Tuesday, February 1, 2011

The Adventure of a Life Time! Week 1

Hello Everyone!

I am so excited about writing to you all and telling you about the experiences I have had so far. This first week has flown by; and with jet lag, getting settled into the Whitman's home, helping the kids with school, and several cultural experiences, it has been hard for me to communicate with everyone. Your patience, dear reader (or listener), I will now reward.

For the first five or six days, I really struggled with the jet lag. Nairobi is 8 hours ahead of US Eastern standard time; I had a lot of trouble sleeping at night, and in the mornings, I felt like going to bed. I think my body is beginning to adjust, though, and I can now go to bed before midnight and sleep through the night.

On Monday, everyone let me adjust. I had gone to bed at 3 am and woken up at 5 am; so at around 9:30 am, I went back to bed and slept until 1 pm. Tuesday was a little easier, and I started helping Ms. Stacey with her home schooling. I mainly help Spencer (age 9 and in the 4th grade) by reading him his history and correcting his grammar and math work. Sometimes Madison (age 12 and in 7th grade) asks me for help, too, and I usually help her by giving her questions about what she has read in her school readers and making sure she understands her books. I have gained a whole new perspective on homeschooling now that I am observing the process instead of actually doing the school work. Indeed, as I stay with the Whitmans and assist Andy and Stacey, my main responsibility is to help home school Madison and Spencer. Once a month, or so, I will spend several days either helping another missionary in his or her ministry or helping in a local ministry such as an orphanage.

Every other week, the Whitmans plan to take me on a field trip where I will see the different sights in and around Nairobi. On Sunday, they took me to the Great Rift Valley, and I... walked into a cave, looked into the crater of a volcano, and observed Masai herdsman tend their herd at a watering hole.

The day started out beautifully! Andy drove us and another missionary couple (Bryan and Kim) and their daughter (Raelyn) an hour and a half outside of Nairobi to Mount Suswa, a dormant volcano in the Rift Valley. After an hour driving on asphalt roads, we turned off the main road and onto a dirt one. We drove through country belonging to the Masai people-Kenya's most well known group of native peoples. The road was extremely rough. We jostled each other as Andy avoided ditches and ruts around the path. We laughed at how the GPS actually included this "road" in its maps. In some places, people had dug a ditch right across the pathway, and we had to drive off the pathway to get around it. It was one wild ride!

On our way to the crater of the volcano, we stopped at Kenya Assemblies of God-a small, aluminum church. Bryan had built a relationship with the pastor of this church, a Masai man named Jackson. When they heard our vehicle approaching, Pastor Jackson and several other people ran out to meet us. We stayed and talked for a few minutes, but they had to leave to get back to their Sunday morning service.

After another ten or fifteen minutes of driving, we reached a clearing containing a set of caves. We parked the car, got out, and climbed down a steep ravine to get a closer look at the caves. Some of the Masai had dropped cement in various places around the rocks leading down the ravine, making footholds. The Masai will rent themselves out as guides to tourists who want to explore the caves. When we got down to the caves, the air had cooled off and the vegetation was lush. After a few minutes looking into the mouths of the two caves, we went back to our vehicle and ate lunch. We ate sandwiches and chips, and Kim had brought enough Dr. Peppers for everyone. Over here, you can only find a few varieties of soda, and they are pretty expensive. Never has a cold soda tasted so good to me as that Dr. Pepper!

The desert we traversed was hot, dry, and dusty; whenever I opened my mouth, I got dust in it (of course, that didn't stop me from talking as much as I usually do). We must have seen at least fifteen dust devils throughout the day. But despite the dust and the heat and the bumpy, bumpy road, we finally reached the inner crater of Mt. Suswa at about 1 pm. Wow! It was certainly a sight to see. We stood on the edge of a cliff looking down into the lush, verdant crater.



I was a little disappointed at the lack of lava flow, but the view was spectacular. Mountains lay all around the crater.


Here is a picture of me sitting on the cliff with the view of mountains in the background.




Here is a picture of the Whitmans and their vehicle parked on the edge of the crater:




While up on Mt. Suswa, I saw a Masai woman near her home. I motioned to my camera asking her if I could take my picture with her. She nodded, and Ms. Stacey gave her one of our water bottles.



On our way back from the crater and towards the main road, we stopped by Kenya Assemblies of God again. Their service had let out, but the area around the church was not deserted. A group of Masai herdsman had gathered their sheep, goats, and cattle, and we watched as the herdsman watered all the animals.

It was a sight to behold! I don't believe I have ever heard so many animals bleat at once. I loved the sounds the animals made as they gathered around a stream and a watering trough. One sheep jumped right into the trough and drank the water coming up to his neck. The scene at the watering trough reminded me about the way Jesus described Himself as "the good shepherd." It takes a lot to be a good shepherd. There must have been about ten or fifteen men taking care of all the animals. At one point, we saw one of the herdsman take a young goat and put in the trough, making the goat drink by pushing its head down to the water. The Lord is our shepherd, and He takes care of us like a shepherd takes care of his sheep. Psalm 23:2 says, "He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters." This verse took on new meaning to me as I watched the herdsman water the animals. Sometimes, we can act like that young goat, not wanting to drink the life-giving water, even though we are in a dusty and dry desert. But the Lord knows we need to drink; so sometimes, he puts us in situations that make us so thirsty and desperate for Him we simply must drink of His Living Word. I want to be like the young sheep who did not just drink the water, but who jumped into the water in order to be immersed in it. This lamb recognized his need for water, and he did no settle for just a little bit.

I praise God for this wonderful experience He is giving me. He has already put me in situations I could never have dreamed about. I used to think I could never be a missionary. I have thought things like, "Oh, I could never rough it," or "I don't think I could handle living in a foreign culture." One thing I know for certain now is this: when the Lord commands you to do something or go somewhere, He equips you with all the tools you need. Fatigue has swept me away and dust and sweat have made me sticky and gross, but my God is always with me, and He has given me the grace to handle anything that comes my way.May His strength overcome our weaknesses. Truly, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness," (2 Corinthians 12:9)

6 comments:

  1. What an enjoyable post. Thank you for all the details and your insightful commentary. I love you bunches!!

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  2. Wow, this was fantastic, I abolutely loved the pictures as well as the information that came with it. We miss your delightful smile Summer. I am so happy you are doing well and enjoying your time away. "hugs"

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  3. Summer, I appreciate the pictures you paint with your descriptions of the events of your day. The photos are icing on the cake! I say, keep 'em coming! It's exciting to see and hear what the Lord is up to, in Kenya and in your heart!

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  4. Summer, we miss you already. Thanks for keeping us all updated with your blog. The pictures are incredible! -Cindy

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  5. What a beautiful post. I love your thoughts on scripture. And your descriptions really brought your experiences to life for me. The pictures are great. Thanks so much for sharing with us! Miss you!

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  6. I hope you are journaling your experiences. What a wonderful testimony God is giving you. I, too, loved your description of the sheep/goats.

    I am looking forward to reading more of your delightful journey!!

    All my love!!

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