It’s been a busy, tiring, but incredibly rewarding week here in Kenya. We still have time left, but I’m trying not to think about how fast it’s all going.

Yesterday was a great, but somewhat emotionally draining day. Home visits.

Home visits are a time for our team to break into small groups and go into the homes of some of the villagers. The homes that we visit are chosen very carefully – they’re agonized over and prayed upon by the leadership council. Typically they are homes with elderly villagers or villagers with developmental disabilities.

We went to the home of Gladys (age 33) who has three children: Mwangi (age 8), Isaac (age 11) and Esther (age 3). The villagers refer to Mwangi as “retarded” – but it appeared to me that he just has a developmental disability that has obviously gone undiagnosed. He can hear, but cannot speak – and because he is not both deaf AND mute, he is unable to go to a special needs school here in Kenya. Thus, education isn’t really available to him.

It’s so hard to know that if given the resources, or if the parents and teachers in the village were properly equipped,Mwangi would have a chance at living an independent and full life.

It was tough. But we spent time with the family making tea, chapati and laughing. Mwangi smiled and ran around playing with his siblings. It was amazing.

As important as the physical work we are doing here in Kenya is, the relational work we are doing is just as important – if not more important.

Thanks for all your encouragement and support while we are here. Hope the USA’s s handling our absence alright. 🙂