Would you allow yourself to help him?

I went to the Uhuru park today, just to get a time off and enjoying the life in Nairobi from the park. So I took with me my book(Barnepiken) and of course my camera.

While I was reading this man came slowly towards me and asked politely: "could you give me some help?" with a tone that showed that he really needed it and didn't want me to feel pity for him. At first I was surprised that he didn’t ask for food or money. So I asked him what kind of help he needed. "That you could take me to a school or a place where I could be educated, or talk with me, I just need something, anything you think would help." he said. I knew I couldn't give him the opportunity for education or somewhere he could go where he could learn for a longer term. But I could give him my time I had, where we could learn from each other. So I asked him to sit down and talk to me. He wasn't late in sitting down, and asked me if I knew what he had in the bottle. But by the smell it was easy to know that this was glue. He continued to ask if I knew how this worked, but I've just heard about it and how bad it affects people. I also knew that for a person that is addicted to something it is really hard to say that they are addicts. But he told it at ones and said that he needed help to stop it because he couldn't do it by himself.

We started talking about his opportunities, and tried to figure out what he could do to get education. He explained to me that since he’s an adult, and the opportunities are only given to children, not adults, his situation of getting any help is minimal. That is also a situation where only those that are taking the seriousness about the opportunities at ones would get it. Opportunities that doesn’t look like it at all.

Imagine yourself at the time you just wanted to break rules and don’t listen to someone else that called themselves experienced or “know how it is to be in that age”, then take away the safety you felt around these experienced people. Do you think you would believe them? Or do you really think that you would let them decide what they thought were best for you, when you already had freedom of deciding everything by yourself. For example when you wanted to be with your friends, staying up longer or just have the opportunity to lay on the grass watching the stars while you have your best friend by your side.

People that are raised in families where they have everything would never understand how it is to be poor before they’ve tried. People that are raised by the street aren't used to have older people to tell them in what to do, so they run away because they haven't experienced more than the freedom of living in the streets. Then, when they have been realizing that they actually need help they're too old to get any. George, that was his name understood this too late. But does it mean that it is too late for him?

While talking I told him about the program I'm in now and how we are learning about the different cultures that are within our globe. That we, through the preparatory course, have been in the slum here in Nairobi to see and learn how that is. He meant then that I should visit the street children to see how their life is, and experience the real life they have every day with both good and challenging experiences.

Something that amazed me was how he said that he was thanking and praising God every morning for his life and that he was okay. This is something that made me think that George, who doesn’t have money for enough food, water or shelter, is a lot richer than me.

Arusha

My stay at IOP

From 16. september to 18. october I were at IOP. There I have bin learning a lot about the people and how I can communicate without having too much misunderstandings.

Her are some pictures from Ilula:

The rest of the volunteers

One of the churches we went to. This a roman catolic church

I realy like the idea of what it means here to be a Christian. When they here in Tanzania say they are a Christian they don't specify which direction in the Christianity they belong to, but goes to all of the Churches.

Teambuilding with the girls, here in the scoutgroup

Bingo, to learn english

A drive through a village, can change with just a little knowledge about the background of it

One of the days here, we were driving through the village and I found it a good time for taking pictures

It was then Vashti told me that this was village called number A, and the reason why most of the houses where empty was because people had died, and are still dying from HIV/AIDS. We were driving further, while I were looking at the pictures of the empty houses when they said I had to look out the window, 'cause this was the river where the people from the village we passed and an hour driving in both dirrection went to get their water for making food, drinking or washing clothes. The water they needed to survive.

The "river"

Some children washing their clothes

Visiting primary schools and teaching about childrens rights

This and the last saturday Karoline, Vashti, Winnifrida and I were visiting primary schools to talk about childrens rights.

Last Saturday we were coming to a school where it was only two pupils that were prepared to listen to us, but soon the teacher had gathered around 150 pupils that was stuffed in a little classroom. It was so full that they were sitting from all in the back to maybe a half a meter from where we were standing. Some even had to sit in the windowseeling. With so many kids it was a challenge to get them to be quite. But they were answering our questions, so I think they learned something.

Now it was time to get out, and everybody was running, all of the 150 pupils out of the door at the same time.

We divided them and started explaining, but it was impossible. Some were running around, some chatting. After half an hour we gathered them so they could play a game they knew. After a while were they had forgotten that it was some mzungus(white person from long away) in the group, one of them started fixing my hair, but it didn’t take long before it was 5 and then 20 people hanging at the same time in my hair while all the other 50 people tried to hold in my arms. I looked at Karoline that also was surrounded by kids, and by the look on her face it was time to go. We tried to say goodbye, but some of them still followed us to the dangerous road. Karoline and I had to stay away from the road, while Winnifrida went on the other side to find a bus, but none came. And then again they were a lot less kids now. So we walked next to the road and down to the busstation. Here the rest of the pupils went home, and we got a good ending on it where no one got driven on, and everyone got safe home.

Saturday 6. october

Today we were visiting around 60 pupils at a primary school in Ikokoto, and I was curious if we were able to teach them more this time then we did last time.

We were warmly welcome by one of their teachers that showed us the classroom whit all the children. All of them sat on benches with tables in front of them, 3 and 3 on each bench. When we came in the classroom, all of them politely stood up and said “Good morning teachers” to us as a choir.

