December 5, 2003
Part of my dreams came true. I didn’t get to actually meet the Secretary of Human Resources in person, but I got to talk to him on the phone. That was fun. I had just happened to be picking up some of my women’s group members at the same building he was in Nairobi on Wednesday evening (3rd) and met a couple of Americans who were with him waiting down stairs. I asked them to say hello to him from the niece of a friend of his from Wisconsin and gave them my card. About 4 hours later, I got a call on my mobile and it was Tommy Thompson. I thought it was really neat that he took some moments out of his hectic schedule to call to say hello to me and chat for a bit. That human element is so important in leaders. I hope that quality will help him to be affected by whatever he has seen on his African tour that will give some resolve to promote real solutions being supported by the US in the fight against AIDS/HIV. Bone didn’t make it to Kenya, but I was able to see him interviewed by CNN before the concert in Cape Town and also to watch part of the concert itself. That is a small miracle for me as I am usually missing all the TV coverage of stuff like that as I don’t have access to it in the bush. I don’t usually mind not having TV but it was really nice to be in Nairobi and have the chance to see Bono singing live with some other very wonderful people who were also there. Tommy Thompson told me that Bono is a friend of his so I hope that means they have some of the same goals in terms of supporting the fight against AIDS.
Besides that bit of excitement, my time in Nairobi was really nice, if hectic as usual. We really had a good time with the marketing promotion but it is really hard work. The women from Ngurunit enjoyed it. They find Nairobi like an alien planet. I took several of them for rides on the elevators and escalators. One prayed the whole time we were coming down. I don’t think she liked the floor moving. We were able to establish some good connections that I hope will provide a steady outlet for the camel meat. The group’s honey is definitely a wanted product. We sold out everything and I have orders for more than we can supply. That gives me an opening for helping the women start to expand their honey processing and even start learning about bees and keeping hives themselves. At the moment they buy honey in bulk from producers, then clean and package it. With their own hives, the benefits will increase greatly.
Reuben and I just arrived back in Maralal from Nairobi. He met me in Nairobi last Sunday and we have been attending a forum on pastoralists in Nairobi. We had a booth there for the women to show their products and I was able to present a paper about the meat and milk preservation work at the forum on Wednesday morning. It was really exciting to see pastoralists in this country finally getting organized to stand up for their rights as an important component of the Kenyan people. Pastoralist people groups in Kenya are about 20% of the population and live in the 80% of Kenya land that is arid and semi-arid. Their way of life is about the only way these marginal lands can be useful. Yet, they have been marginalized for years by every government Kenya has had since colonial times. Education, land tenure, infrastructure, all is geared towards the settled, agricultural groups. This last week was organized as the Inaugural Kenya Pastoralist Week and gave a chance for pastoralist people to have a voice. Many groups of cultural dancers from all the different tribes were also there to perform. It was so amazing to see the different dances and dress of the pastoralist peoples. They were so beautiful and energetic. I was impressed by the diversity yet similarity of these different groups. I hope that everyone can learn to stop fighting and work together for the improvement of pastoralist lives all over the country.
So now I am back home after an eventful two weeks. But only tomorrow to organize and then Sunday we are off to our ‘real’ home in the bush, Ngurunit. The kids are there with Ngongo (grandma) and all their friends. I miss them. It will be good to get there and prepare for Christmas. Lots of cookies to bake and some serious resting to do. Maybe I will even get a cedar tree to decorate this year instead of the normal thorn tree we use. I don’t think I will ever lose my American idea of what a ‘real’ Christmas is. I always keep a few of my traditions going here in the desert, if modified a bit, for my children.
