Shimo

The past couple saturday's our team has been splitting up and walking through shimo la tewa, the slums near our house. It's crazy you literally walk half a mile down the road and go from huge gated compounds to mud houses. I feel surprisingly comfortable there. We've been attempting to make a map of this huge community; basically a more focused attempt at meeting and knowing every family in shimo. It's been pretty cool walking into these houses, hearing about the families that live there, talking about faith (or no faith), praying together, giving out bibles, and building relationships.

People are generally really welcoming. We know a lot of the kids that live there, because a bunch of them go to oasis during the week or school nearby. Last saturday I followed pastor steve right into this group of like 15 older guys sitting behind some houses drinking. It was 11am. It was scary and intimidating, walking back there not knowing what would happen or how they'd react. Steve is crazy.

My new favorite thing about shimo is baby peter: the youngest in a family of 7 that we know really well. They live in one room with their mom in a tiny mud house connected to other houses. Mama margret collects firewood from the forest and sells it in town for hopefully enough money for dinner at the end of the day. Her kids are all big personalities, so I assumed it would be pretty hard to make peter laugh. P.S. this kid is never wearing pants. Even when we buy him pants, he doesn't wear them. So all morning I ran around with him, carrying him in my arms, running after other kids and tossing him up in the air. He smiled the whole way through and I looooved it. Making kids laugh anywhere is fun, but in kenya its even better because it feels like you're apart of creating these sincere moments of childhood for kids that don't really get one. So yea, Peters the best.

Kyleigh and I on a shimo walk-through with little Mia, from the family that moved to kenya

Some shimo houses. Laundry day.

Dan and Augustus and sisters making funny faces

Mama Margret, Peter's mom

Peterrrrrr.

The shimo bridge, super pretty.

On the left is Peter's older sister Erica, the right is Esther (one of the girls that we just sent to school for the 1st time), and the middle is Esther's brother Chris.

Dan! This guy is sooo ticklish, he's really fun

I can never remember this kid's name, but he is one of the first houses we walk by.

A mama making beer

Elvino!

There are so many young young girls with babies on their hips. It's crazy.

Kevin! This guy has cerebral palsy or something with his leg. He always comes out to play when we walk through shimo. He asked me to take this picture. What a stud.