The three orphans -The whole story so far

THE THREE ORPHANS

At the beginning of our trip in October 2006, I met Carol. Carol was the house girl for a couple who used to live with Laz and Liz. This was at the beginning of 2006 when Alan started living in the same house and that’s when Alan met Carol. Sometimes Carol would wake up during the night to pray in tongues.
Carol told us she has two younger sisters, aged 13 and 9 and her dream was that one day they would live together. At present the sisters are living with their grand-mother up country and Carol would go visit them whenever she could get the money to travel, which was not often. When she goes back to her village she would live in her pastor’s house because the grand-mother does not want her. Her grandmother considers her an outcast because she was born out of wedlock. Her grandmother also blames her being cursed for her mother’s death. The grand-mother also neglects her sisters, so much so that sometimes they have to beg for food in the streets because they were hungry.
We told Carol that we would pray for them and that with God all things are possible.
We did not hear from Carol for the next few weeks and we thought that we were not able to help her. A few days before Christmas, Carol called to tell us she was quitting her job and was going home to see her grandmother to ask her to let her sisters come with her. We discussed with her that if this was possible then we would do what we can to help her. We were surprised that a few days later Carol called to say her grand-mother is letting her sisters go and that she would be back on the 29th December with her sisters. We were not prepared for this but we told Carol we would have things ready for them when they arrived. We realized that this was the beginning of a long term commitment to them, believing it was of God, we trusted Him and went ahead in faith.
After much discussion with Pastor Lazarus and Elizabeth, they agreed that the orphans would take over our bedroom and live with them as part of their family. They would become the girls’ guardians. Carol would work as their house-girl not only taking care of her sisters but also Abby and Desi, Lazarus and Elizabeth’s children. Our part being that we would continue to pay the rent of the house to support them.
The next few days we were busy shopping for beds, mattresses, household things, toiletries, bed-sheets, some clothes, all the necessities that the orphans need to live there.
The orphans came with the clothes on their back and a change, nothing more. We vacated our bedroom and moved to the small room that was used as a storage room.
The orphans came on the 29th December and they were very happy. They were very shy at first especially Jessica who would not even answer a question. After a few days I was able to get her to smile. Wilbroda is more alert and playful and will come to you. Jessica, Wilbroda, Abby and Desi got along well together. Carol looked after the household, making the meals and taking care of the girls. We felt good about the whole arrangement and believed they would be a happy family.
We had about 10 days with them before our departure on January 8th. There were lots of things to take care of. Carol had been coughing a lot even after taking anti-biotic and we feared she might have TB. Wilbroda had a bloated stomach and looked like a 6 year old. We took them all to the health clinic for TB and HIV tests. When tested Carol and Jessica had neither TB nor HIV. That was a big relief. Wilbroda was the one that tested positive for HIV and she also has TB. We took Wilbroda to a Catholic health clinic not too far from where we lived and she was registered there as an on-going patient and we knew she would get good care there. They told us her chances of survival is very good. When we left Wilbroda was already looking much better.

Wilbroda is now going to school like other children; she is one of the brightest in her class. She is prone to get sick easily because of her conditions, but with proper health care she can get better and better.

Jessica is also going to school and is doing well. Elizabeth told us she has learned Kiswahili fast and is also learning English. She gets up at 5.00 a.m. everyday to go to school and she comes home at 5.30 p.m.

Update, October, 2007

We had news of Wilbroda that she was very ill and had to be taken to hospital sometime in July/August. We had already run out of money that had been raised to support the 3 orphans but we felt we needed to raise the money for Wilbroda’s medical expenses. We continued to tell people about Wilbroda and money came in for her support. We were able to pay for Wilbroda’s hospital bills. Wilbroda got better and returned home.
A week before we left for this trip, October 22nd, we get an urgent email from Lazarus that Wilbroda is very sick again and needs to be hospitalized. We were anxious to see Wilbroda and we pray that God will make her get well again. When we arrived, Lazarus told us that Wilbroda is recovering from pneumonia. Again we were able to pay the hospital bills. Wilbroda is now back home again.

