... and Hands to Pray

The roosters began crowing at 4:30, but dawn arrived at 6 AM. Birds, dogs and kukus (chickens) congregated on the red dirt path in our neat green yard, all knowing they might be fed before we ate breakfast ourselves. Bena and I walked 1/2 hour to church, while Christiana traveled by boda-boda (bicycle propelled by a local driver) in order to meet Nan before she left the campus with Gerry for a harambee, an hours-long confirmation service and fundraising party, held at a neighboring parish. Eight of us gathered at St. Philip's chapel for Morning Prayer -- with music. There is rarely a service here without music; I think Kenyans must be born singing. The excellent homily was about servanthood, and even the sheep in the doorway chimed in on the Alleluias.

We shopped for fresh avocados and pineapples (135 Kenyan shillings, about $2 total, to complement dinner for ten) at the dukas en route home, then joined about 50 children at the Sunday Kids' Club back at Maseno Missions. I was introduced by Lordy, the group's leader, as "Princess Diana," to the giggles of the children, while Josh and Tilo taught them the gestures and lyrics for "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands." In a sweet tribute to the departing docs, several of those same kids came later to our front porch for a farewell serenade: "He's got Josh and Tilo in His hands, He's got Josh and Tilo..."

Emmah, our beloved housekeeper is off on Sundays, so we prepared homemade guacamole and chips, pasta and pesto for a "last supper" at our house with the Hardisons, neighbors Mary, a Peace Corps volunteer, and Liz, a Young Adult Service Corps (YASC/The Episcopal Church) teacher. A pleasant dinner was followed by a bedtime movie on Christiana's laptop computer. Six of us lined up in hard-backed chairs to watch "Zorro." It was a quiet night in Lake Wobegon.