Standing in silence - Kusimama kimya

It's another sunny day in Mombasa.  We are awaiting the results of the Kenya Supreme Court decision on the recent presidential election, which is promised by 5 pm today.  Yesterday I had a experienced another moment of waiting.  I was standing in silence with a thousand others in the Holy Ghost Cathedral, a colorful place usually filled with song.  But yesterday it was silent.  Reverence, anticipation, uncertainty.  The fans were whirring quietly above, but insufficient to overcome the effects of bright afternoon sun and the shoulder-to-shoulder lined pews.  No children cried.  No one spoke.  It was silent.  Slowly the procession passed us and we began our prayer.

This Holy Week is my last in Kenya, at least for awhile.  I've decided to return to the United States to study the environment and see where I can use my skills to help care for our earth.  I'm excited but sad to be leaving this place and the people I love here.

Some moments from this week to remember:

A member of my jumuiya lost her husband to a traffic accident last year when she was expecting their 1st child.

Members of the Holy Spirit Jumuiya

My friend Barnabas is a sacristan who led the procession for the Archdiocese Chrism Mass

Fr. Lagho, Archbishop Lele & Fr. Correa in the procession for the Chrism Mass. I was the paparazzi!

The Archbishop in our brightly painted cathedral

Holy Thursday - Washing the feet of parishioners as a sign of service.

Good Friday - The youth did a very dramatic re-enactment of the passion of Jesus.

The candle-lit Easter vigil

 

Lighting the Easter candle - out of darkness comes light

Passing the flame

My little light

The AMAZING Easter Egg hunt. I was a very good hider of the eggs!

Next time I'll count the eggs better... one might still be hidden.

We love a birthday!!! 

Happy Easter everyone!

An interesting day

Today was an interesting day.  Not one that I'd care to repeat, but very interesting.

My view for a few hours... vehicles jumping median on right are trying to return to the (proper) left side... later we went from three ... make that six (from "overlapping" drivers) lanes to one.  The sign was to promote peace during the recent election.

What made it interesting?

• 6 different stops in my morning - Mass with Archdiocese Staff, Weekly update meeting, Swing by a school for a signature on a letter, Pay school fees for student at bank, Buy school badges at local uniform shop, and Pick up school supplies at stationery shop.  8:30-10:30 am - pretty productive morning
• Drive to Changamwe - 5 miles - to meet three students who are waiting for the $200 of school books that I bought on Friday evening (since they brought their invitation letters with the requirements to our office on Friday) for them to enter high school TODAY ...  Let's say this is where things got really interesting and hot.
• Curt, my fellow missioner, had warned me that there was a "jam" since a lorry (semi-trailer) had jack-knifed and was blocking both lanes of traffic off the Mombasa island to Changamwe.  He thought things were clearing, as they were allowing cars to drive on the wrong side of the highway to pass the accident.
• The next two hours I spent inching forward, sitting, sweating, commiserating, ignoring (the not-so-courteous drivers or passer-bys), pondering, should I mention sweating again? and observing the chaos of the matatus (mini-buses), motorbikes & occasionally private vehicles that would add extra lanes on both sides.
• Let's say I was VERY GRATEFUL for the last minute decision to throw a savored granola bar in my bag and that I had earlier forgotten to check my car's slowly-leaking radiator's water level so I bought an extra liter of water and then found out it wasn't needed (yay! since I would need it to prevent another overheating - of yours truly).
• After I passed the amazing sight of TWO trucks on their side one on top of the other... I pulled to the top of the hill, just about to enter the final round-about into Changamwe ... but I was stopped again.  Behind a large truck. And there I waited for another 2 hours.  The people behind me backed up and drove the wrong way on the adjacent roundabout, something I was not willing to do.  I'm losing my courage... or maintaining sanity, not sure which one best applies.  This time I was waiting for the Prime Minister, who is contesting his announced defeat in the recent presidential election, to pass by. 

The crane, which came to lift the truck off its side, also capsized

24 hours later... crane still sitting on top of the truck it came to rescue.

After waiting 5 hours for me to come with her books, Faith's ready.

The highlight of all of this was finally arriving in Changamwe and handing off to three young people what they needed to start the next phase of their life!  What these kids have gone through puts my tale of traffic woe in perspective.  It continues to be an honor me to support and challenge these young people to reach their potential.

During Christmas break, Collins made enough money to buy his own vest.

