That's not an emergency!

It was dark out and Joyce called frantic “Call Kim! Anna is really sick, she’s unconscious!” Anna is Joyce’s incredibly adorable 16 month old daughter. “Ok. Ok. I’ll call him!”, I said and hung up. Kim is our taxi driver and is the nicest guy you will ever meet. He always makes sure we are safe and doesn’t let us get out of the car alone at night. “Kim, it’s Ashley. Can you come to Mary’s house and pick me up? Then we need to pick up Joyce and her daughter- she’s sick. Unconscious. We need to go into Gilgil to the hospital”, I said. “Ok ok let me come”, he said. Thank God he wasn’t in Naivasha. I wanted to go with because a) I wanted to pay for the taxi and any hospital costs because I knew Joyce couldn’t afford it and b) I wanted to be an advocate for Anna and Joyce. Us muzungus seem to garner more respect…I wanted to make sure the best was done for Anna. “I called Kim”, I told Joyce. “I’m coming with you.” “Alright, thank you Ashley!” She was still frantic. “Is Anna doing any better?” I asked. “No, she is still unconscious!” “She’s STILL unconscious?!” I said shocked. “Ok, Kim should be here soon. I told him it was urgent.” “Ok, thank you.”


Almost 20 minutes passed by and he still wasn’t here. I called him again and as soon as Kim picked up he said “I am about to be there”. I could hear the urgency in his voice. Thank God. Soon I could see his headlights cutting through the blackness and I rushed to the gate to get in the car. Vumilia is a short but bumpy ride away and in the dark it is almost impossible to know where you’re going. We arrived there and you could not see a damn thing. In my head I think I was expecting porch lights or something, even though I had been to the camp every day for the past 4 weeks and I knew they didn’t have porches let alone porch lights. It’s like I forgot where I was for a second. Can’t a girl get some street lights or something?! But with no electricity we were forced to drive around illuminating each tent with the car’s headlights. “Are we getting close to the water tank?” Kim asked. That would me we were at the front of the camp. “I don’t know. I can’t see anything. Let me call Joyce.” I said. What I really wanted to do was roll down my window and scream “Joyce! Joyce!”, but instead I called her on her cell phone (don’t ask me how she keeps it charged without electricity). “Stay there! I can see you!” she yelled, a little less frantic this time. Finally we would see her running towards us with Anna wrapped in a blanket, her limp feet dangling. Joyce, her husband, and Anna piled in the back seat and off we went. “How is she doing? Any better?” I asked. Joyce said, “Yes, she woke up but now she is asleep.” I looked back, but could barely see anything. “Asleep or unconscious?” I asked. “Asleep.” Joyce said, relieved. Thank God.


I called my mom thinking that maybe she could offer some insight from half a world away. “Mom, I’m fine but I am in a taxi on my way to the hospital with Joyce, the teacher from school, her husband and her daughter, Anna. Anna is 1 year 4 months and started screaming at home and then went unconscious for about 10 minutes. She woke up but is now asleep. What do you think?”

“Hmm is she breathing? Put your hand over her mouth and see if you can feel her breath.” she said.

“Ok (reaching back). Yeah I can feel her breath.”

“Ok. Good. Is her heart beating? Can you feel her pulse?”

“Joyce, can you feel her heart beat?”

“Yes, it’s fast.”

“Yes, it’s fast.” I relayed the information to my mom.

“Ok, good. Kids’ hearts beat fast.”

Shit, mine was beating fast. “Ok we are on the way to the hospital.”

“In a taxi?”

“Yeah, Mom, it’s not like at home. Unfortunately. You can’t just call an ambulance. I don’t even think there is anything like 9-1-1. Plus, ambulances are expensive. If she couldn’t call me she would have had to walk to the road, in the dark, and try to catch a matatu. Just pray that one was passing by and would stop.”


I lost reception with my mom, and took the opportunity to get more information from Joyce. “What else happened?” I asked her. “She started screaming. She was already asleep so I went in to check on her and she started shaking. I tried to breast feed her but she bit my breast. Then she took my hand and was trying to bite it. I could tell she was in pain. Then she stopped shaking and went unconscious.” “Sounds like a seizure.” I thought. I called my mom back and told her the new information and then said, “You think she had a seizure?”

