I got stressed, I got overwhelmed. I got bogged down in negativity and frustration. I got lazy in my soul and self-work, losing for a minute my constant striving to live out my beliefs. I forgot what makes this holiday important to me, forgot how much I appreciate this day for stopping us, centering us,ContinueContinue reading “saying grace”
Tag Archives: who i am
holding conversation
“Being able to hold a conversation is one of the greatest talents a person can possess,” my Grandpa told me. I have thought about those words, and Grandpa, every day that I have been in Senegal. Until he was put in hospice care in March of 2012, my Grandpa was just my Grandpa. He livedContinueContinue reading “holding conversation”
being here through it
Written 24 September 2013: Today was a hard day for Sarr family here in Sénégal. During the summer of 2011 my Kenyan sister Winnie lived with my family in the US. Toward the end of her stay, the D-H family had a hard day. And I remember so clearly her telling me that she wasContinueContinue reading “being here through it”
this all feels connected
Written 21 September 2013 My second day in my homestay was September 11. I mentioned this to my Papa, who said: “this is a big day for your country. This day changed your home.” Today, my friend Caroline was over at my house and we were flipping through channels and found the documentary, 102 MinutesContinueContinue reading “this all feels connected”
this is why i came here
written 19 September 2013 We’re sitting outside, my sister and I, the electricity out and searching for the cool breeze. We’re talking about weddings and clothes and what to do when boys harass you on the street as they often do and the pressures for women which exist across cultures. Papa comes out to joinContinueContinue reading “this is why i came here”
when the poem speaks loudly
Every night before I sleep, I read a poem from the best thing I brought to Dakar: Good Poems by Garrison Keillor. I flip through at random and read. Sometimes they speak loudly, sometimes more softly, sometimes it’s hard to hear at all. But I like the process, because when it all aligns and theContinueContinue reading “when the poem speaks loudly”
and so it shall be
Written 16 September 2013 Today seemed like a day of opportunity. Opportunity to learn and to discover. Opportunity to understand and ask questions and listen. Opportunity to laugh and sit and come together and be a part. Opportunity to take time, to think, to rest. Opportunity to greet others and build relationships. Opportunity to workContinueContinue reading “and so it shall be”
she wakes up at six
So, here’s something. I told my host family I like to wake up early (which is true) and told them I usually wake up at six (which is not true, but I said it because I felt bad that I overslept the first morning). They were very impressed, as my host dad wakes up atContinueContinue reading “she wakes up at six”
on such an anniversary as this, 2013
written August 14, 2013 On such an anniversary as this. Three years ago today I boarded the plane taking me to Kenya and to the discovery of myself. On this anniversary, I am thankful. Thankful for the immense honor and gift it was to live alongside, to learn alongside, my Kenyan family at such aContinueContinue reading “on such an anniversary as this, 2013”
courage/making it really good
When I officially started writing about my Kenya experiences during my independent study, as I described in my blog ‘i write’, I had the idea that I would independently publish a book. In retrospect, this idea was a little far-fetched. As were my prior ideas of starting a company, opening an art gallery, handcrafting clothing,ContinueContinue reading “courage/making it really good”
transition(s) and adjustment(s)
In many ways, my life and its surroundings are in transition. In many ways, my life is just smoothing out after eighteen months of constant transition. A list I’ve been making as I reflect on adjustment(s): 1. This is the first time I’ve at all slowed down since before I left for college. Really, sinceContinueContinue reading “transition(s) and adjustment(s)”
i write
I want to write.I am about to commence the last week of classes of my sophomore year of college. In the past two days, I have written twenty-six pages of final papers, research papers, academic papers, explanatory and persuasive papers. Tomorrow, I will write twelve more. By the end of this trimester, I will haveContinueContinue reading “i write”
confidence in ‘senses of place’
I’ve been feeling self-conscious recently about how much I talk about or bring up my time in Kenya. I worry that I have become the “well, when I was in Kenya…” girl. Potentially this is manifesting itself because three fourths of the junior class at my school just returned from their various study abroad experiencesContinueContinue reading “confidence in ‘senses of place’”
anniversary
Two years ago on August 15, 2010 I arrived in Kenya with Annie Garau for the four most extraordinary, challenging, life-changing months of my life so far. One year ago on August 15, 2011 I had a panic attack in my mentor’s office about this one-year anniversary of the arrival into what my life hasContinueContinue reading “anniversary”
not an ‘if’ question
Somehow, impossibly, I am in Nairobi and in 7 hours will begin the 3-plane, 22-hour journey home. By 7 AM this morning we took our last breakfast with the family, said goodbyes at the airport, and gone through our first of many, many security clearances. By 11 AM we had flown to Eldoret, then toContinueContinue reading “not an ‘if’ question”
i have lived and am living
I’ve discovered that I love to read poetry while in Kenya. Somewhere during my junior year, in AP English, I found the beauty which poetry conveys (although I didn’t dare admit that at the time). During the horrendous ice storm of 2011, when I had recently returned from my semester in Kenya and school wasContinueContinue reading “i have lived and am living”
this business of “being called”
Last week at a meeting the Head Teacher at Mawego Girls Secondary School and a dear friend, Grace Ataro, told the room that it is as if I am “called to be in Kenya.” Just before the meeting, Mariah and I had been talking about the language of “being called” and how, though I don’tContinueContinue reading “this business of “being called””
reactions
First, let me say that I am sorry the posts are few – internet has been slow and the days have been full, such that it is rare that I am awake and functioning enough to write a blog after 9 pm. It is not because I have not wanted to write, in fact IContinueContinue reading “reactions”
i’m no expert
After a year and a half of missing Kenya more than I have missed anything in my life, I am back in this wonderful place. I hardly have words for the joy I feel to be back amidst my Kenyan family and friends and to be in this country which I love. This morning, afterContinueContinue reading “i’m no expert”
my journey continues
And just like that, my bags are packed (weighing in at 46.2, 42.6, 15.4, and 4.3 pounds), my passport is sitting at the ready, and my feet are antsy in anticipation. Tomorrow morning I will leave for seven weeks in Kenya. I go with 2 parachutes, 2000 toothbrushes, and an eager heart — keeping meContinueContinue reading “my journey continues”
callie daniels-howell 