Show me the money!

Trip Log:

Today we are leaving Safari. I’m impressed we have only been here for two days when it feels like a month. My throat is killing me!!! It hurts so bad and I hope I don’t end up getting really sick while I’m here. I met Amos today, he is very.... hmmm... attractive? His personality is very bubbly and happy and that's what I mean by attractive. He just is a fun-loving person and he has been through some things clearly, but none of that really phases him. I think he seems to love Kenya and loves the Soccer Queens, which gives me the idea that his life must be very fulfilling which obviously makes me wonder about my own. I want to be that person, who is fulfilled by what they do with their time. I know I want to be a mother, I feel strongly about that. But I’m not exactly sure what type of profession would suit me and where it would take me. I guess I’m driven by money, and maybe that holds me back. It's interesting here, people don’t seem to be motivated by money, they tend to live off the land or what they have and that makes them happy or at least relieves stress. But at the same time, they hound us for money all the time, even the babies. I'm left to believe that the small dependency they may have on money must take away from the simplicity of it all.

Amos <3

Amos, Amos, Amos. You have never met people like Amos and David, I am just sure of it. I cannot explain how much I LOVE Amos and David, they are a large portion of why I fell in love with Kenya. Getting to know Amos and David really brought social awareness to the forefront for our group. They explained to us some of the things they have experienced and where they feel Kenya needs to progress as a country. Within all these conversations, the one thing I found out about Amos and David (other than the fact that they are awesmazing, and oodles of fun) is that they love Kenya. Shocker?! Maybe not, but it shocked me! You would think due to Kenya's poor economy and major class differences that people would be unhappy with the way they live, but this is not true. Many people want to advance themselves and have new experiences but they prefer to be in Kenya than anywhere else. A lot of people have not experienced anywhere else, but their desires to do so are also quite slim. I realized that many of the people we met including David and Amos did not feel the need to live beyond their means as everyone seems to in America. They liked being outside, interacting with the community and taking things slow. I though this was INCREDIBLE. 

David, Cetrick, and I at the Giraffe Observatory

The merchants that we encountered in Kenya, quite frankly, made me EXTREMELY UNCOMFORTABLE.  I have never experienced people shoving items at me in every which direction to try and convince me or my peers to make purchases. The sheer amount of anxiety and anger I was experiencing, exhausted me as I tried to hold back my aggression towards the entire situation. I wrote intensely about how hard it was for me to cope with the idea of being wealthier than someone else. I could not fathom the idea of people asking ME for money! and as it happened to us frequently, I had to realize that regardless of where I've come from or what I think of myself, everyone here is just trying to make a living the best way they can. No one is trying to inconvenience me and the selfishness of my actions was making me feel angry and guilty at the same time. Mostly, I was confused and wanted to cry. 

I give kudos to Dennis, our guide/friend/ and van driver for helping us (or maybe me in particular) feel more comfortable being approached by people. Dennis reminded me of my Dad, I felt he would always be there if we needed him and he reassured us that things will be okay no matter how uncomfortable they may have seemed at the time. He filled us in on history, and funny stories that made everything more understandable and easier to digest. Dennis along with David and Amos were integral parts of my adjustment to being in a different country. 

All of these experiences tie into my take-away from these key individuals: money is not everything. For this reason I decided to follow my heart in choosing what steps to take for the rest of my academic career. I want to have a direct impact on people and I want to be able to build relationships with the people I am aiming to work with. For these reasons I have chosen to continue on a path towards becoming a public health practitioner and hopefully moving on to working on international/global health.

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