I will have been here in Kenya two weeks tomorrow! The time has gone by fast, and at the same time it feels like I have been here much longer. I have seen a lot, and yet very little, and what I have seen can be summed up as a sampling of Nairobi. Nairobi, capital of Kenya, is home to some 3 million people. Kenya's census just was issued, and Kenya is home to 38 million people or so. This is a pretty sharp population increase, and will definitely continue to put pressure on the social sector. Sorry, I will try and not go too sociological on you... but censuses remind me of being in school and taking classes like Cities and Urban Life where census numbers were an active part of our homework.
Nairobi is definitely urban. The city center is so busy, especially if you are down there when people are getting out of work. Today I was meeting somebody and spent at least twenty minutes just watching people pass by in their fancy suits, often uncomfortable looking shoes, to brave the traffic jams and public transit back home. Traffic is ridiculous, a take what you can get kind of affair! I can't help but think if they took some kind of turns, everyone might get where they were going faster, but whether or not this is true, the drivers prefer there creative driving; going over sidewalks, going the wrong way to get ahead, nosing in front of another driver and always being within inches(and I mean inches) of the next car. Still, I have learned my way around the mtatu world, and even know that is better to look for one where the windows actually open(in case it is hot) and one where the music isn't too loud( and if you aren't in a rush you can chose between different genres). Yesterday on a mtatu I was able to refresh myself on all of the summer pop and rap hits(Eminem and Rihanna, the song 'I want to be a billionaire' and 'Airplanes') For those of you fortunate enough to have heard these hits, America at its best. I confess, I actually enjoy the music, but it is a guilty pleasure made guiltier by the fact this is what we most notably explort...
Still, people move to Nairobi despite the traffic for the job and economic prospects it affords, and for many a comfortable middle class life can be achieved. There are thriving shopping districts, multiplie shopping malls, an active nightlife, multiplie universities... all the things one would think to find in a city back home. Thinking of the danger of a single story, I would urge people in their thoughts of Africa and Kenya to include the major cities of Africa, as hubs of industry and development.
For others, and this is the majority, life is lived in Nairobi's rather notorious slums. This is also part of Kenya, and at times a mere road can seperate the sprawling slums from the sprawling lawns of ministerial estates. Corruption is alive and well. The disconnect of the rich from the poor as well, but that is hardly unique to Kenya or Africa. It can be all too true at home as well, with neighborhoods seperated by physical or mental barriers. Where people struggle, where schools are lacking, where all is not just or as it should be. I had the opportunity to visit a ministry in Mtharare(a slum that is home to half a million people), and what most struck me from talking with the man was the similarities to how things fall around the world. The injustice may be more visible in the depths of poverty, but that does not make other injustices less unjust... So yeah, please do examine our own hearts, and homes, and see what we might be able to do, for the world, and for those in our own communities as well.
The ministry itself was amazing to visit, and to see the vision at work, the kingdom of God at work, as they lived out Christ's church in the slums. With half a million living in Mtharare alone, it only began to scratch the surface, but there are no save all solutions for the world; rather it really falls to a great many people doing waht they can, and that will make change. As far as the ministry, Inspiration Center, was concerned, they focused on what they could do, and especially focused on education. There are three primary schools within the area of Mtharare, and these offer a less than adequate education. For those who might make it into secondary school, the fees can be prohibitively espensive. That is one are where the Center tried and help, sponsoring a good handful of students at boarding schools around the country. We met one of these students who was on holiday, and he said that for himself, and for the others, when they finished they wanted to come back and work for the Center and their community because of the impact it had had on their lives. This was such an encouraging model of youth empowerment and ownership. I truly was very encouraged by Inspiration Center, and apparently they have a blog, if you want to check out the link.... http://inspirationcentermathare.wordpress.com/...
It is hard to see people living in such conditions, for in reality it would be a hard hard place to live and grow up, and without education there are so few options... And in reality, I am sure this will be the backdrop to some of my students previous lives before they came to Hope as many of them were street oprhans...
Speaking of Hope, I am so excited to be heading there in two days! This time Saturday will see me at my new home, woefully not fluent in Swahili although I have learned a lot, and so happy to be there! I will miss the big city with all its bustle and excitement, but North Kinangop wherever you are, here I come!
The next time I post, I am sure I will be at Hope, and now I need to quit monoplizing the guest house computer! good buy, and like always, if you read this much, you really should send me an email:)
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