Chris Loehmer Kincaid's Blog, page 157

Street Scenes Photo Challenge

The task for this month's Photo Challenge was pictures of street scenes. When I read that topic, I thought, ah-ha, I got this one. And here it is February 8, at 10:30 pm, and I am scrambling to get this together. Arrgh. 
This first picture was taken in a suburb of Nairobi, Kenya. It was a parade to raise awareness for the Red Cross. Could be a picture taken any place, right?  This picture was taken in the town of Ngong. It is a few miles outside of Nairobi - ok, maybe more than a few miles, darn bus ride gets me so disoriented. This little town has the modern conveniences, such as ATM's, fully stocked grocery stores and internet. But notice the man on the right. He is a Maasai, dressed like Maasai dress day in and day out.
Last we have the main drag of Saikeri, a Maasai village in the Bush. It is farmer's market day, so that is why the street is so filled with activity.
I have so many pictures from Kenya that it was hard to chose which ones to use. I picked these because they show the difference which twenty-some miles can make.

All of the pictures were taken with my Nikon Coolpix set on Auto pilot - the best place to be (besides Kenya).

Are we going to Kenya or Turkey?

Last fall a friend loaned me the book, “Miracle at Tenwek: the story of Ernie Steury” by Gregg Lewis. Since it tells the story of a physician who devoted his life to working in Kenya, she thought I would like it. Helping out in Africa and the nitty-gritty of medicine, I thought I would like it too. It started out that way, but currently I am three-quarters through it and have started skimming the pages.
God certainly had His hand in all of Dr. Steury’s work and He blessed the hospital at Tenwork as well as the Kipsigis tribe it served. And I do love reading about His miracles, but it has gotten a bit long. This is one of those books whose format is: this happened, then this happened, then this happened. There’s no change of pace. And each story is exactly like the previous story. (Yawn.)
A lot of people really liked this book, liked the testimony it shares. Those who are called to do missions work should turn their lives over to God and trust in Him totally to get them through every trial. I agree with that. But if you write a book about your experiences, keep your focus on what the readers want to read, not on every single thing that happened.
Take the book I actually did finish, after having started it only the day before. “My Journey to Kilis” by Abdullah Firoze is also about a doctor – ok, not a real doctor, he’s a third year medical student, but on his way to becoming a doctor – who feels called to help Syrian refugees.
His journey is just that – a journey filled with highs and lows, changes of plans, language barriers, illness and everything else that could go wrong. Through it all, however, the author keeps a positive attitude and accepts that this is the way things are going to be. Having been to Kenya twice and Peru once, I could so relate to some of his feelings of disappointment when things didn’t turn out as planned. I also enjoyed reading about the illnesses and injuries he encountered at his clinic.
Originally written as a blog, the author didn’t seem to make many changes to put his manuscript into book format, which made reading a little challenging at times. Also, after working with refugees in the Turkey city of Kilis for two and a half weeks, he spent his last few days touring Istanbul. I don’t think he’s a travel guide candidate as the last pages of his book didn’t make me want to run out and buy a plane ticket.

Overall, however, I would have to say that I would journey to Kilis before going to Tenwek if I only had these two books to go by. 

What's on my road?

I know that it has been a hard winter on everyone. Even on the mailboxes.
 On the highway near our house.

 No one lives at the house of this mailbox but it still doesn't seem right - or even safe to bury it in the snow. This is less than half a mile from our house.
Then there is ours. It's like the show-off of mailboxes, mocking all of the rest of them. That would be all the hubby's doing.  Drive safely this winter. You don't know what you might find in a snowbank. And appreciate your mail carrier for the gallant work they have been doing this cold snowy winter. 

What path will you follow?

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not trust in your own understanding. Agree with Him in all your ways, and He will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6 New Life Version
In my attempt to again read through the entire Bible, I read a few chapters of Psalms or Proverbs in between reading each of the other books. Today’s chapters were in Proverbs 3 and 4. The verse above is fairly well-known; you’ve probably heard it or seen it somewhere before.
This next verse maybe not.
Watch the path of your feet, and all your ways will be sure. Do not turn to the right or to the left. Turn your foot away from sin. Proverbs 4:26-27 New Life Version


I can’t say that Dino always keeps me on the right path, or that anyone should follow their dog. But I do believe that he was sent to our family straight from God. So that when I am knee-deep in snow, I will follow the path he is on. The rest of the time, I will follow God. 

