Even my vocabulary has expanded over the course of this trip. Aside from the limited Swahili I have learned, my English vocabulary has changed. I find myself talking about stati. As in, "when did you learn your status" or "what is your status?". Status refers to HIV, whether someone is negative or positive. I have also talked more about 'sanitary towels' and 'monthly cycles' than I ever care to again. It is strange to casually remark over dinner that we just got another donation of 230 packets of sanitary towels. We discuss feminine hygiene products like you would the weather! I have also never talked so much about abandonment, rape, and hunger as I have on this trip. It is amazing how commonplace these phenomena are. Everywhere you turn there is another orphanage, overflowing with children who barely have enough to eat and who might or might not have the opportunity to go to school. I also think about water differently. Many places we have gone deal with constant water shortages, most parts of Kenya face perpetual droughts. In Oldonyonyokie we didn't even carry our water bottles around with us, we had to go to the car to drink, to carry around that much water would be garish.
Tomorrow is another office day, we are finalizing plans for the WEEP graduation and I will finish the business plans (huzzah!). I will keep you posted,
Margaret
Marg:
ReplyDeleteThis post seems so stark that it feels wrong to post a comment of humor, but humor is the thing that I retreat to when I feel uncomfortable. And if there is a perfect combination of things to make me feel uncomfortable it is the suffering of children and anything related to feminine hygenie. And when faced with feminine hygenie issues, I think of Hank Hill. He said, to his son about womens' "monthlies", "Son, even though it doesn't make any sense to just stand by and do nothing about ... anything ... well, that's just the case with a woman when she gets her ... well, when she ... well, when she has her monthly." He went on, "It's like ... well, it's like ... It's like a Tire Fire! It seems only right to try and put it out. But you can't! Throwing water on it only makes it worse. Just like a woman with her monthly, sometimes the only thing you can do is grab and beer and just let it burn itself out."
As for those kids and their plight; I think that when I die I am going to walk up to God and punch Him right in the mouth. Then we can sit down and He can explain to me what the hell it was He was thinking with suffering like that. We have that kind of relationship, God and me.
God bless.
The ability to speak comfortably about uncomfortable things is a remarkable, and all too rare, thing. Well done.
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