“I am a child! Give me my right!
A right to clothes.
A right to eat.
A right to play.
A right to pray.
A right to learn.
I am a child! Give me my right!”
These were the words recited by 150 students in 3 classrooms
in the slums of Nakuru last week. These were the words proudly recited to me
and 3 other Wazungu (white people) visitors. Children with torn and tattered
uniforms, toms on their feet, morning’s porridge in their stomachs, and hearts
bursting to share what they had been learning at nursery school. The alphabet,
numbers, and songs about Jesus were loudly and boldly proclaimed by these dear
little ones in each of the 3 classes we went to. Squatters Hill Nursery school
is a day school for pre-first grade children in a very poor area. Basically,
it’s a pre-school/kindergarten that prepares children to begin their elementary
years. This particular school is situated in a slum in Nakuru and provides
education to young children who would otherwise be unable to attend school due
to lack of ability to pay school fees and no having a school in their
neighborhood. Each day this school feeds
not only its 150-200 Nursery school kids but hundreds in the village also. Not
once….TWICE. A day. There are a team of
women who cook, prepare, clean up, and serve everyone to their fill. One of the
most humbling experiences so far was to serve alongside these women.
In Kenya the school year is broken into 3 terms and goes
year round with week long or month long breaks between each term. These
dedicated women feared the Squatters Hill children and village children would
not be fed during this time so they dedicated their term break to continuing to
faithfully come to the school and play, teach, feed, and give the children a
safe place to go. I wonder how many educators in the US would dedicate their
time, energy, and rest as sacrificially as these women did. Now that is being
faithful! This is not the main school I will be working at but it taught me a
lot in my short time there.
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