God's reminder.

Colors chosen by house owner.

Years ago we were in the process of building houses for two different farm workers. One had lost his wife due to a crocodile attack while she was fetching water from the river. The other was the only woman worker at that time. She had come for the job at the farm because her husband was very ill from tuberculosis and bed ridden. She needed to be the one to bring in the family income. Her husband has passed away since, and she faithfully shows up each day to work and can totally hold her own against the men. When it came time to paint their houses these home owners were the ones to pick out the colors. We ended up painting on Christmas Day and lo and behold- the woman had chosen red and green for us to paint, which gave me so much joy. I could picture God smiling down on me as I took so much delight in this small aspect. It was very significant to me.

For the past several months Jason, Amos, and several fundis (professional cement workers) have been in the process of getting 3 houses built for 3 other farm workers.  There were some delays in the roofs being delivered- they had to be transported from Nairobi. Before even building the house structure a considerable amount of time went into the foundation being laid - which is not even seen but crucial for longevity. (Symbolic of our own lives). There was also time spent setting the bricks that make up the wall that needed time to dry slowly. Finally, the painting was ready to begin and once again the owners were to pick the colors. Blue and yellow were chosen. The colors of the Ukraine flag. I have to admit, weeks ago I would not have been able to tell you the colors of the Ukrainian flag, let alone tell much about the country and people there. As we have been daily lifting up these people to the throne room, I was reassured that God hears our cries to Him and He is with those hurting, fleeing, and grieving. I am honored that our mission sending agency has missionaries and interns at the boarder receiving refugees and caring for them. Let us continue to devote our time to pray for this war to come to an end.

My daughters are still trucking along in homeschool. We decided to take one day off to join in the painting festivities. We arrived at the house Tuesday morning and got our hands dirty, literally. It was a nice break from the books. At 1pm we went to the farm to partake in the lunch of beans and rice. After our stomachs were full we returned to the house to delicately paint the black lines. Not only did this require a steady hand but there was a limited amount of small paintbrushes so fewer people were needed. This gave some of us the chance to hang out with the children that had gathered. My Aunt Diane had sent us "melting snowmen" made out of silly putty. Righteous keeps these in her purse to bring "entertainment " to whoever we are with. It aways bring ohhs and ahhs. Aunt Di has also sent us different dice games. We tried our best to translate the directions of these game in Swahili and you could see the kids consulting one another to try to figure it all out. Lastly Julia had brought Monopoly Deal. Some of the kids took half of the deck of cards and tried replicating the game as Samara, Tall, McKenna and Bradyn played. All in all this was a special way to end the day. I know Americans can get so caught up at the task at hand and not stop to "see people." These children are more important than "getting the job done". They matter in God's eyes. 

Amos and Kaleb getting the paint ready.

Striking a pose before the work begins.

Julia and Keagan were the masters of the ladder. Cutting in all the parts we couldn't reach.

I refer to this one as tall McKenna- because there is another McKenna on the team- and as you guessed she is shorter of the two.

Righteous wiped away all the dust and soil away from the wall so that I could paint the bottom.

This will be their new home soon- they watch from the back of the pick up.

We gave a bag of chips to these kids and they gobbled them all up so fast.

Teenagers these days.

House the family of 8 is currently living in is on the right.

Using the resources we have to put the paint into.

 

Don't mind me- hanging out in the shade with a fan in my hand.