Today I learned a valuable lesson: Never wear gum boots when someone tells you that you are going to walk somewhere and you have no absolutely no idea how far this place is…
Since I did not think this out thoroughly I ended up walking, what I was told later, was close to 18km round trip (aka 11 miles) in just rubber boots =( Needless to say the entirety of the bottom of my foot is one giant blister.
On the way back I reached to clear out one of my pockets of the old duct tape I had used and pulled out 50 /= (that slash-equals is the symbol for Kenya shillings). I don’t know why it made me so happy (because it’s only the equivalent of about 55 cents, but I guess it’s just the act of a random surprise that made me so happy.
Other little things that brighten my day:
1. Chapati – there is something about this overly oiled flat bread that warms my heart
2. Someone getting so excited that I said something to them in Kikuyu. Not even kidding they love it.
3. Chai – sometimes this tea is waaaaay to sugary, but I still love it (though not after being force feed 5 cups throughout the day)
4. My counterpart Esther’s laugh – it’s not even that funny or peculiar or anything but it makes me smile
5. A letter from home – honestly it can seem like nonsense to whomever wrote to me but trust me the sight of an envelope with my name on it sends me over the edge. (You don't even wanna see me when I get a package...talk about lack of propriety)
6. A kid yelling my name instead of Mazunguu – probably just because this takes me from being a 'thing' to being a person again.
7. Someone greeting me in Kiswahili and not English - I feel less like an outsider.
8. The stars – there is nothing like the stars at 7000ft on a clear non-light polluted night.
9. The smell of the Eucalyptus trees down the road from the Health Centre
10. Squelching around in the mud with my gum-boots. I'm 5 again.
No comments:
Post a Comment