This last month has been all about wildlife!  With a bit (actually a lot) of work fit in between the trips (from work place to work place) where I have been seeing all this wildlife.  One of my great loves of Kenya is that one can be just driving along public roads and see the most amazing things in the bush.  If one makes an effort to actually visit one of the many fabulous National Wildlife Reserves and National Parks in Kenya, the effort is well rewarded by so many amazing wildlife sightings.  I see elephant, gazelle, ostriches and zebra on a regular basis on the roads I normally travel, with the occasional giraffe and other cool birds thrown in.  Since the beginning of August, I have had the lucky sightings of so many rhino along one public road that happens to boarder a rhino conservancy.  They are such amazing animals.  I had my niece with me as we were traveling from Ngurunit to Maralal the long way around and she had never seen a rhino in real life before.  We stopped several times so we could get a good look at these prehistoric looking animals.  

That same day, we also saw a really huge elephant

grazing right long the road.  We stopped and watched him a very long time.  He had a young elephant friend join him and there was such peace just hanging out with them.  A bit further along the way we saw a herd of mama elephants with their cute babies.  Amazing how small an elephant is at the start of its life!

Then, last week, on the way back to Ngurunit the long way around, we saw a hippo!!!  I had always heard that there is a hippo in one of the water dams we
pass often on our regular route, but I have never seen it as they tend to stay under the water during the day and only come out to graze at night.  Well, this trip, just as we were passing the dam in the middle of the day, the hippopotamus got hungry and decided to come out to graze giving us a great thrill and some good pictures.  So cool.  Then, the next day along our route to the village, we came across an ostrich family crossing the road.  Three little chicks and some very nervous parents.  The mother was fierce in her protection of her young from the evil cars passing, so they all got across safe and followed the father into the bush.  Again, it is amazing how small ostrich chicks are compared to how big they will grow into adulthood.  So cute. 

In between those two trips of there and back again, I had to make a long trip to a place called Narok for some Rotary club meetings with the District leaders.  As a reward for making that long trip, I decided to stay in the area an extra night and go to the nearby Maasai Mara National Reserve with my two Rotary club friends that had come with me from Maralal.  I wanted to see lions!!  We were not disappointed.  As it is high season for wildlife viewing in that park, there were so many tourist vehicles that it was a bit too much almost.  So, I tended to see where everyone else was going and find a road going the opposite direction.  That paid off with our first lion sighting being of a lone female walking directly towards my car and passing right by my driver’s door.  Wow.   No other cars nearby.  So beautiful.  The next group of lions that we found had already been found by about 20 other tour drivers.  Chaos.  We took a turn to get into position to be able to see the pride of lions resting in a stream gully

with full bellies after a heavy meal. Then I got hemmed in by about 8 other cars so had to just sit and watch the lions sleep for quite a while.  They were so lazy.  What had drawn us towards that place, besides the herd of tourist cars (haha), was a bunch of vultures feeding on the leftovers of the lion kill.  They were just as amazing for me as the lions. Squabbling and scrambling for a bite, covered in blood and gore.  Fighting and flapping their huge wings. 

Another cool thing we saw was a drama between a warthog and two hyenas.  The warthog appeared to be protecting the remains of his dead friend.  The two hyenas came running out of the trees and the warthog stood his ground for a moment confronting them nose to nose.  Two against one was too much for him so the warthog ran off and the hyenas dug into their meal.  One moved off and lay down to rest a little ways away while the other continued eating.  The warthog came running back by the resting hyena and then went up to confront the other one still eating.  The warthog was ignored and the meal continued.  

The main amazing thing to this encounter was how huge the living warthog was.  As big as the hyenas and not appearing much afraid of them.  I have no idea what killed the other warthog.  It was already dead by the time we saw the hyenas running towards it.  Nature is amazing.  One must pay attention and one is never disappointed by the scenes one finds.  Even a beautiful sunset or a storm rolling in can elicit awe if one just observes. 