There has been a great deal that has happened in the year we were away and we are now faced with the consequences. We are not discouraged and we truly believe that God is in control. Romans 8:28 says “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

After we left, Lazarus’ mother had been taken seriously ill and needed 24 hour care.
The 3 orphans had been moved out of our room and the mother moved in and a nurse hired to look after her. Besides being moved around, Carol did not get along with Elizabeth and we do not know the whole truth but the facts are that, Carol left the household to be a house-girl elsewhere. Lazarus did not communicate this to us. During the year, we heard news that the 3 orphans are no longer living in our room. We were very upset and we did not know how to proceed. After consulting with Ralph and Donna Bromley (HFTN) we decided to continue with our support to the orphans. Now we found out what had taken placed. We are disappointed at how things have turned out.

Lazarus and Elizabeth told us that it is a great burden to them to care for Wilbroda because of her condition. Jessica is the one doing well and a great help to them as she is helping with housework and taking care of Abby and Desi. Carol is pregnant and they are not sure what the solution is.

All this revelation in one day was like a ton of bricks came crashing down on us. I was very much saddened at what had transpired with Carol. I spent the next day praying for Carol. Alan also had some words for Carol. We set a meeting with Carol, Lazarus and Elizabeth. We asked Carol what was the next step. She has hidden this fact from her pastor and is therefore reluctant to go back to her village to have her baby. Instead she tells us that in the Lua tradition the mother of the father of the baby is obliged to look after the baby and she therefore choose to travel to Mombassa where the grandmother lives. She will give birth to her baby there and then she will leave her baby with the grandmother and return to Nairobi to work. We ask her what about her sisters? Since we are helping her sisters all because we wanted to help her, it looks like Carol is only worried about herself now. Perhaps this is understandable.
All she wanted was money to go to Mombassa and that after she gave birth she would be able to return to Nairobi. Alan told her it looks like God is showing us she is in a spiritual battle and that she is running away. She needs to have faith in God, face her mistakes, go back to the village and tell her pastor all that has happened. But Carol is not willing to do this, she is decided on going to Mombassa, and she tells us that there is a home in Mombassa that will look after HIV children like Wilbroda. We all disagreed with her, it made no sense to us that she should be taken so far away to Mombassa and we believe that we can help Wilbroda be placed in a home for HIV kids in Nairobi. Since Carol is now 20 and an adult we told her we will not force her to do what we believe she should do.
It looks like the best solution for Wilbroda is for us to find a home for HIV children where Wilbroda will get the care she needs. This is what the situation is now.
Pray for God to open up the way for us to help them according to His will.

Update, November 19th 2007.
We have heard from Lazarus that Carol insist on taking Wilbroda to Mombassa and so they were not able to stop her. Carol has gone to Mombassa and has place Wilbroda in a home for HIV children there. We now hope to be able to visit Wilborda in Mombassa when we go there in the beginning of December.
We have yet to figure out how to help Jessica and we all want her to finish school. Carol is saying she wants to place Jessica as a house-girl somewhere in Nairobi. We are looking into the legality of the situation in the hope that we can help Jessica stay in school.
Please pray for Jessica and Carol. We are not sure at this point where Carol is now.

Update December 2007
We met with Lazarus and Elizabeth and Jessica in December and we told Jessica we would like to continue to support her so that she can continue going to school. Jessica told us this is what she wants to do.
Lazarus has spoken to the pastor in the village and the pastor has spoken to the grand-mother. The grand-mother has given her approval for us to take Jessica to Kitale so that she can live and go to school there. Alan and I are very happy at this news and we thank God for it.
Jessica is now in Kitale and living in the orphanage run by Deliverance Church. She will be going to boarding school in January and when school is closed she will live in the orphanage. Alan and I are committed to supporting Jessica till she finish her schooling. She is at present going to Standard 6. She is 14 years old and because she did not have much schooling in her village she is a bit behind in her studies.
When we spoke to Jessica about this arrangement she was very happy about it and now we hope she will settle well there.

Stories from the notebook of Esther, 2006

WHAT’S IT LIKE LIVING IN AFRICA?


My first story November 2006

Where we are staying there is no fridge, no stove, and no oven. There is no heater for hot water in the bathroom. So if you want hot water to take a bath, you need to boil the water first, and to boil water you need to learn how to light a paraffin stove. At first I was afraid to learn how to do this as it looked a bit dangerous, meaning it looks like you can get your fingers easily burnt, but once I got the hang of it, it was fine. However, it takes a long time for the water to heat up, and so what you do is buy an electric kettle so you can boil water fast. This we did and I truly am grateful to the guy who invented electricity.

