Europe is not my only big travel trip; I also did a missions trip to Nairobi, Kenya in 2011 for three weeks to work in an orphanage and plant trees on a piece of land that is now their new orphanage.
I think many of us, when we think historically, think that the worst is over and we all live better lives now–when really this is a false truth. Canada has modernized and learned from the past– but learning from the past and having the resources to accustom change go hand in hand. Some countries are not as privileged as Canada and still live in situations that many think no longer exist. This trip made me learn how privileged I am, and now when I look at it from a historical perspective I see a part of history that will forever live on: the power of service. Like the armed forces and conscription, many did not want to participate but still did. Many realized that the benefits to others in the country outweighed the harm done and received while away. Sometimes helping can be uncomfortable and dangerous, but as we see in history, for change to come we all must participate to create a change.
The owners of the orphanage
Orphanage location for cooking and eating
On the walk to the orphanage- in the slums
Our welcome from the kids at the orphanage
We made sock monkey stuffed animals for the kids and they absolutely loved them!
(you can tell where the kids slept was not desirable- often two kids to a single bunk bed and tin roof/walls)
Soccer with the kids on the land that is now their new orphanage
Planting trees, which are now much bigger!
Birthday party for Turu… but she gave US gifts on her birthday
Where the kids go to school
The kids showed us you can have a lot of fun with two pieces of elastic
We did face paint and ‘tattoos’– they wished they were permanent
Happiness can come from almost nothing.
“Culture does not change because we desire to change it. Culture changes when the organization is transformed; the culture reflects the realities of people working together every day.”
-Frances Hesselbein
