Last night in Kenya....

I honestly can't believe how fast the past 4 weeks have gone by!  I leave bright and early for London tomorrow and couple days excursion with my mom!  

My safari in the Masai Mara was INCREDIBLE!  We saw everything you could see, except the elusive rhino.  I was even greeted and then chased by a monkey upon arrival.  It was easily the most terrifying experience of my life, but also really awesome, because, honestly, how many people get chased by monkeys?  Not many.  Anyway, since there are far too many funny/unusual/awesome stories, I'm just going to copy and past the email I sent to my mom halfway through! It's only a smattering of everything I saw, but it's a pretty good taste I think:

- We followed a leopard that was being followed/harassed by 2 jackals.  It was hilarious.  They just kinda ran behind her barking , but everytime she turned around they shut up and froze.  I guess she just wasn't hungry because she never tried to eat them.

-I've seen thousands, literally, of wildebeasts, zebras and gazelles.  They're making their annual migration over into Kenya from Tanzania so they're everywhere.  Also, if you've forgotten what a wildebeast looks like, please google it.  They are easily the ugliest creature I have ever seen!  Our guide, James, says the joke is that it's 5 animals in one.  I can't remember all of them, but he said that it has the face of a grasshopper.  They also make really funny sounds, so I have a video!

- I've seen several lions, including a mom with her cubs.  We couldn't seen them very well since the grass was tall, but the cubs were SO cute from the glimpses I got.  We also watched several more snooze under some bushes.  They are enormous and remind be of Fred and JJ because apparently they sleep 16-20 hours out of each day or something.

- I've decided that giraffes are my new favorite animal next to llamas and slothes.  They are SO cool!

- I've seen a coupld ostrich, but they move pretty fast, so they're hard to catch up with.

- The finale yesterday was watching 3 cheetah brothers nap under a tree together.  We seriously watched them for like an hour waiting for them to do something, but they just rolled aorund every now then.  After a while, they finally got up and I think they strongly considered taking down one of the wildebeast nearby, but it got lucky since apparently they weren't very huingry.

- Today, we saw 2 separate herds of elephants, each with at least one baby!  Fun fact: elephants are pregnant for 23 months.  And giraffes are prego for 14! 

- We have yet to see a rhino, but apparently they're hard to find this time of year because they get annoyed with the noisy wildebeast and hide out.

- Thankfully, no more contact with the monkies has been made.  However, I've been told that bl ack mamba snakes are common in this area.  Awesome.  I now walk to and from my tent in constant fear of death by monkey, spider or large poisonous snake.  Otherwise, I feel pretty safe, even when I can hear the (apparenlty dangerous) hippos walking/snorting yards from my tent.  Pray that I come back unscathed!

 

The British family I'm with is hilarious.  I have a hard time keeping up with their lingo, but it's still fun.  I've heard the words "cheeky" and "daft" more times in the past 2 days than I have in my entire life.  They also live up to their drinking reputation, as they have easily polished off 2 bottles of South African red wine with dinner the past 2 nights and still maintained enough decorum to order an after dinner Bacardi and coke. Last night, though, while they were walking me back to my far off tent, Linda spoke of the possibility of previous lives and the relevance of astrology.  She also admitted to being very "daft," and told me I was a "brave lass" for venturing to Kenya all by myself.  Altogether it was an amazing experience, and I have 937 pictures to attempt to convey how truly brilliant an African safari really is.  

Now that it's my last night, I've had plenty of time to think about why God brought me here.  Obviously, I felt led to serve in some capacity in Africa, and New Life Homes just came into the picture when the time was right.  But ever y time we feel called to do something or go somewhere, I think God intends to work in us, not just the people we serve.  I think the biggest thing I learned in Kenya was in regards to my relationships with other people.  I never realized how much I depended on the physical presence of my friends and family.  Early in this trip I experienced a loneliness I've never known.  Since then, I've learned that while it's fine to seek comfort in people you love, ultimately, God is the only one who can provide it.  Once I found comfort in God's presence, the rest of my trip was no longer filled with this overwhelming loneliness.  My biggest prayer is that I remember this when I'm home.  Mission trips are awesome, but the spiritual high that follows is usually temporary.  I pray that the things I've learned and the closeness I now feel with God doesn't diminish when I return to the bustle of school, friends and other activities.  This trip has truly changed me and I want that transformation to be permanent.

love, 

emily

Romans 8:28

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Safari!

