Easter Sunday and Sanitary Pads

Are you all anxiously awaiting another update?? Well, wait no more. Things are going splendidly here. I am quite pleased. I will admit- I was very, very close to giving up on the Rotary House and passing it off as someone else's job. But I suppose if that is my line of thinking I should just go home now. And as blessings would have it, I had not even finished my renovations on the house when I got word that a new doctor has committed to come to Maseno and needed a place to live in a few weeks. He'll be arriving the day I leave. So as of now, the house has a patched and reprinted roof, a new ceiling inside, the floors are patched and smooth, and the locks are all changed. The house is stocked with sheets, blankets, nets, dishes, pots, buckets, and a water filtration system. The new housekeeper, Truphosa, has been trained on how to manage the house and how to prepare food for visitors. She has committed to work for me for the next year. I've changed the structure of the house slightly to give her more autonomy and business potential, since she will be independently managing the food, sort of like a mini restaurant. She'll make more money and I think it will lower the overall cost for visitors. I don't want to speak too soon, but this could be a win-win situation.

And let me wish you all a very Happy Easter! I spent yesterday morning rounding on the wards as usual. For my medically trained readers, I have a very interesting case of likely elephantiasis right now. I am reading up on treatments (and causes) for it tonight. Something I've certainly never seem before.

I spent the rest of the day at the Phoebe House, which is a home for women and children who have been abandoned or forced out of their homes because of their HIV status. I am in the process of teaching them how to sew washable, reusable maxi-pads (pictured above). An interesting endeavor-I agree, but before you wrinkle your nose at the thought, let me tell you the reason.

Many girls in rural areas like this do not have money or access to maxi-pads. They usually have to miss a week of school each month, or used unsanitary methods, like rags or newspaper. Now that the schoolboys are aware of this issue, some have started to offer the girls pads in exchange for sex. And the girls are accepting. Very sad. There has been a lot of interest in the project at home, and we have had over 100 pads donated that were sewn by groups based in the US. Fantastic. But like any other sustainable project here, it also has to be locally made. So begins my maxi-pad crusade.

The pads are being sewn on machines that run on a foot pump so electricity is not needed. Easy to use, easy to fix. Jacyline is one of the women who lives at Phoebe House with her 2 sons, and she will be heading up the project. We hope to sell them individually in the local market, and also to groups from the US who want to travel to schools to educate the girls and distribute the pads.

As always, I had a wonderful afternoon at the Phoebe House. My littlest darlings, Naomi and Arnold, are getting quite big. If you look back on my older posts Arnold is the chipmunk-cheek baby with ugali all over his face. When I first met Arnold over 2 years ago he was a patient at Maseno hospital. He was very suspicious of me initially and every time I walked in the ward he would shoot me a glare that could frost over the sun. Thankfully this time he warmed up much more quickly, as he felt the need to be constantly touching my hair, swinging on my arms, or patting my cheeks. At one point I was showing the kids pictures of my family-they were all very interested in seeing "Mama Jescah" ( my mom). Arnold could not see very well so he wiggled under my legs from behind the chair, crawled up over my knees and settled himself in my lap for a better view. When his mom told him he needed to let the other kids see too, without taking his eyes off the camera, he reached up and patted my cheek and said, "Hapana, wewe na wangu", meaning, " no, you are mine ". Oh. My. Goodness. He had me at the cheek pat.

I am currently in Nairobi for the night to pick up my students at 3 am tomorrow, and then we head off to Nakuru for the week. I knew I jynxed myself by saying how great easy coach was last time. While I am thankful, as always, for arriving anywhere in Kenya in one piece, I did spend the last 8 hours being thrown about the back of the bus. It isn't often in the US you actually feel yourself going airborne from your seat. My teeth may be still rattling a little :). No matter what the ticket lady says, there is a huge differnce in the amount of josling from the front to the back of the bus. That's a little pearl I am going to tuck away for next time. We stopped halfway through for a bathroom break and I considered making a generous offer to one of the front seaters to switch with me, but I was traveling with my friend Job and I couldn't abandon him to the back of the bus alone.

I'm going to go have some dinner now that you all know I am safe and sound in Nairobi.

Xoxo,

Jessie

 

Bleach and Boxcar Children

Well, let me tell you a tale of my first few days here.

I arrived in Maseno after a surprisingly easy journey from nairobi. Upon entering the rotary house(the house I lived in before and where my students will be staying), however, I found it to be a disaster. And I feel like I have very high standards for the word disaster. After the doctor and his wife left it seems no one has been taking care of it. Not only was it filthy, and the fridge was full of cockroaches (which are my Achilles heel, by the way) , but the roof was leaking and part of the ceiling was falling down.

