Pictures 4-30-08

This is John, the deaf mute from Kilili. To his right is President Makiti and to his left is John the 1st councilor. You can see a portion of the newly thatched hut in the background. Note how he is piling up used bricks he has found around to fill in the holes at the base of his abode. He will just coat that with mud to seal up the cracks.

This is President Makiti's mother, niece, and a hired hand. They are shelling the maize grown during the last rainy season. They then bag it up and store it in another hut or, in this case, house as President Makiti is one of the more well to do local residents. He even has a solar panel for generating electricity which is only used mostly for a TV, DVD player, and charging cell phones.

This rose bush is directly behind our assigned parking space at our living quarters. The weather is such that it blooms year round. However because the parking lot is used by all the kids in the complex here for football (soccer), skateboarding, and just messing around the blooms generally don't have the opportunity to last more than 24 hours. They do look great when we leave early each morning.

Weekly Update 4-28-08

Well here it is another Monday morning. They come and go rather rapidly which is a good thing when there are so many family and friends the other side of the world that we dearly wish to be able to spend time with once again. I failed to mention last week the YSA activity up in Eldoret that we had helped 25 of our people get to. It was a National event that the people there sponsored and our part was just helping our folks during their time in Nairobi. I had eleven of them in our little truck at one time moving them to a safe hotel near the bus station so they could catch an early connection the next morning. They traveled up on a Thursday and returned last Monday. They were really pumped as we visited with some in our activities this week. It is very uplifting to them when they see other church members in their age group (we have heard numbers of attendees ranging from 200 to 300) and recognize that they are not alone in their efforts.

For the most part this week was not much different from our last few. Our Temple Prep Folks are starting to show up with some of their preliminary documents and we received Joshua's passport (he is our fourth missionary candidate). We finished teaching Benson the discussions in Ilima and are taking the assistants with us this Friday for his Baptismal Interview. There was a lot of moisture from heaven this week and some rather drastic changes to road conditions in the hills but we just spend a little more time with the rig in 4 wheel drive. A couple of the members called us some name that I am going to have to research a little more before I even have an idea of how it is spelled. It is essentially one who shows up despite the conditions which I guess means that we continue to come in the rainy season when others in the past have just turned around and went home. I have honestly not felt too uncomfortable in any of the conditions yet but can see how they could be some what intimidating and my companion does make a small squeaking noise when the vehicle slides a little in the wet spots.

Our feel good experience this week has to do with a deaf mute who is in attendance each Sunday in Kilili. He is illiterate so the members don't even know his name and just call him John. He has not been baptized and probably wont be in this life but I am sure he is piling up points in that good book on the other side of the veil. He is currently living in a hut which is mud stuck to sticks near President Makiti's mother's home. Because the thatch roof was in major need of repair it was leaking on the walls and washing some of the mud away. The members got together and re-thatched the roof and now he is repairing the wall damage. They told us his bed consisted of woven ropes and sacks and wondered if LDS Charities could improve on that. We got a mattress and quilt and delivered it last Tuesday. It was very apparent that he was more than just a little appreciative of everyone's efforts as he kept making noises and gesturing towards the heavens. I think we got a picture and will down load those today and try to send one out before too long.

Sister Bishop struggled through a head cold this week which really helped the profit margin of the local tissue manufacturer. We finally went to a local chemist and got some medicine and she is doing much better once again. The politicians continue to struggle with implementing the peace accord with the major sticking point being this week of who is number two behind the President. Is it the Prime Minister or the Vice President? Also the prison warders are becoming very disgruntled with their lot in life and are threatening to start releasing convicts tomorrow if their demands are not given the consideration they think they deserve. The pictures in the paper do depict some rather deplorable conditions that they have to live in while the politicians enjoy a life style not at all dissimilar to that of their American counterparts.

Well that is a few of the ramblings of this week now I must be on the move again as our bull bar broke free on the right side of the truck again. They did tell me last weeks fix was only temporary and they had ordered some new improved brackets last week that they were going to install this week. So I must get our trusty transport vehicle in their hands once again. One of the other couples asked us not to implement the new fix as that was part of his entertainment each week to see when the nylon rope once more showed up holding our truck together. Easy for him to say as he is not the one standing in the mud at the side of the road implementing the temporary fix but it does keep me current on my knot tying skills.

God bless you one and all! We appreciate your prayers and concern but most of all your short notes.

