Change is hard

More volunteers left this morning, at one point there were over a dozen here. When I come back in June I will be the only one!!! It's sad to see them go, a part of me thinks of when I will be leaving, you get jealous of the family they will see and the hot showers they will take. The young ones bring such life and laughter here. Still, the days go on, the rhythm settles into something new. New volunteers will eventually come.
A more difficult change is that which is happening in Nyumbani. As they transition from hospice to home they're putting lots of effort into getting the adolescents ready to go out in the world and live a longer, normal life. Part of that effort is as the kids get older they move out of the cottages into what they call the hostels. They're still on the compound but a little aside.There they have "mentors" and the emphasis is on teaching life skills. Well you can imagine the challenge of a house of only teenage girls next to a house of teenage boys!! Things weren't working well with the present mentors so they were let go. My beloved mum Ann of Cottage D was asked to take over the girls hostel! It's supposed to be temporary but we don't believe that. The D kids took it hard, for many she has been one of their only 2 mums. The little boys really cried, Mark said she could be there during the day but still had to sleep in D at night. Brian said it was the big girls fault they didn't have a mum, they couldn't have theirs! Ann did a great job of reassuring them, they will still see her everyday. The new mum, Grace, seems very nice. It helps that I too am still around everyday, it provides more consistency.
On Tuesday night the psychologist (English,grew up here, lived in Canada, Australia, and back in Kenya) invited my roommate and I to the Karen Country Club for a "Night at the Opera."! with her and her husband. They have digital and showed a video of an opera. It was actually great fun. It really is a part of Kenya's history,the colonial time. Seeing all those British expats, "white Kenyans" was really interesting. There are a surprising number of kenyans there too, which Mary said you never would have seen when she was growing up here. The "post-colonial crowd." Everyone was welcoming to us, there was a 3 course dinner during intermission. Real bathrooms!! with a full length mirror, have only seen glimpses of myself for 4 months! Who would have thought I'd see my first opera in Kenya!
Happy Mother's Day to all the mums in the world, especially little boy's mum, the best ever. I've learned over and over here that the best indicator/predictor for a child's health is the health of it's mother. I wish you all a healthy joyful day.
Stay safe Officer Tim, xoxoxo Little Boy