Howdy! I’m Kimberly from San Antonio, TX and I am a long term volunteer located in Nairobi, Kenya. My stay here will be a total of 3.5 months, and I have one month down already. I am living with two Kenyan sisters not far away from the main office where I volunteer. This has definitely been quite an experience for me. When I first got here, I had to adjust and reset my mind frame on ways of life over the first few days. I live in a one bedroom apartment with these two girls and we do not have a stove, oven, dishwasher, washing machine, or dryer – some may think that this is a very sad situation to be living in, but really, I have learned that what I do have here are things that I am incredibly blessed with. There are hundreds of thousands, if not millions more of Kenyan who have a lot less than what I have at my place in Nairobi, and I have witnessed it and walked in these areas first hand. God has reminded me of that time after time again.
I’m a bit of a strange case, as I am the first intern to work in the main Kenya office, but it is going well. I am able to help in multiple different areas including HR, accounting, tracking and monitoring, and training and development. The staff here I consider my friends and it has truly been enjoyable to work with them. As I do work in the office, I do not have a lot of hands on time with the children and adults here that Buckner serves, but when I do get to go out to the Baptist Children’s Center, which a residency for orphans, a school, a clinic, and a church for the community in the middle of a slum, it is always incredible to see the smiling faces on all of these kids. Buckner provides such a great life for them relative to the places around this campus. I always love how the kids call out “Mzungu! Mzungu!” (which means white person! White person!) and come up to me just to be around me and to try to hold my hand. They are all such precious children from God and there is no doubt that they are wonderfully made.
Last week I had the opportunity to visit an orphanage and school that is not under the Buckner Umbrella, but one that has learned of our organization and would like us to step in to find financial support and what not. This place was about two hours outside of Nairobi in a town called Nakuru. The facility did not have plumbing and recently had electricity installed. The educational resources were low as well. The group I went with and I had the privilege of getting to meet the kids that were there that day and having them sing and dance for us. It was a lot of fun and some of them had remarkable voices and got us to get up and dance with them. It reminded me of something that my dad often says about how most children in the U.S. don't know how to have fun anymore without some kind of electronic device in their hands, and how kids when he grew up found simple things to entertain themselves. Sometimes it was hard to believe, but after witnessing kids who know how to do just that to, to entertain themselves by singing and dancing, or playing with simple toys, or even rocks kicked around on the ground, it is good to be reminded that its not material objects that bring about happiness, but rather joy in friendship, attitude, thankfulness, and God.
Since I am a long term volunteer here, I have been trying to sight see a bit too, and as a business major from Texas A&M University, it has been very interesting to see how my education has prepared me and applies to living in a foreign country. It is very exciting to see how brands cater to such a difference in income level when it comes to purchasing every day items and disposable income involving luxury goods. For example, most people do not have common appliances or the ability to buy food and necessities in bulk. Therefore, milk is usually bought in small packets that don't need refrigerating, toilet paper is sold individually, and there are a ton of little street stands that sell everything from yogurt, to vegetables, to airtime (prepaid minutes for cell phones). Most days, one of my roommates goes to these little stands or a local grocery store (most are fairly small, although they have the occasional Kroger/HEB/Walmart sized stores) to buy food for us as money, storage, and keeping goods fresh are often a problem to buy more at a time. Personally, I am amazed at the kind of presence that Coca-cola has here. EVERYBODY sells it. Every little stand on the side of the road in town and out has a sign that says, "Coca-cola" on it. Due to water contamination and no access to refrigeration, people here generally drink soda hot and still in high demand. Coke, as well as most other products that I have seen, are bottled and made here in Nairobi. Well, I'm out! I'll blog again soon!
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