From Kids To Corn

A tasty breakfast today of chicken, omelette, mandazi and fruit, we did our best but that is a lot of food first thing in the morning.

First stop today was Tumba Parish and we were ready for a 9am start, almost a lie in. Unfortunately, the vehicle had a puncture, and it was gone 10am before we were able to leave for the one hour journey mostly on the dancing roads.

The community in Tumba had been motivated by the support previously received, to build a nursery school for the children, and they had received some funding from CHI to provide play equipment. It was a joy to visit and meet with these children, aged 2 – 4 yrs, and their teacher. Currently there are 27 children attending, they stay for the morning and receive lunch before they leave, for many this will be their only meal of the day.

We were concerned about one little girl who seemed to have sore eyes and was having trouble seeing, further enquiries revealed that she struggles to see anything other than a cloud before her eyes, this is the best way she can describe it at only about 3 years old. Her parents are very poor and unable to seek treatment for her.

We Caused Havoc Intentionally with the now familiar tennis balls, although these children were very reserved and well behaved, possibly because they were a little scared of the bazungu, and one or two dissolved into tears, but mostly they had fun.

Then it was outside to play on the newly installed play equipment funded by a donation to CHI, it is still waiting for a coat of paint once the rains stop, but that didn’t prevent the children pilling on…..

Although one little boy did not seem at all sure about the roundabout!!

Then it was inside for lunch. Even though we are used to seeing children with plates of food we would struggle to eat, we were still amazed at the huge plate of food these very young children managed to consume.

Sadly, there are still far too many children of this age left on the street all day, as their parents cannot afford the very small fee. It costs just £60 FOR THREE YEARS of nursery education, probably less than we would pay for one day in a nursery school.

Then it was off to the pastor’s house, where we enjoyed a boiled egg and bread which we were surprised to see was being dipped in the African tea, always ready embrace the culture, Carmen followed suit, it was slightly strange but not unpleasant.

We were sad to leave these children, but sadder still was seeing so many young children standing by the roadside waiting for parents to return from whatever casual work they have found today. We are now pondering the possibility of an initiative to support a child through nursery school.

On the drive back we saw a number of sheep grazing by the roadside, almost certainly those funded by CHI supporters.

After a quick stop back at the guest house it was on the road again. This time for the half hour drive to Mugina Parish where we were timed to arrive when the local market had started. Of course we didn’t stand out at all walking through the market!!! However, as we were in the Bishop’s car, we thought we had better not cause to much C.H.I.

In a small, corrugated shed on the edge of the market we found the milling machines provided through CHI funds, one to strip corn from the cobs, and two to mill.

The miller was a young man who was very happy to have the job, and obviously very proud of the work he was doing.

A steady stream of people came through the door with bags of corn which was quickly turned into flour for a small fee. This is an income generation project for the church which has huge benefits for the local community, who previously had to walk around 5km to have their corn and maize milled. People from surrounding areas come especially for this service, bringing additional trade to the market.

We heard how the project has been so successful that the loan taken to pay the initial rent on the land and construct the shed has already been repaid. For the church to be seen supporting the community in this way is just so important, especially during this time of church closures.  We were doubly impressed to learn that rather than pay a high price for the Chinese machines, which are not very robust, the machines had been built from scratch by a local engineer at a much lower cost. More reliable machines and work for local people, win, win.

A short drive to the pastor’s house where we heard how successful the hens project continued to be, and just to be sure we were in no doubt we were offered bananas and, yes, you’ve guessed it….boiled eggs, which were delicious.

Back to the guest house to freshen up before dinner with the bishop at his home. An opportunity for discussions around the current situation within the church, and how CHI can best support their attempts to continue to engage with the communities and offer opportunities to meet together and share God’s work.

Tomorrow, we head for the border to meet with Rev Canon Patrick. A long journey awaits, please pray for smooth transition between the countries and journey mercies.