My first experience of inconvenience is taking a bath. There is no hot water, and if you want a shower you do it in the bathroom outside, just behind the kitchen. I decided I could survive without taking a shower. So a couple of days later after we acquired a kettle, and that was the best investment we could have made, I was preparing to take a bath when no one was home. I was boiling the water and Alan said he’ll go to the internet café and I’ll go ahead and enjoy my bath. I had already turned on the kettle twice and was boiling the third pot, you see I wanted to wash my hair and decided I needed that much hot water! I had my shampoo, conditioner, towel, soap etc. everything ready for my bath, as I went into the bathroom, the light went out- no electricity, so the kettle stopped and I decided ok, I have to make do and have my bath without the third pot of hot water, so I got my flash light and lit a candle and off I went to the bathroom for my bath. I had just started when I heard Alan calling me, “Esther are you alright?” Guess he was worried and I said I was fine, it was lucky that the electricity went off before I started my bath, better that I had less hot water than be caught in the dark whilst I was washing, that would have been worst, and I thank God for this blessing.

Talking about electricity, this is something that sometimes might be cut off suddenly, so what you do is be sure to have a flash light with you wherever you go during night time, I mean like when you go to take your bath, bring the flash light with you. For sure, when you go out after dark you need the flash light so you can see where you’re going; here there are no street lights. This advice you must heed or else you might fall into a ditch, and I am telling you this from experience, because this is what happened to me one time even though Alan had a flash light but I was walking in front of him, and I thought I was walking on solid ground, but suddenly I was screaming as I fell into a very muddy ditch, as it had been raining quite a lot the last couple of days.
In Malawi when the electricity fails you really feel it because your fan stops and you wonder how long you can last in the heat without it. While we were there the electricity failed only every day, but not for too long at a time.

Cooking takes double time to do as you know there is only one paraffin stove, so to make a dinner, I need to cook one thing at a time, I have to try and cook just enough for the meal and have no left over. Not having an oven is something I miss too. What I really miss is not being able to have a cold drink or a nice cup of tea when I want, because sometimes there is no milk. Come to think of it, this is just the simple things in life, but if you live in Africa, the simple things are a luxury.

Water is another luxury item, here there is water rationing, usually its supposed to be cut off during the week-ends, so you stock up on water on Fridays, the water gets turned back on Mondays, but sometimes it doesn’t come back till Tuesday or Wednesday, or it gets turned on Monday and then on Tuesday you have no water and then it gets turned on again on Wednesday. Sometimes you might be washing your laundry, by the way I have been doing our laundry the old fashion way, by hand, and in the middle of your washing you run out of water. So this can be quite annoying, you just have to leave your washing in the wash basin and finish doing it when the water comes back on.

Transport in Nairobi is like nothing else I’ve experienced in the world. There are so many people in the city, all walking any where and crossing anywhere and everywhere, people pulling carts carrying stuff here and there, and the roads are just always filled with cars, trucks, matattus, bicycles, all seem to be going at a fast pace and trying to cut each other out and turning whenever they can, stopping only when it looks like you’re going to hit someone,
I’ve lived in Hong Kong for over 20 years and when you travel on the bus it can get very crowded, but in Malawi it’s something else, imagine being in a mini-bus fitted with 14 seats for 14 passengers and you are in it with 23 others!

So what’s it like in Africa?
My biggest trials would be the mosquito bites I am getting. The first week I would say that I was not bothered at all, I made sure the mosquito net was properly put in place, I burned the mosquito coil in the bedroom before we go to bed. By the second week we noticed that the bites swelled up and some bites are worst than others, they turn red and get very itchy. Alan enquired at the pharmacist what would help me and he suggested that I take antihistamines. I told Alan he should just get me some lotion/ointment to put on my bites. We delayed getting them, I am always reluctant to take any form of medication, and I just used an antibiotic ointment that Alan already has, they seemed to give me relief even though they didn’t last, I survived, till we got to Mombassa, I seemed to be getting more bites and I felt more itchy and more discomfort, I started to put the mosquito repellent on me before we go out, and then before we go to bed. Finally I started taking the antihistamine pills and they seem to help me. So, before I go on, I must say that this trial is really not a burden at all, even though Alan can see that I am bitten all over, like I have the measles, I am well in body, mind and spirit. I remember coming out of the bathroom one morning and told Alan of my triumph- I said to him, you know what life’s little pleasure is? It’s killing a mosquito, and I wrote a reply to Trisha who sent me an email that morning, and I told her that I have turned into a killer!




