I came to Kenya in July 2009, now over 13 months ago. I will never forget those precious but emotional last days at Ardeley, leaving my post as Head teacher at the school, my colleagues, my friends, the community and especially the children. It was all a whirlwind of celebration but with many tears. I again want to thank everybody for the send-off, the enormously generous contributions, wonderful gifts and comments in the “memory book”.

If you travel in a north-easterly direction from the capital, Nairobi for about three hours, you will reach my turning at Kathageri, near Runyenje’s, beyond the provincial town of Embu. The main road leads upward to Meru town which is on the Mt. Kenya circuit; it climbs steeply through breathtaking scenery of sheer, V-shaped valley-sides of tea and coffee bushes, maize plantations and rocky escarpments. Once you have turned off the main road along the marrum-coated track to our “village”, you will encounter how Kenyans in rural communities live and breathe and have their being. The soil is rich red and, in the dry times, a fine orange dust smothers the walkers as the ramshackle vehicles clatter past. Early in the morning, women are seen carrying plastic or metal containers of fresh milk to the collection points. Here the buyers measure every drop into bigger containers and then teeter off on old bicycles to the lorries waiting on the main roads.  The rural scene is also studded with oxen staggering to pull carts piled high with sun-dried clay bricks, timber off-cuts, and containers of water or Napier grass for the cows. So much of the product of the daily labour ends up in the shops of the capital city and the international market itself. It is amazing to see how much of their produce is not eaten or used at all in their homes to feed themselves but sold to the richer consumers far from their homes. Kenyan farmers understand the need to sell their harvest in order to survive. Spring balances hang from low beams hook the collections of macadamia nuts at ramshackle kiosks at the corners. At the side of the lanes there are stockpiles of palm-wrapped banana stems, sacks of avocadoes, paw-paws, passion fruits, mangoes or other fruits in season. At dawn and dusk the produce is packed for the truck ride to Nairobi. The tea-leaves are hand picked and passed over the shoulder to round-bottomed woven baskets. These are then carried to weighing sheds near the huge tea factories nearby. Coffee beans are laid out on wire-mesh racks to dry in the sun awaiting selection. Unlike other coffee-producing countries, Kenyan growers and their families have no roasting, grinding and brewing rituals. Instead, those who can afford it purchase just sachets, tiny jars or tins of Nescafe.

I am living in some rooms in the grounds of a fee-paying day/boarding Primary school where the wonderful Grace Kauma is Principal; she came to visit her daughter in the U.K. in 2008 and came to Ardeley and Ward Freman schools. Here, there is a constant buzz of youth movement, teacher-talk, siren-calls, kitchen clatter and livestock grunts. The pupils are to be seen bent over double with twiggy brooms and wet rags from 6.30 a.m. cleaning the compound. The boarders study until 9 p.m. They share cramped dormitories with torn mattresses and fill buckets to wash themselves and then their clothes. Many are from Nairobi or are offspring of locals who have made it rich in the local towns. These pupils are the fortunate ones and Plainsview School has produced the top primary results in this district. These are the ones who will probably complete Form Four to gain the KPCE (Kenya Primary Certificate of Education and then be offered places in Secondary Schools and on to Further Education establishments. Contrast their experience with Kivuria Primary and Secondary schools opposite our shamba where we are building. The Government funding is so limited. So called “free” primary education is a farce as the pupils are constrained to wear uniform, have all school requirements and also bring a fee to cover school costs; the PTA, water and teaching staff supplements. So many children are sent home because their families are too poor to pay. The buildings and resources at Kivuria are very dilapidated; the teachers are poorly paid and the school was placed 39th out of 43 schools in our area. Secondary Education is still not free. The students have to pay, on average, £40 a term and also acquire the set books, a scientific calculator, an Oxford Maths Set, a “Golden Bells” chorus book and a Bible. Many students repeat years in Primary school and it is very common to see eighteen year olds still there. There are also so many school drop-outs from Secondary Education. There is thus a large proportion of idle youth to be seen and so there is the potential for hopelessness and drugs use. We hope, through sponsorship, to keep seven Secondary school aged students in school this year. Kivuria has now become the link school for Ardeley village school.

