Living at Rainbow

21 May. Kisian, Kenya.

We have been in Kenya for a while now, and the work on the Rainbow-center is going well. Phillip (the director) is busy preparing for the Harambee (traditional fundraiser). Sending the invitation cards, dealing with political subtleties, organizing a party, holding many, many meetings. Kamiel lives inside the office of Rainbow since yesterday, which allows him to do more work here, combining digging, drilling, shoveling, raking, slashing, plowing with editing, writing, browsing, proofreading. There is more interest for Rainbow from the community now, and we are reaching beyond our district.

Last night, Kamiel joined the meeting at Rainbow late - intentionally. The Center is in a transition phase and we want it to rest on the shoulders of the community as soon as possible. We have a fair chance at achieving that as we are organizing the harambee. That is in itself an interesting event: influential upper-class people, politicians, "rich men" will visit this humble community abode, along with their friends, and will contribute money to it, while enjoying a party here. I've never experienced a harambee before and I'm curious how it will work out.

For now we can be pretty sure that some cash will be available so that this center will be turned into a nice place to be through plastering, fencing, electrifying, and furbishing. So, while the meeting was underway, Kamiel was working in the office and hearing community members talking convincingly and enthusiastically about this project was very rewarding. We also received a donation from some person who found out about Rainbow through the Internet, and wish to thank him a lot. We are using the solar cookers for a while now at Rainbow, and it works well. Tea this morning was delicious and hot - rice is slowly cooking as I write this post. We will probably "boost" our dishes with the little kerosene stove we have here for rainy days.

Mango season is approaching and we will start with a modest portion of mango jam, showing everyone here that these fruits can be kept when boiled and put inside an airtight container rather than rot away under the tree.

There are some talented artists here and we will start with firing some clay figures, then glazing and painting them. We hope to sell them through www.glocalpresents.com to generate income for Rainbow - keep an eye on it.

I am getting some materials (wood, mats, cement) and a wheelbarrow, so that I can construct some small things like a bathroom, a veranda, and a kiosk. Will post photos soon. If there is anything you want to know about Rainbow, don't hesitate and comment on this article. And refer to the Rainbow Website, of course.