Out of Africa

Out of Africa, by Karen Blixen is a lovely biography of colonial Kenya, full of dense language and beautiful descriptions of the country and its people. Blixen, seeing the country through colonialist eyes and also in retrospect from her native Denmark, saw a nobility in the natives, that is not apparent to me. I see their poverty and their desperation as well as a dismal future.

Today, we went to Nairobi. We left the matatu and walked downtown. Soon we were met by a man claiming to be from Zimbabwe, whose family, he claimed, had not eaten for days. Perhaps we could buy him a bag of rice. We have heard the same pitch, in the same words, on almost every trip to the city. We are quite sure it is a con and we carry on. A short time later we were approached by a man selling bracelets. When we declined he begged for something small from us. Later we passed a man with no legs, whom we meet begging each time we take a certain street. We generally give him some small amount. A short time later we brush off a man who starts into the same pitch as the alleged Zimbabwian. Later in the day, after returning home, a Kenyan worker at our school asked if I could give him 50Ksh (the equivalent of about 90 cents). Imagine having to ask for that amount! And still later another person we hardly know asked to borrow $15.00.

These things are nothing. Just reminders during the day of the poverty here, and as if that were not enough the papers are full of accounts of violence, abuse of women and children, corruption, hatred, gross moral misconduct - and I wonder sometimes if, during the short time we have been here, we have accomplished anything that will have long lasting significance.

Near the end of her book, as she is preparing to leave for Denmark, Blixen goes for a walk on the farm. She is looking for a sign, something that will help her to understand what has been the meaning of her life in the country. She meets a rooster from the farm out on its own morning stroll. It in turn comes face to face with a chameleon, also out for a morning walk. Since roosters eat chameleons, there is a confrontation between the two.

…(the cock) gave out a cluck of satisfaction. The chameleon stopped dead at the sight of the cock. He was frightened, but he was at the same time very brave, he planted his feet on the ground, opened his mouth as wide as he possibly could, and to scare his enemy, in a flash he shot out his club-shaped tongue at the cock. The cock stood for a second as if taken aback, then swiftly and determinately he struck down his beak like a hammer and plucked out the chameleon’s tongue.

At that, Blixen chased off the cock and killed the chameleon, since it could no longer catch food to eat and so would have slowly starved to death. She was glad to have saved the chameleon from a slow, painful death but the encounter frightened her and reminded her of the dangerous world she had lived in.

Later, on reflection about the incident, she found in the encounter, the sign she was looking for. Although in the end they were too much for her, she had battled the powers. That was all, but that was enough.

The cock and the chameleon were for me an illustration of what still happens in Kenya. The weak are eaten up by the strong. Perhaps it is that way in all the world but in our civilized country we don’t see it as starkly. What is the answer for this country? Have we made a difference in such a place as this? There is no answer for me, except perhaps this: that we too have battled the powers as best we were able during our short time here.

Decisions, decisions

I'm sorry this has taken so long. It is so frustrating not being able to use the internet at home other than for the simplest things. As a result if I want to add to the blog I have to write something, put it on a disc and take it to the internet cafe. The last two visits I couldn't transfer from the disc to the blog. I hope any that were watching have not given up.

So what have we been spending money on?

First, immediately at the start of school we noticed a shortage of English textbooks in each class that I taught. The students were sharing one text among 3 or more, which made reading in class awkward and doing the Exercises difficult. Fast readers waited for slow readers and there was a lot of craning of necks. Assigning homework was near impossible. And so our first act was to buy additional texts and supplementary books so that pairs of students had books between them. Also we bought storybooks for the Grade 8’s, since I believe that reading for pleasure is essential to help students learn new vocabulary, see grammar used properly and to enjoy the beauty of good English. And more recently we bought more storybooks. They are becoming quite popular among Grade 6, 7 and 8 students.

Other spending on projects has been more difficult, for two reasons. First, almost any technology would not be useful past the first breakdown.The school runs on a shoestring and there is no money for maintenance, or for such things as the internet. Secondly, I am still debating whether this school is progressive enough such that it makes sense to make capital investments in it. For instance we have considered contributing to an addition to the school which might house some computers and a library. I need to give this more thought but my thinking at this time that is that the management of the school would not know how to use the area well, to make it a step towards creating a place of excellence. After a couple of years it would just become another dirty school room and I think that would be a waste of money.

So, what have we decided? Well, when we first came to Kenya some 4 years ago our desire was to invest in people. I chose to teach at Scott Theological College because I felt that helping to train church leaders was a way to change the society. In fact, when we left Scott we decided that we would not return there (although we hadn’t been asked), because we did not believe that the administration were concerned about this same goal, but were more interested in expanding their institution.

Our goal has not changed. We want to help people who may make a difference, who may someday impact their world. In that regard, although they are still very young, we have been impressed with 2 Grade 8 girls. They are both serious students, compete with 2 boys for top marks in class and have goals that they could achieve if they can attend good schools. Both come from poorer families and need help with school fees. And so we have arranged to help with fees for these girls. (The boys, by the way, have parents who can afford fees.)
I'll write more about them at a later time.

Loving mercy and justice

When Judy and I were first entrusted by people with donations for the worthy causes we might find in Kenya, we felt a heavy responsibility to use that money wisely. We didn’t however think that it would be difficult to find projects. Certainly the need is everywhere. We are asked for money by locals at least once a week. We almost always say no. We’re sympathetic to those in need, by and large we think Kenyans bear the main responsibility to find solutions to address their own needs. A case in point perhaps occurred during the violence following the election rigging. There were, during the violence, many calls for donations for affected people. We didn’t donate. This was a matter for Kenyans to address. We felt that if right thinking people from all the tribes, (especially those who were Kikuyus and who wanted and benefited from Kibaki’s re-election) had marched in protest and demanded he step down because they too, his constituents, would not stand for the theft of democracy, then Kenya would have made huge strides towards good, honest, government. Instead, Kikuyus (the majority of whom are churchgoers), prayed for peace, talked about peace, but went about their business and did nothing to show their disgust with their leaders. This was a time to stand against corrupt government, yet the Kikuyus I talked to seemed unable to understand that by their inaction had helped create the climate for violence and perpetuated poor and dishonest leadership. They did not seem to understand that they were the ones responsible for change.

As well, we have felt that our place at this time is to help the school where I work, acquire where possible, the resources it needs to be effective in teaching its students. This has, surprisingly, proven more difficult than we expected. I’ll write about this in just a few days.