So, my first thought came from the little dreamer on my right shoulder that said it would be fun to get this place back in shape, and this was my home after all, and I had to put it right. Perhaps I could even pretend I was one of the boxcar children. I've always secretly wondered if I was tough enough to join their ranks. Then that naughty little realist on my left shoulder reminded me I could get across the village first thing in the morning to the university guest house and forget all about the rotary house. That was someone else's problem and I'm sure they would take care of it.

Let me explain a little bit of the significance of this house first, to give you a little context (house pictured to right). The house is right behind the hospital, and the other guest house in town is quite a ways from the hospital and rather inconvienient in you don't have car because it's a 20-30 minute walk. And you have to get back there before it gets dark if you're walking, so that really limits your day for anyone working at the hospital. Which can be harder than it sounds if patients have been waiting all day to see you, or if a parent brings in a comatose child in their arms right when you're leaving, and no one has shown up for the night shift. The visiting medical staff are very important to the hospital because they bring with them supplies, knowledge, teaching, and money. All things we really need.

So these two on my shoulders battled it out for several days while I mulled over my options, worked at the hospital, and survived on mandazi and Stoney. I found it quite stressful and discouraging actually, made even worse by the realization that being a boxcar child has been incredibly over-rated in my mind for the last 20 years. I did what any sad, lonely girl does- I called my parents :) After a little pep talk from them I did a mediocre job cleaning up, except for the Achilles heel in the kitchen (I am only so strong). Then, as an answer to prayer, 3 ladies showed up today and asked if they could clean the house. They'd heard how bad it was and were afraid I would leave and stop coming to Maseno. They scrubbed this house until it shone. It smells like bleach and sunshine now.

It was then go big or go home time, and since my plane tickets were non-refundable....... I hired a delightful cook and housekeeper who agreed to stay on for at least the next year. She starts friday. I found a lovely fundi (carpenter) who will be coming back tomorrow morning to patch the roof, paint the roof, replace sections of the ceiling, repair the floor, and put new locks on the doors. I will be heading to kisumu tomorrow to restock the house with everything from clothespins to the customary blue toilet paper. My group of students will be the first to stay in the new and improved house!

So, that was a very long way to tell you all that things are looking up for both me and the rotary house. I am currently being lulled to sleep my the sound of my guard snoring on the front porch. When it's coming through a concrete wall it's actually quite soothing. Now while your reaction may tend to be, " What, your guard is asleep!?". I tend to think, "Sweet, I have a guard!". He's actually one of the hospital guards but seems to have taken it upon himself to make sure the little mzungu girl makes it safely through the nights. I have considered leaving cookies out for him so he isn't tempted to wander to more interesting front porches.

Lala salama (good night) .

Jessie

 

Planes and pink backpacks

You all can rest assured I have arrived in Kenya safe and sound. This has not been the best travel experience I've ever had, but I'm sure it could have been worse. Let's start with the positives first. I got to spend the whole day on Thursday with my mom in Chicago since she was kind enough to help me pass my 12 hour layover. My bags didn't get lost. My driver was right on time to pick me up from the airport. Turkish airlines has absolutely scrumptious food.

Now, for what you all really want to hear....what went wrong. Well, it started in the RDU airport when my fav hiking sandals broke and fell off my foot, just minutes after checking my bags and sending all my other choices of footwear to the belly of the plane. They actually broke as I was saying that they were all I was planning on wearing because they are the best sandals ever. Oh, the irony. But thankfully, with a modified paper clip and hair rubberband they were at least functional again to get through the airport.

When I got to the airport the TSA lady saw me waiting in line alone, with a teary and distressed mother standing by (as supportive as my mumsy is, she doesn't like the actual sending off part). Based on my pink backpack, ponytail, and no makeup I think she deduced I was about 13 years old and flying alone for the first time. She promptly put her arm around me and whisked me to the front of the security line, all while calling me sweetiepie. While I was slightly insulted that my calm maturity and airport proficiency werelost on her, but it was a 45 minute line.... So I just smiled and thanked her and asked if I'd be able to wave to my mom after I went through security. Hehe. On the flight to Istanbul I was sitting next to an 18 year old boy on a class trip, and after chatting on and off for the first few hours of the flight he asked me how old I was. When I told him, his response was, "wow, I had no idea you were that old!". It was then I started to seriously consider traveling in a business suit, or at least ditching the pink backpack ;)

