DiAnn Mills

Dean called me. It was Friday night for him. Just hearing his voice gave me a perk for the day. After breakfast with lots of Kenyan coffee with my new friends, I waited for Rosemary and our time together. A driver from the Mayfield drove us to the Nairobi Hospital. I was so excited to take pictures of the outside of this acclaimed hospital, but the moment I snapped the second picture, a security guard was at my side wanting to know the purpose of my pictures. I gulped and attempted to look very professional then Rosemary stepped in and explained that as an American I had heard much about this hospital. The security guard proceeded to arrange a tour of the entire hospital. What a treat! And it is a fine facility. In my book, I have a character in this hospital. I’d “fudged” a bit in stating VIPs have a special area not knowing, but hoping, that was true. Well, I saw that wing of the hospital! Whew!

 
From there we drove to the University of Nairobi where the Mayfield driver left us. We had no idea what all we’d be doing and decided a reputable taxi would be the best choice for our return to the Mayfield later. The university campus is quite beautiful. If you have read Lost Boy No More, there is a chapter devoted to a very special young man, James Solomon Okuk. He attends this university and is now working on his doctorate in Philosophy of Politics. Let me take a moment to say that I have seen many fine people who have done great things with nothing while so many of us here in the states do nothing with something.

After our visit to the university, we approached a busy street with cars flying both directions. Rosemary asked me if I had ever crossed a street like this. I said no. She told me to close my eyes and grab her hand which I did relunctantly. When we made it to the other side, Rosemary turned to me and said, “Mr. Mills would not have approved”.  We laughed.
 
We stopped at the Java House for delicious coffee and lunch. The Java House was started by two American pilots who flew dangerous missions into Sudan during the war-torn years. The pilots called their business the 748 Air Services and were fearless. They delivered food and supplies where no one else would venture. Rosemary and I had a wonderful chat over lunch with lots of Java House Coffee. I learned so much from her. The heart she has for the Sudanese encourages me to never lose my passion for these people. She has a couple of theories of giving back to the needy that I’d like to pass on to you. She says when you go to the food store, clear out your pantry first and give what you have to the poor. She also practices that anything she doesn’t wear for a year goes to the needy. She believes Southern Sudan needs schools and vocational training centers, and for those who can to empower the people to train and teach each other, which is the best way to keep the children away from crime.

Rosemary then told me about her special project through Sudan Partners in Boma, Sudan. The people there live in “nests” and do not wear clothes. She is slowly developing a trust with these people. When she indicated that their children needed to be schooled, a man asked her if the children would learn about this God that he had been hearing about. She said yes, and he decided a school would be a good  thing, because he was curious about God. Sudan Partners was able to bring a brick machine to the people. In turn, the people of Boma are learning how to make bricks for their own school. They can then use this skill to make money. Another need for the people of Boma is a mill grinder. The girls spend all of their days grinding grain for their families. With a mill and the abundance of waterways, they too can go to school. I learned the major diet of the Sudanese who are able to garden is sorghum, maize, beans, tomatoes, corn, lettuce, and cabbage. This can be done in areas where the enemy does not destroy the crops or kill the workers.
 
Rosemary invited me to attend church with her and Dian on Sunday, and I eagerly accepted!  Rosemary asked a policeman to point out a taxi so we could return to the Mayfield - the one with the least dents.  I thought he needed a few driving lessons, and Rosemary did too.
 
In the afternoon, I visited my new friend Dian who had spent most of the day volunteering in a very poor area of Nairobi called Kibera. Most of the people there are from different African countries and are there illegally. They are shoved into slapped-together huts with no sanitation. One man from Rwanda had his Ph.D in mathematics, but because he had not entered Kenya properly, he could not secure work. His wife painted and sold greeting cards to feed their family. This was the case for many of them. An organization working within Kibera is assisting these people who wish to start a small business by lending money for start-up, establishing a pay back method, and teaching good marketing techniques for their crafts and products.
 
My mind is about to explode just listening to all of the courageous Christians who are working all over Africa. I heard an African pastor say that he believes the problem in America is that too many people no longer fear God. I had to digest what he said, and perhaps he is right. We have so much, but do we understand that it is all from God? I visited for some time with a missionary who works with a group in Mozambique that has over 2000 orphans, mostly young girls who were prostitutes. I heard of miracles, converts, much laughter, tears, and joy that only comes from God.

I will continue Saturday evening on the next blog post.

Additional photos can be found here.