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Friends United Meeting |
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September 2003
My Life in Kenya
By Emma Nugent Rehard
"Jambo," (Hello) I say. "Habari yako?" (What's your news?) The chubby little boy in a scraggly torn shirt and too-small shorts avoids eye contact. "Muzuri," he mumbles with bad Swahili grammar.
"Unakwenda wapi, Seth?" (Where are you going?) He finally looks up at me. I look down at him.
"Nyumbani." (Home)
Okay, so my Swahili isn't great, but I'm getting there.
Encounters like this are common. You can't simply go for a walk without someone saying "Hallo!" or "Hawayu, Mzungu?" (How are you, white person?) It's a social culture, and there's not much privacy. Yesterday I was sick, today everyone knows — that kind of thing.
Children also have a different way of interacting. How often do you go out with a soccer ball, a beach ball, tennis balls, the baseball set, and a basketball, pick a bunch of guavas (fruits) and know a mob of kids will show up, beginning with your best friends, all wanting guavas and to play ball?
What do you picture Africa being like? Hot? Dry? Elephants, giraffes, monkeys? You're right — almost. Africa is just like the U.S. in many ways — different climates, landscapes, people, religions and beliefs — and I want to tell you some of the differences between the U.S. and Kenya.
Climates and Landscapes
In the Western province where I live, there are lush green forests, some gently rolling hills, but mostly just flatish land lying at a high altitude. Go north and you find the Rift Valley province. Above the Great Rift is desert. The only source of water for the Turkana People is from Lake Turkana; it's just a few towns that are scattered. Farther south, you run through the peaked, steep, sharp Nandi Hills. Then, you plunge into heat, down from the high altitude, into the Valley. The Maasai, farther south, live in semi-desert — bushes scattered through the arid grasslands and some curvy hills. On the coast and near Lake Victoria, it's a low altitude, hot and humid.
People
There are a few basic tribes in Kenya: Kikuyu, Luo, Luyah, Maasai, Meru, Pokot, Samburu and Turkana. These are the Native Africans. There are a few refugees among them. Also, many Arabs and Indians are here. We also (surprise!) have tourists. Then there are us — missionaries.
Religion and Beliefs
The main religions are Christianity (especially the Anglicans and Quakers), Islam and Hinduism. There are also ATR or African Traditional Religions. Quakers are a big community here — at least half of all the Quakers in the world.
Sometimes there are hard differences that make me feel like some alien from a different planet (is that why they call it "Alien Registration?"). But I also enjoy living in this climate around these people. I feel different emotions about being here: missing family, friends, and yet loving it. Overall, this is my home.
There are a lot of differences between Kenyans and us. What we need to do is understand those differences, but not change them. What we need to do is tie the knot between us, strengthening relationships and finding out how we can be more understanding, more alike. Together, we must find out more about Quakers here, and teach them about American Quakers. This is what my family and I are doing here, today, at Friends Theological College.
Emma Nugent Rehard lives with her parents Patrick Nugent and Mary Kay Rehard, and younger sister Eliza at Friends Theological College, Kenya.
Copyright (c) 2003 Friends United Meeting
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