“Yeah, that’s what it sounds like. As long as her heart is beating and she is breathing just let her alone. She should be fine. Are you almost at the hospital?”

“Yeah. I hope they can treat her here. If not she has to go to Nakuru and that is 40 minutes away.”

“Well, I would think with a sick child as young as her they would treat her.”

“You would think. What kind of tests do you think she needs? A CAT scan?”

“Yeah, I would think so.”

“Ok. Hopefully they do that there.” I had already been at this hospital with the other teacher, Rose, and her three young kids, Felix, Jane, and Agnes. Felix (5 yrs. old) and Rose both had chicken pox, Jane (3ish) had thrush in her mouth, and, thankfully, little Agnes (2ish) was fine. It is a small, government hospital made up of small buildings connected by covered walk ways. All the waiting areas were open air- there was a roof over your head but no walls. When I was there with Rose it was cold and rainy, just what you want when waiting with sick kids. Although, since it is a government hospital, kids 5 and under are free. I have a feeling a lot of the kids that go there are 5. ;) Knowing all of this, I wasn’t that optimistic for Anna’s treatment (I would never send my kid there), but was really hoping she wouldn’t need to go to Nakuru. Besides being 40 minutes away, driving in Kenya at night isn’t exactly safe.


We get to the hospital and I hang up with my mom and we go in. There isn’t really an emergency room, just a treatment room, so we went in there. We go back and lay Anna down on the gurney and this is the first time I saw her in the light. Her eyes are open and she is looking around. My heart stops beating so fast, I’m relieved. The doctor comes over and, without examining her, says smiling “This isn’t an emergency!” I just looked at him. I wanted to say, “What IS an emergency?! How do you know? You haven’t even assessed her yet!” But, I just said “even though she had a seizure at home and was unconscious she doesn’t need any tests?” He just looked at me as if he was thinking “Who ARE you anyway?” He simply sighed and said, “we are going to examine her”. The examination consisted of taking her temperature. That’s it. As the thermometer was under her arm the doctor snickered to the nurse, “See her temp is normal. This wasn’t an emergency.” After the normal temp he proclaimed “I think what we have here is a case of carbon monoxide poisoning. Are you IDP?”

“Yes” Joyce replied.

“Do you cook with charcoal inside your house?” he asked. (Everyone does here)

“Yes.”

I wanted to say “She just told you she is IDP which means she live in a tent with no electricity. Where do you think she cooks, out on the deck? Retard.”

“Well charcoal creates carbon monoxide which can kill very, very easily. You shouldn’t do that anymore. You are very lucky.”

Joyce just calmly said “Oh, ok, I didn’t know that.”

“Ok, there is no medicine required. She will be fine. The ride over here gave her oxygen and fresh air now she is fine. I thought it was going to be an emergency. This wasn’t an emergency. This (pointing to some hunched over woman) was an emergency.”

I wanted to say “Ok, douche, next time her 16 month old has a seizure and is unconscious for 10 minutes I’ll just tell her to stay home. How the hell was she supposed to know it was something as simple as carbon monoxide poisoning? And, you yourself said it can kill very easily. I would classify that as an emergency, jackass.” But, we just thanked him and left. Kim was waiting for us, and he took us home. Anna was soon back to her old self and was smiling in the car. I saw her this morning at school and she was playing around and enjoying herself.


Anna holds a special place in my heart. At first, she was afraid of me because I am a mzungu and would not go to me. So, I had to slowly build up her trust and our relationship. I am not used to that. Normally, babies come to me with no problem. I love babies. I could hold them and play with them for hours. Now I can hold her and we joke around. She is so adorable! Maybe she is so special to me because I had to work so hard to get close to her. She was worth it, and I am glad she is ok.
Kim told Joyce that if she waits until the charcoal turns red and is no longer smoking then she can take it in the house with no problem. So, that is what Joyce is going to do. Hopefully there will be no more problems. On the way home Joyce said, “Oh, thank you, Ashley you are a true friend. I don’t know what I would have done. I thought I was watching Anna die. Thank you.” “Oh, Joyce, it was no problem. You can call me anytime. Well, for the next week anyway. And after that you can still call me.”