I leave for my safari in the Masai Mara is approximately 42 minutes! Ah! I can't wait! I got into Nairobi yesterday afternoon and got settled pretty quickly into Kate's apartment.  It's right down the street from the NLH so I spent a couple hours playing with the babies before they went to bed.  I got to see Karl again so I was pretty excited.  Unfortunately, I probably won't be able to see him before I leave since my flight gets in after NLH closes to volunteers :( I just want to freeze him in time so I can come back and adopt him in 5 years!

Anyway, I spent most of the evening masterfully packing all the unnecessary wooden animals I've bought over the past few weeks.  I probably have a good portion of the African wildlife to set up across my dresser.  However, I an extremely paranoid about them getting broken/crushed in my suitcase, but I think I packed them pretty well.  Otherwise, not much has happened since my last post.  I went to Wayne and Mary Lynn's for a French toast breakfast before I left Kisumu, so it was great getting to see everyone again before I left.  I really do miss Kisumu SO SO SO much and definitely plan on coming back in the future.  I never got to go to Lake Victoria, so I absolutely have to visit again.

It's weird to think that in just 4 days I'll be on a plane bound for London.  Crazy!  This trip has gone by so fast, especially in the last couple we eks.  I can't even put into words all the amazing things God has taught me and shown here.  He's definitely used Kenya and the people I've met here to help me grow closer to Him.  Thanks for all your prayers!  

love,

emily

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"It's a little bit pili pili"

Well, tonight is my last night in Kisumu and I am very sad. I have
truly loved the past four days and wish I could stay here longer!
Since my last post, I have fad many babies and been thrown up on
twice! I've also become particularly attached to a little girl,
Carla. She's probably about a year old and is teething I think. The
best is when she starts gnawing on another kid's foot. Anyway, I've
really enjoyed working with the babies in the past few days, but I
think what really made my time in Kisumu great was the people I met.

I know I mentioned them before, but Wayne and Mary Lynn are basically
two of the most awesome people I've ever met. It's incredible how
much they've trusted God to provide for them in the past year, and
I've learned so much from their stories. They are amazing generous
and have a way of making everyone feel like family. Yesterday, Mary
Lynn and I spent most of the afternoon together cooking and baking
together. It was so much fun! We made lunch for the workers painting
their home, and then I baked my orange chiffon cake for their small
group Bible study. I am happy to say that it was quite a hit!

The Bible study was also really fun. The topic was on surrender,
which is something that I've definitely become familiar with here in
Kenya. It was interesting, though, when we talked about the
difference between surrender and commitment. When we "commit"
ourselves to God, we still retain some control. It's like giving Him
rule over the whole house, but keeping one room for ourselves. With
surrender, however, we sacrifice all power to Him. He has complete
reign and we have willingly lowered given every aspect of ourselves to
Him. I thought it was a pretty neat distinction. We're more than
willing to commit to something, but surrendering always produces
hesitation.

Today I went to the craft market with Megan, Kimberly and Ashley. I
bought more things than I know what to do with, so my friends should
be excited about souvenirs! It was a lot smaller than the Masai
Market in Nairobi, but they had some interesting things. I got a few
paper necklaces. Apparently, they roll trash paper into little beads
and string them together to make jewelry. Pretty creative I think.
Anyway, it was great way to spend my last day. We had an amazing meal
(again) and I'm definitely going to miss it here!

I'll be doing a LOT of traveling this weekend since I'll be going on
safari in the Masai Mara! I can't wait! Thanks again for your prayers!

love,

emily

PS "pili pili" is Swahili for spicy!=

Karibu!

Karibu is Swahili for "welcome," and let me tell you, I have never
felt more welcome in my entire trip than I have here in Kisumu. When
I first got here, I was feeling kind of anxious, to be honest. I was
alone again and the stress of my flight/making sure my enormous
suitcase didn't get lost/finding my taxi driver made me really worried
that I would sink back to where I was at the beginning of the trip.

I couldn't have been more wrong! I got to the Kisumu home around 9
and was given a quick tour before being left to play with 20 or o
babies. The home is a little bit smaller than the one in Nairobi, but
there are more babies here. There's also a special needs wing (the
Amani Cottage), which is home to about 7 kids, and a unit for older
kids (the Simon Newberry Cottage). Altogether, the home has 44 kids.

