Days in the life ...

My plan had been to write on the major news story in Kenya this week - the national referendum on a new constitution that took place on Wednesday. The background to this vote was the defeat of a previous attempt at reform in '05, and then some serious post general election violence in early '08, so there was certainly an element of drama in the air as the forces in favour and opposed rallyed their supporters in hectic campaigning as I arrived in the country.
However the girls stories topped the politics......



Winfred - CHES house, Kakamega, Aug'10

CHES provides scholarships to needy girls allowing them to attend boarding schools in the Kakamega district of Western province in Kenya.
These tend to be church run schools - RC, Anglican, with a strong emphasis on religious values (CRE - Christian Religious Education is a mandatory subject).
This did not surprise me, but talking to the girls about their school day did.
4:30am - Wake up call
5 - 6am - Independent reading
6 -7am - Cleaning dorms, school, and/or working in school shambas (gardens)
7 - 7:15 - Breakfast
7:15 - 8am - Homeroom or assembly
8am - 4pm - Classes with 1/2 hr for lunch (usually 11 -40 min classes)
4- 5:30pm - Games, sports
5:30 - 6pm - Dinner
6-9pm Evening prep, review,
9pm Lights out.
How many Canadians, teachers or students, would handle that kind of schedule!
but the amazing thing is they love it, and in fact some girls I spoke with were not looking forward to going home for the August holiday because conditions there would be a lot more difficult than school.
As I talk with the girls, some are clearly daunted to be speaking with an elderly mzungu (white person) and they are sometimes reluctant to talk about their lives as I try to gain insight; but by enlarge the fortitude they display, and the hope they live with thanks to CHES, humbles me on a daily basis.
In September the girls will return to boarding school, and I hope to be able to travel around the district to make school site visits - on my new Yamaha 100 motorbike!! More stories I'm sure.

Oh, and the new constitution? Passed peaceably by an over 2 to 1 majority, giving Kenyans new hope for a more democratic and equitable future, one for the CHES girls to be a part of.