Update 2 :)

(A Hike through the Great Rift Valley)

As I sit writing this update, I want to start by thanking all of the people who wrote letters for Leah and I to take with us. We have been spreading the letters out, reading them throughout the weeks as little inserts of encouragement . One in particular was so clearly a gift from God to me. 

Tonight, I spoke with one of the house mums for a while about the great gift this home is to the girls. We talked about our lives and about our countries, and for the first time since I've been here, my heart truly broke deeply for a specific other: For this woman who serves next to me each day, for this country, and for these children. I caught a personal glimpse of the heartache of one woman. Someone just like me. I began to feel that I couldn't do enough. To think of all the ways I could sacrifice the excess in my life to help someone else: how small changes in my own little world could be life changing for this woman. The anxious feeling of helplessness overwhelmed me and my heart literally became tight. Leah and I were talking through our experiences of the day and both pleading to God that we can be his hands and feet. Our desire to be used by Him has been ignited and is burning stronger than before.  I was still anxious, and feeling less than capable when the conversation came to an end and I began to settle down by opening a letter from an anonymous writer. The card literally brought me to immediate tears. I pulled out a note card that had a big sticker that said "Anxiety,"  reading "cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you." Crying lead to laughing and audibly praising God for his goodness. I believe the exact words choked through my tears were "Leah! God is so cool! Its not even fair!"  While rather ineloquent as those words may have been, it was all I could say, and exactly what I meant.

This past week has been a fairly calm one, but wonderful each day nonetheless. The week began on Sunday with church here at the home. Most Sundays the girls split up and go to different churches in the area. This coming Sunday we will go to an Episcopal church right down the road! We have been told that it is QUITE loud and that we should be prepared for shouting! It will be interesting for sure to see the difference in celebration. We also hope to stay for a Swahili service  at least once while we are here!  After church on Sunday we were informed that all of the girls go on a hike down the Great Rift Valley anytime it is dry on a Sunday! (Keep in mind that this would have been the day after our 3 hour hike through the Ng'ong Hills and we were barely walking on flat ground.) Despite our aching legs we went with the kids down one side of the steep valley, up the other, and back again! It was beautiful and great to be out with the girls! It still catches me by surprise when we ride the bus to school each morning driving right along the beautiful Rift Valley, or in the morning when I walk out the door and see the Ng'ong Hills. God's creativity when creating this world astounds me. I can only imagine what the Garden of Eden must have looked like, and I am certain that my imagination doesn't do it justice.

At school this week I have been in class 4 each day. The teacher for class 4 left for another job last Friday and so for 2 or more periods a day they have no teacher. So instead we have had improv music lessons, vocabulary lessons and a few English lessons that I was able to teach from the book that the Principal (or head teacher) gave to me. They all know I am studying to be a teacher and jump at any opportunity for me to teach a lesson or grade papers. I am thoroughly enjoying it! I do find myself wishing at times that I had some of my resources at home so that I could go to the class prepared to truly teach a lesson, but other than the English book, I am left with a piece of chalk, a board, and my own imagination! I find that my cleverness and creativity of what I can do with these two things comes and goes at its own will. I will have to find a way to control that inconsistency sometime in the next two years before I begin teaching on a full time basis! However, when worse comes to worse, we play hand games! Next week I will be moving to a younger class: either first or second.

(Hand Games in Class 4)

When the girls have a birthday it is HIGHLY celebrated here. Kate and the mums take great care to make each girl feel like an important individual, and not just a member of a group. There are speeches, gifts given, songs sung, and of course CAKE! They turn on music and dance and sing, enjoying themselves and celebrating the life that has been given to them. The little girl who celebrated her birthday today has been here for six years, and has found home.

 (Fun with the Girls)

This weekend and coming week there are some fun excursions that we will be taking. So our next update may very well be filled with tales of the fun we will have seeing the sights of Africa with our friend Maddy (the other American who is here volunteering) and some of the girls (who are doing well in school and get to join our trips as a reward!) Thank you all again for your prayers and support. Our health is good, our hearts are at rest, and God is continuing to work each day through little moments spent investing in the lives of the children and adults. Some of my most meaningful/challenging moments and conversations have been with the adults I have encountered, yet the laughter and joy that comes from each child brings chills to me in a different, yet powerful way. There is no doubt that God is working in the hearts of Leah and I just as much as we are hoping to impact the lives of each person we meet here.  Please to continue praying for good health and also for safety in travel as we have the opportunity to leave Hekima this coming week for a few trips. We are so thankful for each and every one of you.

