May 23, 2007

grab-iosity

Our social worker, Grace, came into our office the other day to use our paper cutter. We told her “That’ll be 5 shillings.” She says, “I see you suffer from the same syndrome everyone in this country suffers from – grab-iosity.”

I love that.

Grab-iosity.

The country does seriously suffer from it. It’s annoyingly so. You feel as if everyone is constantly after your money. Just because your skin is white, you’re rich. And comparatively speaking, it’s true; but it doesn’t make it any less annoying at times.

They’ll say things like – I’m raising funds for…. If I had a supporter I could… Janay, do you have? Janay, do you have? Janay… Sometimes I think if I hear that one more time I will scream!

But grabiosity is also cultural. It’s a communal society (as opposed to an individualistic one). Family is everything – one person is not separate from the others. So if a person makes good money in the family, they’re expected to share with the other family members. My friend said she couldn’t travel upcountry to visit her family until she could afford to bring a bag of rice or maize. You can’t come empty-handed.

Family is everything. You’re defined by your place in the family. They’ll tell you, I’m the firstborn… or I’m the fourth born… or This is Mama Joy. Mama Joy is the mother of Joy. She doesn’t have her own first name, but is defined by her role as Joy’s mother. Good luck finding out what Mama Joy’s first name is, sometimes it takes a while to piece it together.

You see so many poor, young, single women with babies wrapped snuggly on their backs. They’ve gone off and gotten pregnant, usually with some random man, just to get a baby. To be somebody’s mama.

happy story

Here’s a story you don’t hear too often. Last week, we admitted a new baby. The mother had signed the baby over at the hospital – didn’t want him. The next day, the mother came to our home and took her baby home with her.

harambee

Kenyans celebrate the concept of Harambee – the community coming together to put their money into a common pot for the common good – for something like a wedding or a funeral, or for building a home. Everyone in the extended family and friends throws what they can into the pot for Harambee. Harambee means togetherness, unity, sharing …

Even when we were mourning in our office over our friend’s brother’s death, one of our Kenyan friends came in and said, Ah, you’re mourning together. It’s as it should be.

Everything together. The good and the bad, shared.

Harambee.

I like this concept and think that the Kenyans are teaching me a lot about what it means to live in community with other people. It’s not always the easiest, but it’s a picture of the family of God. Unified. Loving. Sharing burdens and joys.

what’s a village?

When I wrote down my U.S. address for one of the rural teachers in Lamu, she asked, “You have villages, too?” Westlake Village!

What do you say? I paused and slowly said, Yes, we have villages, but they’re not exactly like your villages… I wondered if she pictured me in a hut like her? With goats, too? Too funny. I didn’t bother explaining. Some things inexplicable – how do you explain our “westlake village” concept of village to someone living in the bush, drinking goat’s milk and following herds of goats, camels, and cows across the desert?

kingdom of heaven

Some of you will be jealous that I got to hear famous writer and Pastor Brian McClaren speak. He came to Nairobi Chapel, spoke about the kingdom of heaven. Loved what he said – “Churches are not warehouses for the saved, but places of transformation by which we go out into the world and transform it – bringing the kingdom of heaven to earth.” Yes!

My favorite kingdom of heaven parable that Jesus told:

“Again the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.”

Matthew 13:35

The kingdom of heaven - it’s worth everything we have and are …