Leaving Kalacha

The time has come for our team to leave Kalacha. (Sunday, March 14)



We've been encouraged to see new life, both physically and spiritually, during our time here.



Several of our friends were baptized this month!



We, the primary colors of Kalacha! Here, it's cool to be dressed in the same things. :) There are times I think God has made people 'primary colors' that make more colors (the fun ones) only when they mix with each other.



Here's to new beginnings.

Please pray for us (my team AND our Gabra families) as we are all transitioning.

Be Still

Every morning, I wake up to this.


Throughout the day, the hot sun beats down on the land.


Off in the distance, Tullu Dimtu and other mountains give variety to the horizon.


As the sun sets, I usually sit outside my home on a little stool, sipping tea, playing guitar, watching the trees and homes turn into silhouettes.


(Chalbi Desert sunset)

"Be still and know that I am God."
Psalm 46:10


Perhaps this blog entry tells you more about my time in Kalacha than others I've done. You see in these photos no people. Just land and sky. Dry and hot. Rocks and sand. Dust and thorns. Whatever beauty you can see in these things is all that's left in me. I've been soaking it all up and being transformed by the desolation I feel on a daily basis here. You can see from other teammates' blogs that my time in Kalacha has been very different from theirs. They've spent much of their time laughing, learning, conversing, and growing. I've spent much of mine crying, hiding out, withering, and clawing the ground to keep moving. At least...that's what it's felt like.

This week I think I reached my breaking point.

My team has gone off on a trip and I remained behind, primarily to have some alone time and get rejuvenated. When they return, their blogs will be colored with adventures and smiling faces and tell you things that your curious minds want to know about life in northern Kenya. I'm sorry I have not done such a good job at doing that for you these past 2 years, but breathing and remembering to eat have seemed to have taken priority.

Thank you for being there for me and showing me grace.
If you think of it, please pray for me.

One thing I've learned about myself...

...this year is that I am NOT adventurous. I guess everything's comparative, but I think in my case it's a fact. I, Barbara Bandera, am not adventurous. If you want adventure stories of Kalacha, please go to Charmyn's blog. I'm still working on surviving! :) If my pictures don't load right now, well, you'll just have to wait longer! I have no patience for electronics today.
(How's that for a vague posting?!)

Life After Wheat

So, ever since Charmyn cut out wheat from her diet, she's been SO much better! Here are some glimpses into the past couple weeks...

Charmyn's brother came and visited us from the Yukon! (He was given the name D'enge=tall, skinny one] It was quite funny to us that on the day he arrived, the super HOT weather also appeared.





But that didn't stop us from enjoying time with friends in Kalacha...



...or going on morning walks with the baboons.



Or just morning walks! "I got a new way to walk, walk, walk." (No kidding--our little sister Jillo walks better in big people sandals than her own!)



And the beginning of our journey to Conference begins! To Kijabe we go!



Even though traveling to southern Kenya has it's dusty disadvantages...



...the side-of-the-road friends seem to erase any memories of dust in the ears and nostrils!



About 8 hours into our journey south, we found ourselves chugging up steep rocky cliffs (I mean, the main road) in first gear in low four-wheel drive! I was in the last Land Rover in our caravan and I think watching the vehicles struggle up the rocky road before my eyes improved my prayer life greatly!



QUIZ: What happened to D'enge?!!!
[ANSWER: Found at bottom of this post]



Bridge crossings have never been so exciting! Who will make it across first, I wonder?



Well, we got a little impatient, and D'enge wanted to make yet another friend!



"Ezra, we're going to visit your older brother, Enock! Let's go quickly--I miss my friend!" (Kaedon) Our teammates' son, Enock, has been down-country for the last 5 months and we've all missed him terribly! Since he's been gone, little Ezra has started walking, grown some teeth, and learned to say a few words.



"Mom, is that the same baby you had before?" --Enock about Ezra



Paul, Salome, Enock, and Ezra--TOGETHER AGAIN...and AT HOME in El Doret area!



Salome LOVES rosemary. (She puts it in her chai.) Look how happy she is to be home!



Passion fruit! I think we've all decided that Paul and Salome have sacrificed the most to come live in Kalacha. Imagine having this kind of food right on your land!



...and animals grazing right outside your house!



The kids had a fun reunion!



That's it--we're all moving our team to El Doret!



I could live among the passion fruit all the days of my life! :)



Say hello to our entire team!



Back on the road to Conference. Yeah, life in Kenya is still full of surprises!



Walmart!



After 2 days on the road, we made it to Conference in Kijabe! "Elizabeth! How could I face your father if you took a fall?!" *BEAUTIFUL!*



As part of the decorations committee, we set the stage for people to feel like they were in Northern Kenya with us!







We really had fun praising the Lord together with instruments that you can't always find up in Kalacha!

"Knowing You, Jesus, knowing You--there is no greater thing!"



[ANSWER: D'enge was sleeping, of course! He discovered the only way to enjoy a nap on the bumpy roads!]

I think she'll live.

Turns out Charmyn is allergic to wheat and dairy. She's been doing LOTS better since cutting out these things and we're thankful for a family here (who has a daughter with the same allergies) who's been teaching us all over how to prepare meals. God is good.

No diagnosis.

For those of you who are curious, Charmyn and I are still down-country and are planning on returning to Kalacha on Tuesday. (That adds up to 24 days away.) The doctors and all the tests have said Charmyn is completely healthy. But alas, she's still not Charmyn. Thanks for your prayers.

My first "Med-Evac"!!

*DISCLAIMER*
(Be not alarmed: Charmyn's alive & well, out of the hospital, sitting next to me, and taking her meds!!!!)


Last Saturday, Sept. 5, God took Charmyn and me on an adventure! Charmyn has had a re-occurring sickness for months, but this time it was a little different. Thank God for all the people that arranged a plane to come and get her in Kalacha (and me as her helper) and take us from Nairobi to Kijabe Hospital (in an AMBULANCE!!!).



Charmyn really enjoyed the pokey needle and blood that accompanied her hospital stay!!



Since this was Charmyn's first hospital stay experience ever, I had to show her that getting salon treatment was all a part of the package! (See the crown?!)



Look, it's us RIGHT NOW! See, we're happy! (Charmyn adds: "...and WELL!")