Never a dull moment

It is hard to believe that just three weeks have passed since our trip Nairobi – it seems an eternity ago! But that is only because there is never a dull moment here at PACE! Even as we write, a youth seminar is taking place in the dining hall.

Unfortunately, it seems that with every “up” we’ve experienced this month a “down” has followed. It has been a very emotionally and spiritually challenging month. From what we’ve read and heard, what we’re experiencing isn’t abnormal – it’s just a part of ministering in a foreign culture. But, even with this truth, it hasn’t been easy. Most of the challenges have been thrown Taryn’s way because she is working closely with staff and students. What’s promising about all of our struggles is that we have an open relationship with PACE’s leadership, and we are working together to create an orientation that will deliberately bring idiosyncrasies of the culture to light so that foreign missionaries will be equipped with information that will help make the adjustment to life and work in Kenya smoother.

The highlight of Taryn’s art class this month was puppet making. When she asked the kids what a puppet was, none were able to answer her! So, the kids were enthusiastic and showed high levels of creativity in the puppets they made. Taryn has also been trying to teach her students soccer … which, even after explaining the rules several times, has consistently turned into rousing games of “Keep Away: 1 vs. Everyone Else!”. Maybe there is someone out there who wants to run a soccer camp in Kenya for a week? :-)

Ryan is still working diligently on the website, and spends a lot of time saying, “Sorry Wachira, it’s not done yet ... soon though.” He’s spent a considerable amount of time on the missions section of the site, which is going to provide a wealth of information and helpful links to teams and long-term missionaries wishing to come to Kenya. Hopefully within the next couple of weeks, we will be ready for a test launch. Last Sunday, Ryan also went to Wachira’s church and recorded a demo CD of the church’s choir. It turned out well, and he hopes to be able to get back to record something more polished with them that they can use for a fundraiser.

We are also housesitting for friends of ours for two weeks. It’s been a great opportunity to get away for a bit – living and breathing anything for long enough necessitates some time away. But, the catch to the housesitting is that we also have to puppy-sit a three-month-old dog. We both like dogs (although Ryan is allergic) but this pup is a yappy little thing … and LOUD! During our first night there she was in the room next to ours and yapped until 1am – which was when we finally pulled ourselves out of bed to put her far enough away that we couldn’t hear here anymore. Also, as with most dogs, she has zero concept of where to go to the bathroom … in the kitchen, in our room, on my shoes, on Taryn … it doesn’t matter. If she can stand on it, she goes on it. And we can’t put her outside (except on the porch) because of the high risk of ticks … Sheesh! We finally set her up a little pen in the enclosed porch. We used an old box for a shelter and another box just her size with some blankets for a place to sleep. She managed to escape a few times and subsequently ran inside when we opened the front door and tried to pee everywhere. We finally barricaded her in with a large bench and some timber. Man, puppies are a lot of work!

Next week will be another busy week as it brings the close of the first term – exams begin on Monday and the closing assembly will be held on Thursday. Mind you, a week of “Summer School” will be held the following week. And slated for April is another week of camp and a local mission trip to help build a home for the mother of one of PACE’s staff. As we said in the beginning of our blog …. there’s never a dull moment at PACE!