Now this is where things start to take a downhill turn (and for those of you who cringe when I tell my gross medical stories you should skip this paragraph). We got almost to Istanbul just fine, and then we hit a storm. And it got a little rough. Now, it wasn't quite brace-yourself-on-the-back-of-the-seat rough, but pretty close and we had to circle the airport for over an hour. The lady in front of us thought she would help by screaming in turkish and wringing her hands whenever the plane lurched. Thank you for that. The drunk lady to my left would not stop her hyena laughing, and the sound of wretching could be heard from behind and in front of me. Now for those of you who know me well, know that I get nauseous just looking at the spinning teacups at the fair. And I don't normally take any motion-sickness meds on these huge planes because they are usually so smooth........but I do have impressive control of my gag reflex, so what did I do? Instead of just throwing up when everyone else was, when it was at least a little socially appropriate and the hyena laughing and Turkish screaming may have drowned it out, I waited until the plane was actually on the ground and everyone was standing around me trying to get off. And if I could give Turkish Airlines a little feedback- they need to made the openings of the barf bags a little bigger. Seriously.

Needless to say, I could have been in better spirits when I arrived in Istanbul. I wanted to take some meds (better late than never) but was out of water and they wouldn't accept American bills and I didn't have time to change money. It was almost sit on the floor and cry time when I found one little packet of chewable meclizine (thanks dad) and the day was saved. The remaining 6 hours I spent on a plane were delightful. I was so grateful to finally get to my room in Nairobi and slept that blissful sleep that can only come on a 6 inch foam bunk bed mattress after 16 hours on a plane. Why do I love traveling so much, some days I just can't say.

 

I spent today getting my ducks in a row and getting phone and Internet set up. This is a photo of my little charging station in my room :). The charger they give you with your phone doesn't fit into all outlets. What in the world !?. But all you need to do is stick something plastic into the remaining outlet hole while you insert the other two prongs. What could possibly go wrong with that, right?

Tomorrow I leave for Maseno via the Easy coach, and I have high hopes for my next travel day.

I sincerely hope my next post will have no mention of vomiting, and my apologies that this is so long. I tend to get a little wordy when I have my thoughts all to myself for a whole day :)

Jessie

I'm off for another adventure....

 

Hey friends,

Just a little update on my life for those of you who haven't seen me in awhile. I'll be traveling back to my dear Kenya for the month of April this year to work on some projects and work as a clinical instructor for a group of nursing students from St. John Fisher College. I'm quite excited for this opportunity and will no doubt have some adventures to report very soon, as I leave on Thursday.

I will be with my students in my village of Maseno, as well as in a city that's new to me, called Nakuru. Before they arrive I'll be spending some time working with the Phoebe House (a home for women and children abandoned due to their HIV status). I will have lots more to report to you all soon!

Jessie

 

 

 

Dad has arrived!

I am happy to report that my dad has finally arrived in Kenya after much anticipation. He arrived late last night, instead of yesterday morning, because of some delays in Chicago made him miss all his subsequent flights. Being the seasoned traveler that he is, he managed to get them to reroute him all the way to Nairobi. The glitch (of course there was a glitch) was that he had a layover in South Africa. If you know your african geography then you'll see that it's a little out of the way. Like, across the continent out of the way. It put him about 12 hours behind schedule, but he arrived in one piece. After a white-knuckled drive from the airport (nothing particular happened, that's just how all driving is here) we arrived safe and sound in Maseno.

We've spent the better part of his first day at the St. Philip's apiary (that's where Steven's beehives are) and later that day they officiated over the first Maseno beekeepers association meeting :)

Dad has already made fast friends with Owen, our favorite 3-year old
:) Dad obviously doesn't speak much swahili, but owen doesn't seem to
mind a carried on a whole conversation with us today when he joined us
for lunch. Dad played the "kill the spider that is my hand" game, and
that transends all languages.

He came to my HIV support group meeting today and the ladies loved him. He made many of them very happy when he presented them with reading glasses. Now they won't have to hold their beading 3 feet from their faces when they're making their crafts :)

As soon as I can get to a faster computer I will post some pictures for you all to enjoy. I have been documenting on camera or film, every even remotely interesting thing that happens while my dad is here, as promised to my mom :)

jessie

Nursing students and new shoes

I apologize for the lapse in my writing. As they say in Kenya, I have been lost. But now I am found and I will update you all on my recent escapades. For the last 2 weeks I have been the host and cultural guide for two different groups of nursing students and instructors from NY.

