Eldoret

As I sit down to write this entry, our electricity just went out, along with our internet. So… I guess I will type until my computer dies and then post this whenever I can. :)

We are now in Eldoret and are living in an “outhouse” for 10 days. This is apparently the term used here for a small house that is available for rent or use on someone’s property – usually adjacent to the larger family home. One of the doctors here has friends that had this place available for a great deal. We are very grateful for their hospitality! We have enjoyed the humor of saying we’re living in an outhouse though. I know – we are far too easily amused… :)

Anyway, we are working at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital here in Eldoret, as they are one of the hospitals involved in the research project. We arrived in Eldoret this past Tuesday by bus (about a 5-6 hr bus ride). We have been busy entering retrospective data from charts as able, along with attending a lot of meetings and getting things set up for the prospective part of the study. We have run into a few things that have slowed us down some here, but overall things are going well. We are continuing to learn to go with the flow and do the best we can!

Saturday began with Jason running 21 miles in preparation for the marathon in just a few weeks! After he got “home” and caught his breath, we took up an offer to go to a local golf club where a pool and restaurant were available for our use (due to the kindness of our hosts). It was so beautiful outside and we both very much enjoyed being able to go swimming and then relax by the pool! While I read and did some journal writing, Jason worked on emails, papers, etc. I felt very lazy as I had also slept in that morning while he was running for hours… :)  

Sunday was a day of rest for both of us. We enjoyed attending the AIC (African Inland Church) Fellowship in the morning. It is a large church, full of lively worship, and the pastor preached a great sermon on forgiveness from Joseph’s story in Genesis. We then went to a place called “Pinetree Gardens”, and enjoyed eating, talking, and then taking a long walk and getting some ice cream afterward. Jason recovered remarkably quickly from the long run the day before, and even played squash in the evening with our hosts’ son and his friends.

Today, Jason gave me the day off work so that I could go get my hair done. :) For those of you who know about the process of getting my long hair braided here in Kenya, I know that you probably think I’m crazy for doing it again. For those of you who don’t know about the process, lets just say that it involves about 5 hours of sitting to initially get the braids, then I had to learn a new process of caring for my hair as the extensions that are weaved in change the entire texture of my hair, and then taking the braids out (after a month or so) involves another (at least) 5 hours of work and patience. So, I am a little crazy for doing it again, but the month that you have them in you only have to wash your hair about once a week and it cuts “getting ready” time down to almost nothing (which Jason loves I might add). :) Anyway, I decided to change it up from last time, so this time I have even smaller braids that hang down all over my head. This time it took 5 hours with TWO people working the entire time. Also, it hurt a lot more than last time – I guess because the braids are smaller and tighter. My hair seems a lot longer with the extensions weaved in and I think it looks quite exotic, or maybe hippie – haven’t decided yet... Jason says I look like an exotic hippie. :) I will try to post pics sometime soon for anyone interested. It’s a fun and random change, Jason really likes it, and other than needing a little Tylenol, the process doesn’t seem so bad once they’re done braiding it.

Enough about my hair. Now for a major transition...

I wanted to leave you with a few quotes from some books I have been reading. One thing I love about travelling and being in a third world country is that I often feel like I have so much more time to read. I have just finished up “The Pursuit of God” by A.W. Tozer and I’ve now resumed reading “Absolute Surrender” by Andrew Murray. I had taken a break from the latter because I found it overwhelming at first. However, the last couple of chapters have been very helpful in understanding where Murray is coming from. Both books are packed full of so much truth that requires a lot of thought and prayer to process and apply. I’m now in the processing part, while attempting to work on application at the same time. I’d be interested on anyone’s thoughts that have read either book. Also, I love book recommendations if anyone has some good ones! Here is some food for thought…

“We need not fear that in seeking God only we may narrow our lives or restrict the motions of our expanding hearts. The opposite is true. We can well afford to make God our All, to concentrate, to sacrifice the many for the One.”  - A.W. Tozer

“And if you come and say: ‘Lord, I yield myself in absolute surrender to my God’, even though it be with a trembling heart and with the consciousness: ‘I do not feel the power, I do not feel the determination, I do not feel the assurance’, it will succeed. Be not afraid, but come just as you are, and even in the midst of your trembling the power of the Holy Spirit will work.” – Andrew Murray

Hope you all are doing well. As usual, I would love to hear from anyone reading this! I hope to post again sometime this weekend with some more pictures.

  - Meridith -