To all my family, I find myself wanting to reminisce about past experiences with you on a daily basis as memories flood back from our previous trips. I know that those first memories are ones that will forever be in my mind. I love you all and wish that I could share many of these experiences with you as well! Stephen, Layla, Tim, Jenna, Emily, Jonny, Mom, and Dad you should start preparing now for me to talk your ear off the next time we are together!

God Bless,

Lizzy (and Leah)

Update One

We have arrived safe and sound! (four days ago as a matter of fact). The flights were all on time and as planned! To try and tell you everything God has already done, or everything that we have already experienced would be near impossible, but for those of you who are praying and have been supporting us we will fill you  in on as many of the highlights as possible!

Our first snag came when we arrived in Nairobi. My usual smile and charm unfortunately did not work on the lady in customs who seemed to be determined to make it as difficult as possible for us to get from the airport side of the glass to our ride standing 15 feet away. The flash back of our first trip where there was a man who wanted to charge my family "duty" (or taxes) on all 10+ of our medical supply filled boxes came to mind and I immediately prayed for the same grace that was granted my family so many years ago. Honestly, this scene had been on my mind the whole trip there and customs was the part I was most nervous about. God used that experience though to prepare me for the scene to come. Had I been caught unaware, I would have been much more flustered and worried. Unfortunately, there was no persuading this woman. She immediately picked out the red duffle bag filled with little girls clothes, school supplies, and shoes. 49lbs exactly of supplies for the girls at Hekima. It was the ONLY bag she wanted to look through, and of course it was the one with the majority our gifts to the orphanage.{{Note to self: when packing supplies, don’t put them in a mysterious red duffle bag that obviously does not match any of your other luggage!}} Robyn (our missionary friend from Nairobi) stood on the other side of the glass yelling at us asking us what she was saying and giving us advice. However, when push came to shove, we lost the short battle, but our spirits were still high! Then, when we were 2 feet from the door, a different lady came up to us and said "YOU, Ma'am. You need to go through customs." I told her I already had and she didn't immediately believe me. Luckily I had the receipt from the taxes we had paid and of course the lady I had just spent 10 minutes debating with witnessed that I had already been through the process. So finally, now 48 hours, 3 plane rides, 5 people, and 4000 shillings later, we stepped into Kenya!

Arriving at the orphanage was a blessing in its own! The roads are….well, Kenyan! We were all exhausted from traveling and ready to get some sleep. To our surprise there was no power at the orphanage when we arrived! Again, an experience that was familiar to me. We used flashlights and candles to make it to our room. We brushed our teeth, and all conked out for the night. The home is beautiful and has its own water system that purifies all of the water used. The water from the faucet is perfect to drink, which makes one less thing for us to stress about while we are at Hekima. The next morning we unpacked and got organized while the girls were at school, went and saw some of the babies, and then took a VERY long nap in the afternoon. Kate Fletcher (the head and founder of the orphanage) came and woke us up reminding us that we would regret all the sleeping later that night when we couldn’t sleep! We got up, met the girls, had dinner, and the generator turned off again at 9pm, so we went back to sleep. To Kate's prediction at 1 am Leah and I woke up, ready to start the day. After talking for 45 minutes, then laying in silence trying to sleep for 2 hours, one of us finally said… "snacks?"   When we went into the kitchen where, low and behold, we found Maddy (another volunteer from the states) up as well. So we played phase ten until morning :) This, I do believe, is the definition of Jet Lag!

(Snacks and Cards at 4 in the morning)

Friday we went to school with the girls! We will be going Monday through Friday from 7am until noon and we ride the bus with the girls. The school is small, but very organized. Over half of the students are from either Hekima, or another orphanage up the road. God is doing amazing works in their lives by giving them the opportunity to go to school. It is truly one of their biggest opportunities to live a good life as they get older. I sat in the fourth grade class with a young girl from the orphanage named Wombui. By request of Kate, I will be her personal tutor over the next six weeks! She is a very high spirited girl who has ADHD and struggles staying on task, so has fallen behind in reading. She loves to talk with us in English and is enjoying having special time with the volunteers practicing reading English. The school is an English speaking school and so the majority of the teaching is in English. They were so excited for us to be there, and the first three "class periods" were spent sharing about myself and singing… LOTS of singing! There were 5 different tribes represented in the 4th year class and each group sang a song in their own mother tongue. I also was asked to give the music teacher piano lessons and was able to grade papers and help teach. I can't even imagine how amazing these  weeks to come will be. Of course, the school (along with every other Kenyan in the country) take a break for tea at 10am. This is a tradition that we are very quickly coming to like! My goal before I leave is to learn exactly how they prepare it so that I can do the same when I return to the States.