Shorty after I began playing with the babies, a group of about 10 or
so Americans came in to help out as well. I met a girl named Megan
who is here with her mom and older sister. They invited me over for
lunch and dinner after being shocked that I was an 18-year old white
girl in Kenya alone for a month. I gladly accepted their invitation
only to find out that they are staying with a couple from
Texas, Wayne and Mary Lynn. I had heard about Wayne and Mary Lynn and
their amazing food from Morgan and Hilary. Apparently, they were well
taken care of by this incredible couple during their time in Kisumu.

I cannot express how great their hospitality was. Not only did they
serve me ( and several other guests) lunch and a Thanksgiving-themed
dinner, but Wayne also chauffeured me around so I could take care of
some errands. They truly have a heart for God and for the people of
Kisumu. I think they've been here since about last November and are
in the process of moving into a home of their own (they are renting a
flat right now, I think) so they can live here permanently. They are
a great witness to the people of Kisumu, as they share a Jesus video
in local slums and prisons. I also met a really cool girl, Katie, who
has been living alone on Kenya for the past 6 months, so she can
definitely sympathize with me! Their warmth and generosity is also a
huge blessing to me and I can already tell it's something I'm going to
greatly miss when I leave Kisumu on Friday.

It's incredible how much God has blessed me during this trip,
especially with the people I've met. I leave in just a week and I
know He's still got a lot in store for me! Thanks so much for your
continuous prayers and support!

love,

emily

Off to Kisumu!

So much has happened since I last blogged! I'm currently in Nairobi getting ready to leave for Kisumu in a few hours! I had a ton of fun this weekend. I can't even begin to describe how great it has been. But, before I get too carried away, I will say that while Ann and I were never able to make chocolate chip cookies together, she did make some on her own!. They can to see me off from Ruiru Friday morning, and I must say that for a first-timer, they were pretty good! Anyway, I got to Nairobi Friday afternoon and met up with Morgan and Hilary, a couple really great girls from UNC. They've been in Kisumu for the past month and are leaving for Tanzania today before heading home Wednesday. Needless to say, I got a ton of really great info for when I'm in Kisumu, so I'm really excited! We didn't do much on Friday, but Saturday was amazing. Easily the best day of the whole trip (so far). We got up in the morning and went to Nakumat, a grocery store here. Hilary wanted to put her leftover money to good use, so we stocked up on snack food for a VBS type event held by Youngsters for Christ that goes on every Saturday in Kibera, an absolutely enormous slum that is home to about 1.2 million people. My pictures don't even show half the size of it. The three of us basically just helped out with serving food to about 100 kids between the ages of 4-12. It was SO much fun! The kids20really couldn't understand anything we said since they only speak Swahili, but the people volunteering were really awesome. Just about every volunteer was about our age and a student. The sacrifice these people were making to help out these kids is truly inspiring. Many of them could be working on a Saturday to earn much needed money, but instead, the dedicate and entire day to playing and feeding slum kids. I'm pretty sure all of them live in or near Kibera as well. There were actually 10 guys sharing 4 beds in a shack half the size of my dorm room, and they were perfectly happy. I talked to many volunteers, and they all had the same attitude. They want these kids to have the opportunities they didn't have growing up. I mean, they are nurturing whatever talent a kid has so that he can get a college scholarship in the future. Sammy, one of the leaders, has given up so much for these kids. He actually grew up in Kenya, moved to the US and worked for Campus Crusade for Christ before returning to Nairobi to help start this ministry.  It was truly a humbling experience, one of many that I've had in Kenya. We took a walking tour of Kibera before leaving, and it was shocking. Kids were playing in dirt and water that I wouldn't even consider touching. It's really almost depressing when you think about it. It seems like a problem that is too big to ever be solved,20but Sammy and his team are doing everything in their power to help the spiritual need of Kibera's residents. After Kibera, we went to the one restaurant in Nairobi that I really wanted to go to: Carnivore! It was SO much fun. Waiters would come around with huge slabs of meat on a skewer and shave it off directly on your plate with a machete. It was ridiculous. I ate crocodile and ostrich. The croc was kinda nasty, but the ostrich was actually pretty good! Apparently they used to serve game animals like zebra, but I think people got angry about it so the stopped a few years ago. Anyway, it was a really great way I think for Hilary and Morgan to finish their Kenyan experience. Wow. I seriously just speed--typed all that! I'm not sure of the internet situation in Kisumu, so I don't know when I'll be able to blog again. Unfortunately, since I'm not using my computer right now, I probably won't be able to upload a fraction of the 400 or so pictures I took yesterday! Thanks so much for all your prayers! I know that God has some awesome things for me in Kisumu and I can't wait to get there!  love, emily PS I was able to get a few up from Kibera on my facebook album so take a look!

