At that time Jesus said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.
Who had the genius idea of bringing bubbles to Kenya? I don't know but I do know that I volunteered to play with bubbles during our block party. On our last day in Butula, we made a fun carnival like place for the children so they could play games and learn more about Christ and also have a way to have their parents meet the people they've been talking about and see who is giving them all the crafts. We had a ring toss, balloon animals, our own version of bowling, a face painting station, a fish game with magnets, and bubbles-- there was more.
Unfortunately, we never had a strong bubble solution. We wanted to make our own because the liquid would be extra weight that was unnecessary at the airport. Our solution didn't make bubbles; it was too soapy. I used some of the solution that was in a few of the wrapped bubble wands. It was enough to keep the children entertained for a couple of hours. The bubbles that could be made from that were huge-- I'll try not to stay on this topic too long because I'm sure some of you don't want to spend that much time reading about bubbles. There's probably two reasons why: one you would rather play with bubbles yourself and secondly reading about bubbles isn't exactly the greatest scholastic piece of literature. But it is not like I was attempting to write the greatest piece of scholastic literature when writing this journal.
To be honest, it wasn't what I had expected. It was kind of awkward at first because the kids would just stare at you while you waved bubbles. This was truly the job for me; it fits my personality in so many ways. The kids would attack the bubbles and clap for more. At the beginning they loved it but I think a few of them caught on that I was desperately trying to stretch what little we had. It was sticky. It was pretty when there was a ton of bubbles in the sky but kids are more interested in popping them than being in awe of all their colors. Some of the kids tried to use the wands that we had in the soapy detergent solution but it didn't do much. I gave out the wands that had solution to a few of the kids and they enjoyed those but of course the kids were competitive about who had them.
When those bubbles were out I was in a sticky situation. I was the only station that was finished and there was still plenty of time. But I had a consistent crowd and the kids were entertaining me. Eventually, it was just the place to play and not have to stand in a line. A few of the boys asked me to do tricks like their somersaults but I told them I couldn't. Instead it turned into a show of human tricks where they would do a trick and then I would. Surprisingly, I was more flexible than them and by putting my foot behind my head they were fairly impressed.
I was surprised they couldn't do some of the silly things I had been doing since I was a kid. One of the school teachers, I think the one who grilled us with questions in the 5th, 6th, and 7th grade combined, tried to help me with one of the tricks and he demonstrated it. I just sat on the ground, not intentionally I just couldn't hold my weight on my ankles. Somehow the solution in the bucket that wasn't being used was being thrown around by the kids with the bubbles. So, in my warped sense of humor I began taking a full handful of bubbles and water and ran around in a circle acting like I was going to throw it at the kids. Most of them just laughed at me. I, for the most part, ended up with the whole batch of solution on me. Even though it was just soap and water, I imagine it was a good thing I was the one covered in it. Anytime I would step back the kids would get closer to me. Then I would run after them with the bubbly solution. My team members thought I looked insane but the kids seemed to have enjoyed it. They had thrown bubble wands here and there and showed their disinterest and for most of the day I was entertaining them with jokes and silly human tricks.
Later, once we started closing all the stations down and gave out more candy-- which had an instant reaction in the kids blood sugar-- we had our last and final assembly of the whole trip. There were plenty of parents that had come to their children's school to see what had been happening. The whole day reminded me of elementary school. The teachers were also there to support their children and to cheer them in all the myriads of events. Also, there was a guy going around taking pictures for everybody and also if a child, or if parents or even teachers, wanted a picture with one of us he took one.
Someone from the team said that basically if you were a girl or if you had blonde hair they wanted a picture otherwise they didn't seem to care. I didn't mind although it was weird when someone would just hand me a child and ask for a picture-- there was no choice at all. My favorite was when I was with April and they made each of us hold a child and then after the picture we switched the kids we were holding and took another picture. I took pictures with whole families and with each child of the family. They would ask me to hold their child or hold their hand and it was a bit intense I must admit.
But things started cooling down as we came closer to assembly time. We had a sack race where a child and their parent had to race to the finish. At this point, I noticed that beyond the fence there were children who were not from the school that were watching. I felt a little sad that they could not be apart of it; I think it was just because they didn't go to the school. Then again, if they had been at the school I'm not sure anyone would have noticed. It was interesting that they stayed to watch us for so long. One of the girls ended up going to them and giving them candy.
For the assembly we we thanked everyone for letting us be there and Sevo introduced all of us. We had loved being with the children and we wanted them to know how special they all were. Some of the children who had performed in the music festival-- we ended up paying for their bus with our extra donations so that they could compete-- they did a short play for us. Then the younger kids came and sang-- we ended up singing with them.
We also sang a couple of popular Christian songs and then had a skit with a final message. We reenacted the story of when Jesus was preaching and the children came racing to him but the disciples pushed them away. We acted as the disciples and parents that brought children to Jesus. The children instantly flocked to us and helped us with our story.
Sevo made it clear to them who Jesus was and how much he valued everyone. He asked everyone to close their eyes for prayer and that if anyone wanted to know Jesus they should raise their hand. I of course had to peak and I saw a little boy shyly rise his hand in front of me. As for anyone else, I have no idea but it's definite we gave these children a new understanding about Christ and we had also conquered prejudices. We gave out juice and cookies to all the children and a few more pictures were taken.
After we had finished and families, children, teachers, and the like were making their way home I made an effort to get to where our welcome greeters had sat and wished everyone goodbye. Some of the older students tried to teach me some Swahili to sing and they danced with me and the music that was playing over the stereo system. They told me they were thankful that we had come and they wished we weren't leaving. They told me things seemed different while we were there and they felt change. They begged for us to stay but I told them we had to leave, for at least a little while. They said I had to come back and they had no doubts in their faces. It was as if I had no choice and was supposed to come back.
I high fived people as they left and also shook many hands. Many of the parents told me how thankful they were and also they were glad to see their children with lifted spirits. But the last person was the most memorable. The boy who I had been playing with the whole week was trying to hide. He was running around people and smiling heavily. I chased the kid and rubbed his head; I even carried him around and swung him in a circle. He was sad that we were leaving; it was written all over his face but yet he smiled proudly. I told him he had to keep being amazing for me and to watch the younger kids. He waved as he walked away. Mami had seen the whole moment. She asked me if I had known that he was an orphan. I didn't. I wanted to run after him so I could take him home. She told me that even though he didn't have parents that the community had been kind to him. He often stayed with a certain family and he was able to go to school. I have no idea how he became an orphan, whether his parents just could not raise him or if they had passed away-- yet I always saw him smiling and helping others. He stood out to me the entire week. He had a certain presence that was captivating.
Just now I was listening to the song "Adia." The original meaning behind it is about friends who have gone separate ways and is an apology for leaving, but there is a promise of healing from that pain. Sarah McLachlan gave little insight about the song and stated that she was merely looking for a name in the song. What's so peculiar to me is that the name "Adia" is a Swahili name that means being a gift. That boy was a gift to me and I hope that with my life I can write about him so that not only I will remember him but so will others.
(He's the boy in the front on the left side)
Matthew 19:13-15Then little children were brought to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked those who brought them. Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."
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