Never Drop a Muzungu

Week 3, starting to settle into a routine. We spend most days in the field, then come back in the evening to do computer work, depending on if the electricity is working.

We live in a town about 7 km from the villages we work in, and take piki piki (motorcycle) taxis to work. It has to be the best morning commute in the world: good Kenyan coffee and zipping to work on a motorcycle down a dirt road surrounded by rolling green hills, golden maize fields, giant boulders, bright banana trees and thatched huts. Children near the roadside wave enthusiastically, screaming “muzungu!!” (it means white man, but works for all foreigners). The first few minutes after I get off a piki piki my face always tickles. I think it’s from my hair whipping around during the drive; I call it the motorcycle fuzzies.

It’s the last week of our transition with Foundation Team 2. Jesse, our imported media guru, arrived to tape episode 6, which focuses on the CDC (Community Development Committee, the Kenyan counterparts of the Foundation Teams). Their official titles are field managers and they are amazing, selfless community leaders. Philip Mohochi, the Chairman, is technically the field manager of my program but we are searching for a replacement because Philip is quickly becoming too busy to be both chairman and field manager.

My program is Community Economic Development (CED), started last season by Aerie. During our transition we’ve been working on a 5-year plan for the program, focusing on a ground-up, community-driven approach to economic development. This is what we’d like to do:

* Train Nuru members to save, budget, and plan.
* Provide skills training and small business development programs.
* Start a community development fund which will be the basis for a village savings and loan program, as well as make sure all Nuru program operations are able to sustain themselves.

I’m lucky to be here at a time when we start implementing a lot of the ideas that have been developed. It’s exciting and intimidating; we have ideas but I don’t want to assume anything. So far, the communities we work with have been incredibly welcoming, so I want to deserve that trust.

My Swahili is pretty pitiful because most of my co-workers speak English and I’m using that as a crutch. I have some stock phrases I’m using for now, which usually makes the Kenyans laugh. It’s like when the kids greet me yelling ‘Bye! Bye!’ (I’m not exactly sure why they know ‘bye’ but not ‘hello’) and I laugh and greet them back with ‘Bye! Bye!’. Not correct, but for now we understand each other.

“Never drop a muzungu! They are very fragile!” – shouted at Aerie and his piki piki driver by a passing motorcyclist