Thomas

Thomas is a peanut vendor that we often buy peanuts from. The first time we met him, alan struck up a conversation with him and one of the things they talked about was why there were so many different kinds of churches. Since then, every time we see him we buy some peanuts and alan would have a chat with him. Thomas has been asking questions and Alan soon gave him a bible. Before long we also met his wife, Ruth. Then we found out that she had had a miscarriage and was hospitalized, it was very frightening for them as it was very serious, and Thomas even thought she might die, but thank God she recovered.

On the last week of our stay, alan told Thomas that the coming Sunday, it would be our last Sunday here and that he would be speaking. Thomas said he would come with his wife. He knew where Restoration Miracle Church (RMC) was. So on Sunday, January 7th, 2007, our last service at RMC before our trip back to Toronto, Alan gave his testimony and I took some pictures of it. At the end of the service Pastor Laz had an altar call and Thomas and his wife and a couple of others came forward. Tears were in Alan’s eyes as he watched Thomas speak. He said, it was Alan that brought him here, he befriended him and now he wants to have Jesus again in his life. He had not said the word Jesus for many years because he had lost his faith. But today he knows Jesus is here and he wants to start over.
We prayed for them and we prayed for some other people who wanted prayers. It was a very happy ending of our time in Africa.

The Rest of 2006

Our last day at Victoria Falls, December 10th, 2006

It was to be an easy day as nothing was planned. We asked Becky and Katie if they wanted to go with us but they just wanted to hang around the pool. We decided to go off on our own. We went back to Victoria Falls, we still had our entrance ticket from the day before and we wondered if they would let us in, they did. Yesterday we were on the opposite side of the fall, we decided to walk on the other side of the fall where the water was coming from. We saw a young couple with a guide passed us and Alan said they are going to cross the fall to Livingston Island. Guides are all around as we entered to get business, they charge $25 US to take people to the island and back. We watched them and saw how they crossed and then Alan asked me what do you want to do, and I said I want to cross the falls. So he said “Let’s go”. It was an experience I will not forget. I had to take off my sandals and walk along the edge of the dam, under the water there is a concrete slab and I imitated the people who crossed and walking side ways, moving my right foot and then my left foot, one leg at a time, very carefully as I am walking against the currents of water. At the middle of the fall the currents were very strong and there were moments when I was scared, but Alan was holding my hand all the time, and it looked to me that he was having a hard time crossing in the water, at one point he took off his shoes and I think that was not a good idea and he put them back on. When we got through this part of the fall we got on land and we were able to walk bare footed, most times we had to cross shallow water, there was one part where it was too deep for me to walk across and to my surprise Alan carried me upside down over his shoulders. We went about as far as we wanted to and after there was not much else to see we decided to turn back. The trip back was faster as now we were just tracing back our steps. An African man was watching us as we safely crossed the falls again and he looked at me and shaked his head and I just gave him a wave and a smile.
We walked back to the Market place and I sat down for a drink and a rest and Alan went to find a victim. He talked to one vendor, Steven, who became very interested in what Alan was saying and he invited us to visit his village that afternoon. AT 1.15 our tour driver picked us up and we were back at camp for lunch.
At 2.30 we left the camp again this time on our own, Alan thought we might get a taxi but they were charging us double to get a taxi, they said the taxi had to come here to pick us up so they have to charge double. This was at the gate of the camp site and Alan told the guards there, a woman and a couple of men, that we would not have to get a taxi because God will provide our transport. The lady told us that we would have to wait a long time! But we started walking out of the campsite. We said a little prayer to God to please help us get transport. Just about 5 minutes walk a car left the camp and as he passed us he stopped. He asked us where we were going and he told us he was going that way and could drop us there. So our God-sent driver dropped us at Victoria Falls where we were going to meet Steven. Alan gave this driver something for his afford. Steven took us by taxi to his village, Makuni village. We walked around Makuni village and it was such a nice village, there were many mango trees everywhere. Not that this is unusual because we see mango trees all over Africa when we are driving along the road. But here the mango trees are in a different setting. We passed a hut next to a mango tree that had ripe mangos and Steven went over and asked the owner if we could have mangos and they gave each of us one. So we walked on eating our mangos. Do you know how they eat mangoes? They just bite off the skin and eat everything! We met Steven’s wife and we took pictures with them in front of their house. They have two little boys. This village impressed us very much. It was clean and well organized. We saw the clinic they have for pregnant women and we walked to the town where their market was. Steven took us to see his grand-mother who was sick. We went into the hut to pray for her. We gave her some candies and she held on to them. We got a taxi to take us back to the camp for dinner.
After dinner we were walking back to our tent and someone shouted to us and said “I now believe” and alan and I were trying to understand what he was saying, then he told us, remember this afternoon at the gate, I was there, you told the guard, God will provide you the transport …and then, we remembered. We were so happy that what happened was a witness to him. You see, you never know that whatever you do, somewhere, somehow, God is doing something in someone.



