Jen Jung ICC book

Click here to view this photo book larger

Shutterfly photo books offer a wide range of artful designs and embellishments to choose from.

Sunday!



This isn't the best quality picture, but I thought it was interesting that some people cemented shards of glass on top of the brick fence that protects their home/apartment complex.    Again, very resourceful people. 

 Before church on Sunday, we were able to go for breakfast in the city.  Real coffee - even a latte - lucky !!!

Heather, Dr. Marie, Socorro, and me waiting for breakfast!

I love the little cup of vanilla syrup - they always serve a biscuit with coffee, tea, or hot chocolate.  Heather enjoying her latte!  



Nothing like a latte :)  The simple things in life!





We visited a village market where individuals would sell handmade goods.  It was a market where you could negotiate a price.  I was so nervous because I didn't think I would be able to do it.  I thought if they said 2000 shillings- I would pay them 2000 shillings, but I learned how to barter and thought it was fun.  I ended up buying so many souvenirs that I had to buy a bag to carry them in.  1000 shillings were approximately $11.12.  So once I was able to figure out how many dollars an item would cost, it was easier to barter.  I found some fun things for the kids.  I wished I could have purchased one of these large giraffes, but I knew getting it home would be a problem.  I was already worried that I may be over the 50 pound weight limit.

Many of the women sold bags, jewelry, and small trinkets.  The men usually sold the larger items such as masks, paintings, and statues. 

I spent a few hours shopping with team member Ida.  We had so much fun - we even skipped lunch just so we could have more time to shop - plus we spent our lunch money on market goods rather than food!

Heather did not find the market near as enjoyable as I did - I think this is one area where our personalities were more obvious.  I loved the crazy, busy vibe in the market where Heather wasn't as fond of it.

The rest of Sunday was spent packing our bag for safari.  We had to pack up our large luggage item (this was placed in storage since we wouldn't be returning to the School of Theology) and only take a backpack on safari.  There was a 30-pound maximum for our safari bag. 

Today was still a bittersweet day as we are all still reflecting on all that we took in over the last few days.  For me, I felt unbelievably grateful to be given the opportunity to help these wonderful people of Kenya. 

Last day cont

These little boys played patiently for three hours while they waited with their parents for the maize that we would be handing out.  They played with their water bottles the entire time.  All I kept thinking was how my own children would have been whining and complaining the entire time saying they were so bored.  They didn't fight, complain, or argue - they just enjoyed play time with their new toys.



Truck that delivered the maize



Children waiting to receive their free maize.

 We were able to donate a bit of money and purchase maize for the patients.  So on the final day of the clinic we collected their vouchers and they would receive a bag of maize.  Heather was stationed at one of the tables where they handed out the maize. 



This volunteer was telling the people that once they received their maize they needed to either go into the church for worship or they needed to leave. 



Each bag of maize costs approximately $1.50 and it would feed a family of four for possibly two meals.  So they typically do not purchase maize like this because it is just too expensive for them.

I think by the final day of the clinic we were all so glad that it was over because we were all so tired and exhausted.  Not until the day was over and I layed down in bed that night did I realize that the effort we put forth was beneficial to so many people.  I then was so sad that it was over and we wouldn't be helping people any more on this trip.  Our job that we came to do was over in a flash.  The days were super long, but so rewarding.  I know that we were all led to Kenya for a very specific purpose.  Heather was touched by the camaraderie between our team of 36 that worked super hard for one common goal!  I still have a very difficult time putting into words how I feel about my time in Africa.  I can say with certainty that I will forever be a changed person.  I came away with more than I could have ever imagined.  I am already trying to figure out when I can do another mission trip!

I just want to thank my sister for getting this whole thing rolling for this mission trip.  Had it not been for her, I would have never been given an opportunity of a lifetime.  She planted the seed way back in January thinking I probably wouldn't be able to go - for a number of different reasons - my kids, financially, or my back.  I knew the moment she mentioned the trip I would figure out a way to make this trip possible.  I knew that if God wanted me to go and serve, He would provide me with the resources and health to get there.  It was interesting that both Heather and I had the desire to go and serve in Africa even though we had never talked about it prior to this.  So it seemed that when this opportunity was right in front of us we had no choice, but to follow God's calling for us.   We had a fantastic time together and even learned a little bit about each other that we didn't know.  I will forever cherish our time together in Africa.  So thanks again Heather and know that I love you!

I will be posting more about our time in Africa, but I wanted our clinic days to be the focus of this blog.  Thanks to all of you who have been posting such nice comments - I sure do appreciate your kind words!

Last day of medical clinic

Dennis and I working on writing out vouchers for food!

