class can count on watching TV and Disney movies as a normal part of growing up. Families may struggle to pay rent or live in subsidized housing, but even in a homeless shelter one can count on electricity and running water. It is the glorious standard of living we have established in our country. Here in Kenya, the standard of living is a roof over one’s head. At one of my last youth group meetings there was a young man who just graduated from high school and achieved an A on his exit exam. This is the equivalent of achieving a very high score on the SAT. This boy spoke perfect English and could talk in depth about his passion for biology and HIV pharmaceutical development. He asked me if I knew about any sources of funding to help pay for college tuition. I said, of course, what’s your e-mail address. He replied “well, uh I don’t really have one.” He went on to tell me that he hadn’t learned to use a computer yet. Here may be one of the brightest minds in Kenya and he can’t even apply for colleges because he doesn’t know how to use a computer.

I applaud the people who are working to correct the disparities between the classes of Americans and uphold the standard of living we have established. My only hope is that one day there are enough dedicated Kenyans to help do the same for their own country. How they can get there is the puzzle I am trying to put together right now…

World Women's Day Event

March 8^th was the day for Women all around the world to celebrate how far we have come. Having lived as a 21^st century woman in America, it sometimes feels like going back in time living here in Kenya where women cannot own property and are purchased with a dowry. Recently an 18 year old girl in my community died and could not be buried in her family home because she was not married. Could you imagine losing a daughter and then having to bury her in a town several hours away just because she was not married?  On March 8^th, a group of Peace Corps volunteers and myself celebrated the empowerment of women in our World Women’s Day event.

We had over 200 registered women at the event, although I am sure there were over 300 who attended throughout the day. We tested 34 for HIV, gave out 100 reusable sanitary pads and over 600 free condoms. We set up booths to talk to the women about how to make the reusable sanitary pads, malaria prevention, how to make safe drinking water for their families, how to start a small business, and Family planning.  I gave out fertility necklaces to help women keep track of their cycle for a natural family planning method. There were times where I had so many women pushing up against my table to hear my speech or condom demonstrations that I almost couldn’t move. It was so inspirational to see these women gather together and support one another. This is what being a Peace Corps Volunteer is all about!

Snakes, Vaccinations, and Rain

Last week my school was taking midterm exams, so I took the week off also. On Wednesday I went on a community outreach with a few people from my clinic and we vaccinated over 50 babies and saw over a dozen expectant mothers.  I try to remember to bring snacks or a granola bar with me to outreaches like this because, as expected, we worked all day without a lunch break.  I take that back. We did stop briefly to drink a soda and eat some fried bread which any Kenyan will tell you is an acceptable lunch. Nevertheless, it was a long but successful day. We all came home exhausted.

Every Saturday Sister Tina and myself visit different community youth groups. We divide the group by age and Sister Tina talks about puberty with the younger kids, while I talk about relationships with the older kids.  Last Saturday we visited a village called Omundo and there was no road leading to the church, so we had to go off-roading through a corn field. It was a terrifying experience for me because Sister Tina is not the most skilled driver and we were literally out in the middle of nowhere. We made it and in the middle of our morning introductions several people ran outside. Pretty soon we realized what was going on… one of the youth members saw a black Mamba snake in the bushes outside and went to kill it. I have now discovered the snake that lives under my front door is also a black mamba; one of the most poisonous snakes here in Kenya. I had the pleasure of watching the 5 foot tall, 70lb Sister Tina smash the snakes head in while the other youth chopped off the end of the tail… which continued to writhe even after being chopped from the rest of the body. 

Sunday after church, I did my laundry by hand. Then swept my floor with the bundle of straw I call a broom. This was followed by several hours of cross stitching because since the rains have come I have cooler weather, overcast skies, and unfortunately very little solar powered electricity.  On the bright side I can start taking regular bucket baths now and I don’t have to wear my clothes twice before washing!