Our visit to Hope Village Malawi

Wednesday, Dec. 13th, 2006, we took the bus to Blantyre from Lilongwe and had arranged for Les to pick us up at 2.30 p.m. They took us to their club for a late lunch. Then they had to do their grocery shopping and we paid the bill as a blessing to them. It was an hour ride back to Malawi Village. My first impression on arrival is how hot it was. I didn’t remember it being like this.
We were taken to our room, and we left our bags as Alan wanted to see the orphans right away, we went to the first orphanage house and they were very happy to see Alan. In this house I met Tina for the first time, this is Alena’s little girl, the girl that was pregnant on our first visit here in October 2004. Tina is now one and a half years old.

Thursday, the next day Alan had woken up early and went to the morning prayer meeting. Later that morning, we walked around the village, took pictures of Les’ house which was almost finished, and then we went to Esther and Dave’s house, a couple from Holland now working with Les at the village, they have completed their house with Dave having worked with the builders to have it done quickly. We also went to the clinic, which is at present where Chris, the nurse, lives. Chris is also building her house which is close by, next to Les’ house. I cannot imagine living here and perhaps that is why they have to build such nice houses, with air-conditioners, to be able to live here.
It was very hot and we took morning and afternoon showers. Later in the evening we visited the second orphanage house and the children there all remembered Alan. They were very happy to see him again.

On Friday Alan was invited to speak at the morning prayer meeting. I joined the children at the afternoon daily program and taught them the song again and took pictures.

On Saturday, our last day here, we got a ride with the family to town as they needed to go do all their Christmas shopping and errands. We went our way, walking around town and then I played “bow” with the guards of an office building as I was too tired to walk any more. Alan left me there as he walked around some more. In the evening we all went to the Sucoma sugar estate club for dinner. It was a long wait for our food, and then on the way home we had a flat tire. It looked very much that someone purposely placed something on the road to cause it, someone was waiting to help us! But the men knew what to do. The tire was changed and by now Josh was vey ill and they wanted to take him to a hospital for a blood test as Chris, the nurse suspected that Josh might have caught malaria. So they drove to the hospital and we looked for the nurse on duty. It was pithced dark but Chris and I made our way to where the night nurse was. She said she had to call for the technician to do the blood test and we waited a good while to have this done. Finally someone arrived, the test was done and we went home.So it was a very trying time for all.

On Sunday we woke up early even though we slept very late last night, it was just too hot. Because Josh was not well we didn’t go to church as was planned. So we spent the morning just taking it easy, packed and said goodbye to the orphans and to everybody. Les and Jonathan and David took us to the airport. Our flight was delayed, this was sort of expected, so they left us at the airport and we finally left Blantyre at 5.20 p.m. after spending most of the afternoon there.
It was a good visit, we were glad to see the orphans at Hope Village again and to see how well they are all doing.

2006 (what we started out to do)

What we started out to do.

James 1:27 This is pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father, to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.



Fund-Raising

We made a few presentations of our trip to Africa and donations made were set aside for orphans and widows, the vision was to have an orphanage similar to Hope Village Malawi where a house could hold 6 children under the guidance of a Christian person, or couple. We did some fund-raising efforts which brought in several hundred dollars. The money raised during this time we brought on our trip in October 2006. At that time we did not really know what God’s plan was, but we believe that what ever money was provided would go to help orphans and widows.