I was definitely not asked to hand out water again today as you all know how yesterday's water distribution went for me.  I was asked to write out a few hundred vouchers.  The vouchers could be turned in for one free food product (maize/corn).  The voucher was to be used right before our church service in hopes that they would come and get their food and then stay and worship with us. 

Voucher

Today      18-06-11

Come to church!

4-6 pm

Bring this voucher and receive one free food item.



Each voucher needed to be signed and numbered in red so we could make sure they were the vouchers that were created by us because we only had a certain number of food items to hand out.  I luckily didn't have to monitor the food distribution - I just had to write out the vouchers.  We obviously didn't have access to a copy machine.  My other job was to greet people as they entered the clinic area.  Sarah and I did the job together, but I eventually let her do the greeting because she was totally speaking Swahili and I only knew a couple of words. 

Dennis was a 21-year old man who was a member of the church and he was at the clinic volunteering.  He sat down beside me and asked if he could help write out vouchers.  I was immediately impressed with his handwriting.  The teacher in me came out and I complimented him on his nice handwriting.  As we sat and wrote for hours, I really got to know this young man and his life story.  He lived in the slums with his family -  dad, mom, and 4 siblings.  They ended up in the slums when his father lost his job a number of years prior.  He had to drop out of school because his parents did not have the money to send all of their children to school.  He had received an education through 8th grade so his parents put the money toward his younger sibling's education.  His goal was to get his high school education and then go to college.  His ultimate life plan was to become a neurosurgeon.  I was so inspired by Dennis.  He has all of the cards stacked against him, but he knows the Lord and trusts that He will take care of him.  His father had left the church when he lost his job (as a pastor) and yet Dennis didn't let that deter him from believing in God and his promises. 

I was telling Dennis that I needed to write out these vouchers because I wasn't a very good greeter since I didn't speak any Swahili.  I told him that I am a visual learner and that I needed to read the words in Swahili to be able to speak them.   I was super surprised when Dennis came to me the next day and presented me with four written  pages of words in Swahili.  He was one of the young people that I met that I will never forget.  He is an amazing human being!!!!

Dennis and I at church with one of the children attending the service.

This day at the clinic was very busy, but it ran quite smooth.  We seemed to have a great system of checking patients in, seating them, and transitioning them to the appropriate doctor.  We ended up seeing over 1700 people during the clinic days.  I have no doubt that we helped many people and led many people to the Lord. 

Since it was the final day of the clinic, I took it upon myself to hand out a few beanie babies that Sue (one of my roommates) had brought for the children.  Had I known that I would be bombarded with children and mothers, I might have thought twice before handing any out - the kids thought I had candy.  I thought I was being very secretive when I was handing them out (as I concealed my bag and I very quietly would hand a beanie baby to a young child).  My secret was out when I tried handing my first beanie baby to a child about 3 years old and she started screaming hysterically.  That definitely drew attention to me and what I was doing.  The kids were afraid of the beanie babies, but the mothers really wanted them for their children since they don't have stuffed animals.  So as I tried to move to the next child, I ended up being cornered by a number of mothers with babies on their hips and older children.  They were pushing, poking, gently slapping my arms so I would give their child one.  In the pics below, I actually look joyful, but I was actually a bit nervous and scared and couldn't get rid of them fast enough. 



Mother and child coming to the clinic !

I found the women in Kenya to be so resourceful.  Many of them had to take care of more than one child and they were probably under the age of 20.  When they were given a lot of medication for their children they would take the scarf off of their heads and use it as a bag for the meds.  They were obviously used to carrying a number of things at once and they made it look easy. 

One thing I did notice about the adults that came to the clinic or the adults that lived in the slums was that they were very non-emotional.  As they sat in the clinic, the mothers did not interact with their children or when they were told that they have HIV they did not show any signs of distress or sadness.  I wondered why this might be???  One of the locals told me that she was much happier as a child because she didn't know how hard life was, but as an adult she realizes that there are a lot of people that have a much better life than she does.  So I think their ability to cope with such a difficult life takes a toll on them.  Another local told me that many women that are diagnosed with HIV choose not to medicate because they will die sooner and not have to struggle to feed themselves and their children. 



Little girl who sat next to me in the greeting area while her
mother was waiting for her medication.



She loved playing with my hair.

 I wondered why she had an obsession with my hair.  She just kept running her hands through my hair.  My only thought was that all of the women in Kenya typically have their hair pulled into tight braids so she probably doesn't get to feel hair that is loose.  She even tried putting it into a pony for me.  She also found my sunglasses which she thought were pretty cool.  She put them on and wanted me to take a picture of her. 