This whole experience made me thankful for so many things we Americans (and other members of the first world) take for granted. We know that if something happens we can pick up the phone and dial 9-1-1 and someone will answer and stay with us until help arrives. We know that if someone we love is sick or hurt they can go to a hospital and get treated properly. We don’t have to cook with charcoal indoors that is reserved to barbeques. The list could go on and on. I am so thankful that everyone else in the house was awake and her Anna cry. I don’t want to even think about what would have happened if they weren’t.

Peace&Love,
Ashley

Happy Birthday!

Monday June 13th

Today was a great day! Joyce, the middle and top class teacher, has six kids and today was two of her daughters’ birthdays. Lydia and Margaret are not twins but were born on the same day 2 years a part. I first met them on Saturday during outreach weekend when the group stopped at Vumilia. I was asking them how old they are and they said that they’re birthday was coming up on Monday. Joyce is so sweet and generous and so are her daughters, and I knew I wanted to do something special for them on their birthday. I was thinking something along the lines of a cake and a small gift. When I got to the school this morning Joyce asked me if I was going in to Gilgil today because, if so, she wanted to tag along and get a cake for the girls. Perfect! We agreed to meet around 2pm. We arrived in Gilgil and I was hoping to find a nice, fresh cake for the girls. I really wanted to make it special. I had seen plenty in Nairobi, but apparently they don’t really exist in little ol’ Gilgil unless you order two days in advance. Where is a Giant when you need one?! I have grown so accustomed to being able to waltz into a grocery store at any hour of the day and buy a fresh, personalized cake. We had to settle for a packaged heart-shaped cake with hard icing, but it was pink and it said Happy Birthday (albeit upside down), so we got it. I was a little disappointed because I really wanted to get something nice for these girls and their family since they haven’t had a nice birthday in 4 years (before the election violence). I also picked up some nail polish, remover, and a pair of clip-on earrings for each of the girls (plus the aforementioned for Lydia and Margaret’s younger sister, Rachel, and a backpack with a soccer ball on it for big brother, Harrison). I didn’t want anyone to be left out, but oldest brother, James is at boarding school, and youngest sister, Anna, is only 1 year old and was content with a lollipop- the markets here don’t have much in the way of toys.

On the way back to Joyce’s tent/house she invited me to come in. I was a little surprised by this. I would have been totally happy with her pretending she bought the stuff for the kids as a surprise or telling them that it was from a friend. I didn’t do this for the “credit”, and that’s not why I’m writing about it either- I want to convey just how rough these families have it and how incredibly appreciative they are of the smallest kind acts. Shortly after arriving at Joyce’s the girls came home from school, and were very excited to see cakes waiting for them. Joyce encouraged them to invite some friends in and before I knew it we were having a full-fledged party. It was fabulous. We all squeezed in to the tiny living room (that doubles as the kids’ bedroom) and sat on the small wooden benches anchored into the dirt floor. Thankfully, it had rained so it was no longer hot, and we all sat around under the blue tarp ceiling and sang “Happy Birthday” to the girls. After that it was cake time, and apparently it is Kenyan tradition for the host, me, to feed a piece of the cake to the birthday girl(s). After that they fed a piece to me- I watched as each girl picked the best looking piece and fed it to me. Then the girls fed a piece to their parents and everyone clapped and cheered. Next everyone got a little piece and was offered some orange punch. All of the kids had to share eight cups because that is all Joyce has- one for each family member. No one minded, and everyone enjoyed themselves. Lastly I gave out the presents, and I have never seen three girls more delighted in my entire life! They giggled and squealed and put their hands up to their mouth in joy. My heart sang. Harrison was so happy to see his new backpack. I’m sure his classmates will be jealous tomorrow. J They spoke to their mom in Kikuyu and she translated saying that they were so happy- that they had never had such a nice birthday. That they loved me; their new best friend, and they hoped that God would bless me and guard my path. Joyce said that the entire family forgot that they were living in a tent. I am so thrilled that I could brighten their day and make them forget their circumstances, if only for one day.