The highlight of Tuesday - Joseph off to school!

Waiting ... Tunasubiri

Joshua showing us how his nail was stained after voting to prevent people from voting twice. 

People were showing it with pride.

Kenya had a high turnout of voters on Monday.  And they waited a long time to vote.  Some up to 11 hours.  No food, no water, just waiting.  I have to give the voters a lot of credit.  The line at the polling station near us had about 1000 people lined up at 10 am.

There's actually two words in Swahili for waiting.  Ku-subiri and Ku-njoga.  (For those lovers of linguistics, the "ku" in front makes it the infinitive form - the verb stem is then conjugated based on the subject and tense.)

I am waiting ... Ninasubiri / Ninangoja
You are waiting ... Unasubiri / Unangoja
He/she is waiting ... Anasubiri / Anangoja
We are waiting .. Tunasubiri / Tunangoja
You (plural) are waiting ... Mnasubiri / Mnangoja
They are waiting ... Wanasubiri / Wanangoja

It is now a waiting game.  It's been two days since the election.  The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission has 7 days to announce the results, but had speculated they would have results in 48 hours.

About half the votes are counted, with one candidate ahead, but progress is slow.   It's hard to be patient.

But while we're waiting ... at least we have live evening entertainment.

I got roped into the performances... fortunately I found my niche as a puppeteer.

The stars of the show (note the house of Belli the Butterfly in the bottom left).

Do you believe in miracles?

 Today, March 4th, 2013, is a big day for Kenya.  One that the country has been waiting for over 5 years.
The first under its new constitution.  The first since the country almost erupted into civil war in 2008, when over 1000 people were killed and over 100,000 displaced from their homes.  From the perspective of an Iowa girl who grew up on a family farm, it's hard to imagine being chased off by your neighbors, losing your sense of home and place and community.

Five years later, the two candidates running neck-and-neck with 40+% of the vote each are from long-standing political families.  One lost the election 5 years ago, but some claim it was stolen from him - and he's been the Prime Minister in a power-sharing deal that was brokered by international mediators to stop the country's collapse in 2008.  The other is the son of the first president and to start trial in April at the International Criminal Court for his role in the violence 5 years ago.  It is complicated.

On top of that, in the new Constitution, power is to be "devolved" or moved down to a more local level, with newly established counties that will be run by governors  & local parliaments.  Women are to have at least 30% of the positions so there's now 6 positions to vote for:  President, Governor, Senator, Women's Representative, National Minister of Parliament and County Assembly Representative.

The last weeks have been filled with full-on campaigning.  It started with graffiti months ago, then came the huge bill boards, then small wall posters, some on cardboard boxes hanging from power lines, some torn down  & pasted over with those of rival candidates - and vehicles painted with campaign signs and carrying speakers BLARING music or speeches or prayers - all in support of a candidate.  A lot of money is being spent.  Sound familiar?  Trucks with TV screens showing candidate's extolling how they will change the country, the county or your neighborhood for the better.  Healthcare, education, land disputes, economy, jobs, sanitation, fighting corruption, should i mention the economy again?  Occasionally the mention of high speed trains  & computers for every child... the promises go on.

Today has finally come.  The morning is off to a rocky start.  I've been worried - burdened more than necessary - as I talk to my friends and people I meet.  Worried that the change promised won't come.  That opportunists will use the election as a reason to cause trouble.  That the future won't be as bright as it could be.  Many Kenyans have told me that it is only God who can intervene.  Faith is strong here & I find myself more a skeptic, wanting to tell them that God needs people to make the change.

I traveled to Nairobi this week to meet with my colleagues about the work we are doing and have been trying to shake off my gloom, remembering change takes time and that it's not up to me to solve all the problems I see.  This morning our community met at 7 am to pray together.   Fr John started off our Mass with the words... Do I believe in miracles?  I do.  Perhaps there will not be a dramatic change in politics or in the structures I see failing the people I serve this year.  But perhaps the people willing to stand in line all day in the hot sun will feel that their vote mattered.  Perhaps things will look brighter once this election goes down in history.  There will be a big collective sigh of relief and people will move on with their lives and laugh about how disruptive all the campaigns & noisy slow-moving caravans were.


So now I'm praying not for one big miracle, but many small ones.  Tomorrows filled with hope for those who have lived with despair.  I have learned many things in Kenya, but one I've seen so many times is the ability to be patient and persevere.