Elder and Sister Bishop

Weekly Update 4-21-08

Goodmorning (it is not yet 6am here). I need to be out early today and am not sure when I will get back to the computer. The new bull bar broke loose for the 4th time on our way to church yesterday and as I was working in the mud to tie it back on I determined that I was going to have to insist for a better solution. I am convinced if they would take it to a good machine shop and have them grind all the slag and crud off then do it right it would be okay but then maybe there is no such thing as a good machine shop here. The other solution is to just do away with it but it has reduced the number of idiots trying to bust in front of us because it is a little more intimidating than the average rig now. I will have to see what I can work out with James at the service center but this noise of spending a big portion of our time in Nairobi just shuffling rigs is more than just a little annoying. We did get rid of some of the deviations this week and are driving on a little more new road but then they extended the deviation in another area so not really making much progress in the over all scheme of travel. The dirt deviations really are an improvement over the deteriating roads initially but in just a matter of a few days they become rather terrible thanks to the wet weather and the unregulated truck traffic.

The President asked me to look at trying to find an abode a little more convenient to our area so I spent last Saturday with Victor (a self employed procurement specialist that the office frequently uses to avoid Mazungu prices) looking in Machakos. It is the biggest town between Nairobi and the Hills but I didn't see anything I would dare recommend to my companion so will keep looking. It didn't help any that there was an article in Fridays paper about the number of gangster related deaths in Machakos as of late but the locals there discount that as people who are just trying to get someones attention. We have possible leads on homes in different areas (Emali & Wote) but I question the chances of finding anything. It sure would be nice to be able to spend a little more time in each of our areas and help out with some reactivation. If we could get the available priesthood out in Kyambeke I am sure we could convince the church to stand up a branch in Mitini which would be a really cut down on the walking time for the members. With the way investigators keep popping up the church would probably just keep growing if the walking time was able to be reduced and we wouldn't feel so bad on Sundays when we pass mothers with their young ones spending over an hour to get to church for their meetings.

We had just a couple more potential temple candidates show to classes this week but then we probably have more than we will be able to take this first time already if they all follow through at getting their documents. Of course we can schedule anther window of opportunity for them and hope that it will become neccessary to do just that. It is gratifying to see some begin the long process of procuring their birth certificates, IDs, marriage certificates etc. These are major milestones as so many of these events just happen at home so the government is not aware of them.

Need to share a couple of seemingly insignificant things with you that have increased our feelings for these people as of late. Angeline and Ester, who are two of our English students, have both shown up lately with prayers they have written down in English. Very simple but heartfelt phrases that are indicative of how badly they want to be baptized. Sure hope we get to see those blessings in their lives in the next 15 months and I know with the Lord's help it will happen.

Well another Elder is stopping by in a few minutes so we can help each other shuffle vihicles this morning so I need to scrape the stubble off the ole face and try to get presentable for another day. It is a blessing that my eyes aren't as good as they used to be and my standards are lower are it would take more than just a few minutes to achieve acceptable grooming results. We love you guys and appreciate any notes are pictures no matter how short they are. Please keep them coming as they really add to our days.

Elder & Sister Bishop

Pictures 4-17-08

The baptismal group at Kilili on 30 April 2008.

Sister Bishop with 6 day old Barbara Kamende Wambua.

Some livestock along side the Mombasa Highway.

This is what our rig looks like with the recent addition of a shell and heavy duty "Bull Bar". It is at 27,000 kilometers now and they generaly recycle them between 80,000 & 90,000 so we will probably see a new truck and have it broke in well before we leave in June of 2009.

Weekly Update 4-14-08

It rained on us while we were taking our morning walk so I have a little more time to get this update off as Sister Bishop is going to have to do something with her hair now (her words not mine). Our big adventure for last week was when we had arranged to pick up Kennedy (one of the young men getting ready for his mission) to get his wisdom teeth extracted. He was going to take transport of some kind and meet us at Salama as we came out of the upper hills. He wasn't there but fortunately we were able to reach his cell phone and he said he would meet us in Sultan Hamad but we ended up driving all the way to Emali and still had to wait 20+ minutes for his bus to arrive. It had broken down and they wouldn't refund their money so he had to wait for the replacement to show up. We did get back to Nairobi before dark but just barely.

