and had a nice breakfast, then he and his beautiful children took us to church, to the Buru Buru ward.
The ward was filled with strength and the spirit, and I wandered into several rooms including the primary, capturing moments of songs on video to take home to my family. It felt like I had a family there on the other side of the world.
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| Light packing meant no Sunday clothes for Dallin, but no worries, mon! He made a lot of friends. |
The Relief Society President turned out to be Victor's "Mother" (she took him in when he was a youth), named Jane, and she brought Dallin and I to her home for dinner and some rest. It was a nice place, and Jane showed me how to make "ugali" (cornmeal paste, cooked like grits) and stir fried greens ("sukuma").
As we were enjoying the dinner, I got a text message from Lawrence. He is the ward member who I found on Facebook and I had tried to get him to go take the gospel out to Kiaruuh and his family, months before.
Apparently Lawrence had talked to Fredrick earlier that day at church, because they met in the same building. Fredrick had told him all about our days in Garissa and the Bush. Now that he knew that I was a real person and that the story was legitimate, Lawrence felt really bad that he had declined, and wanted to talk to me.
Because our plane was leaving later that night, I told him that it would be best if he could meet me soon at this kind lady's house to visit. We discussed areas and directions, until Sister Jane said, "Let me just call him to tell him where I live. What is his number?" I read the numbers to her as she typed them into her phone to dial. On the last number, her eyebrows went up and she said "LAWRENCE? That Lawrence is my nephew! My phone recognized the number, and his picture came up!" Jane called him and when he answered, she said "Lawrence! This is your Auntie Jane, and the lady you are talking to, Sister Shumway, she is in my home right now! And you know where I live!" They laughed and Lawrence came right over.
We talked for an hour as I told him all that had happened leading up to my trip, and all of the experiences we had seen in Kenya, and all of the miracles along the way. He squirmed and put his head in his hands over and over, and kept saying how bad he felt for declining the call to help. He said he would happily have taken us to Garissa, gone to the bush, all of it, but he just didn't know. I finally finished, and told him that I believed that it was his turn to be a part of the work, because I was going home now, and couldn't do much from there in the U.S., just like I couldn't the first time around. He said, "I'm ready, I'll do anything, just let me know what I can do and I'll do it." I knew that he was going to be another important person to the people.
A few minutes later, the doorbell rang, and in walked Victor and Fredrick. We had a grand reunion, Dallin and I, with all of the good church members who had taken us in as strangers, and who believed in this developing work. We talked and laughed for quite a while, and Dallin took a picture of us all together.
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| Fredrick, Me, Lawrence, Jane, and Victor |
Then it was time to go to the airport, we said our goodbyes to Jane, and loaded into Victor's company car. Fredrick drove us to the airport, and Lawrence and Victor came along and I was glad that I could enjoy their good company a little longer.
We arrived at the airport, and said our sincere wishes, and it was time to depart. I was so sad to leave them, and to leave Kenya. In the airport, as we walked to our gate, every Kenyan that I passed felt like a brother and a sister to me, and I would miss them so dearly. It tugged at my heart to go.
The rain fell as we boarded the plane, a promised blessing from the skies again, and matching the tears that I cried as we lifted into the night sky, and knew that I had left a part of my heart back on the soil of Kenya.
NEXT PAGE: 14- Going Home
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