Monday, September 24, 2012

Day 1 and Day 2 : Construction of Ariemet Girl's Rescue Center


Yesterday the apartment which will roughly house us for a month or so was leased.  It is truly a nice place with cold running water, toilet and shower.  As we are only staying the short time the furnishings will make it like camping in a suburban apartment.  It is on the edge of Isiolo and so far tonight it is fairly quiet.
Monday we started in earnest.  First a trip down the beautiful wide empty newly tarred road to a nearby village to look at a building style that would work even better than what we had planned.  As most of the residents in this area do not drive or own an automobile, Mickey the van comes in handy as a “free Ride” for many. Their fare this time was a photo.



 Then off the main road to the dusty, bumpy dirt road.  Isiolo area is a dry, semi arid desert.  The stark beauty is striking.  Trees with a few green leaves hanging on until the rains. Trees with no leaves only thick thorny branches to protect them from the scorching sun.  We meet a few truck carrying sand. The Turkana community is finally earning some compensation for the sand pits that are on their communal land.  This not only brings in money for the community from the sale of the sand but also employment for many of the strong young men in the community.  This is one of the happiest events for this community.  A meeting of the Turkana community in this area had been planned for the discussion of a variety of community issues. Paul Mero thought it a wonderful idea to bring the Rescue Center to the front at this time. The meeting was long and hot but the Turkana community is very welcoming.  Children greeted me and some cried that terrified“first white person” cry.  The meeting as usual is under “the Tree”. I am never quite sure how they tell everyone to meet and under which tree. But when we arrived there were some tables set up under the tree and a gathering crowd of men, women and children.  One of the interesting things to notice is and he variety of clothing. From the most traditional shuka, with interesting hats decorated with feathers, knives, spears and walking sticks for the men;  kanga, and mountains of neck beads for the women through shirts, ties, cotton dresses to jeans on women!. The women mostly gathered under trees further in the distance and many cooking a meal. The men were gathered under two trees around the tables. Security guards were posted around the meeting site in case there was any outside disturbance. As the meeting time drew nearer, people could be seen coming cross the sand in all directions.  Finally the meeting began with greetings and prayer.
During the speaking opportunities from elders and community leaders, I wandered around a bit and greeted women, children, security officers and men.  Many did not speak English but those that did were more than happy to explain about their culture.  Younger men gathered separately from the elders.  This is the tradition.  Elders will approach the young men when they have something to say or teach.  The younger men can approach the elders but usually with a problem for them to solve.
It I Some of the elders remember our first meeting in 2009 when they dedicated the land to the project.  It has taken until 2012 to obtain a building grant and some had wondered what had happened. They were very happy to see I was back and this time ready to build.  They are ready to dedicate time and resources to the project.
After a long day, I returned to Isiolo town to purchase the bare essentials for a comfortable night sleep.  A mattress, sheets and pillows.   Then off to the new apartment to “camp” in the hallway as it is the only light bulb in the place.  Here I sit alone on a round café style chair in the darkness, recalling the adventure of the day, wishing for a cup of tea with  fantastic little modem connecting me to the rest of the world.
Tomorrow, off I go shopping for household essentials, like a tea pot! Oh I suppose I could get some dishes and soap too.

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