Sister Bishop has a namesake in the Kilungu Hills now as Francis & Sarah called us last Friday to announce the birth of their daughter and wanted to know if we would come to their home to give her a name and a blessing. After getting permission from President Mbondo we stopped on our way home Thursday and found that when he said give it a name he meant for us to use our inspiration to determine what that name should be. I picked the female name that means the most to me and they seemed pleased so now there is a Barbara Kamende Wambua living in our beloved hills. I get the feeling that there are not many young ladies with the christian name of Barbara in all of Kenya as I see the reaction when people hear the baby's name. She sure is a cutie and as a note of interest Sarah was home with only her two young daughters ages 2 and 5 when the baby was born. She just did it on her own and didn't quite understand what the big deal was when Sister Bishop expressed her amazement. They are going to make the walk to the clinic at Kikoko in 30 days so mother and child can have a check up.

The Temple classes continue to progress with the few folks who do show seeming to be very committed but the numbers are still a little small. I did present the Sunday School Lesson at Kyambeke yesterday on the Covenant People and had several folks commit afterwards to be in attendance at our next class. We have Branch President training with the Mission President here in Nairobi this Wednesday then are sending 25 of the Young Single Adults to a regional conference in Eldoret Thursday through Monday. So the work continues to progress and we are staying busy.

The best news however is that the peace accord finally resulted in the announcement of a truly coalition government yesterday. Earlier in the week talks had broken down and the riots started again here in the Kibera Slums but the President and Prime Minister Designate got together away from the pressures of their respective parties and hammered out the final compromise which led to yesterday's announcement. That should ensure peace in Kenya at least until the next election in five years time.

I have been trying to load a few pictures the last few days but just don't seem to be able to get a good enough connection to accommodate that task. Not sure if that has to do with the school kids being on vacation for the month of April or what but I will keep trying whenever I get access to the computer and internet.

Weekly Update 4-7-08

Well another week has come and gone and rather rapidly I might add. Not much in the way of moisture this week which does not bode well for the maize and beans that really shot up after those early rains. The politicians are still struggling to get all the compromises in place to placate the powers that be but unfortunately it appears that the end result is a rather bloated cabinet which is not what a country based on subsistent farming and rampant unemployment really needs. This is especially true when the wages of the politicians are so radically more than the average income level for the nation. Maybe that will work itself out as the political system matures and moves away from the tribal thing if that is possible.

We got temple preparation classes started in all 3 branches this week but are not overly impressed with the turn out but they have been through them several times before. Realizing that we secured a date for patron housing in Johannesburg and started them working on securing documents for their passport applications right up front. We also got them started on some family history gathering so they will be prepared to to do work on their personal lines once they have completed their own work. The dates we got from the Temple are 1-6 Dec. which means they should have their passport applications in by Aug. if they are serious about going. They sure could use the spark that those blessings would bring to ignite church sustainability in the area. We completed our challenge by saying that Sis. Bishop and I are going then and we sure would like some of them to come and go with us. They could use your prayers on their behalf as this progresses so that they might understand how important this is to them and how serious we are to go all the way this time.

We are still struggling at generating support for the hospital in Kikoko as there are some challenges in getting the approval for the right kind of problems and their appropriate solutions. We even tried to get a short term specialist in to add some credibility as hospital care doesn't show up in our resumes anywhere but haven't gotten approval yet. Elder Pocock, the local charities dude, seems to think we need to expand the requests dollar amount so that it goes directly to Salt Lake avoiding the area offices in South Africa. Just a little frustrating at times when it seems we are back in the world of bureaucracy that I never much enjoyed in my previous career.

The kids here are coming up on their April school break which could mean a few extra trips up country to support their programs but it is a bit of a challenge to get their leaders leaning that far forward in the saddle but I appreciate the uncertainty that these folks hand to mouth existence fosters. We also have training scheduled for the branch presidents with Pres. Taylor here in Nairobi on the 16th with the hope that by expanding the window of exposure time between them that we can generate a little more enthusiasm and self evaluation of how each branch is doing.

With the Luke's presence here, who have the Public Affairs assignment, we have a little better connectivity for viewing conference so have been able to see both morning sessions so far. They think they were able to record the afternoon sessions and we are seeing one of them for FHE tonight which reduces my requirement for preparing a lesson for our turn in the barrel tonight. The challenge on the afternoon sessions are that they show up here from 11:00 pm to 1:00 am which is a little tough to stay awake for and still support the local members as most all have no way of viewing the proceedings so their church schedules are business as usual which demands a little more alertness than the late night hours allows. Of course the Priesthood Session doesn't even appear on our agenda because of the early morning hours here when it hits the air waves.