Beautiful, precious, and innocent!



Day 6 cont

Jen and Jen

I have something in common with this little child.  We both are named Jen.  When I asked the mother her name, she told me Jen.  How cool that I can share a name with such a sweet little girl.  As I was holding her, the mother said "he".  I was confused by what she was talking about, but she said it again and then I realized that the little child I was holding was not a girl, but a boy.  One would assume that if the child is wearing pink and named Jen it would be a girl.  That is one thing that I definitely noticed in the children - looking at their clothes did not indicate their sex.  I came to realize that warm clothing is much more important than gender appropriate clothing. 

Heather

Click here to view these pictures larger

Day 6

Docs and nurses from our group!

Day six began with Heather and I both staying at the clinic.  I had the option of going out into the slums again, but decided to stay back since I wasn't feeling very well the night before.  I should have known I would have gotten a bit sick - I'm not sure what I ate or came in contact with that made me feel ill.  I was fortunate since mine was just an upset stomach where there were a few people that were sick enough to stay in bed for 24 hours.  My job for the day was to hand out water to the patients as they went through the pharmacy.  I was not good at this job because I wanted to give each family a lot of water, but was told to give only one water to each adult in the family.  It was soooo hard to turn away the children that would come up and ask for 'maji' (water) and I couldn't give it to them or we would have run out.  The difficult part for me was when I realized that people who had already gotten water would hide it and come back for more.  I understand that these people do not have clean water and they will do whatever it takes to get as many as they possibly can especially since it is free.  They have to pay for water in the slums and it is not as clean as the bottled water.

I did this job for about half the day and was asked to move back into the clinic (I think they knew I wasn't strong enough to say "no" and they did need help in the clinic area).  This day has been crazy busy with fewer doctors.  A couple of the Kenyan doctors were unable to make it so the doctors were very, very busy. 

Today was the day that Heather did not feel well.  She ended up getting the bug that a couple of others had gotten.  The unfortunate part for her was that she was feeling so terrible and she had to lay in the back of the bus.  Thank goodness we had some of the kindest bus drivers.  They were so friendly and patient with our group of 36.




Our bus drivers - Evan, Justice, and Peter

 



I mentioned in Day 5 that Felix should be coming back today for a recheck.  I was so shocked at how well he looked.  He was smiling and bright-eyed.  I will never forget his adorable face.  His fever had dropped and he was on his way to feeling better.

Here is sweet little Felix feeling and looking so much better!!!!!



Another pic of Felix with Cindy and me

 Heather and I were known as "the sisters".  I can't even count how many times people asked us if we were twins -I was called Heather so many times that I just answered them as if I was her.  So when we were boarding the buses - they didn't ask if Heather or Jennifer was on the bus - they asked if "the sisters" were on the bus. 

I also thought I would share with you on how the driving was in Nairobi.  It seemed more like a demolition derby than everyday driving.  It seemed to me that the biggest and fastest vehicle won on the roadway.  If there were two lanes for driving, feel free to make a third lane in the grass or ditch if the person in front of you is not moving.  Also, you can sure drive on the sidewalk if you feel it is necessary to keep the traffic moving.  When we drove to the clinic in the morning the traffic wasn't too bad, but coming home in the evening at around 7:30 was terrible.  I only felt unsafe in Africa while we were driving home each evening.  One evening we were hit by a small car and we just kept driving.  There was no stopping and calling the police to report the damage.  Our bus driver told us that the people that own those cars do not carry insurance so there is no reason to stop.
One of the locals that I met said that one of her dreams in life is to own a car.  She asked me if I own a car and I told her that we actually owned two vehicles because both my husband and myself drive to work each day.  I think she wondered why we would need two vehicles when we could realistically walk to work or at the very least carpool.  I did tell her that we have some nasty winters here in ND and it is difficult to walk anywhere because of the snow piles and drifts.  Our conversation was just another reminder of how very grateful I am for the blessings I have been given.


This is a picture of the church where our clinic was located.  The apartments in the background are apprx $400.00 per month and the middle class live in them. Unfortunately, right on the other side of the middle class housing is one of the slum areas.

  One of the things that was hard for me to get used to was the darkness.  It was completely dark every evening by 7:30 and it was still dark in the morning when we went for breakfast at 6:30.  The locals said that this is what it is always like because Nairobi is located right near the equator. 



This is a picture of people who sell items outside of the slum areas. 

 They work till about 9:00 or 10:00 at night and they begin their work day anywhere between 5:00 and 7:00.  So they walk to work in the dark and walk home in the dark.  Very unsafe especially for the women.