Amazon - Now...
ETD: 6 days
This will likely be one of last entries from Kenya.
We finished school a week ago today and have been testing this week. I leave Tenwek in a week and fly to the US a few days after that. I obviously am having mixed feelings about leaving--I am looking forward to seeing friend and family, but will miss this community so much. This is truly the best teaching job--I cannot imagine finding a job I enjoy more than this one. Not to mention the perfect weather, interesting culture, beautiful countryside out my front door.
We have had several end-of-the-year events in the last week. Last Thursday, we had our annual Fine Art Festival. The kids did a number of different pieces--piano, poetry, scripture, etc. After the program, we had refreshments while people walked around and saw the art displays the kids had set up. A very nice night, all in all.
Sunday night, we had a good-bye bbq for all the families who are leaving soon--there are four family units leaving in the next week. The kids stayed with some visitors, so it was a nice time with just the adults.
And this week, I have been giving standardized test to five of my students. It's been a strange week--it's been school, but not really. We finished that yesterday morning and now I just have to pack--and get rid of a bunch of things I have accumulated, but don't want to take back with me, including some food.
I've already had two dreams (I am not sure I would categorize them as nightmares) about leaving, then realizing I have left things behind. I am not sure what that means, other than my worries about packing up.
I am leaving most of my clothes (at least what I have here), but have several bags worth of things I have bought and want to take back with me. The parents bought me a gorgeous painting (by Peter Mwangi, a Kenyan artist) as a goodbye gift, but it is canvas and can just be taken off the frame and rolled into a tube. I have several vases and carvings I have bought that do weigh quite a bit and am planning on buying quite a bit of tea in Nairobi before I leave, so I have to have room for that, too.
One of my goals when I return home is to move into some place I really like and stay there for at least two years. Since graduating from high school, I have moved 13 times, including two international moves and not including my upcoming moves to GA, then onto Kentucky in late summer. I am ready to NOT move for a while.
Now that testing is over, we are planning to have a field day next week. Other than that, I am just packing.
I would appreciate your prayer for the next week or so--for me and for my students. Transitions are alway difficult and international moves are some of the most difficult.
Thank you all for your support and prayer for the last two years. I will post again , I hope, before I leave.
