January 2008 Newsletter: Update from Gatundu, Kenya
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.
Matthew 5: 9
Love your neighbor as yourself.
Matthew 19:19
Happy New Year! I am writing this newsletter from my home in Gatundu where I have only been for two weeks since the post-election violence left me stranded in Nairobi. From the CNN broadcasts on the local morning television channels, violence and chaos in Kenya seem to be in the forefront everyday. Luckily, the community in which I live is in the central province and thus our school opened only one week late. Unfortunately, there are hundreds of schools (including Universities) that have yet to open because of the chaos in the country. I have a few transfer students in my classes that have been displaced and are unable to return to their homes and schools.
Apart from the endless discussions of politics, Icaciri Secondary School appears to be running as usual. I am currently teaching all of our Form 2 (10th gr) English classes and will most likely teach a Form 1 (9th gr) class once they begin in mid-February. This past week, we played Idiom Pictionary and held an official debate on whether it is better to live in the urban or rural areas. The students are progressing nicely and it's nice to have the same students that I had last term when they were Form 1s. The only downside to teaching English is that I am very much aware of my grammar in this newsletter and I am terrified that I will make a dumb mistake!
Since the controversial Presidential elections took place on December 27, 2007, over 800 people have been killed, most of whom by the neighbors they have lived peacefully with for generations. In a country that has been known to take care of refugees from neighboring warring countries, over 300,000 people have been displaced and have become refugees in their own country. It is heartbreaking to hear and see the violence inflicted upon people by their neighbors.
As I watched the international headlines race across the bottom of a nightly newscast, I was reminded of the privilege I used to have living in the U.S. Although there have always been violence and atrocities occurring across the world, I could turn off the television or change the channel to escape the chaos. Today I'm in the midst of it. I cannot simply ignore what is going on because it causes stress, anxiety or even anger. Even though I am physically safe in my community, I constantly hear of my friends and their families being stranded in several parts of the country, and even that a good friend of mine lost his cousin in post-election violence.
I continue to have privilege while I am here. I have plenty of food and the option to hire a private car if I am weary of public transit. I have the privilege to be evacuated if the country becomes too unstable. There are hundreds of thousands, possibly even millions, of Kenyans who do not have these luxuries. People continue to live in fear and I wonder what it will take to bring this historically peaceful country back together.
How many of you vote whenever you have the chance? Kenya is a democratic country with democratic processes, yet all sides of the political leaders have stated that the electoral process was flawed. How many of us in America take our right to vote for granted? How many people do not vote because they are too lazy to fill out voter registration cards, travel (most likely drive) to a polling station, and wait in an organized line for an hour? I spent Election Day in a rural Eastern town and witnessed the members of the community walk for miles to vote and then stand in the scorching sun for hours. It is our right and privilege as Americans to vote and it is something that we should take advantage of because many people around the world do not have that right.
I am humbled by the strength, conviction and faith of the Kenyan people. Even during this time of extreme heartache, people continue to fight for change. People continue to hope for a better future.
The Kiswahili lesson this month will be brief:
Tudumishe amani: Grant us peace
Prayer Requests: The volunteers and I are traveling to Tanzania tomorrow for a mid-term retreat. Please pray for a safe journey and relaxing week. Please continue to pray for the Kenyan people and for peace in this country.
Peace be with you,
Sarah
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
John 14: 27
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