Why I went back there again.

For some reason, I started reading back through some of my old blog posts. My really old ones. I can't believe it is nearly three years since I started this blog. I notice it took me a while to figure it out too, I didn't post as many pictures and I didn't give each post a title. I like to think that I have evolved, or at least this blog has. Then I read a post like this one, and think - well - what matters is what you think.

March 30, 2010 Return to Kenya When Val and I came back from Africa the first time, in 2006, she knew she wanted to return some day. She left a part of her heart with the orphans from Brydges Orphanage in Nairobi and with the beautiful Maasai and with all the children at Pastor Joseph’s farm. She left part of herself behind on the Masai Mara with the cheetahs and the hippos and the thousands of homely wildebeest, relentlessly cantering across the wide plain. Ok, who am I kidding? I left part of myself behind too.

Last fall seemed so long ago, that day when I was sitting in this exact spot in the living room, when she made her announcement that she was going back to Kenya. She had found an organization on line where she could work with an orphanage for six months. I didn’t think that the day would actually arrive when she would get on that plane and fly into the adventure of a lifetime.

And now she is gone. The time will go quickly, I know that. She will come home changed, aged, like fine wine perhaps. She’ll come home with wonderful ideas for her future life. Maybe even a game plan for her future. Or if she just comes home with lots of pictures, a tan and good health, that would be fine with me too.

In the meantime, all we can do is pray for her, keep her in our thoughts and wait, somewhat impatiently, to hear some of her stories. And since I have been there already myself, I can go back to Africa in my mind, hear the Maasai singing their songs through the night to keep us safe from lions, smell the distinctly sour odors of poverty in Mathari Slums, feel the rough warm fingers of school children who have never touched a Muzungu (white person) before.

Sigh. I need to go back there again, don’t I?


And so I went back.

You can do what is good and right

13 If you are always trying to do good, no one can really harm you. 14 But you may suffer for doing right. If that happens, you have God’s blessing. “Don’t be afraid of the people who make you suffer; don’t be worried.”15 But keep the Lord Christ holy in your hearts. Always be ready to answer everyone who asks you to explain about the hope you have. 16 But answer them in a gentle way with respect. Keep your conscience clear. Then people will see the good way you live as followers of Christ, and those who say bad things about you will be ashamed of what they said.
17 It is better to suffer for doing good than for doing wrong. Yes, it is better if that is what God wants. 1 Peter 3:13-17 Easy-to-Read Version
A friend of mine at work emails a daily Bible passage to several of her co-workers. She has been reading from the books of Peter the last few weeks. Every day when I open her email I am amazed at how Peter is so much like most of us today. Two thousand years later, how is it possible that he speaks to us about the same fears and worries that plague us.  
He lived in a time and place where the early Christians were being persecuted for any number of reasons. Those who continued practicing pagan religions blamed the Christians whenever anything went wrong. Because of that, they were often driven out of their hometowns and were ridiculed simply for being strangers wherever they located to. Many of them came from a Jewish background, which was grounds for harassment in many of the areas where they lived.
Unfortunately, it is much the same in our world today. We hear about all kinds of religious fighting in foreign countries and I for one can’t keep track of it all. Is it that much better in America? I don’t live in fear that I will be physically attacked, but we are persecuted for our beliefs just the same. 
The causes, the details, the individual situations aren’t what matter. What matters is that we continue to do what is right, that we don’t grow weary and that we continue to follow our Lord and Savior,

Heavenly Father, help us to remain strong in faith when we are tested. Help us to always stand up for the truth. Help us to always help our neighbors no matter what their personal convictions might be. Amen. 

The Orange Cat is Heard From

 Ok, if you have ever read this blog before you probably figured out that Mom is crazy. Here is one example. She has always had a thing for big ol' orange cats. This is the cat she had when she was a kid. His name was Alice Cooper. I don't get it. It had to do with something about a rock singer, but really Mom?
 So here is where it gets really weird. So when she got me and my sister, she named my sister Alice. How dumb is that? But she's not named Alice Cooper the second. Don't even ask what Mom named me. I don't think she even knows. Supposedly my real name is Cheshire Cat, but no one calls me. Probably because it is a dumb name. I don't know. I don't think it is the name of a rock singer at least.
 And if Mom really likes big ol' orange cats so much, why doesn't she let me stay in the house all the time like my baby sister Alice?
 Instead I have to stay outside with the likes of Betty the Uni-kitty. Mom calls us Owls for some reason when we sit on the deck like this. Oh, and Dino the Dumb Dog gets to come in the house all the time too.
I guess I shouldn't complain. I have lots of food to eat and my pet bowl to sleep in all night and all day if I want to.

