Kenya 4

November 25, 2008

Today, I woke at 5am hot and with a mosquito in my ear. Since I could not sleep, I made a cup of tea and enjoyed the silence. Most of our kids came back today and we also got six more girls for our class. Duncan was not able to make it, and I am hoping we see him again tomorrow. Our class went very well, but we have a lot of work to do between now and Friday. I am impressed with the hope that exists in children who live in such conditions. I also love the fact that they see the things in their area that need to change and they want to be the change agents.

After class, we took a walk around the Mathare Valley. I am pretty sure this is worse than Dharvi slums in Mumbai. The river that runs through the valley is extremely contaminated with human waste and garbage. Small business are everywhere in the Valley. Some make chipati, some make beer, and others fry French fries or dry maize. This seems to be the only was people are able to make money. Most of the houses were made out of scrap metal or dung. The smell is almost unbearable and the filth is incredible. Any churches in the valley are locked up and have fences around them. We were told that the churches will not work together and that some won’t allow people to come to the church unless they are wearing suits and dresses.

Mathare is a place that is dirty and ugly. Mathare’s people are the most beautiful people I have seen. The children are smart, eager, gorgeous, and I fear for them. No one should live like this. With so many Christians in the world and so much wealth owned by those Christians, there is no reason there should even be a place called Mathere…..at least not one that looks like this. These people are children of God just as I am. They are entitled to the same rights as I have. As Christians, we should be fighting for these people and making their lives more just. I was shocked and saddened by the lack of the church’s existence in the valley.

I thought a lot about the verses in the Bible that speak about helping the poor, the last will be first, and the poor will inherit the earth. I wonder how those verses apply to the people of Mathare. As I write this, I am watching the news talk about an additional 800 billion dollars that is about to be put back into the economy. I wonder what that much money could do for places like Mathare.

After we walked through the valley, I slept for three hours, got up and ate dinner, and then went out with Pat, Dr. Corbitt, Dorette, and Carl to Fairview for coconut sorbet and beer☺ There isn’t enough time to wrap up a day like this.