Giving Back

Last Friday I had the opportunity to drive a bus full of nationals up north for the day.  Each year RVA tries to give back to its National Staff employees who work day in and day out to make what we do here possible.  Usually this entails piling everyone in the busses and heading off to one of the game parks for the day to see some animals.  Many nationals never get the opportunity to visit their own national parks or travel much outside their home area for that matter.  This year however our staff requested to go to Lake Bogoria National Park.  Not for wildlife though.  In fact we saw more zebras, gazelles and antelopes and ostrich along the highway than we did in the park.  Nope, they wanted to go to Lake Bogoria to boil eggs.  Lake Bogoria is a spring fed lake.  The springs are natural hot springs that bubble up through the volcanic soil and drain into the lake.  Due to the high content of volcanic salts and minerals in the water the lake produces lots of algae, which in turn attracts the thousands upon thousands of flamingo that call Bogoria home. Most of the men and women I talked to had never been to Bogoria, but had always heard about the boiling water so hot you can boil an egg.  Well, they were right.  The water is hot, very hot and with 100+ staff members on 3 busses we had plenty of eggs.  One of the men who works in our cafeteria gave me his explanation of the source of boiling water.  "I think during creation, there was a kitchen down there.  When he was done God forgot to put off the stove."  As Steven, one of our custodians, and I stood there next to the springs staring at the crystal clear boiling water, waiting for his egg to finish he turned to me and summed up the experience, "We serve an amazing God."

Arriving at Lake Bogoria National Park.

Natural hot springs spilling down to the lake.

Admiring the wonder of creation.

Naturally boiling spring water .

(notice the egg in a bag at the bottom of the photo)

Happy to be off from work.

Boiling eggs in the springs. 

 Lake Bogoria is also known for its abundant population of Flamingos.

Thankful

This past week we celebrated Thanksgiving....twice.

The first celebration was on the actual Thanksgiving Day, but since we live in Kenya, celebrating an American holiday isn't all it's cracked up to be. For one, the kids had school that day. And two we didn't eat any turkey. But our table was full of family and for that I am thankful.

We are so blessed to have my (Joyellen's) brother and family live only 45 minutes away from us. They were already coming to school to pick up their oldest child the next day, so we had a fun family dinner and they spent the night.

We had a lovely feast of Indian food - Butter Chicken, Palak Paneer (A spinach and cheese dish), Curried Lentils, Naan Bread, Coconut Rice, etc. YUM!

(the thankful poster the kids and I made)

(the family feast!)

(Yum!)

(The cousins playing after dinner)

We did eventually have our turkey - on Saturday - once the students left and life settled down. We had a full thanksgiving feast with our small group. We have enjoyed this fun group of people for two years now - we meet weekly for prayer and praise. This year we started doing kid's praise songs with our families once a month and it is a highlight for me - doing all the motions, etc!

Anyway, our small group divided up all the meal items and we had a great feast! We borrowed a "Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade" DVD (from 2006) and it was great to hang out and relax!

(our small group)

(the kids' table)

(the feast)

(the grown up table!)

The same day that school let out..and the students left...and we had our dinner...was also the beginning of our Africa Inland Mission Spiritual Life Conference. It is held here at RVA, so it is a quick turn-around for us to gear up for the conference after a busy school term. But we really enjoyed it! The speaker, Pastor John Talley, was excellent. He spoke about the sovereignty of God, which is a huge topic, but was very thought-provoking and challenging.

The kids had an amazing kids' program. A team from California came and brought t-shirts, crafts, snacks, music, etc. The kids had a blast and we enjoyed the final night of conference where they sang a few of the songs they learned during the weekend. We felt so blessed to have this wonderful team that really invested in....and loved on....our kids!

 So.....family, friends, feasts, conference, great kids' programs, vacation.....we have a lot to be thankful for!!!!

Two Races and the Countdown

This was a busy weekend for our family. First, was the annual Pinewood Derby. This has been going on since the dawn of time at RVA and is a very fun day. Kids (and teachers) work for weeks on their wooden cars in preparation for the big race day. The cars race by age categories and there are winners for each each category - speed, unique design, best craftsmanship, etc. I love how this particular day really meets a need for certain kids. When we used to be dorm parents, we had a student who lived for Pinewood Derby. He wasn't into sports or drama but loved to work with his hands and every year he would hours in the woodshop, perfecting his car.

This year Megan was old enough to build her own car (they start at fourth grade). She made a snail car, which was super cute, but did live up to it's name when it came to speed! While disappointed at the car's speed, she was pleasantly surprised that night at the award ceremony to win a prize for most unique design for fourth grade!

Lyndsey, Ian and I made a car and entered it into the women's division. We made an RVA bus. It was very slow and didn't win any prizes (speed or design) but we did get a great comment, after it flipped on the track - "Your car wins the most authentic Kenyan driving award!"

On Sunday, Megan and I participated in another race. RVA hosted a ONE WORLD RUN, a 5k that raises money for AIDS orphans. It is run at the same time all over the globe. It was our first race ever - for both Megan and I . I have actually been running over a year and was not worried about finishing a 5k, but was very worried about the hilly course! I am a complete wimp when it comes to hills. I must admit, I thought by having a cute 9 year old by my side, it would cut me some slack if I didn't make it up the hill.

