No, not that Bosnia.

Well it has been a couple days but, ALAS, I am here again. It has been a sweet couple of days with the Steve and the team. On Wednesday Steve took us to an I.D.P. slum Called Bosnia, of all names. I.D.P. stands for internally displaced people, and that is exactly what the people are who live in this area. There’s an area not far from where we are staying that is know historically as an area of conflict, called Mt. Elgon. This is where much of the tribal violence that occurs in Kenya takes place. The people who live in Bosnia were displaced in 1992 in some of the earliest clashes on Mt. Elgon. All of their homes were burned to the ground, and much of their livestock was killed in the process. Luckily the Member of Parliament that represented the people of the destroyed area had purchased a 5-acre parcel of land for the 100 families to live on while they were displaced. Well it has been sixteen years and it is still not safe for the families to go back to their homeland, so they have been forced to live in terrible conditions, in a foreign part of their country. Although the people of Bosnia live in conditions that are not even common to Kenya, and they have no schooling for their children they are so faithful to the Lord. They kept emphasizing the fact that they knew that if they put their faith in the Lord he would provide for them, and they would return home. Many of the children who lived in the village were raised by their grandmothers, which created a sort of patriarchal society. I will never forget the smiles that we experienced when we were talking and praying with the people of Bosnia. As we were leaving we knew that God had led us to these people for a reason, so when we got home Steve and I headed to the Giga-mart to buy a “few” supplies.

Now I know that I have explained the Giga-mart before, but I had no idea that on the other side of the building there was a wholesale part. Steve of course knew what he was doing when he invited me to come with him and watch him purchase things for the people in Bosnia. There are four stories of everything from coffee to blankets, and Steve walked up and down the isles like a skilled surgeon knowing exactly how to work the salesman, moving quickly but efficiently to keep the workers on their toes, allowing him to get the price that he wanted. I personally enjoyed the line, “fine, let the little orphans starve”. That one really seemed to get the right price. After spending about $1,000 in supplies for the camp we packed up the Land rover and headed back to the compound.

On Thursday we headed back to Bosnia to give all of the supplies to the village, Sr. Freda and her clinic crew also came along to have a clinic for all the people in the village. I struggled finding a place in all of the madness, which was kind of discouraging, but it allowed me to spend time with some of the children that were waiting outside as their grandmothers collected the supplies. We handed out 100 blankets, some wash basins, lots of pots and plates, rice, sugar, some salt, detergent, and some other essential things. It was amazing to see a whole community come together and be faithful to the Lord. I was so encouraged by these people, which is kind of ironic considering that we are the ones who are supposed to be encouraging. Just when I thought I figured out why God is calling me here he surprises me again, he always seems to find some way to amaze me.

There is one issue that I have not addressed as of yet. And that is, there are no males my age on this trip. I understand that the girls on this trip are reading this blog so I must say that they are not being difficult, or giving making me miserable, but sometimes you just need to hang out with a dude your age. I have really been praying about it and God has really given me an awesome ability to just accept my situation, and really have a great time. I understand that the for mentioned issue is random, and very out of place, but it has been on my mind, and is a huge part of my life here in Kenya, and this blog is for you to understand my situation here, right?



I Enjoyed his company



We both had hats on.

This is what we gave them.



No, these kids don't live in the corn.


I forget his name.

I made friends with these dudes.



These ladies loved their new blankets.