Tumaini means Hope

I spent another entire evening tonight working on Tumaini Volunteers Inc. The IRS form 1023, the big complicated form required to apply for tax exempt status, is complete and Val will get it in the mail in the next few days.

We also have a logo and had a little fun in between all the hard work by designing and ordering business cards. I will post a picture of that as soon as they arrive.
The next item on our agenda is to plan a few small fundraisers and secure some speaking engagements. I also hope, that as things begin to take shape, we can rope some more team members into jumping in the trenches with us and helping with some of the work. I think it is also time to get some commitments from volunteers who are ready and willing to journey to Kenya and possibly jump literally into the trenches.

It is all very fun and exciting, as well as nerve-racking.

If you are tired of hearing about my travels in Africa, click here to follow the Compassion bloggers as they journey to Uganda. They would appreciate your support as well.


The vision of Tumaini Volunteers is to build teams of individuals who share the same passions to reach out to these underprivileged communities.
It is the mission, duty, and purpose of this organization to educate, encourage, provide aid, and facilitate sustainable development projects in underprivileged areas through empowerment of people on a local and global level.(From our website)

Focus - the word of the day

We have all these great people around us as examples. Their lives tell us what faith means. So we, too, should run the race that is before us and never quit. We should remove from our lives anything that would slow us down and the sin that so often makes us fall. Hebrews 12:1 Easy-to-Read Version
Have you seen the movie “Up”? It is a great cartoon with a wonderful story. The dogs who are in it apparently suffer from Attention Deficient Disorder. They can be totally focused on their mission one moment, but as soon as someone shouts “squirrel” they look around in every direction trying to find the little critter.
I tend to do the same thing. I can go from one room in my house to the next, intend on finishing a single task. But then I decide to wash the dishes. I go into the living room to seek out stray bowls or glasses, and instead the computer draws me in and I just have to check my email. There is an email from a friend recommending a book she recently finished, so I venture back to the other end of the house because I believe that book is in my office. The book is not there, but one of the dog’s toys is. I pick it up planning to return it to the dog toy box, but the dog spies me. His tail wags and his eyes plead, so I have to go outside to play with him. And it continues from there.
You know what I am talking about. Everywhere you look there is another “squirrel” to distract you.
Today’s word is Focus. Stop picking up on those “squirrels” in your peripheral vision. Look straight ahead. Run the race set out before you, never quit and don’t let those distractions run you off course.

Dear Heavenly Father, today help me to focus on the tasks at hand. Help me to finish what I start. Lead me away from all those things which distract me. Let me finish my day with a list of goals completed and with time left to spend with You. Amen But how can you not get distracted by those faces? 

And it just keeps snowing

For the second time this week, my husband is out blowing snow this morning. I measured nine inches on the deck just now. My husband had blown the snow off of the deck on Sunday and I hadn’t measured it then, but it was a bunch. I don’t know where we are going to put it anymore. It is only January 17; we have at least two more months of snow ahead of us. 
I didn’t get any writing done this week. After my nightly stint of shoveling the front step and clearing a path across the deck, I spent two nights working on the Nonprofit. We have Kenyan items for sale now on Etsy and I also worked on our three-year projected budget.
Has anyone else out there ever started a Nonprofit organization and applied for tax exempt status? I think I have asked that before and based on previous responses, I believe we have our work cut out for us. I think they make it so challenging to get tax exempt status just so fly-by-night outfits get discouraged and don’t pursue it.
Just like the snow, we gotta keep shoveling. We will get this done, and Tumaini Volunteers will be taking in donations and sending volunteers to Kenya before you know it.
The other thing I spent my time on this week was dreaming about vacations. I know. With all the snow outside that seems a worthwhile pursuit.

Have a good weekend.  Hard to get a picture of snow. It is all white.