I can't believe I'm over halfway through....

So, tonight is my last night in Ruiru and I'm pretty sad actually! I
really enjoyed being here. I was only here for 3 full days, but I
really think it's the happiest I've been this whole trip! The work I
did wasn't that exciting, and I hardly played with the kids, but the
people I met were some of the kindest and most hospitable people I've
met in Kenya. Peter and Ann and definitely two people I hope to see
in the future, especially since Ann and I never got to make chocolate
chip cookies together! (Don't worry; she's got the recipe!) Anyway,
most of the time I colored up in the office. I am no artist, but it
was still fun to try to draw a camel, a bear and several other
animals. I just hope the kids can tell what they are! Many of my
friends should feel honored since I used their names and hobbies in
the 3 "simple sentences" posters I made. When I did play with the
kids it was almost kind of scary! Very unlike my field games from
before. They completely swarmed me. All of a sudden there were like
15 six-year olds crowding around my feet. I think they were confused
by me and my oversized camera because they have definitely been
staring at me for the past three days. Then, they started asking me
something in Swahili, which, of course, I didn't understand. And then
they started making peace signs and holding up 3 fingers and thumbs
up. I'm really hoping those aren't obscene hand gestures in Kenyan
culture! I got a little overwhelmed and they had to go back to class,
so after about 10 minutes, I decided it was time to go back up to the
posters!

Tomorrow I leave for Nairobi in the morning. I'm excited t spend the
weekend with Morgan and Hilary (friends from Carolina) since I haven't
seen them for a very long time. It'll also be nice to see some
familiar faces before heading to Kisumu on Sunday! Thanks for the
prayers!

love,

emily

PS More pictures! http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2013016&id=1403340039&l=a1bedabb99

PPS I think this is my shortest blog ever!=

Chocolate chip cookies and playground games

Well it's night two here in Ruiru and I am really enjoying it! I'm staying at the BTL and it's really nice! My room is completely self-contained, the food is pretty tasty, and the people are really friendly. Tonight I had dinner with 2 Parisian horticulturalists and 3 BTL managers from Nairobi. Surprisingly enough, one of the BTL women at the table is a HUGE basketball fan and was incredibly happy when she found out I went to UNC. She was pretty excited to here that my dad played approximately 5 minutes of pick-up with the great Michael Jordan before getting "too tired" from playing for 3 hours already. (I still won't let you live that down, Dad ;) ) She was also pretty excited when I told her that I actually ran into Danny Green and saw Tyler Hansbrough from time to time around campus. Charles, one of the BTL managers, challenged the two Frenchmen and me to a game of volleyball to determine which country is superior at athletics. We will see… Today was a bit different than I think the next 2 days will go. Pastor Peter and Ann were busy with a funeral so I spent the morning at the school before heading to their house for most of the afternoon. While at the school, I played with about 50 kids or so during their recess. I think they were fascinated with my paleness because I was definitely stared at the moment I got there (same as yesterday, actually). Anyway, I taught them how to play sharks and minnows, which was a huge hit. Four corners and Simon says were not quite as successful, though. I'll have to dig in to the depths of my childhood memories to remember games I used to play in elementary school! When they promptly scurried back to their classes, I was assigned the task of coloring! If you know me at all, you should know that I was REALLY excited. I am a college student, but I proudly sport colored pens of varying sizes and have markers and every color of the rainbow. I am not ashamed of this fact. Anyway, my job is to color posters of shapes, numbers, fruit, utensils, etc for classroom walls. I actually got about 6 posters done. Peter hailed me as an artist before saying that my fork looked like a tree, which leads me to how wonderful Peter and his wife, Ann, are. They are truly the most hospitable people I've met in Kenya so far. They fed me 3 times today! I'm sad to say that the stomach issues may possibly be resurfacing, but it's rude to not finish your plate as a guest. Anyway, Peter is incredibly sarcastic, so we get along great. We joked about things as random as the superiority of waffles to pancakes. And Ann is so sweet; she's like a grandmother. It's also really fun to talk to them about American foods. They had never heard of chocolate chip cookies! Since Peter knows that I love to cook, he's made me promise to make him some this week. Definitely a win-win-win situation (pardon The Office quote). I'm really excited to get to know them better this week, as they are such a nice couple!  Also I think this might be an easier way to keep up with pictures: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2013016&id=1403340039&l=a1bedabb99 It's the link to my Facebook album. Enjoy! love,  emily Romans 8:28

A change of pace...