When the four U.K. students were here, they were able to experience this huge difference in the provision of education. I really enjoyed their company; three of them were here for six months, one for four. They had an amazing time mixing with Kenyans throughout their stay. They supported projects in schools, the abandoned babies’ ward in Embu hospital and a children’s home. They taught a variety of subjects in local schools and also developed sporting activities and football tournaments. In Kivuria School, Sophie and Fergus painted a beautiful African mural in the Disabled Unit dining room. Here the living and learning situation for the 19 pupils is pitiful. The two house mothers earn £18 a month and work so hard just to meet basic cleanliness and feeding needs. Fourteen out of the group don’t have sponsors for the £54 a year they should pay for up-keep and are threatened to be sent home. They attend the classes in main school during the day. They lie on the grass in the evening if they have finished their study and have no stimulation or any chance, so far, of learning skills that can help them to have a few coins when they leave. One of our long term plans will be to have a workshop at the school where the disabled pupils can learn, for example how to sew fabric bags and clothes, do woodwork, make leather shoes or banana palm pictures. A skills workshop could help someone like John Musiyni, for example. He is now 21 and was found three years ago crawling around his back yard. He had been disfigured by scalds, didn’t walk far because of poor leg muscle strength and frequent epileptic convulsions which had left him brain damaged. His drunkard father neglected him and he had only leaned to communicate by making noises. His mother had died of an A.I.D.s related disease. I found him very sick with T.B. when I arrived but after a hospital stay and the course of medicine, he is back now at school. We have corrected the epilepsy prescription to control his night tremors. He now talks and walks, sings and prays. He is in Class One, with the five to six year olds and quite happy but would need to learn some working skills to occupy him in the future. According to African tradition, all boys should have their own “dwelling” from puberty but when John is sent home at holiday time, he has to share the mud hut with his grandmother. What worries me is that I have found another child aged seven, paralysed from the waist down, dragging himself around the same homestead. The women living there said that he couldn’t go to school “because he is too small for the wheelchair”. I am so proud that Ardeley School children and parents have collected some money through their sponsored walk to build some special toilets for Kivuria Disabled Children in the main school. We have now dug the holes (55 feet down!) and have made bricks with our own machine. We will start building this week.

When our Resource Centre is complete, we hope to invite many more visitors to spend time here. Sophie North’s parents came for Christmas, the Maguire family came in February, Joan Rushton came in June and the Hendersons and Fishers to lead a Dance Festival in July 2010. You may remember I started my time in Africa in July 2009 with an early visit from Kim Henderson.( P.E. Sports Development Manager and Adviser for Barnet), training students and teachers from thirteen Secondary Schools in Athletics. She has driven such high quality teaching and learning standards in the locality. This year, she brought dance specialists and after just one week of half-day training sessions in nine Primary and Secondary Schools, we held an outstanding celebratory performance of eight different styles of dance. The pupils and students were so responsive and ready to attempt challenging choreography in direct contrast to the traditional dance experience common in their African curriculum. Some of the younger pupils were beside themselves with excitement when they put on costumes, especially the masks for their expressive interpretation of “The Lion King”.
We feel inspired to pray that we can develop arts festivals of this type; possibly Music and an Art Exhibition can be added next year?  The African children have virtually no experience of using art materials or any other instrument other than a skin drum or seed shaker.

Having now been here for a year of “seasons”, I have endured the torrential rains of October and March, the unexpected showers in July, the very cool temperatures of August and the dissipating heat of September and December. All else is warmly temperate, cloudy and with intermittent sunshine. Christmas Day and New Year’s Day were very hot. I have to admit the difficulties with the wet weather, (known in Africa as “God’s blessings”) were mostly transport-related. It was virtually impossible to remain upright on the slippery clay which amassed on soles until one couldn’t take a step for the weight of your shoes. The roads were immediately impassable for the deep ruts and the lack of gripping material; driving was a nightmare. My fifth-hand Toyota double-cab Hilux has had to undergo major surgery and minor operations at many roadside garages-just mere metal kiosks where the lads own a few spanners and a clutch of “tricks”.

I bought the car from a smooth-talking salesman in the Industrial area in Nairobi back in December last year. Despite the fact that it has needed a lot of repair and not everything works, it has been a god-send for getting around and for transporting building materials, timber from the forest, maize, bricks and football teams! As we drive along the road to work every day, we pick up a few extra “passengers”. I call out “Twenty bob!” but I haven’t had a single shilling yet!

