APU Update from Kipkaren

Jambo Rafiki!! (Hello Friends)Early Monday morning, we had a 7:45am flight to El Doret. We agreed the night before to meet in the lobby of Mayfield at 6:30am, but we didn’t actually leave the hostel until after 6:45. This was obviously a concern because traffic in Nairobi, on a Monday morning can be VERY unpredictable, and we were already about fifteen minutes away from the airport with no traffic. In addition to all of this, we had 17 pieces of luggage to check, and we weren’t exactly flying on a 747 jet (we’ll leave it at that). We finally get past security with all of our luggage (here, security is done first, with ALL of your luggage). Emilia (Mama Grace/Mama Cherotich) was checking us in with all of our passports, in a line that was long and unmoving, and the time was approaching 7:30. We were devising a strategy to execute for just in case some of our luggage needed to be shipped. After all of this, we got our luggage into the hands of Jetlink (the airline), and Emilia sent the rest of team to the plane while she paid for the excess luggage.

Since the plane is a much smaller plane, there was no terminal to enter from, and we entered directly from the tarmac. Every single attendant in neon vests was rushing us telling us to hurry in order to catch the plane, which was a good 200 yards away from the door. Mind you, Emilia still had not joined us in our rush. When we got up to the plane (Grace was trailing behind, trying to wait for her mom), we were all greeted by a smiling, polite, Kenyan flight attendant. He showed everyone to their seats, and was extremely welcoming. When Grace entered, he gave his smiling welcome, and hurriedly, she said, “Oh, there’s still one more person! My mom is still coming.” Thinking that he would respond with an understanding reply, he instead said with a smile, “We’ll see if she makes it.” You could imagine the team’s concern, since we could see that she still hadn’t emerged from the door.

However, she did make it, and the half-hour flight was smooth and comfortable, and we got cookies and juice for refreshments. Even the landing was done very well. When we got in the airport, every single piece of luggage came through on the conveyor belt within 5 minutes, and 2 of the staff of ELI were eagerly waiting for us as we came through the baggage claim area. One of our biggest prayers through all of this was for things to go smoothly. Whether or not everything was perfect, we prayed for everything to work out well. Through all of this, God has proved his faithfulness.

We have now been in Kipkaren for 4 days. The people are wonderful in every activity that we’ve been doing—from the construction projects for the guys, to helping the women hand wash clothes for the girls. Nightly, we attend and participate in devotions at the children’s home just up the road. There are not enough words to describe the experience of watching and hearing the children as they worship and praise the Lord with their singing and dancing. Their extreme joy and the apparent purity of their hearts as they praise the God they love is such an inspiration. We are only here for about 10 more days, so we are continually trying to make the most of every moment.