There were 6 children Alan called the Ruai kids that Alan felt God had placed into his path to help. Alan met these children on his trip at the beginning of 2006. But as it turned out, circumstances showed us that we were not able to proceed



Our Trip to Africa, Oct. 22nd, 2006

We left Toronto Sunday evening, Oct. 22nd, 2006. At the time we checked in for our British Airways flight we discovered that our flight was delayed and the person who checked us in transferred us to another airline so that we would not miss our connecting flight in London. Off we went to check in for the Air Canada flight and lo and behold, the longest line I had ever seen. There is a reason for everything and as it turned out, during the waiting in line, Alan was given the opportunity to witness to an Orthodox Jew, and for the first time in his life he was able to tell a Jew that he believes Jesus is the Yeshua we’ve been waiting for. The reaction was clear and abrupt; he turned away and acted like we weren’t there any more. Maybe it made a bad day for him, but it made the day for Alan. Not long after that there was an announcement for our flight and we were pulled out of the line and given priority check-in. We boarded the plane; the captain announced that there would be a delay! We decided we were in God’s hand, if we miss our flight we miss it.
As we arrived at Heathrow Airport we realized we were going to miss our flight to Nairobi. It turned out to be a blessing, as you might have guessed we were quite stressed out, we had a good rest at the hotel where we were able to enjoy the sauna, lunch and dinner and a goodnight sleep, all compliments of British Airways.
We finally arrived in Nairobi at around 9.00 p.m. on 24th, Tuesday night. However, one of our bags did not arrive, and so we were delayed getting out. But God was taking care of things for us because the next day our lost bag was delivered to our door steps!
I would like to mention here that at the end of the trip I counted from Oct. 24th to Jan. 8th, we were 77 days in Africa. I wonder if there is significance to this, because had we arrived on Oct. 23rd we would be 78 days in Africa.



The Trip to the Pokot Market

We have been in Churo since Saturday, Nov.11th, 2006, and we were supposed to leaving On Monday, but because we were told that there is a market day on Tuesday mornings where the Pokots from the surrounding villages come to do their shopping we decided to check it out. We were interested in the Pokots because the school has been telling us about the girls’ school that they have started just 2 years ago. These girls who get to go to school are saved from being circumcised as they are away at school. I was horrified by this information and I felt such a sense of hopelessness that in this day and age we are still doing such inhuman things to our own people.
So early Tuesday morning we were up and waiting at the school before 6.00 a.m. as we were told to be ready for, but forgetting that they were running on African time, we did not set out till 8.15 a.m. The ride to the Pokot village was not too bad and we arrived at the market place at around 9.30 a.m. and the people were just setting up. It turned out that the Director's wife has a business selling animal drugs and so that was why we had to go there so early. The market actually will not get busy till about noon. So we just walked around the village, I had to relieve myself real bad by now, and Alan said I will just have to go somewhere and do it, so we walked away from the market place into the inside of the village, and then we walked away to some where I could hide, and I did what I had to do. Alan was having fun; he wanted a photo of me in action!
We walked back to the market place, and we met a Pokot girl named Esther, I chatted with her for a bit and later I asked Alan to take a picture for us. I was glad that I met Esther. She is a Pokot and she is one of the fortunate ones as she went to school, she finished Standard 4 and soon after she got married and she now has 2 children a two year old and a baby. She told me she is very lucky, because her mother was converted by a missionary, she became a Christian and her mother hid her and her sister when it was time for girls to be circumcised. They went to live with their aunt and she went to school and finished high school. She is married to someone whom she herself picked and now she is trying to earn a living by selling stuff here at the Pokot market. Her story lifted my spirit and sense of hopelessness for these people. And in my heart I thanked God for that missionary who converted Esther’s mother and her story is a witness to God’s servants who are following their calling to save every soul on earth.

We watched different groups going around the market, there were a few Pokot girls that Alan wanted to take a picture of and one was very shy about this, and every time Alan went near them, she would run away. After some persistence Alan was able to get a picture of them. Then there were another group of young Pokot men, I would call them just teens, they wore some kind of head ornament, and they carried a stick and a stool, which were the signatures of them being considered adults. There was this group that Alan took pictures of. They were just standing around and letting Alan take their pictures, and then afterwards one of them came over and asked Alan for 200 shillings, so Alan said no. And we walked away. This boy followed us and after a time, he again told Alan that he owed him 200 shillings for taking his picture. At this point Alan decided he had to give this boy a lesson and he looked for an interpreter. So we found the Director who translated for Alan and told him that he doesn't deserve to be paid, and if he thinks we have no right to take his picture, we would gladly delete the picture we took of him. After much explanation he just walked away. After a couple more hours we felt there was nothing much for us to do there and fortunately there was a car to take us back to Churo.
We walked around the village in Churo, we met a few women who were having lessons in the afternoon at a church house, and they were very happy to meet us. Alan asked them, if there was something we could do to help them what would it be. They said an orphanage, because there are many children without parents, and they just have to take in these children because there’s no one to look after them.


