A Surprise Visit
Last year one of the most impressive students I met at the Area 2 School was a shy fifth grade girl named Mary who only rarely would give a small smile. She was impressive with her struggle to solve the Tangram puzzle with her eyes closed and even more impressive with the poem she wrote to a rhino. My entire class knows about Mary, because of her poetry and the stories I told abou her.
When I got to the Joska boarding school this year, Mary was one of my former students I most looked forward to seeing again, except she wasn't there. I was told that she had left school soon after arriving in January for her sixth grade year.
I returned to Nairobi and Mary and her mom met me at the Pangani Center. I was able to talk with them for awhile, give Mary some photos and a note I wrote, and encourage her to keep working hard because she has shown herself to be talented and special. I was told she has a medical condition and that she has to live at home so her mother can take care of her while she goes to a local school. It was nice to meet Mary again and to tell her that she was well known by the students at my school.
As I was walking back to the upper school at the end of the day, I decided to take a detour from the crazy steps and follow the alleyway In front of the Tall Street Hotel to see if I could get a better view of her house.
And I found my way to the door with the grey bucket.
I took some photographs.
And then a young man came up behind us. He was Mary's uncle. Next out of the doorway came Mary's mom. She put on a big smile on seeing me and immediately invited me into her home.
I have literally taken thousands of photographs while in Kenya, butI don't take hundreds of thousands of photos that I would like to take. Every blink brings a new scene I'd like to remember. However I don't feel comfortable taking photos of people's misery or crowds of people when I as the lone mzungu amidst tens of thousands of people already stick out without taking the photo of someone who might strongly abject. If I ask, people are usually more than willing.
When I entered Mary's home I stopped taking photos. I was meeting people and not putting them on display. The home was small and run-down. There was nothing homey about it. Most farmers house their barn animals in nicer quarters. Most American children have a bedroom bigger than this home. Our pets live in more hospitable surroundings. I stayed a short while and chatted with the mom and met the many guests or relatives sitting in the home.
In three trips to Kenya, I have met many students and been in a few homes. I had never been in a home of a student I had taught. Despite the surroundings of the slum, each student seems like a regular kid to me and I had a hard time imagining them going home to a small tin home. I now have seen the home of my most talented student and it will be hard to get the image out of my mind. The slum is real. The conditions are deplorable. Life can be very tough and it should never have to be this way for any person.