On Monday, we headed to the slum in Mathare Valley, and while it is not the largest slum in Kenya, we have been told it is the worst. Nothing could have prepared us for what we saw - I don't even know how to describe it. Tiny little structures made out of corrugated iron and other scrap materials fill the valley. Large families live in rooms no more than a few metres square. There are no toilets - except flying ones...you do your business in a bag and then sling it through the air. Rubbish and waste is everywhere, and so are children. Beautiful children, often bare foot and hardly clothed, playing amidst the filth.
As we walked through the slum on the way to the Compassion project, we were greeted by these children, yelling out 'how are you?' and some shaking our hands. Martin (one of our Compassion guides) told us that when they go home, they will tell their parents that they saw six 'how are you's'.
Makeshift breweries line the river and are owned by very dangerous, wealthy cartels. We were warned not to take photos as we walked past, as what they are doing is illegal and they are very wary about the police. Later, we were able to visit them for 5 minutes and take a few photos (which we paid them for). But even our local guides were uncomfortable being there and we left fairly quickly. The 'illicit brew' they make has a very high alcohol content (with a bit of jet fuel thrown in there for punch), but it is the cheaper alternative for those who cannot afford vodka and want to leave their hard lives behind for while.
After winding our way through dark narrow walkways, we finally emerged at the Mathare Community Outreach centre and it was a breathe of fresh air. Gorgeous Compassion children performed songs of praise to God for us and we met some of the amazing people who run the child development centre (Compassion project). The difference in the children is wonderful. They are in school uniforms, learning, dancing, singing and they have such an incredible hope and faith in God.
They still have to cope with so much, as we saw when we visited two little Compassion supported girls in their homes. The first lives in a child-headed home, as her parents died five years ago. There are four children that live together, and another two that are are married and live elsewhere. The older sister's dream is to finish her studies in mass communications so she can get a good job and move her family out of the slum.
The second little girl lives with her mother, alcoholic father and six brother and sisters in a 5x5m concrete room, on the second floor of a rather unsteady looking concrete block of a building. Her mother welcomed us warmly and thanked God for us, for Compassion and also prayed that our trip would be fruitful - it was an extremely humbling experience.
What a day. Now all that is left to do is work through how what we saw today changes the way we live; about how we think about God, about what we actually need, about how we use what God has given us. Questions that won't be answered easily or quickly.