Today has been my favorite day, and is one I will never forget.



Peace&Love

Ashley

Warm Coke, Cold Beer

Saturday June 4-Sunday June 5 2011

Every weekend Fadhili runs an outreach weekend which gives volunteers placed all over to get together and travel to a few different slums/camps together. A visit to Hell’s Gate National Park is also included in the weekend for relaxation. Well, one of the camps that is visited is Vumillia, and we got to see all of them on Saturday. It was nice to see everyone again…some of them I had stayed at Pastor Regina’s house with. We were all comparing our experience with our jobs and home stay. One girl was all like “I lucked out…I’m staying at Miss Lydia’s and we have hot showers and everything”. Bitch. I say that only kinda serious, because although it’s hard living where we are, it is still a great experience. One I should be grateful for. It’s just tough to be grateful when you’re squatting over a whole. But, this is definitely an authentic experience that I will never forget. And, it’ll be something I can guilt my kids with when they are complaining about nothing. It’ll go something like this, “Oh you don’t want to clean that toilet? Too bad. Just be grateful you have a toilet to clean! Why don’t we just fly over to Kenya and you can see where they go to the bathroom. Then I bet you’d be happy to clean this toilet”.

After the being with everyone at outreach Cat, Nicole, and I took a taxi in to Gilgil and booked a night at a little hotel to get away for a little (hot showers, anyone?). Our hotel rooms were only 700 shillings a night- you can’t beat that. After checking in we went down to check out a market we had heard about. Being in Gilgil is definitely an experience. It is a little town made up of mostly working class people and the streets are always busy with bikes, cars, matatus, and motor bikes. Also, people are selling things everywhere. I feel like we get stared at a lot more here than we did in Nairobi. It’s a really odd sensation to be walking down the street and know that EVERYONE is looking at you. It’s hard to describe the different looks you get; some of the kids look at you like they want something from you, other kids look at you like “wow there’s a white person” and they giggle with their friends when you say hi. Most adults give friendly looks, and some guys give creepy looks. It’s hard to know how to respond. Should you wave and say hi to those you pass? I sometimes wonder if the adults feel like we are patronizing them….like do we think we are special or something and they should be happy we are waving/saying hi to them? I don’t know…I don’t know how to explain it.

After the market we went back to the hotel and went to the bar. Nothing, including water, there was cold except alcohol so I ended up having a warm coke in a glass bottle. Blegh. The three of us hung out there for a while and then had dinner in the restaurant downstairs. It was SO good! We got a couple orders of chips (fries) masala and they were scrumptious! Good, fresh fries with masala sauce on top. Mmm. Then I got chicken masala and a samosa. Samosas are kind of like Kenyan empanadas…really good. And they are only 30 shillings or 50 cents. I am definitely going to get more of those next time! Sunday morning we found an internet café and spent around an hour there. It was nice to be able to connect with people again. Even though it had only been a week since arriving it had felt like much longer. I did so much and saw so many things in Nairobi, and then the journey to Gilgil…it seemed impossible that it could all fit in a week. Saturday Nicole looked at me and said, “I could go for a pizza right now”. My response; “I could go for a hot fudge sundae”. I have a feeling that in a few weeks when I’m back home I’m going to be saying “Mmm I could go for some samosas right now”. I’m going to miss this place.

