Did I ever tell you about that time when?

Here are a few fun things from the past year or so that you might or might not have heard about. I wrote this a few months ago and never got it posted, so there may be a part 2 for what has happened since all this. 

*.... when we went tried to show a visitor one of the "close" farms. It had rained and we couldn't make it to the farm, but when we tried to return one of the rivers just north of town was flowing and we had to wait 9 hours to cross it. We kept taking bets on how long we would wait. After 6 hours of waiting we began to bet in days, which didn't make our visitor happy, since he had a plane to catch the next afternoon. We made it home by 3 am, but crossing in the dark was scary. I was not driving, but prayed more that I do when I am driving. There was already a vehicle that washed over the previous day. you can't see it in these pictures, because the water rose up over it.  

Rivers can rise quickly here. This was 45 minutes after we initially crossed with little water on the road. 

The diocese hill, we had climbed it earlier that day, and we had noted this river was dry then.

Turkwell River after another big rain. We have only this one bridge separating the north and south parts of Lodwar. I still joke about leaving a place where we complained about traffic on the bridges constantly, only to come to a place where I complain about the traffic on the bridge alot. Sometimes you get lucky and can cross and sometimes there are reasons you can't, accidents, animals being unruly, riots, too much traffic coming the other way (its only one lane, so you have to take turns). 

*..... when we went to the new hoteli that has a pool open to the public in the desert of Turkana. They have grass and everything. It is a little crazy and out of place, one of my friends even asked me if it was a mirage. They have a well, so I don't feel as bad about going there to swim. Unfortunately there is no longer a free day. Still thankful for a pool to use.

*....when Ali helped me with my language learning, using demonstratives and locatives and so many other parts of speech that I never really learned about until I studied a second and then a third language.

*....when I got a bunch of cards for my birthday. We do not check our PO box every week and I was down country just after my birthday, so most of these I "received" about a month after my birthday. You also learn that things move slower here and so a month later to get all these was so fun and made it feel like my birthday was still going on. My teammate did make me a cake on my birthday. I asked for only 4 candles, didn't want to catch my hair on fire.

*....when my teammate found a little hand crank ice cream maker and I made vanilla ice cream to go with our brownies. YUM. Next was chocolate, which was even better. Ice cream is still what I crave the most and eat the most as my treats when I'm in Nairobi. Thanks to the previous missionaries who brought that ice cream maker and have  blessed others like me by leaving it behind. 

*......when I actually knew enough Turkana to make this little boy feel comfortable enough to sit by me and lay down on my lap to rest. He and his mama and younger sibling rode with us out to the bush community we were visiting that day. He was so interested in watching where we were going, but got very tired. He wouldn't talk to me, but he understood me.

*.....when we had a spa night in Turkana. Ice cold water, fans directly on us, candles for mood lighting, mud from the dead sea and peppermint smelling foot scrub that another sweet missionary had shared with me from the US. When I saw that missionary again at the guest house, she couldn't believe I still had it. We really learn to hoard and stretch what we have to enjoy it for as long as possible.

*....when the women all crammed into my truck after the women's meeting, which that week was held at the house of one of my male guards. Yeah, I tried and tried to figure that one out and it was made more confusing before the meeting, because they often mix up and change the pronouns, because in Swahili and Turkana there are no separate he and she, him or her pronouns.

One woman finally decided to walk to the first house and get in when we dropped the first lady. She wanted to make sure I knew where her house was. 

My house helper dressed with her beads, after returning from down country for the women's conference. She is in the picture above also, but I really like her smile here and she does not often wear all her beads. 

*....when the guard dogs killed another lizard. This was not the first. I was so proud of them, mostly they are bored when it is dead, but anything alive and moving is cause for extreme excitement. My guard made sure I knew that Batman really killed it and Robin just stood there and barked alot. Bless his heart. I love them both anyway. (Batman is gone now, this was his last great conquest!)

Batman sniffing his kill. 

Resting after the big kill.

Needing some praise and love. They are good dogs. 

*...when the desert rose tree near my kitchen window bloomed for months on end and grew seed pods. I was waiting and waiting for the pods to open and one day they were gone, well they were so light after drying and opening and the seeds were starting to come out, so the branches were no longer hanging down near the ground. Soon I saw the wind catch a seed and off it went. Then another and another. I had been told I could replant from the seeds and since my attempts to start new trees from cuttings hadn't worked I ran to get a container and collect the seeds. I planted a few in a container and a few days later wanted to plant some in the ground and save the rest. My guard who helps me with planting dug the hole and I put in 3 seeds, went to get some dry leaves for cover and water and when I came back, my container of seeds was totally empty. I asked if they blew away, but he said no they were all in the ground. He had planted about 20 seeds in that one hole. Oh the communication issues. I smiled and said ok, cause it really didn't matter. They I covered and prayed over my seeds and am hoping to see some growth when I return and hope there are still blooms for many more months. 

Aren't these seeds fascinating. They blow around like dandelions. We pulled the fluffy parts off before planting only the small seed in the middle. 

You can see the fluffy part of the seed emerging from the pod here, almost ready to blow away. 