Despite all the craziness that comes with getting a group of 10+ people to do anything together and on time, I absolutely loved getting to show off my little corner of Kenya. For many of the girls it was their first time out of the US. Traveling to Africa isn’t exactly the smoothest transition to international travel, but they handled it well and I was continually impressed.
After the 2 week whirlwind, Steven and I were invited to accompany them on a safari to the Maasai Mara, which was absolutely fantastic. The lodge we stayed in was sinfully luxurious and the food was better than anything I’ve ever had in america. Issac, our faithful guide, was superb, and got us within spitting distance of lions, hippos, giraffe, water buffalo, zebras, and elephants. Did you know that no two zebra’s stripes are the same?? Their uniqueness is equaled only by the snowflake.
We decided to stay in Nairobi for the next day since it was our anniversary. Yup-the big 04. Steven took me to the giraffe center and the elephant orphanage. It’s not every day you get to spend your anniversary petting baby elephants and feeding giraffes. Did you know that giraffes have 18-inch gray tongues that I would argue have the dexterity of the human hand?
Being cheap people who tend to overestimate their own physical abilities, we decided to forgo the taxi and walk from our hostel to our two activities for the day since they were in the same area of town. One hour later we arrived at the Elephant orphanage sweaty, dusty, and blistered (I insisted on wearing flip-flops with my new skirt instead of hiking sandals). Thankfully we met a wonderful woman named Donna, who took pity on us and let us hitch a ride with her for a good portion of the afternoon since she was also going to see the giraffes. She even took us to a wonderful restaurant for lunch, which was definitely better than the granola bars and beef jerky we had planned on :) Another great anniversary for the books!

We’re now back in Maseno busy as little bees. I got to see my little darlings at the Phoebe House again today, which always strengthens my spirit. I was feeling a little disheartened in regards to the phoebe house because I just can’t seem to get things started and moving. They need to move into a different location because the one they’re in right now doesn’t have a legitimate kitchen, they have no land to grow their own veggies, and there is literally no place for the kids to play or even do school work. Hopefully we'll find something soon. We've just taken 2 more kids, so our total is up to 4 adults, and 10 kids. This picture is of Brain, 6, being very generous with his high 5's. The visiting nursing group brought them all a few new outfits and a pair of shoes. Naomi was so cute with her little pink sandals on. She just stood still and stared at her feet. Apparently this was her first pair of shoes (she's 3 years old) and I think she wasn't sure how to walk in them. This little one is Arnold, a relatively new inhabitant of the Phoebe House. He is 3 years old, has a healthy appetite, and his prefered outfit is a t-shirt, tiny tennis shoes, and nada else. Undies are overrated in his book.
That's all for now. The official countdown is down to less than a month until my dad gets here! Yeah! One of our friends have offered to slaughter a goat for his arrival :)

Jessie

Jessie

Avacados and Earth Tones

Yikes, it's been awhile since I've updated this blog. My apologies. Life has been busy here getting ready for visitors. First a group of nursing students are coming from NY in about a week, the next is my Dad coming in July!! When I do have a spare minute and want to have a little art therapy I have been plugging away at the mural in the pediatrics ward.
The Phoebe House is truckin' along. Every time I stop by there are new women and children there it seems. The youngest is a little girl named Naomi, who eyes are the size of saucers. Adorable. She has taken a particular fancy to Steven, and him to her. I wouldn't be surprised if we arrived home and found her in our suitcase :)
I brought some pills over the other day to treat them all for worms and was amazed at how each of the little ones just popped that bitter pill in their mouth and didn't complain a bit. They didn't even take it with water. I was a little less impressed when I later noticed some slimy pink tablets hidden under and sticking to Brian's feet (he's 4). I pointed to the tablets and made the "tst-tst-tst" noise-the kenyan sound for disapproval. He just started grinning sheepishly for being caught in the act, and he let me redose him without much of a fight. What can I say, he's adorable-so all's forgiven.
Since I've strategically gotten word out that I love avocados, I've been getting them by the bag full from friends who have them growing in their yards and falling on their heads. To combat this influx of quickly ripening cados, I made a batch of guacamole today that fit into a good sized punch bowl. You can never have too much of a good thing, right?
We are also busy getting the Mother's Union shop well stocked for the big group of visitors coming soon. I have been drawing up some design modification for the ladies to make some things more appealing to Americans. They make the most beautiful and well made baskets and such, but I'm trying to impress upon them a variety of colors and also some neutral tones, as hot pink and teal don't do in many American homes. They seemed perplexed by the terms "neutral" or "earth tones" until one of the women realized what we wanted and I heard the words "American" and "dull colors" in her explanation. To explain her point she pointed to mine and Steven's wardrobe for the day. We both happened to be wearing brown and khaki (I swear we do wear other colors). They all smiled and shook their heads in understanding.
That's all for now. Sorry there's no pictures, it sounds like this computer may blow up if I try one more time to upload an image.

jessie