Volunteer Day

[Note: Ashley's internet connection, as you might imagine, is spotty at best and non-existent at worse. Posting pictures and blog posts can take considerable time with her internet connection, or it may just time-out and not upload at all. She is able to get a few emails off to me and she includes blog posts from her daily journal of the trip, so that is why the date posted and the actual date of the recording are different. I will post them as I get them. Enjoy! -Anthony]

Friday June 3 2011

Today we got to help teach, and it was a great experience. Joyce and Rose do their best and the kids seem to be learning a lot. Joyce teaches the middle and top class and she showed us the kids’ workbooks. They are mostly learning English and Math, I assume it’s the basics that they need to get into primary school. The school day is only from about 8-12, and the children get one break during that time. I haven’t been there that long, but the schedule seems to be; opening songs, math or English lesson, break, Ugi (flour and sugar porridge), story, home. It doesn’t seem like a long day, but I think the day ends around noon because it would get too hot in the afternoon. Also, I am sure it is hard to have in depth lessons with such limited resources. And, you have to remember, this is basically just up to kindergarten. After that they start year one at primary school. And the fact that it is multiple age groups doesn’t help either. Despite all of these difficulties the kids are eager to learn and most seem to be picking up on everything. The children are very eager to show you their work. They want to show the white teacher, and they will even write extra work to impress you. Elijah, a boy in the top class, is very smart and kept adding math problems to the bottom of his English work to show how smart he is. Very cute! Even though they can’t understand you they still look for sign of approval and can tell when they’ve impressed you. I started drawing smiley faces on their work after I correct it and the first couple kids I did it to eagerly showed off their “prize” to all the other kids. They talk to each other in Kikuyu (they don’t speak Swahili but rather their tribe’s mother tongue- which makes it even more difficult to talk to them) and point to it with big smiles on their faces. It’s amazing how appreciative they are of the littlest things; smiles, high fives, handshakes, etc… That’s another thing, they all want to shake your hand or give you a high five. All. The. Time. Also, during recess the children come up to you and just pet your arms or legs. They love my tattoo. One girl kept trying to scratch it off. Haha. They also put their hands around my arms as if to measure them. And they love to play with mzunga hair, which is unfortunate since mine is almost always dirty.

Even if you shower in the morning you feel so dirty by the end of the day because everything is so dusty. I wiped my face with a face wash wipe and it was all brown. Eww. When I put sunscreen on (which is like a million times a day) I feel like I am just rubbing dirt around. How pleasant. And, it’s impractical to shower daily because the shower isn’t really a shower but a bucket bath. And you take it in a tin shack that shares a tin wall with the pit toilet. Plus it’s dark and there are spider webs. Oh, and the water is only hot if Mary boils it for you first. Not exactly the best, but it will do. When I go on safari in a couple weeks we will be staying in an actual hotel with actual showers and actual toilets! I can’t wait. It’s amazing how appreciative I’ve become of the smallest things/conveniences that we take for granted and I’ve only been here for a few days. I can’t imagine how I’m going to feel at the end of this.

Donations and vaccinations and stereotypes oh my!

Over the past few months I have come to discover just how generous my friends, family, and complete strangers are. :) I am so grateful to be surrounded by such fabulous people! I sent out a letter to friends and family asking for monetary donations to assist with the cost associated with my trip as well as to buy donations for the children I'll be teaching. And, I am so pleased to say that I received A LOT of generous donations. :D I also asked the members of my folk group at church for some material donations (crayons, school supplies, coloring books, etc...), and was again blessed with generosity! One woman in the folk group has a child in 3rd grade and offered to ask her son's teacher if they would consider collecting items for me. I was so touched and excited when she told me that, but when she didn't mention anything to me about it for a couple of months I didn't think anything of it. I just figured it wasn't going to work out, and I was totally cool with that. Well, surprise surprise, she told me last week that his teacher had, in fact, collected some items. "Some items" is a massive understatement! I received half a dozen soccer balls, color wonder paper, markers, and paints, coloring books, notebooks, pens, pencils, and a box filled with watercolors, crayons, and markers. I can not even begin to express how grateful and appreciative I am! I got the name of the teacher at St. Ignatius that so generously made this cause her class' service project, and am planning on sending a thank you card and offer to come into the school next (school) year and show the kids pictures of the Kenyan kids they helped. Hopefully that will work out. I think the kids would really enjoy that!