A day I will not forget

Our Trip back to Nairobi, Nov. 15th.
Alan had arranged with a mini-bus to reserve the 2 front seats for us and for that we would pay an extra 100 shillings. We were told to be ready to be picked up at 5.00 a.m.
We were ready and this time, they arrived pretty on time, at 5.10 a.m. It was another rough ride but we got back to Marigat. Again, because of the Esther anointing, we ran out of gas and we waited a bit till another mini-bus came to take us to the town centre at Marigat. At Marigat we waited not too long for the minibus to Nakuru,
At Nakuru we found the mini-bus to take us back to Nairobi. It was supposed to leave right away, but of course this was not the case. It was too hot for Alan to wait in the bus, so he stepped out to wait and stretch his legs. I was sitting next to the window and it was slightly opened and every vendor was trying to sell me their wares and I turned them all down until the ice-cream vendor tempted me for an ice-lolly. Now this is not the same as the lollies in Toronto, they are homemade lollies and has a different taste, ice-cream without the creamy taste is as best as I can describe it, you probably think I have weird tastes, anyway being quite hot already I wanted it, and Alan happened to just come by the window, so I told Alan I just bought an ice-lolly and would he like one. Here again Alan has a good story to tell, I made the mistake of not asking the price first, and when the vendor charged me double the price, alan made a big issue of it giving the vendor a lecture on stealing. Ten minutes later the bus left for Nairobi.
Now here is where I would say was one of my worst suffering on this trip so far. After about half-hour into the ride, the trip would last another 11/2 hour and I needed badly to be relieved. I kept this to myself and didn’t complain, all the while just praying and asking God to help me survive. Each minute seemed like an eternity until we arrived in Nairobi at about 2.30 p.m. By this time we have been up and on the road for 9 hours so you can imagine how tired we were. Alan said let’s just go straight to the mini-bus stop and get back home to Donholm, and I told him that I needed to go real bad. To my surprise he said I’d just have to wait till we get home. I looked blankly at him and thought to myself, I should have complained all the way on the bus so he would know what condition I was in. Well I just walked ahead of him to a big building that looked like a decent place where I could find a washroom. It turned out to be a hotel, so I said let’s just go to the hotel. He did not think they would let me use the toilet there. I didn’t mind him; I went straight in and into the restaurant and asked the waiter where the washroom was. Alan took my knap-sack and waited for me. When I got out Alan was seated at a table looking at the menu. It was a welcome sight as I was very hungry. Now why am I telling you this incident? It’s another witness to how God is so good at looking after us in all the necessities of life. We had one of the best meals we had in Nairobi, and the price was reasonable too.
We arrived home by late after-noon and we planned to treat ourselves to a sauna at the end of the day. So after a little rest that evening we went to the gym which was just a 10 minute walk from the house. After the sauna we were walking home and just as he was telling me to be careful as he fell into a ditch one night going home, I suddenly let out a scream, I had just fallen into a ditch! Alan got me out and I was soaked through from the waist down to my shoes and socks. I couldn’t believe what had happened to me, I was feeling so good, all clean and feeling refreshed after the sauna with my hair washed and now here I am all dirty again, not just dirty but I was dirty from the muddy ditch! You can imagine how I felt. We arrived back at the house with Laz and Liz just finishing dinner and Alan started to tell them the story and he told me to just stand still where I was standing, just in front of the kitchen door so as not to dirty the whole house, whilst he went in to take the camera so that he can have the picture as evidence of what happened. Well, I had a good laugh with them.


Trip to Mombassa, Nov. 21st - Nov. 25th

Tuesday, Nov. 21st was my house cleaning day. We were leaving for Mombassa at 9.00 p.m. that night and I thought before I left it would be good to come back to a clean room. So I swept the floor and using a piece of rage to wipe the floor on my hands and knees. I have also by now got used to doing our laundry when it is a nice sunny day. Lilian came and helped me make dinner together after dinner Lilian went home and Laz took us in the hired car to the bus station.