We saw many other wildlife species also in the park.  Elephant, giraffe, topi, zebra, wildebeest, gazelles, Cape buffalo with oxpecker birds on their backs and heads, ostrich, a weird bird called the Southern Ground Hornbill and so much more.  We left the park around noon and still had a long, long drive back to Maralal that afternoon.  With lunch and shopping stops along the way, I finally made it home around 10 pm exhausted from that whirlwind trip.  It was worth it though. 

I’m now back in the village working on a video project for next year’s FAO “The Year of the Camelid”.  I am documenting the impact of camel adoption by the Ngurunit community, largely in response to the PEAR Innovation camel projects we have implemented over the last almost 25 years.  It is a challenge to capture this story well and interesting to try my hand at taking video footage that will be used to make a short clip about the importance of camels to families here for nutrition and income generation, especially during drought.  Climate change issues have made the camel a very important livestock animal here.  More on that in posts to come.  Until next time, keep your eyes open for the beauty of nature around you, be it a squirrel, an elephant or a beautiful sunrise.  Peace…

 
The world has shifted.  At least, my world has shifted.  I spent longer than a month in the USA.  Exactly 2 months actually.  During my time there, my world took on a whole new shape and gravity.  I got to Wisconsin on April 20^th and had a good 2 weeks with my Dad creating an environment of peace to help him across the threshold to his next journey.  He passed on beyond the veil on May 4^th.  I am so grateful I could be there with him and my brothers during this time of immense change as our worlds shifted.  I stayed another 6 weeks in the USA to help take care of all that needs taking care of when both parents are gone beyond.  It was a good 6 weeks.  Not all business.  We had a joint celebration of the lives of both my parents and it was beautiful.  A proper send off.  I also managed to make several trips.  Went up north to our cabin with my friend.  Communed with the local turkeys.  Spent Mother’s Day with my kids in Madison.  

Visited friends and relatives in southern Minnesota with my brother.  And the trip of trips this year, Vancouver and surrounding areas in British Columbia, Canada with my son, daughter-in-law and my daughter.  Amazing good time!  We saw a whale. Seals.  Seabirds. Beautiful mountains.  Fun beaches.  Cool museums.  Yummy places to eat.  Long ago friends.  Fun movies.  A trip packed to the brim with amazing adventures and fun!!!

So that little synopsis brings me back to Kenya where I am sitting now.  I left USA on June 19^th, so have been here over a month already.  Most of it spent resting and getting myself balanced again after the ups and downs and spinning arounds of the 2 months away.  Where to start? 

I’ve enjoyed being back in the wild, seeing interesting animals along the roads, like rock hyrax, ostrich, and other cool stuff.  The main big project that has just started is the approval of our Rotary Club of Maralal Global Grant with our two partners, Rotary Club of Peekskill, New York, USA and Too Young to Wed, an international organization with on the ground projects in Kenya as well as around the world.  The project we are doing together is called The Butterfly Project and is aimed at empowering girls through literacy and life skills.  We are just starting to get it going with a joint launch planned in the village where it is based happening this coming Saturday.  More on this project in the months to come.

The other big thing in my life at the moment is a round of goat birthing season.  The goat kids are so cute!  The first one that started this group off was born a bit early so too weak to nurse on his own.  He was born the night before I arrived back in the village, so I took on his care and helped him get up and nurse 4 or 5 times a day.  Within about 5 days he had found his feet and was up and about on his own playing and being sassy.  In the weeks that have followed, another 12 kids have been born with a few more expectant does in our herd still waiting.  I spend my days watching the babies as their mothers go out grazing.  The kids are so playful.  Jumping on everything they can and racing around.  So cute.  They do bring joy to my world.  As does my little dog Mouse, too.  

Life moves forward moment by moment.  Day by day.  I can do nothing more than move with it.  So, time to move.  In the middle of a Nairobi trip.  Travel seems to be the constant in my life.  Up, down and all around.  I plan to be back in the village in less than a week, then will see what August will bring to my life.  Most likely Maralal and back for Rotary work.  Until then, peace to all….