(Riding the bus to Good Hope Hill Academy)

I'd like to thank all of you who so willingly donated money and items to the orphanage. We were able to provide them with a wide variety of sizes and styles. It is amazing to me how God can have a plan even before we know of it. In the morning bible study with the staff, three of the "mums" stated specific needs for their children, all of which we were able to meet with the contents of the donations we brought. The woman who runs the "store" where the mums come to exchange clothes that are too small for clothes that fit, or to get new shoes or school supplies, was thrilled with the generosity of everyone. We literally over-flowed some of the shelves! 

(The school Supplies)

(Shoes, socks, and underwear)

Living with us in the guest house is a local university student who has to obtain 200 hours of community service. She is so kind and has been such a blessing to us because she speaks the language and always goes out with us and shows us the town. Her name is Faith. Yesterday, she asked in the morning if we would like to go on a "walk" with herself and her dad. She said they go up the hill every Saturday and that there is a beautiful view!  This so called "hill" was a serious of 5 so called "hills". In the opinion of us three Americans, it was 5 mountains! It was a little less than 2 hours climbing up the steep hills to the top. They are known as the Gong Hills and are absolutely beautiful! We are literally about a 100 yards from the Rift valley which these Gong hills go along.  As we were panting and complaining while we walked, Kenyan runners continuously passed us. When we got to the top we were able to talk with them and we joined in their mountain top aerobics (just incase the 2 hour trek was not enough!) One of them has lived in America for the last 17 years and is only here in Kenya for the year to visit family. He makes a living running marathons in America. Another of them was the son of a woman who won a medal in the 1963 Olympics. They were all very friendly! We are right in the middle of a large population of Massai people. After the long hike Faith's dad was kind enough to take us to lunch. This lunch consisted of ALL meat: Many areas of a goat that I have never eaten, nor particularly wished to eat before. We each tried a little of each, but were not exactly use to a large portion of intestines after a long day of hiking! We then proceeded to get a grand tour of Faith's home town, house, and surrounding area. It was a great day out, and such a blessing to have Faith and her family to show us around and keep an eye out for us Americans who don’t speak the language, and don’t know our way around!

Thank you all so much for your prayers! They are apparent each day. God reveals him self in so many ways, and our opportunity to serve these girls as well as minister to them and show them God's love is vast!

As we enter into week two please pray for continued strength and energy as we adjust to the climate and time change. Also for open minds, hearts, and mouths to speak and show the truth to everyone we meet. We have had zero problems with the food so far, but are trying new things each day. So please continue to pray for good health in every aspect. God is so good and we are so blessed to be served by him! 

God Bless,

Lizzy (and Leah)

Let the Games Begin!

     Friends,
       This blog is where Leah and I will update all of our friends and family as we go through the adventures to come in the next 9 weeks of the summer! We will have limited internet access when we get to Kenya and have decided that it will be easiest to only update at one online location! We will be sure to link the updates to our Facebook pages or you can choose to subscribe to the blog page itself!
       Our trip is One week away AND COUNTING. Leah is leaving in the morning for a wedding in New York and will be flying to meet me in Detroit straight from there! As we sit states away from each other, skyping as Leah packs up her bags, our excitement is growing! Although we are bound to forget SOMETHING, we feel fairly confident in our extreme packing skills! :)
      As we prepare for our trip we ask that you pray for our hearts to focus on God's will and desire for this trip! We want to make sure that each day is spent giving Him glory! We also pray that the hearts of each and every person we meet will be opened before we ever get there. We are both officially in FULL swing. Leah especially as she is leaving "home" tomorrow morning! Please pray for her travels as they begin, and good health for the both of us.

Thank you for your Prayers,

Lizzy and Leah