Wednesday, Nov.22nd

The ride on the bus was fine for me, however it was a bit of a trial for Alan as it wasn’t air-conditioned as it should have been and it was too hot for him. He survived the overnight ride and we arrived in Mombassa around 6.00 a.m. Alan knew where to get off when the bus was near the hotel, he asked the driver to drop us off, after a short distance on foot we arrived at the Excellent Hotel. We took a much needed shower and went straight out again for breakfast. We walked around and Alan gave Agnes a call. We would meet her for lunch at 12.30 p.m. Here I should tell you about Agnes, Alan’s success story, she is the very reason we have come to Mombassa. Agnes is an ex-prostitute whom Alan met on his first trip to Mombassa. Agnes had called Alan shortly after we arrived in Nairobi to tell him she is now working in a hair salon and said she will never go back to the streets again, she is also going to a church and her son is doing well at school. Before this call, Alan had been wondering what has happened to Agnes since he met her last.
We spent the rest of the day with Agnes, she did not speak English very well so we met her employer and she was able to translate for us. Agnes has some stomach pain and is worried about it. The employer took us to her doctor’s office near by so Agnes could be treated. He advised to get some tests done and x-ray and made an appointment for Agnes to see him the next day.

Thursday, Nov. 23rd.

We went to visit Florence, another ex-prostitute; she had a little boy who died just this March. Alan had spent a few days with her family on his previous trip and he wanted to see how they are now.
We found our way to their house and we were met with much fuzz by the whole family. I met Florence, Rose, Florence’s sister, her 3 younger brothers and her mother. I did not have a good feeling in this house, I did not feel at ease with the way the mother acted feeling that she was acting a part and I believe it is God's spirit giving me this feeling. We sat chatting with them and they gave us lunch, Alan took me aside to ask me what I thought about giving support for the youngest boy because he had wanted to support Florence’s child before and the child had died. However I felt this was not the right thing to do and I told him so and so he didn’t make the offer. After lunch they arranged for a taxi to take us to the beach area. We went to walk along the beach and then had some drinks at a restaurant. Alan asked them how far away are we to go back to the house and Florence said it was more than a half hour so alan said perhaps we should take the taxi back to their house. Again I did not have a good feeling about it and we didn't take the taxi but walked back to their house, it turned out there was a short cut and it was only a ten minute walk. I felt that Florence just wanted to be treated to another taxi ride because we were there. I was anxious to go home but they said the father should be home around 6 p.m. and Alan felt that we should see the father or else he would be offended. But by 6.45 p.m. and the father was still not home we had to leave and we said good-bye to them. After this visit, Florence sent Alan an email saying how sorry she was that she has decided not to follow God because she needed the money. She didn't want to tell us face to face as she knew it was something we would not be happy about. I believe God was taking care of things there as I sensed the whole time we were there, that something was not right.

Friday, Nov. 24th

We went to visit Agnes’ and her son Ben. It was good to see where they live and where Ben goes to school, we walked to their house and then went back to the main street to go back to Mombassa with them, and we wanted to buy them some stuff.
On the way back from their house into the main road Alan saw the sign “Mombassa Synagogue”. Alan wanted to see what this was, so we walked to find this place and after Agnes asked some people we were able to find the place. We met Joseph and it turned out that he is the Rabbi and Mombassa Synagogue is Messianic. Joseph invited us to the crusade they were planning for that evening. I am not able to convey here how excited Joseph was to have met a real life Jew.
He arranged for someone to pick us up at the hotel that evening. Agnes wanted to come and she would meet us there. Florence also wanted to come. We were picked up by them and the drive to the place was unnerving. In the end Agnes was not able to find the place and Alan apologized to her and asked her to go home. Florence was quite rattled as she told us that where we were taken was a very dangerous place to be! We did not know this, Alan preached and people came forward to be prayed for. This is one of Alan’s highlights of our trip.

Saturday, Nov 25th.

Agnes came with Ben to our hotel to say goodbye to us as we were taking the Coach bus back to Nairobi. We went to breakfast together and then walked to the bus station. I wanted to get some toy for Ben but along the way to the station we didn’t see anything we could buy. We were early so I told Alan I wanted to walk back to find something to buy for Ben, so he let me go and as I walked back I prayed that God would lead me there. After walking just a little while, I found a place and bought Ben 2 little cars. I felt it was God’s blessing.