 

Here I am sitting at the Nairobi airport waiting to board a plain to Wisconsin again.  I’ve been in Kenya for 6 weeks and a couple days.  Shorter stay than planned, but as I always say, the only firm plan I make is that plans will change.  So here I am, leaving on a jet plane.

These last 6 weeks have been packed.  The highlight of the whole time was that I have finally gotten the PEAR Cyber Café up and running in Ngurunit.  Still in its beginning stages, but the potential for growth is there.  There will definitely be a steep learning curve in terms of using the computers and the internet to the full potential.  The first week I spent upgrading the available computers from Windows 7 or 8 to Windows 10.  It was fun pretending I was a computer expert.  Haha.  The monkeys were definitely fascinated with the goings on in the cyber café.  Every once in a while a little face would per in the window for a moment.  I caught them hanging out in the trees watching the building.  I think they were more fascinated by my dogs than the computers.  Ha!  In town when I went to give out some basket sales money to the manager of the basket weaver’s group, there was one monkey on the roof of her shop that could not stop staring into the car at the dogs sleeping in the back seat.  Fascinating to me to watch the monkeys watching the dogs.

Anyway, the other awesome thing that has happened in my time here in Kenya is rain!!  It has finally rained plenty.  And still raining.  Beautiful.  Everything is green and fresh around both Ngurunit and Maralal.  Though still passed through some dry areas between the two places.  Raining well generally, but a bit spotty on coverage.

Not much else to report.  Lots of goat kids being born.  So cute.  I love watching them play.  They roam around the compound like little gangs.  Finding stones and chairs to jump on and off of.  Running and jumping and butting heads.  So little and sweet. 

I’m off to USA for just a month.  Will meet the Spring I expect.  Though just saw a picture of new snow in Madison yesterday.  Melting fast.  I left deep winter the last day of February coming this way.  Now flying into the Spring going back.  Will see what I will see.  And again miss my dogs, cats and goats for a bit.  Can’t wait till someone invents an instantaneous portal so I can just pop back and forth between my two loved places in an instant.  Spend every other day in each place.  Wouldn’t that be fabulous.  Well, soon to board.  Until next time, joy and peace to all….

Ngurunit, here I am again!  I made it back to Kenya on March 1^st, almost 3 weeks ago.  It was a slow journey from Nairobi to the village as I did not have a vehicle and relied on friend’s cars or taxis one leg at a time moving North.  I also spent a week in our town home in Maralal as I had a lot to catch up with there before heading to the village. It was so nice getting to hang out with my cats and dogs there after 3 months of not seeing them.  Also, practical stuff like giving them all their yearly booster vaccinations and deworming needed to be done.  

One other important activity was connecting in person with the other members of Rotary Club of Maralal.  Our big Global Grant project to work on empowerment of girls is getting closer and closer to realization.  The application is into the Foundation and we are ironing out the few wrinkles to the proposal within this month so that hopefully it will be approved in April and start implementation in May.  We have been working hard with our partners, Rotary Club of Peekskill, New York and the organization Too Young To Wed to make this project a reality.  The end of the application process and the beginning of implementation is so close.  Getting excited.

Another Rotary activity that my husband has been working on in the village is fixing the community well that Rotary constructed in 2019.  In February while I was in USA, I got news from my daughter that due to the drought and lack of water in the area, the local elephant herd had come to the handpump well and absolutely destroyed it trying to get inside.  So desperate for water, poor things.  But also, now it was a problem for the community as it was one of the few good water supplies in the area.  We had finally managed to get our partner, The Samburu Project, to send a team from Wamba in order to try to fix the completely smashed well infrastructure.  

The trough section was pounded to dust.  The handpump itself was torn from its moorings and turned completely sideways and the handle and spicket bent. Rocks had blocked the borehole.  A complete mess.  Fortunately, the technical team has been successful.  They managed to fix the outer structure and get the blockages out of the well system and we had some spare pipes and rods stored in Maralal that I was able to bring with me to Ngurunit on the 12^th March. 