Well, since my last post, a lot has happened! I had my first bout of illness Friday night/early Saturday morning. I celebrated Independence Day with my own version of fireworks if you catch my drift. I won't go into gruesome details, but I don't think I've ever been that sick. I actually tore of the toilet seat in the Savelburg bathroom when I passed out. I'm not sure which part of my body actually broke it off, but I have several bruises on my head from passing out then and about 3 minutes later in the hallway! So, please pray, that I don't get sick anymore and that the food I eat cooperates with my stomach! Anyway, the rest of the weekend was much better. Saturday afternoon I went to the Maadili women's meeting with Joy, a Kenyan girl who volunteers at New Life. I was under the false impression that there would be free food, but I was sadly mistaken. It was still really fun, though! It was pretty much a worship service type gathering of all the local women's Bible studies in the area. The service was really upbeat and the message was on Proverbs 31:10, which talks about being a virtuous woman. The whole thing lasted about 3 hours, so it was definitely the longest service I've ever been to! The most interesting part was at the end, though. They split everyone into groups of about 8 people with 2-3 leaders. Then, they took everyone aside individually and (I'm not sure about my word choice here) did a kind of "prophecy" for them. It wasn't like "you will find your true love next week" or anything, but they would tell you a verse and a key word that they think applies to you know or will apply to you in the future. Since I'm really awesome, I never heard my key word, but I do remember that my key verse was Joshua 1:7-8. I really like it because I think it holds true for every believer. It talks about staying courageous, remaining in God's law, and meditating on His Word. Anyway, whether or not they were speaking from God or just themselves, I'll never know, but I think they were genuine, if that makes any sense. After the Maadili service, I spent the night at Kate and Kaitlyn's apartment. Her parents started the Amani Foundation, which funds about half of NLH. It's based in Winston, but to be completely honest, I had only heard of it a few months ago! Anyway, it was really great to have some company, a really comfortable bed, and a hot shower! Sunday morning, the three of us went to church with the Beckenhams, the founders of NLH. We went to Mamlaka Hill Chapel, which was very upbeat, much like the Maadili women's meeting. Since I was a first-time visitor, I got to stand of in front of the congregation (about 100ish people maybe?) and introduce myself. I felt soooooo awkward, but they all clapped for me and someone shouted "alleluia!" when I sat down, so I guess it was worth it! The preacher talked about the responsibility aspect of service. He used a passage from Leviticus, which was interesting because I feel like that book gets left out a lot, you know? You don't really hear much about Leviticus. Anyway, it was definitely the notoriously harsh God of the Old Testament, which nobody really likes to hear about. The way I see it, there's no humanly way for me to make God happy, but He loves me just the same, even though I do a million things every day that probably disappoint Him. That's not to say that we shouldn't fear God or anything. His wrath is something that's definitely real, but (forgive me if this is theologically incorrect, I'm just rambling) I don't think it's always the source of our "punishment." We punish ourselves with sin because it separates us from God. I think that when we mess up, God uses the pain and consequences brought about by our sin to teach us and bring us closer to Him. I'm not sure if that makes any sense or if it's Biblically correct, but it works in my mind!  After church, Kate, Kaitlyn, and I went to the Masai market outside of the Yaya center. It was basically just a bunch of vendors selling really neat African/Kenyan scarves, jewelry, art, clothing, and other oddball things. I bought several souvenirs, but mainly tried to help Kate and Kaitlyn buy scarves for the Amani Foundation. I'll be going back next weekend, so I can get all the other really cool stuff I saw then! My favorite purchase of the day, though? Besides a hippo-shaped bottle opener, I really love my African continent-shaped jewelry box. It has all the different countries painted on it and it won't open unless you take out Kenya. Hence, "Kenya is the key."  Currently, I am in Ruiru, which is about an hour drive northeast of Nairobi. It's nice to be out of the city for a while since it's so busy. I feel like I'm truly in the middle of nowhere, though. It's very rural here, but amazingly I have wireless in my room! It's painfully slow, but definitely an upgrade! Anyway, I'm staying at the Ruiru Bible Translation and Literary Conference Center. Interesting fact: the building names are the names of unreached tribes in Kenya that they are working with. I am in Ilchamus 21. Anyway, Kate, Kaitlyn and I spent a few hours at the New Life School that I'll be working at this week. The people there are by far the most welcoming people I've met since I got to Kenya! When we first arrived, Ann greeted us with kisses on the cheek, tea, and mandisa (sp), which are like little Kenyan doughnuts. If you put powdered sugar on them, I'm almost positive they would be beignets from Café du Monde in New Orleans. So, as you can imagine, I was a fan. After giving us a tour of the school, which has about 100 students from ages 4-8 or so, telling some background of the school and letting us play with the kids for a bit, Ann invited back in for lunch. I am completely stuffed! We had ungali (sp again), which is a really plain kind of cakey bread and is a staple in African diets. It's incredibly tasteless, but it's actually really good when paired with some kind of stew. We had it with a cabbage and beef stew, and I rally liked it! Peter, a local pastor who is very involved at the school, warned me though that if I said I love it, then they'll feed it to me so much that I'd get sick of it. I figure that since I'll only be here for about 4 days, it's a risk I'm willing to take- it's probably safer than the crocodile he offered!  Anyway, please continue to pray for my time here. I really am truly alone here. I haven't seen any Americans here at the BTL, and Kate and Kaitlyn are back in Nairobi. I'm scared of slipping back into the intense loneliness from earlier in my trip. I'm really excited to be here, though! It'll be fun to work in a different environment with new people! Thanks fro all your prayers! love, emily  PS Since I have wireless in my room now, Skype me!