Well, I was wrong. Megan smoked me! She took off running at the start and I didn't see her again! I think we have a new runner in the family. :) All in all, we both had fun. We both finished well and didn't die of exhaustion - but do have some sore muscles today from all the up-hill running!

And lastly - our countdown! My parents are coming for Christmas! The kids call them "Babu and Tita" and they are SO excited to see them! It has been a very. long. three. years. since we saw them last so we can't wait for Dec. 15 to arrive.

Here is the countdown chain the kids and I made this weekend!

Everyone looks up to someone

Last weekend we finished up our 2011 Varsity Football (soccer) season.  It's one thing to end your season 6-2-1, find yourself in the semi-finals, then finals and ultimately in possession of the championship trophy.  It's an entirely different thing to end your season 6-2-1, find yourself in the semi-finals and be faced with defeat.  That's where we were this year.  The 17 young men that made up the RVA Varsity football team this year were an incredibly talented group.  From the very beginning of the season these young men made the decision to practice with dedication, play with integrity and lead with confidence.  Early on in our season I shared with them a quote from late basketball coaching great, John Wooden; "Remember everyone looks up to someone and someone looks up to you."  We found out how true that really was this year.  But what I found most interesting was that the people who look up to you most, look most intently not when you win, but when you lose.  Why?  Because they want to see "how" you lose.  Are you crushed, defeated, angry, ashamed, bitter?  Or are you able to pick up your head, look your opponent straight in the eye and say "great game...good luck in the finals."  The latter is exactly what this team did, not only were they beaten by one of the toughest teams we'd seen all season, but they were able to congratulate them, pray with and cheer for them at that finals.  This team has taught me a lot about the importance of winning but more the importantly how one faces defeat.

A Full House

We used to be dormparents for nine years, to 9th and 10th grade boys. Our house was never quiet. But there was also never a dull moment.We have since moved out of the dorm and have been living in a "single dwelling" for one and a half years. The first few months out of the dorm were so quiet and it felt strange to not have kids hanging out in our house all the time. I found that I had to be purposeful in my interactions with students. Those moments didn't just happen naturally like they had in the dorm. There are things I really miss about the dorm....and things I don't. But one thing I do know is that when I was a dormparent, I REALLY appreciated a night off, or some down time, in the midst of all the crazy-ness.

So that is why we open our home to kids. To be purposeful in our relationships with the students. To give the dormparents a night off. To have kids hanging all over our furniture again. We find that we don't have to plan a million things in order to bring the kids in. They just love to have a place to hang out. A place to call home. So whenever there is a random weekend with out much going on, we put the word out that our house is open for hang-out time and it usually fills up.

Our own kids really love these nights too. Ian will drag out his Bible man costume and light saber and challenge the big kids to a fight on the lawn. The girls love to sit by the bonfire with the big kids or jump in on a game of Scrabble or Apples to Apples.

We love our job! Where else can you hang out with kids and play games and call it work? :)

Fall Colors

I miss seasons in America. I especially miss the crisp fall air, the leaves turning color and slowly dropping to the ground, the outings to the pumpkin patch, the apple orchard, and of course.....apple cider and donuts!

HOWEVER.....I really can't complain too much. After all, we get fall colors too. They are just more brilliant and well...different! Every year at this time, we get the "short rains" (the "long rains don't come until May or June) and we get some vibrant colors.

the beautiful yellows and golds of the acacia trees...

the lovely lavender of the Jacaranda trees...

the red bottlebrush tree and the green cactus...

close up of the Jacaranda....

the ever-blooming bougainvillea bush... 

that comes in so many different colors...

and back to my favorite...the Jacaranda!

I am so thankful for the beauty around me!

Pray for Peace in Kenya

In recent days the Kenyan government in conjunction with the Somali government has launched a military operation inside the Somali border with the intention of eliminating the Al Shabaab presence.   In response, the Al Shabaab has issued statements of their intent to retaliate with violence against major Kenyan targets.

At this point, our AIM leaders are just raising the level of awareness and reminding us all to be wise and alert in our daily schedules. We are not taking unnecessary trips to Nairobi (which means my grocery list is getting really long!) and we are keeping our eye on the news. 

In the midst of this unsettling news, we rest in the TRUTH that God is still God. He is in control. If I can steal the quote from my friend Jenny  - "Safety is not the absence of evil, but the presence of God."  We rest in God's sovereignty during this time.

Yesterday I was reminded of the story of Moses, leading the Israelites out of Egypt, with the Egyptians chasing after them. When they looked up, they saw the pillar of cloud to guide them. But when they took their eyes off of God and looked behind them to the enemy, they panicked. We need to stop looking at all the things around us that instill fear, but rather keep our eyes focused on God.  

As Moses said to the people before they crossed the Red Sea, "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring to you today. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still. "

So we wait and trust and pray. Pray with us for peace in this beautiful land of Kenya.