By last week the well is now beautiful and in good working condition.  I still wonder why we can’t just teach the elephants how to pump with the handle so no destroying happens in the future..hahaha.

Anyway, I have been in Ngurunit for basically a week now.  So beautiful to be home!  The dogs.  The goats.  The mountains.  Peace abounds.  One other thing that abounds is heat!  It has been so so hot.  Fortunately this heat has been a lead up to the rains starting last week.  We are praying that last Wednesday and Thursday rains are just the

beginnings to a proper long rainy season this year.  The weekend was dry again and the heat building up, but waking up this morning it appears that it is building up to rain again this week, hopefully starting this evening or tonight.  It is so needed.  The land is thirsty.  Pasture is scarce.  But hope is there.  For the first time in months.  Rain rain rain!

I’m still on catch up a bit.  Accounts to do.  The cybercafe project to push forward.  The business office for computer room has finally got wired and has electricity. 

Next week I’ll make a trip to Maralal again to get the things I need to get it all going.  It is good to see projects going forward and becoming a reality on the ground.  One step at a time.  Yes there are obstacles, but with patience and insight, these can be overcome or even changed to advantages and stuff gets done.  

 In the meantime, I also take time to

enjoy the views, sit with my family, dogs and goats, and breathe.  

Peace and joy to you all.  Until next time….

Happy New Year!  Still the first month of the New Year so I don’t count myself as late to wish everyone a great 2023.  I am still in Wisconsin.  My life adage of the only firm plan I have is that plans will change kicked in this month.  My original plan was to have left for Kenya on Jan 20^th, but now I have extended my stay here another month.  I am enjoying winter so much, I decided to stay and take advantage of the snowy winter Wisconsin is having this year.  I love it!!

Not much to say since my end of the year post.  I took some time today to download photos off my camera which I haven’t done since October 2022. 

Amazed at what I found.   The parrots that live around my compound in Ngurunit, our village home, had visited me while I was there in October and November.  The rains that finally came in November promoted the trees to get green and beautiful and the parrots were enjoying life. 

I also remember the Grevy Zebra’s I saw during several different trips up and down the country.  Grevy Zebras are endangered and now found mainly in Ethiopia and Northern Kenya. They are the largest of the zebra species, and the most rare.   I always feel so blessed to see them.  Such beautiful animals. 

Here in Wisconsin, I am enjoying the backyard birds and wildlife.  The other night I watched a possum wandering around in the snow brightness on our snow covered deck.  In the darkness, it actually looked like a huge rat with its skinny naked tail dragging behind it.  Haha.  During the day I love to see the deer around in the yard.

  They love to come eat the sunflower seed husks from under the bird feeder.  The snow is so deep, that the bigger doe can actually reach up and lick birdseed right off of the platform.  A treat for her.  

For Christmas, my Dad got a new birdfeeder from his grandkids.  We hung it by the window and it is proving to be great for the squirrels, haha.  They love it.  The little birds do too when the bully squirrels aren’t around. 

A few days ago I spent a long time watching a beautifully striking red cardinal in the snow covered bushes on the edge of our property here.  So amazing.  I love watching the birds in the snow.  So delicate.  So quick.  So vibrant.  So full of energy. 

Winter is such an amazing season.  I know I annoy everyone by going around being so excited about the snow, ice and cold.  I can’t help it.  The only snow I ever see in Kenya is on top of

Mount Kenya.  Mount Kenya is located exactly on the equator, but is so high, that it does get a lot of snow.  One day I may climb up and touch it.  But then again, maybe not!  I will be content to see it from a distance and take photos.  Haha.  I did climb Kilimanjaro once.  With my kids in 2015 as a Rotary fundraiser event as well as a sort of 50^th birthday extravaganza. 

That was amazing.  There was a lot of snow.  I made it over 18,000 feet above sea level, not in an airplane.  Yikes.  Fun.  Hard.  A memorable occasion.  Here’s a flashback photo of my son and I at Gilman Point of Kilimanjaro. 

Wishing everyone a blessed 2023.  Enjoy the moment each moment of life.  Breathe. Be.  Love.