*...when a sweet new friend bought me flowers in Nairobi. Flowers here are all around and I enjoy seeing them when down here and enjoyed having them in my room and sharing them with others at the guest house when I left. 

*...when I stay at my Nairobi home, the Mayfield Guest House. It is run by another mission agency and I have been blessed to meet so many of their missionaries over the time I have been here. The men who run it, take such good care of us all and I am thankful for the rest and peace I find here. God Bless them in their mission to serve other missionaries.

My Nairobi Home. 

*...when I finally read the book Dewey. I have a copy in America, but just never got around to reading it. While reading it I realized that Dewey was the library cat when I was in Iowa at veterinary school. I can't believe I never went to visit or meet him. Glad I finally had a chance to read the book. The guest house has alot of books, donated by missionaries and traded and shared over time. Its great to come and just pull one off the shelf and spend a day doing nothing but reading.

*...when I finally got to meet the new baby of the house helper at one of our bush houses. As he grew he was scared of me, but has finally come around.

*...when I got to see friends at one of the farms and they smiled and jumped and were happy to see me also. These are the ladies that first taught me to dance like the Turkana before I attended a traditional Turkana wedding. They still laugh at my attempts.

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*...when we discovered a new "phone booth" on the way back from the bush. We usually stop at this area to see the springs where the water comes up and grass grows. Its also a good bathroom stop as there are other large bushes around. This time we were all shocked when as we looked at the spring, one of the workers cell phones rang. Soon others all started checking their phones and calling people.

*....when they tarmaced more roads in Lodwar. Then they proceeded to put the typical large speed bumps but these they actually painted. That has been my complaint in Nairobi since I arrived, the speed bumps hide in shadows and make it awful for driving. Thankful for painted ones in Turkana!

Maximus, Batman Wawili, Batman 2

For no reason, other than maybe others need a break from US reality this Friday evening.

Checheria, Zebra and Max

Checheria and Max

It was sometime in June when Batman left. You can read about "My First Dog", by clicking here. Robin and I mourned. Robin is our brown guard dog who remained. He had never really been an only dog and I knew he did not like it. However, I did not know how sad he was until he had a new friend and I saw how happy he was again.

I had asked many people to watch for a puppy that would be a good guard dog. One of the water team workers had a pregnant dog. About a month later I went to deworm her 2 puppies and I knew I wanted the black one, that already reminded me of Batman. Funny thing was he thought his name was Zebra (pronounced here as Zeh-bra). The family had named the other pup Zebra, in honor of the doggie daddy who had recently died and was black and white just like the black and white pup they planned to keep. All they had to do was yell "Zebra" and both pups came running.

First puppy selfie (after his bath). 

We were back in that area a month later and my pup was old enough to leave his mom and brother. I don't have any pictures of him in the crate, because it broke my heart, how car sick he was. The roads (or lack there of) are so bad and we go over and through many dry river beds. I get car sick also when I ride, so I felt awful for ripping him from his family and the only home he had known and making him travel all that way in a crate, but there was no way he could be loose in the vehicle. Luckily he calmed down, got quiet and went with the flow. I think the Kenyans riding with me thought I was crazy as I talked to him as I drove and tried to turn to look and make sure he was ok. He was a trooper and after we arrived at the compound and he had a quick bath at the outside faucet, he seemed like nothing had happened and he was happy to be there.  

Spending time together, just like with Batman

I introduced him to Robin, who was less than happy, growling and snarling and acting terrible. We walked around the compound and houses. He got his first taste of his new food, which he loved. The guard on duty that night was happy and even laughed when I called him Batman Wawili (Batman 2), but said I had decided his name was Maximus, or Max.

After a few nights inside the house, to bond with me, being out was the way to go (staying up playing all night and pooping everywhere was not good (I said he liked that food, but it was an adjustment for his system)). He soon learned the guards were his people also and this was his new home and he seems to like it more each day.

Max sat in Robin's hole, so Robin sat on him and Max scooted out from under him. Made me laugh, but in the end both enjoyed the hole and the shade. 

You have to be tough to survive in Turkana and he has to prove himself. So far he is doing just that, barking, acting tough and doing things that remind the guards of Batman. I knew it was all ok, when on his third day at the compound, he really wanted Robin to be his friend and Robin finally gave in. They started running together from one end of the compound to the other, something Batman and Robin did almost every afternoon as the sun went down and the temperatures cooled. I knew it was all good then and it has been so great to see Robin happy again. 

Chewing on pieces of hide, left over from the drums one of the guards makes. Perfect for a teething puppy. 

Rafiki (Friends)

He likes toys and carries around sticks and old water bottles also. 

I was so sad to leave them both last week (along with the cats, who hated having a dog in the house and choose to live in the rafters of the veranda for the 2 nights he was in). As I left, I told Max to be good and stay alive and that he had to get used to me coming and going. Of course he looked at me not understanding and proceeded to poop right in front of my porch. We still need to work on that a little, but so far he is showing himself to be such a good guard dog that I will put up with the poop a little closer than I would like.