Saturday, July 14, 2012

A Maasai Village

These past two days have been packed and awesome.  Yesterday we did a clinic in a Maasai village.  It was over an hour away from here, and the last few miles off the main road were exactly like you would picture safari driving in Africa.  Our convoy slowly bumped and wobbled along, but the views were exquisite!  I've decided that if I ever live here or somewhere with similar road quality, I'm going to have an SUV, all my past  preferences for small cars with great gas mileage gone in a flash.  Anyways, we were surrounded by gently rolling hills, with golden grass, acacia trees, and cows!  The Maasai measure wealth in cows.  There were patches of light and shadow as clouds rolled across the sky.  The clinic was being held at a church, and the kids were excited when we pulled into the yard.  It is the Maasai custom that an older person greets a child by touching the top of their head, so I was surrounded by a crowd of kids, their heads slightly bowed waiting to be greeted.  Men and women wear large earrings and gauges, and the women wear colorful patterned wraps and the men wear the traditional red plaid cloths.  The women carry bows and the men carry rungus (wood club things).  The Maasai are known for being fierce!  The clinic moved along pretty smoothly, and I loved getting to see this tiny slice of Maasai life, and a part of Kenya different than any I've been to yet. Today we went to the Rift Valley Academy graduation, a boarding school for missionary kids that several WGM kids attend.  It was crazy to think that I was in the same position only two years ago, as I remembered all the emotions of graduation day.  And most of those kids are heading a lot further to go to college than I am, leaving the friends they've lived with for the last several years and their home continent.  I can only imagine how that feels.  Kayla and I head to Tenwek hospital on Tuesday, where we will be spending time at an orphanage and doing a safari!  Pray for our new hosts, and our adjustment to go smoothly.


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