Kenya feels like familiar turf to me and we were anxious to meet up with our friend Charles again, and later that night head down to Ilbissil.  Leaving the airport, we were sideswiped by another car exiting the airport.  We prayed that our driver wouldn’t be taken advantage of by the police and we were thankful there wasn’t much injury or damage. 

 

Finally in Ilbissil, we had a nice meal with Pastor John Kiroka and his family.  Sunday was the most wonderful celebration we could have imagined.  As he spoke in church, it really dawned on me how much of a miracle it is for these people to have water.  For them, a well that produces water is a miracle.  It’s like our friend recovering from cancer, or escaping a horrible car accident that should have had fatal results.  Miracle.  People around town know Sol and I from our visit there in January.  It was so nice to be able to greet them.  Some said, ‘you are doing a good thing.  We are so happy to have water.’  We were struck as we journeyed around town and saw so many carcasses of cattle.  It sure tells the story of what happens to a community when there is no water.  Animals stave.  There is nothing to eat.  Then they die. 

 

We met with the Water Committee that is basically in charge of this borehole.  We discussed with them concerns about what kind of pump to put on the well, and how the borehole will be managed in the future.  Because Ilbissil is so dry, they built the well in the spot where they could find the most amount of water below the earth’s surface.  This location is over 1km away from the schools.  We discussed and planned phase II of our project in Ilbissil.  We want to pipe the water up to the schools and eventually to Pastor Kiroka’s church.  The kids need to be in school, not walking back and forth to carry water.  The people of Ilbissil won our hearts in the same way they did in January.  Ashley and I stayed on there for four days and we said goodbye to our LA teammates.  We met Naomi and Joshua, Phyllis, Duncan and Jackson who’s personalities and stories have not allowed us to forget them. 

 

Our two weeks concluded with another journey, this time to Samburu, Kenya, six hours north of Nairobi.  We traveled with Fred from Help A Child Africa.  Sol and I got connected with HACA earlier this year and LOVE what this organization is all about.  Fred took us to see some communities they are investing in and water projects that they have going and are considering for the future.  The only place to stay near Samburu was at the safari lodge, and we were so blessed to have this experience.  As we drove to visit the communities HACA was working with we saw lion, leopard, elephant, ostrich, giraffe and more.  To see these animals in their natural homes is cooler than I ever imagined.  It is thrilling.  What an experience.  As we left Samburu, we were already excited and thinking that this is a good possibility of a place we want to invest in the future.

 

I loved traveling with Ashley, having a part of COME UNITY there with me.  When we got home she sent me a text, “my body is here but my heart and mind are very far away.”  Exactly.  I dream of taking a team with me there.  It changes your life.  It still changes mine.  I am praying about what’s next for COME UNITY.  I am sorting through the heartache and joys that I had in Africa.  Its hard to return to my life of such abundance.  They just don’t deserve that life, and I just don’t deserve this one.  Let’s do what we can to give them a fair shot of living long, healthy, educated, self sufficient lives.