Signs of Christmas

It has been a bit of a challenge to remember that Christmas is approaching.... given the lack of visual clues here in Nairobi. There are no lights decorating people's homes, very few Christmas items advertised in stores. And of course there is no snow (or cool temperatures even).

The closest thing to a real tree that looks like Christmas would be our neighbour's cedar.

But Santa has found his way to Africa -- there is a dancing Santa at the nearby Village Market; he sings "Yellow Rose of Texas" every time I walk by. There are also Santa billboards advertising Coca Cola and a local bank.

Max and Simon did particpate in a beautiful school Christmas concert. Max was a wise man (along with classmates Alex and Zite) and Simon sang in the chorale (along with classmates Sam and Josh).

The Kenyan people celebrate Christmas by ensuring that there will be food (including meat) on the table and that no neighbour will go hungry. A special Christmas treat is to eat chapatis -- but the high price of flour this year may make that an impossibility for some. They do not exchange presents or put up a Christmas tree. There is no money for luxuries like these. Children may receive a new piece of clothing or new shoes for the school year beginning in January.
The teachers at Rosslyn have a tradition of blessing the Kenyan support workers with a "gift bag" containing food items (flour, rice, oil, sugar, soap). The Kenyan workers are very grateful for this.

Clean Water

As Lisa wrote earlier in the fall, clean water is a precious commodity here in Kenya. I was reminded of this again today as I read in the newspaper that the water for our section of the city is scheduled to be turned off from Tuesday morning at 6:00am until Wednesday at 6:00pm and again it will be turned off from Friday at 6pm until Sunday morning.

The school has a bore hole (a well) which we can pump almost enough water to keep the school going for a few days as we have big water tanks on site that we fill during the night. For those of us who live on the school campus we hardly notice the water shortage. All the big houses nearby also have large water tanks that are kept filled.

However, this is not the case for the Kenyan people. Living in a 10' x 12' room, four to six people do not have running water; they either collect rain water to drink or carry water to their homes. Many of our Kenyan support staff who do not live on campus, take home large bottles of water when they leave at night.

Although I would like to be able to help all our Kenyan friends we realize that it is not possible. However, I know that we can help some. One of the projects I have been working on is to provide easier access to safe drinking water. I was able to purchase double water filters (as shown) for $100. This gives the Kenyan staff living on campus easier access. We now have a set on the east and west sides of the campus and they are being used daily.

The Eastleigh Pottery Studio produces a ceramic filter for individual houses. It filters out 99% of harmful bacteria and dirt. Each filter sells for 1000 Kenyan shillings (KSH) which is $16. We have bought several of them to give as gifts and hope to purchase many more as we can afford them. One family told us that they thought they would not own a water filter in their lifetime (because of the cost). They prayed that their young child would one day be able to purchase a filter; that child now loves to fill the top part of the filter with dirty water and watch it drip through clean and clear.

Unfortunately, the son of another Kenyan family we know was given some `bad`water a few weeks ago and developed typhoid. The medical bill for the doctor and his medicine was 4000 KSH which his parents could not afford. We have since given them a water filter and they are truly grateful.

Here are some pictures of these pottery filters. The full pottery ones are more expensive (1700 KSH) than the ones with a plastic base but both have the same ceramic filter which has been tested by the Departments of Health in the U.S. and in Kenya.

I will never again take for granted the blessing of having safe water to drink. Sometimes it is only when we do not have something that we realize its importance.

state of the art

Max and Simon participated in another swim meet on the weekend. This one was at the new Kasarani Aquatic Stadium.

The Moi International Sports Centre was built in 1987 on the outskirts of Nairobi. The Centre has a 60,000 seat football (soccer) stadium, a 5000 seat gymnasium, and the Aquatic Stadium.

These modern facilities provide a unique toilet experience. It took me a few minutes to figure out where to put my feet! And I am still not sure which way to face....... This style of toilet is very common in public washrooms (men and women's).The Moi Stadium hosts the local Kenya National Football (soccer) Team, called the Harambee Stars. The team has never qualified for the FIFA World Cup. In fact, in 2006 FIFA suspended Kenya from international football (soccer) play for corruption in its Football Federation (government interference). The FIFA World Cup Soccer is played every 4 years and is next scheduled for June 2010 in South Africa.

Cultural Richness

This academic year Rosslyn Academy has students from 40 countries. Each year the school celebrates this diversity with a Cultural Richness Festival. Students wear traditional clothing, bring traditional foods for an International Feast, and share dance, music, and stories from their country.

Under each flag students presented posters and information about their home country. Simon and Max got African braids and flags painted on their faces. Max and his classmates made Korean origami “quilts”. There were also performances of Ukrainian dance, Korean dance, a guest clarinetist from Korea, and international choirs.


Simon’s class prepared maps of their home countries – made from cakes and cookies.