#46 How to carry a table when you are small.
The difference between land that has been protected from livestock, and land that hasn’t, is very clear to see in this photograph. The damage done to the ecosystem by overgrazing has had a dramatic impact on the land around Olng’arua School, and across northern Kenya. Over grazed land is compacted and desiccated, it sheds rain …
Skipping rope is the current craze in the school. At each 15 minute break between classes all the children rush out to jump rope. This little girl impressed everyone by jumping so high, and laughing so much when she did.
None of the children who attend Olng’arua School have electricity at home. They all live in traditional houses built of mud and sticks, lit at night by a paraffin lamp, or more likely, just a fire. There are no books in their homes. Occasionally a newspaper might be brought back if someone makes the trip …
Each child brings a stick of firewood with them when they come to school, to feed the fire that cooks their lunch.
Our solar water pump takes all day to fill the school tanks, as apposed to 45 minutes with a petrol pump. But who cares!? We have plenty of sunshine and this lovely little pump quietly and cleanly fills our tanks for the week by the end of the day.
Our Environment is our home, we should not destroy it.
The children worked very hard this year on the school ‘shamba’ (vegetable garden). It was looking wonderful; we had started harvesting sukuma (a green leafy vegetable like kale) and were keenly anticipating tomatoes, green peppers and carrots. – Then an elephant came to tea. – Sadly our fence was no match for a determined elephant …
With the normal period for the rainy season here nearly over, we are resigning ourselves to a dryer than normal ‘long dry season’ ahead. There have been some dramatic skies and even a nice rainbow or two but very little rain. The rivers have dried up far beyond their normal points for this time of …