Well that's my thoughts for another week and I need to shift to preparing for todays' schedule which is going to have to include an across town trip to the embassy for a mail drop. Sis. Bishop and the IRS can rest easy now as I finished up the electronic submission of our taxes Saturday and just need to send some follow on paperwork now. We also act as couriers for some of the other couples as the changes in the support the Salt Lake Pouch provides has essentially reduced the viability of that option and the local postal service does not foster a lot of trust.

We miss friends and family but keep busy enough that the moments of self pity are few and fleeting. Thanks for all the brief notes and prayers on our behalf. We wish we could spend more time sending special individual thoughts to each of you on the other side of the world but our schedule only allows these brief communications each week. Please know that we do have special thoughts of each of you but they are of neccessity limited to "I wonder how or what questions" that we pose to each other during our 6+ hours of travel time on each trip up country. May God Bless all of you.

Love Elder and Sister Bishop

Weekly Update 4-2-08

Monday came and went without the opportunity for an update so I am up early today to try and catch up before this day begins (it's 4 in the morning right now). Lots of rain everywhere this week which has the effect of extending our days and adding interest to our travels. South Africa (the Area Offices are there) wanted some additional information on the 3 missionary packets we helped with so Julius came back from Kilili with us and we spent Monday in the doc and dentist office. I also spent some additional time stuck in traffic while trying to get some services accomplished on our trusty vehicle. We got a new "bull bar" on the pickup last Saturday which is a lot bigger and heavier than the one that vibrated off so many times it had become ineffective. The other senior Elders were rather taken with it but I simply told them that I am building my own tank one part at a time (remember Johnny Cash's song on building a cadillac) so that the driving skills of the native Kenyans will be no problem in our daily travels.

We enjoyed our 3rd and final RS Birthday dinner for this year with the Ilima Branch last Friday. It was complete with rice, stew, goat, chipattas, and they even killed 1 chicken and presented us with the thighs. We got out of there a little late and then hit some special traffic jams back in town which ended up being a 12 hour day. Then again yesterday was 11 so the weather and driving conditions could just be a special challenge for the next little while. The Assistants went to Kilili with us Sunday to interview baptism candidates and we ended up with 11 successful new members. We held the baptism after Sunday Services there in their portable font located in the rented halls courtyard. It had really been pouring rain just prior but the sun came out and it was a good setting for such a great event. It is no fun having to tell people who desire baptism so badly that they need to work on their English a little more before that can happen. We still have 5 people there in that category but two of the older ladies were to our class yesterday determined to do what they need to do to join their friends in the church. I have great hopes that we can get them there soon.

We taught our 1st Temple Prep Class yesterday and half of them indicated they had sat through the lessons at least twice before. We are hoping that this time will be a little different as I told them we already have a reservation for 20 people in the temple patron housing in Johannesburg for the 1st thru the 6th of December of this year. We then we gave them the applications for obtaining a birth certificate to begin their long road of the passport application process. We then spent a little time introducing pedigree charts so they can identify ancestors who are waiting for them to get to the temple. Finally we closed by telling them that we had been away from the temple too long ourselves so we are going whether they were ready or not but sure hoped they would join us. I'm hoping that we will have to schedule one or two more dates to accommodate them all. My secret fear is that we might be that last full time couple assigned to these branches so we need to have them fired up and ready to carry on by themselves with a little guidance from the Mission President. The President hasn't confirmed that but I know he is trying to open a couple of other areas and the resources he has assigned are limited.

Well today promises to be a long one as we have our work at the hospital pharmacy this morning followed by a appreciation luncheon at an Indian Restraunt across town put on by a local contractor who does a lot of work on the LDS Charities projects throughout the providence. We have some more materials that we need to get copied at the Mission Home in preparation for the other two branches yet this week and also need to pick up the semi annual batch of cleaning supplies for the custodians at our branches. I also need to get a jump on our weekend errands so that Saturday can be devoted to getting our taxes done. Not sure who I fear the most, Sister Bishop or the IRS, but it doesn't matter as they both think it is time to quit putting that dreaded event off.

Thanks for the notes and prayers we receive. We really thrive on those and they really do help. We got a special bonus this week of short notes from many of the Ten Mile Ward Primary Youth back home and they were much appreciated. Elder & Sister Bishop