Karen, Day 1: Loreto Mary Ward Centre
After a 45-minute Uber ride from the airport to the Loreto Mary Ward Centre in Karen, Kenya for 1140 Kenyan shillings (~$11.40 USD), I began my stay at the retreat center for religious. Arriving for lunch, I ate along with a group from Ireland; a group whose leader was a relative of Sister Mary, the main nun at the Mary Ward Centre who runs the Nyumbani orphanage and village. Sister Mary, a spirited and ambitious nun, was one of our friends and supporters on the last trip to Kenya.
The Irish group welcomed me in at once. I sat with some of the younger members of the group as space allowed, sharing thoughts on America, Kenya, and Ireland. Because it was Saturday, I was looking for a way to arrange transport to my favorite Mass celebration in the world, the Mass offered at Nyumbani orphanage. I was in luck as the Irish group was going the following morning for Mass and a fun day with the children. At Nyumbani, both the orphanage and the village, all of the members have HIV (or have progressed to AIDS). Although you may think it scary or intimidating to work with these children at the threat to your own health, the care providers have worked with these children for many years without the virus being transferred to them. A certain degree of knowledge and care is necessary, the love you experience outweighs the risk.
That evening, since I had purchased full room and board (room with breakfast, tea, lunch, tea, dinner), I had tea time. Next to the tea bags and hot water was nice, cold milk. After a cup of tea, the milk looked oh-so-tempting, so, even though I knew that it was straight from the farm within the compound of the Mary Ward Centre (meaning it was unpasteurized), I decided to drink all 8 or so ounces that were there. I think we have all experienced food poisoning before…this would be my experience for the next 18 hours.
Because I left my charger in Kisumu, this time at the Mary Ward Centre was coincided with a dearth of my media coverage. My apologies for the sparsity of photos in these sections.