The teaching went better than I have expected, all of them had the chance to say something. Someone maybe a little shy and others more confident, but everyone said and/or asked about something. When we asked the pupils in the end they remembered all of the rights and what we said about them.

After the session we went and plaid with them, so that we could take the rights out in reality by giving them a time and right to be me, be happy, work together, live in peace, and the right to learn. We divided them in two groups and first tried to learn them a game we thought were simple, but we were wrong as last time and changed to a game we knew they've played before.

All of the children had so much fun. Most of the games were circle-games where one of the pupils had to stand in the middle, and say something that the circle had to repeat. It was so impressive to see that they took it like a challenge, though they were so shy and just wanted to hide themselves behind their hands, but actually leaded the game.

Even the teacher was playing with the kids

Our time at Brackenhurst

We had an amazing time at my last preparation course before I am going to Tanzania and Ilula Orphant Programme. Here is some pictures of what I have bin doing

Dancing

Visiting the curch

Visiting the nearest town Limuru

Listening to all the birds

Comparing Kenya to Norway

Where we had devosions and gatherings

Devosion

Kultural evenings with all the participants from all of the seven countries

And a lot of FUN:

FGM

This last week we were learning about Female Genital Mutilation and what is done to stop this.

FGM or Female Genital Mutilation is "all procedures that involve partial or total removal of external female genitalia or other injury to the genital organs for non-medical reasons" - World Health Organization

This is a traditional procedure that have bin going on for centuries, nobody even knows when the tradition started, a procedure that is so normal that it is like a confirmation.

FGM is divided in 3 types:

   1)  The first one is removal of the skin and almost clitoris itself

   2)  Removal of the inner labia and clitoris

   3)  Removal of inner and outer labia, and leaving just a small hole with the size of a matchstick so that urine and menstrual blood can pass, the blood is created by a cow-horn or rock inserted to the wound

What happens:

This procedure is done up til the age of 15, early in the morning. Before the girls is so awake that they know whats going on, and are so grown up that they understand that this is something wrong. It is normally some women doing it together towards the girl with force, holding the girl down while they are singing songs. After the procedure it is a celebrating party, like a confirmation saiing that the girl is now clean, since she can't enjoy sexual plessure.

   The girl legs are now tied together from hip to ankle for a month while she is often hidden in the woods, and sometimes given water, believed that it will grow.

   If the girl survive that month the next step is when a man normally in the forties or fifties cut her up with eather a scissor or a knife and penetrates her. In some cases she is just married away.

   Now she is looked on as a grown woman and is ready to be married  away.

   It can take from 3-4 days to several months before the man can penetrate her. But in some woman the scar can be so hard because of it is owergrown with keloidal formations that have brokened scalpeles in the attempt of opening it.

If a pragnent woman hasn't experienced FGM the procedure is performed before she gives birth because it is believed the baby may be stillborn if it touches her clitoris

Prevalence of FGM in Africa:

 

From WHO

But since this theme is so sensitive and hard to get data of this is just a picture of the surface and which not is hidden.

Konsekvensene of female genital mutilation:

- Shock

- Pain

- Urinary retantion

- Keloids

- Difficult menstruation

- Bitterness

- Fear

- Loss of trust

- Feeling of incompletness

- Death

Positiv side:

At wednesday last week we in CFC were visiting one of the groups that Kenya YWCA has. A group that has done a really good job in stopping FGM. They have made some sertificate that people can get if they have bin learning, understood and are willing to stop this terrible opperation.

When we were there it was their graduation and recieved their sertificates. It was so good to be there and see young to the old, especially the konservative Masaii-women that said that this was a really bad thing to do. Especialy since some of them have bin experiensing up to all of the three traditons that has bin removed or is starting to be removed. There was a man that was so proud of this work by removing the tradition of take away their front teeth, making big wholes in their ears by using fire(he had a big whole in one of his ears). And now they are going to stop FGM.

This visit was so inspirating, the leader of the group a woman in here 30th, teenagers, men and the hundred years old woman. All of them standing for their choises. 

If you want to read more about it you could look at YMCA-YWCA Globals article about FGM:

- http://www.kfuk-kfum-global.no/?module=Articles;action=Article.publicShow;ID=574

and Kenya YWCAs work:

http://www.kfuk-kfum-global.no/no/Arbeidet_vart/Kenya/Kenya_KFUK/Prosjekter/

An article from Aftenposten about circumcision for both woman and men
http://www.aftenposten.no/meninger/kommentarer/Med-kniven-mot-forhuden-6878849.html

Outreach to Lake Navashi

Lake Navashi in The Great Valley was goal for today. And it was a great experience to see more of Kenya before we started with the last propering-cours this time at Brackenhurst.

Joel: "Yeah, we are going there"

A real "matpakke"

After 3 to 5 hours driving we were finally at the Lake Navashi

We were so 

Gazelles

Monkey

Vervet monkey/green monkey

Thomas and the most beautiful baby in the world

Caique

The Voice of reason should get a better place then be dragging behind a big bus. Though it was kind of cool

"Love the Lord your God with your hear" - luk10:27