There are always lessons to be learned, even among the poorest of the poor. 

And today we experienced just that. 

This morning, we started off with a great breakfast and after a lecture from Debra, our tour director, about the history of Kenya over the years, we headed toward the town of Nanyuki. In general, I would say based off of what we have seen of Kenya, the country is much more advanced compared to Tanzania. Yes, there are still the very poor homes built of wood logs and cement blogs, little children running around barefoot, and  families walking miles and miles for fresh water. But overall, the quality of life seems to be higher as families often own property, as opposed to the government owning the property which the Tanzanians use to plant crops, etc. Every few meters or so, you see a large, elaborate gate which leads to the private property of the families - may it be their home, or simply  their land which they use for animals/crops or have simply purchased to build on later. This was the most striking difference between the two countries - not the mention the fact that we saw actual strip malls (though very bare bones - not at all like what we see in America), parking lots, butcher shops/huts, and more. 

We then arrived at a private Spinners and Weavers shop in Nanyuki which was originally developed by the government as a way for women to hep sustain themselves. Here, the facilities have sheep they sheer, then the women, clean, dye, and make the wool into beautiful pieces including rugs, shawls, place mats and more. The women do not have to provide their own materials, and anything that they make which is sold, goes directly to them. This facility allows these women to learn a trade and thrive. Interestingly enough, t hey also allow the women to work from home when they have small children to take care of, which is a universal concept, but one I did not expect here. The women were so kind and welcoming - you could tell, they truly took pride in their work. 

From there, we traveled to a local school which was home to over 70 boys and girls of all ages. These children were all orphans, either abandoned by their parents, or simply brought to the shelter because the parents were no longer able to care for them. The younger children go to school on campus, while the older students go to primary school then return back to the orphanage to sleep. As you can imagine, this school was absolutely heart breaking, but felt very warm and loving all at the same time. Before we headed in, the tour director purchased boxes and boxes of food and other materials she knew the facility needed (Tauck regularly visits this school every two weeks). The group also brought along some things we purchased from home - Aunt Kathy and I gave 6 pairs of flip flops, pencils, pens, crayons, coloring books and a yo-yo. When we entered the property, the younger students immediately started singing for us - everything from the ABCs to Farajaqua. We then had the opportunity to actually hand the gifts we brought and sweets to the students ourselves, which was amazing. I sat down at a table with 4 boys who immediately started to play with the yo-yo. One little girl came up to me and picked her favorite crayon color and began drawing. They were so unbelievable sweet and had such a kind demeanour - even the poorest of the poor and the youngest in the world know the power of giving. Though I would have loved to spend the afternoon with them, we had to let them get back to their studies (though I wonder how they could possibly get anything done after the sweets we gave them!). We toured their dorms which were old bunk beds, some with mattresses and some without. This was very difficult to see and really made your heart ache for these children. You could tell though that these kids really saw this place as their home, as above their beds they drew their names, painted a flower border along the ceiling, and wrote "God is our protector"on the wall. For as little as they have, these children truly are rich in spirit.

While we may be leaving Africa soon, I think it is fair to say that these countries have left lasting impressions on me and I hope to be able to continue to give back to these communities for years to come.