My only "problem" with all this generosity is that now I think I have too much. Too much? I never thought I would say that. But, I am. I most definitely have too many things to bring with me. I bought an enormous suitcase that comes in a whopping 1 inch under the size guidelines imposed by Swiss Air and I already have the bottom almost filled with donations. I have come up with three options; 1) buy another suitcase and cough up the money for the excess baggage fee, 2) ship the stuff, and 3) take some of the donations and give them to local needy kids. Other than the extra fee, option 1 also presents another problem- I am going to Kenya alone, and am already bringing a (huge) suitcase, a carry-on, and a messenger bag/purse. I don't see how I am going to carry everything much less store it all in my home stay. I feel like what I am already taking is pushing it. Issues with shipping the stuff are; a) the cost and b) I have absolutely no idea where to ship the stuff to or how I would retrieve the things once there. And, so, I'm leaning towards donating the things I can't fit to local kids. But, I'm torn about that, too. I asked for donations for the needy kids in Kenya not the needy kids in Reading. Although, God knows they need the stuff, too. Am I somehow doing wrong by the donors? Am I being dishonest, or is it ok to give it to other needy kids? Hmm I think I'm going to have to think about this one for a little while.


Something else I am struggling with is something that was brought to my attention via a Facebook discussion on IVHQ's FB page. One girl asked a question about what things to bring for the children. And, another girl (that has already been to Kenya) answered by giving a couple of good ideas (stickers, crayons, etc...), but also cautioning to not give too many things as to not give into western stereotypes for example, "they think Americans are made of money and have tons of things to just give away". Of course, I already knew that I would be perceived as a "rich American", that is why I am not planning on wearing my wedding rings or other jewelry. I know it's impossible for me to completely blend in, especially with the blond hair and all. But, I never thought about "western stereotypes" in regard to my donations and the amount I am bringing. I certainly don't want to come across as some rich American that thinks she can change these kids' lives with a few stickers and packs of markers. I want to be generous and give the kids great things- things they need as well as fun things- without worrying about "rubbing in" my perceived wealth. But, aren't I going to come across as a rich American no matter what? Probably. So, now I guess I need to strike some sort of happy medium and really make sure I check with the appropriate people (i.e. teachers) before giving stuff out. Which is going to be really hard. I tend to treat every kid as though they were my own. If I have an ice cream cone, I share it. If I have a bag of chips, I share it. I can't help but share my treats with kids, and those are American kids with homes and parents and a school to go to free of charge. This is going to be tough.

I completed one of the last steps before going leaving- I got all my shots. It was surprisingly pain-free (except for yellow fever, that one hurt A LOT). I went to a travel immunization clinic and had an amazing nurse who explained everything and gave me a ton on information. As far as shots go, it was a great experience. :) I simply cannot wait to go! It's getting closer....only a little over a month now.

Thanks again to all my family and friends who made donations! And, thank you to all of you for reading this incredibly looong post. Stay tuned for more.

Peace&Love
Ash

Only the beginning...

First of all, I need to explain the name of my blog and give credit to the man from whom I am borrowing the quote. I got the name from Martin Luther King Jr's quote; "Everybody can be great because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve, you don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love." It is an understatement to say that MLK was an inspiring, wonderful example of what Americans, and all humans, should aspire to be like.

I am going to Kenya to do just what MLK proclaimed everyone should do, serve. I want to serve as many people while I am there and I hope to serve many more (people that is, not just Kenyans) after coming home. I believe that everyone, everyone deserves a good education, a family, plenty of food and clean water, and basic medical care. These things are not privileges for the privileged. They are basic human rights. While in Kenya, I hope to help some people acquire some of those rights. I know I probably won't be able to improve their lives in the long term, but I hope to improve their day-to-day lives for the short term. Maybe by doing that it will give them hope that there are better days ahead of them and people in the world who care about their wellbeing. Maybe that hope will inspire them to do good with their lives and take every oppurtuity, however small or infrequent, given to them in order to make a better life for themselves in the long term.

I created this blog as a way for friends anf family to follow my journey to Kenya. I'll be posting pictures and hopefully videos while I am there (and before I go). Hopefully you'll continue reading this....even though I can't promise I won't ramble sometimes. :)

Peace&Love,

Ash