The Other Side of My Dreams

I started the journey home on Saturday afternoon at 2:30 and made it back on Sunday afternoon at 2:00, and there were a lot of emotions and stops in between.  I didn't have anybody mixing her cheesecake with her roast beef on the plane ride, but I'm pretty sure I looked at the lady in the shop in the airport like she had three heads, much like I did with my former seatmate.  I was killing time waiting for my flight in Nairobi so I stopped in one of the shops to get some water and see if maybe there were any last minute souvenirs.  I grabbed a bottled water and happened to see some bookmarks off to the side that had photos of some of the wildlife in Kenya with "Kenya" written in big bold letters across the top.  "These should be simple enough," I thought, something I could give to a few people as small mementos.  I go up to the counter, tell the lady I'm paying shillings since I still had some left and she told me it would 1,050 shillings for two bookmarks and a bottled water.

"Excuse me, how much?"

"1,050 shillings."

I'm kind of screeching at her at this point, "For what?  How much is the water and how much are the bookmarks?"

"Fifty for the water and 500 shillings for each of the bookmarks."

I think my jaw dropped at this point and I must have looked at her like she was mad.  The exchange rate is right around 80 shillings for one US dollar.  So the water was costing me less than a dollar, but a flimsy bookmark that should really cost no more than 75 cents was costing me over $6?!  I nearly told her that was crazy, but instead simply said no thanks, got my water, and kept my shillings.

I said good riddance to ridiculous airport prices, I enjoyed my water and then hopped on my flight to Ethiopia.  Once there, we made our way to Rome, then to D.C. and finally to Columbus.  It was hard saying goodbye to Kenya, hard saying goodbye to the children.   I was doing so well holding it together until David come out to give me a hug and when he turned around and left to go back to his room, one of his brothers came out and said, "David's crying."  Gee, kid, thanks for breaking for my heart and making this even harder by telling me that little fact.  I managed to hold it together long enough to tell them all goodbye and then I just cried my eyes out walking back to the guest house.  Some of them had given me notes, thanking me for coming, saying they'll miss me.  I'll treasure those notes always.

Since being home, I feel like I have wanted to eat everything in sight and nearly have.  Hawaiian pizza has never tasted so amazing and neither has apple pie, nor the spiced pumpkin cookies, nor one of my mother's milkshakes.  My body is probably going to hate me after having lived on beans, rice, and ugali for the last month.  There's a lot I'll miss about Kenya, those three things not among them, though.  I know God has a sense of humor, though, when I sat down to have my last meal with the kids.  I thought I had eaten beans for the final time on Thursday for dinner.  But then I sat down Saturday for lunch and saw that it was beans again.  "You would do something like this, wouldn't you, God? You're soooo funny."  I had a good laugh and still managed to eat my meal. 

I'm sure in the coming weeks and months I'll continue to unpack exactly what this trip meant to me and in the context of my life.  I think it has lifelong ramifications and implications, ones I may not see for years to come.  And I suppose it would be fitting to end this particular portion of the adventure by going back to a starting point - my paper in 7th grade.  Seems a little different now that I'm on the other side of my dream, doesn't it?

"I would definitely visit the exciting country of Kenya, Africa. To me, the animals and wildlife that live in Africa are fascinating. I would probably take an exciting safari trip! I could even take a few pictures of the herds of animals.

It sounds really exciting! After that I would tour the country to see what the region is like. I would visit the villages and cities to see the different customs and cultures that they have. Maybe I could learn to speak their language. Meeting the people of Kenya would be a special experience!!

It would be interesting to see how different Kenya is from the United States. Learning about the government, people, animals and farming of Kenya would broaden my horizons. The continent of Africa, in general, entices me. The animals and wildlife would have to be my main purpose to go to Kenya, Africa. This country seems to be very impressive.

That is why I want to visit this country so badly."

I like being on the other side of my dreams.  But there are many more dreams left and hopefully I'll get to see the other side of those, as well.