How do you get a baby through customs?

I'm in love. His name is Karl. He is 7 months old. I want to bring this little boy home with me! I've only taken care of him in the mornings the past three days, but he has definitely captured my heart. He's the sleepy one. You know those babies that just want to hit snooze all the time? That's him. So, it's been my job to keep him awake until it's naptime. That gives me about 45 minutes to do everything I can to keep his eyes open and (hopefully) eek out a smile. Well, yesterday I was successful in not only preventing him from falling asleep, but also completely waking him up so that he was laughing and smiling to the point where I absolutely had to get my camera. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to capture the world's greatest smile, but I have several pictures of his equally precious deer-in-headlights face. I hate to play favorites, but… Anyway, my days at the Kilimani House have been fairly routine. I usually start with the babies (Karl) and then spend the rest of the day with the toddlers. Since the weather has been pretty nice recently (except yesterday when it was surprisingly cold) we've spent a lot of time outside. For instance, we took a walk to Yaya, a nearby shopping center/mall. I'm sure it was pretty funny to watch a line of about 13 strollers make their way through the streets of Nairobi! The kids loved it, of course. They rarely make it outside the gates of the New Life compound, so it was somewhat of an adventure for them! Sadly, though, today was my last full day here for a while! I leave for Ruiru on Monday to help at a school there, so I'm pretty excited! It'll definitely be a change of pace since I'll be working with older kids (elementary school aged maybe?).  I know I already touched on this in my last post, but I am continually struck by how truly blessed I am. It really hit me again yesterday when I saw a baby sitting in a tire. I mean I've been to some pretty impoverished places, but I have never seen anything like that. And you know the worst part? It's really not uncommon. While I haven't seen any roaming street kids, I have seen numerous street moms with their babies or toddlers. It made me realize that all the kids that I'm playing with and feeding came from situations just like that. Instead of growing up, assuming they would actually survive, on the streets, they'll be adopted by loving families and go on to lead normal lives. It's just amazing to me. New Life is doing SO much good for this city, for this country and I'm so excited to be a part of it! Please continue to pray that I adjust to being alone. It's still (pathetically) something I'm struggling with. I have less than three weeks left in Kenya, and I don't want to drift through them or miss opportunities present by God because I'm stuck on myself. Things are going to be moving fast from here on out since I'll be traveling a lot. I want to live every moment to the fullest!  love, emily  PS I've become obsessed with Isaiah 40. Obsessed.

We Have Pictures

We have some pictures that have been posted. Take a look by clicking on the link to the right. If you want share this trip with your family and friends, copy the link below in an email. http://theoarfoundation.blogspot.com .