The main work has been to manage the development of a Community Resource centre on an acre plot near Kathageri. A “Prayer House” was almost near completion when I arrived. Now, with the support of skilled builders from the city working alongside local workmen, we have reached the ceiling boards-windows-electric fittings stage of “Kisimani” ( Wellspring) Resource centre. The “House” can be used for accommodation (trainers, visitors, gap year students etc.) and a variety of community needs; community library, I.T. centre, respite care, Half-Way House ,counselling for families, drug addicts, vulnerable teenagers, etc.  The site has been partly landscaped with a few donated flowering plants but we try to conserve plenty of space on our “shamba” for planting vegetables. It was a good feeling to pick our first butternut squash, courgettes and coriander. We are now waiting for our sweet potatoes and tomatoes to be ready. What we grow, we usually eat at lunchtime or sell to passers-by. Meat is also available. As I turn out of my school gate in the morning, I am invariably met by the “slaughter gang”. These men wear white wellies and white overalls; soon to be be-smattered by blood. In one hand they brandish a panga (like a machete), while the other holds a rope,  at the end of which trots a victim; gentle Friesian cows, unwilling bulls, stubborn goats and the occasional pig. The men later retrace their steps to the road junction, this time pulling a handcart with a white and red painted box; “MEAT” is painted on the side and the head of the victim in the box rocks on the top. I have become a little more accustomed to buying some non-re-fridgerated meat now but it is still hard to see the carcasses being chopped on rough tree trunks with the flies buzzing around…favourite foods are a mash of green peas, maize and potato, called mataha, or mashed green bananas, matoke, or the national dish, githeri; a medley of beans, corn, onions and tomatoes. Arrow root is also plentiful locally.

I helped to plant our last maize crop which has now been harvested, milled and eaten for lunch along with our greens. We have a constant stream of customers for the latter as our plot is blessed with 2 bore-holes at the valley bottom - although we ideally need an electric pump at some time to bring the water up to the top of the plot rather than using it from the metered tank. The maize area has been grassed for space for recreation, community weddings retreat houses, modelled on the traditional African style. We have already had two joyous and colourful occasions where the site has welcomed over 500 guests each time, happy to celebrate at an attractive venue and be able to afford the low cost of hiring chairs, spoons and plates.

We have employed locals for 200 shillings (£1.60) a day to build the single-storey house. They have been such a happy bunch of men and women. Most are bare-foot and with torn and ragged clothes. They smiled when they were introduced to plastic hard-hats as they see them as a welcome protection from the rain or the searing overhead sunshine. Good quality building materials are not cheap here and as I write, we have almost come to a total standstill in building until more money trickles in. Meanwhile the Prayer House is well used for meetings, community training, Voluntary Counselling & Testing (V.C.T), and prayer groups. We also used it as a Dance “Studio” for local school children when training for our Dance Festival. The first retreat house is my office space at the moment. Unfortunately, I haven’t escaped from my previous familiar companions of accounts, committee meeting minutes, constitutions but I have added now micro-enterprise applications. We are trying to train the people to find their own ways of sustainability by training in community projects like fish ponds and chicken rearing. When we are fully up and running, locals will be able to extend their supply of produce by supplying fruits for preservation and their juices for consumption to support healthy diets. Chickens could be taken to town hotels. It would be wonderful to have a café on the main road where you can actually taste a cup of Kenyan coffee; there are more passing tourists now that there is increasing interest in the tourist trade to Meru National Park on the east side of Mt. Kenya.

We have also constructed a small open-sided kitchen but as yet have not afforded the big cooking pots and also need to research on how to build a wood – burning brick oven. Up to now all of our cooking on the shamba has been on the three stones wood fire in the open.
This week the electricity supply was connected. This has been a very long and frustrating process with Kenya Power and Lighting who have the monopoly of electricity supply in Kenya. It has taken a full year to see the lights switched on in the Prayer House. I have learned greater patience and resilience when dealing with Kenyan bureaucracy and administration. I have had to apply for four visas and now a work permit, which will cost around £980. After six months I had to exit East Africa but had a pleasant two day visit to Addis Ababa in Ethiopia. I would love to travel more in Africa.

I am spending quite a bit of time meeting with previous recipients of support:-individuals, schools and community groups who have received livestock, mosquito nets, sports equipment, eye operations, drugs awareness and health training. Of course it’s difficult for them to understand that the wazungu (white person) is not here to dish out money indiscriminately. I’m here to channel funds to support the most needy to improve their lives in some way. The people here are very poor but some have the potential to make money if they can use their resources like food or can acquire capital from a bank loan as a community group. Many, many people have approached me for funds and loans to start poultry, dairy, fish-farming, livestock or small business projects. I used some of my Ardeley gift to sponsor a local fish-pond project. The Government are quite keen to support such ventures for community groups but expect the group to provide the basic labour and the polythene –lined pit. We hope we can have a small pond on our own site eventually. As those heavy rains sweep down the hillside, we can divert some of the water to a hole and top up with water from the bore-hole. The electric water pump I mentioned would pump this water to irrigate the vegetables on the higher ground and thus avoid high water bills. We will be able to hire out the pump in the same way as we do with foot and hip pumps currently. We have to balance the cost of seeds, water, insecticide and labour against the income of sales of vegetables just like the people around us do. Climate irregularities are also here, leaving the mystified Kenyan farmers scratching their heads over the unpredictable seasonal patterns. There is a great need to trap the water when it happens and it is sad that the Government don’t sell water tanks at subsidised costs.

