It is fun to meet the families of Centre employees. We get to see some more than others as some workers are from more remote parts of Kenya and have housing provided for them on site.
One employee has 2 young boys here with her.
The youngest boy, who is aboout 8 (although his ten year old brother says 9), has adopted our family. When he gets off of school he now proceeds straight to our house after entering the Karibu Centre gate. No check in with his mom, she’s yesterday’s news now.
These boys are enthralled by everything in our house. It is a delicate balance of letting them explore and not having things broken or mysteriously missing later in the evening when they are gone. It’s not stealing. I honestly just think that when you have had little to no possessions, you don’t understand the concept of using something and then leaving it, or having someone share it with you with the idea that it is just a temporary loan.
The younger one pretty much is a fixture in the May house now. He is so comfortable with our house that he just does a quick little knock on the door and then walks in. He asks me for snacks. Asks to have the t.v. on. Wants to mess with my computer and camera……just like our own kids.
He got ahold of the camera and I think he might have a future in store as a photographer
One day I came home in the middle of the day from the centre and he was just hanging out in our house quietly lounging on the sofa while Ian was eating lunch. Our kids were asleep.
Finally I figured that he likes pretty much anything novel, so I set him and Eli to work washing the car. They got to play with the hose, and we got a fairly clean car. Sweet deal:
