Good News

The week has ended on a high note all round. First of all Benson & I finished the rabbit hutch yesterday and we are ready now to put it in its place … as soon as we are told where its place it. It sounds simple enough I’ll admit, but this is Kenya and nothing is simple. As with pretty much everything here, opinions differ on its final resting place and right now we have a shortlist of 3 candidates … it’s like choosing the venue for the Open. I hope we have a decision by Monday as I wish to buy the rabbits at the start of next week so the children can’t start looking after them … I don’t really fancy waiting another 2 weeks to get this thing finished.

By the close of play yesterday afternoon, I also felt that I had got myself a half-decent first version of the “Envisioned Future”; at least it is the first one that I have drafted that I didn’t immediately delete. As my personal business model has always been to surround myself with people smarter than I am, I’d like to run it by you now. By 2020, St. Anna will be:

“The leading primary institution in the Gaturi location; a centre of excellence where children and teachers alike can fulfil their academic, personal, physical, moral and spiritual development.

St. Anna will provide a stimulating learning environment with a technological orientation across the whole curriculum, which maximises individual potential and ensures students of all ability levels are well equipped to meet the challenges of education, work and life.

The centre will continue to faithfully work as a hub of support to the community offering a programme of learning activities, services and guidance.

Finally, St. Anna will be as self-sufficient & sustainable as possible in all its operations. We will have eliminated our dependence on fossil fuels and will systematically employ ecological design practice in all development to create working, interdependent systems that serve both humans and the environment.”
Honestly…what do you think? I am trying to make sure I have covered the students, the teachers, the community and the green factor. In addition to the vision, the strategic plan is moving forward.

This morning, I awoke to the news that the 40’ container that had been shipped from Canada over a year and a half ago had arrived during the night. To back up just a little for those who don’t know the whole story, 18 months ago some of the school’s friends & sponsors in Canada sent us a container full of things including a van, a car, bikes, computers and clothes. You may not be surprised to learn that container never made it here but was in fact retained in Nairobi container port due to ‘irregularities’ (concerns and eyebrows were raised over the potential tax amount we were required to pay in spite of the goods being charitable). So for the last 18 months the school, or more precisely Mr. Waigi the school administrator, has been going back and too to the depot to assure, negotiate, plead for its release. Each time, Mr. Waigi had “a document missing”, and by the time he had obtained the afore mentioned paper another was now “out of date…sorry”. And so on and so on … you get the picture.

Well in the past 2 weeks, after months of intransigence things began to move. First KEBs, the Kenyan Bureau of Standards, waived their charges linked to the vehicles (KES700k or approx £6k). Then on the 4th March the tax waiver for the charitable goods that had been lodged in 2008 was also granted (KES1m or approx £9k). All that remained was to settle the ‘rental fee’ for the 18 months the container had been in the care of the ICD in Embakasi (KES1,324m or £12k).

Then would you believe it last week we received news that we had been given an 80% discount on this, leaving us KES360k (a little over £3,2k) to find. So yesterday a message went out to all supporters and sponsors requesting whether they would consider supporting to this end. Our sponsors clearly move fast, as the container was delivered to the school at 04am this morning.
As it’s just too good to be true I have tried to persuade the school to enter every lottery and back every long shot and outsider in every race, game and fight over the weekend.

If you ask me, the nature of its release is as mysterious at is retention. We’re a mighty long way from the sea, but the whole ‘containergate’ affair has a whiff of fish about it. But who am I to question it? To everyone here the lord moves in mysterious ways his wonders to perform, and there was general rejoicing this morning as the container was unloaded from the truck. Although the rejoicing was tinged with a little sadness when it was realised that all computers and some of the bikes had disappeared at some point during the 18 month incarceration.

I left the children ooing and aahing at the remaining contents to go and get ready, as yesterday was Jane’s wedding; my first Kikuyu wedding. I was told to be ready for 11h00 as the service starts at 11h30, and so as instructed at 11h00 I strolled back up to the school to rendezvous with the other teachers only to find that virtually all of them were still inside the container.

So this being Africa we turned up an hour late. The church was packed to the black, white and yellow decorated rafters. Everyone was turned out in their best clothes; bright colours for the ladies (lots of pink), and shiny wide-awake suits for the men. I also counted 9 vicars at the front of the church (apparently you bring all the vicars who have served at your local church during your time).

As we were late we had already missed most of the religious bit; the exchanging of vows and all that. Indeed, just as Elizabeth (the school secretary) and I were making ourselves comfortable on our pew they were proclaimed man & wife. Fortunately the ceremony was far from over. On the contrary, that only brought the curtain down on the formal part, for now I learned the entertainment was to begin.

A splendid variety of speeches, songs and poems was expertly compeered by the same fellow who had led the pre-wedding. I didn’t understand much but I clapped when others clapped, I ooh’d when they ooh’d, whooped when they whooped, Amen’d when they Amen’d and waived my hands in the air when they waived their hands in the air.

I was particularly proud of the girls and boys of St. Anna who performed a poem about ‘living love’ (how the married couples relationship should be) together with choreographed movements and then followed up with a song. I was just turning to Elizabeth to tell her the same when with one hand she grabbed my right wrist and with the other hand she thrust a piece of paper in to my left hand and pulled me in the direction of the front of the church. It was there that the other (female) teachers from St. Anna were now gathered to sing a song in Kikuyu…the words being on the sheet I had been given. I had no idea of the tune or what I was singing, but I did my best not to let the side down and managed to articulate a word here and there whenever I found my place again (good job Matthew the mason was not there). I’ll try and find the song sheet again and write it up for you.

In need of refreshment I snook out at this point to grab a coke and some air, and popped in and out of the church for the remainder of the ceremony. The entertainment went on for at least another hour and a half!

At the end we all walked around the back of the church to the field for the reception. A very long queue was formed and food was served, and then the bride and groom arrived in the midst of a mass of dancing ladies. The procession circled the marquee twice before everyone sat down again, and we were treated to more speeches and present giving.

Anticipating the inevitable I accompanied the children back to school … well, someone had to :-)