However, there has been a definite rise in spirits since the new Constitution was passed; the country was restless while the Green (Yes- Ndio) and Red camps (No- Hapana) stood ranked prior to the Referendum. Let’s hope that the 46 tribes of Kenya draw closer pamoja (together). Note my sprinkling of Swahili. Don’t be at all impressed. I have been so poor in learning the local dialect (Ki-embu) and the national language (ki-swahili) as so many people learn English all around me.  Must try harder. All lessons in schools are conducted through the medium of English. The principal of the best all boys Secondary School in this area has a flawless command of English, despite his lisp. In his spare time he is completing a doctorate on the reduction of useful soil mites when there is over-use of chemicals in farming. He recently went to Clare College Cambridge to deliver a lecture. He has a mischievous and disarming sense of British humour and even loves cricket.

I find myself so busy all the day and exhausted by the time I go to bed. However I still found time to write Letter 1 to Marks and Spencer after one of our volunteers’ slip-on shoe fell down the long-drop toilet on the site. I asked them to have pity on a poor student and to provide a replacement; I even drew them a picture. No answer yet. However, I had more luck from Buckingham Palace for Letter 2. I wrote to advise them that a local scenic viewing point that had a plaque dedicated by the Duke of Edinburgh was looking a bit shabby. I got a reply to wish me well but they didn’t have the record of it. Now that I have got to page 5, I am sure that my ramblings qualify for serious editing by Chris Dawson. I am currently sitting on a wall waiting for my radiator to be welded…again. I have spotted the 28 year-old identical twins Alex and Alfred who are football experts and commentate on local matches as if singing a perfect duet. They know everything about world football teams also. They have been an amazing support to us when we have held Anti- Drugs Football tournaments. Their dream is to visit UK to watch their favourite teams, one day. Our own football team is called Kisimani and they are improving. I have also been trying to support a Girls Team by lending kit, providing glucose for half time and bus fare home.

The amphetamine-like drug, Miraa, (or Khat), is the green leafy stem that is grown prolifically around here, especially on the mountain slopes at Meru.  It is now a major cash crop in huge competition with tea and coffee.  It is commonly chewed for the ingredient cathinone in its juice by matatu (bus) drivers, students and youth school drop outs. Because it grows so well it is often found growing in local shambas for family consumption; male and female. It is legal here in Kenya but in neighbouring Tanzania it is not. Beware when driving on our main road around noon as the Nissan pick-ups hurtle past; horns blasting, headlights blazing. They are stacked high with palm-wrapped Miraa on the way to Nairobi airport for daily export to Mombasa, Europe; even to London and particularly destined for the Somali community living there. They are never stopped at the many police road check-points. Miraa is very addictive and eventually causes psychotic problems, brain damage and causes many other health and social problems. Bhang (cannabis) is illegal but is also grown locally. But one of the worst drug problems is alcohol, often in the form of “local brew”. The new constitution has declared it legal now but under strict guidelines; glass bottles instead of recycled soda ones and “staggering on the roads is forbidden”. People also allow their “porridge” to ferment for a few days as a mild stimulant. Some desperate alcoholics have literally been blinded by adulterants like methanol and kerosene added to their distilled brews and there are regular reports of bodies of drinking groups found in the forest. Again hopelessness and extreme poverty have driven many to drink. We have a planned schedule for moving into schools and polytechnics and have already held three seminars. I have also attended 8 weeks training on Drug Rehabilitation with the National Campaign Against Drug Abuse, (N.A.C.A.D.A). We have opened a counselling room at the local hospital and we are just painting a room that will become an out-post at our site also with other Christian counselling services. When dealing with addicts it has been important to suggest alternatives to their lifestyle; growing good cash crops like chillies or mangoes, chicken-rearing, fish farming or woodworking. I am trying to apply for N.G.O. status (non government organisation) so that we can write proposals for funding such projects. One of our roles at the Resource Centre will be to network across groups to avoid overlapping of services and wastage of finance.

Currently, we have slowed down on building while we wait for funds. There are some window frames in but no doors, no ceiling boards, no paint on the walls, no electrical or plumbing fittings and of course no furniture yet! It will take a while for the Resource centre to be finished but I am looking forward so much to an opening event next year some time.
I hope that I will also be coming home on a visit in the New Year and can catch up with family and friends again. If you know of anybody who would like to have a visit here for enjoyment, experience, voluntary work, research or any other reason, please let us know by email or phone.

Best wishes to everybody… for the moment.
Chrissie.