JOHN AND ZAMIRA, MY NEIGHBORS IN SHIANDA

As part of the partnership between Estonian schools and schools around the world, Mondo shares children's life moments.

You can find these exchanges on the website "foodforthoughtmondo.wordpress.com"

I was asked to participate in these exchanges by making a video "A day in my life" with a child from Shianda, Kenya.

Sophia

Unaware of how to "find a child to film", I asked Sophia, who is a teacher in charge of the links between Mondo, some schools of Shianda and WEFOCO, the organization that welcomes me .

Sophia is a teacher at Mukambi Primary School, ECD class. I must say that this school is just a few meters from where I live, it seemed easier for me to choose children from this school to be able to follow all day without many transport to add !!! 

Which children to choose? A boy ? A girl ? I could not choose.

It is true that the concept of gender is very present here in Shianda with activities reserved for girls and others for boys. Sophia understood it ! 

So she found me the ideal plan: Spend the day with John and Zamira, two cousins who live together with their grandmother, right next to my home!   IT WILL BE PERFECT !

After a first meeting of the family with Sophia, the appointment is made, I will be at their home Friday morning at 6:15 to start the day with them!

John is an 11-year-old boy in class 5, Zamira is an 8-year-old girl in class 2 and their grandmother Genoveva is 53 years old. They all live in a small earthen house, consisting of 3 rooms and a separate kitchen. The fathers of the children are the sons of Genoveva. Without putting too much time to ask questions, I understood that Genoveva took care of his grandchildren because his sons have new relationships in which previous children are not admitted. She says she is very happy to be able to take care of them because they keep her company and are very kind children. She is very proud of them and talks about them with a lot of love.

MY DAY WITH JOHN AND ZAMIRA

I find them at 6:15 at home, they are awake recently and already getting dressed for school. The preparation is very fast, they wash in basins in front of the house and organize breakfast. This morning they have bread with butter and Kenyan tea, very sweet milk tea. Genoveva will tell me that she often gives them some money to buy a mandazi (donut) on the way to school because they do not always have enough for breakfast.

And then HOP, go! The marathon day begins !!!!

7am at school, John starts a lesson on economics in Kenya, Zamira patiently waiting in class for other students.

7:30 am :  the ceremony at the church just next to the school. Nearly 900 students religiously follow the sermon of the preacher and sing with joy.

8h : the ceremony around the flag of Kenya with the singing of the national anthem.

Then advices in hygiene and seriousness in learning are reminded to all students in the yard.

Until 12:40, the lessons are linked in the classes and then it is the break for lunch.

  

                                                 

All children go home for lunch. John and Zamira will finish, with appetite, the bread and butter of the morning as well as leftover potatoes from the day before.

Genoveva is absent, she is at work. She is a volunteer in a clinic for people with AIDS and people coming for testing.

13:30, the children are back to school. Today is Friday so the day of the cleaning of classes by students. All bring a small can of water to participate in the cleaning.

Zamira, in class 2, did not class in the afternoon but spent a lot of time in joy and laughter with her classmates to clean up the class.

John has some lessons and the cleaning is done later in the afternoon.

As John has class, I spend the afternoon with Zamira, which carries out many activities for the house: to fetch water at the source, clean the rooms of the house, do the dishes of the day before and the day, bring the maize to the person who will make flour for the evening meal ... It is only in the late afternoon that Zamira will take time with a friend to play hopscotch and to play the teacher.

On his return from school around 17h, John also starts to work on the garden ... he clears a bit of ground in front of the house and moves many wheelbarrows.

Genoveva returns from work around 18:30, at nightfall and begins to prepare the meal with Zamira around 19h. They settle on small stones in the kitchen, around the fire, and prepare the local dinner, ugali (made with corn flour and water), accompanied by sukuma (cooked kale).

The time of the diner’s preparation is favorable to the exchanges with Genoveva who admits having a lot of luck to have these two grandchildren with her. She explains that her situation is not easy because she earns very little money, but she is part of two women groups who support her as a grandmother taking care of her grandchildren. This exchange is without pity or complaint, but with great sincerity and respect.

At 8 pm I leave them before bedtime, the day has been busy!

I can only be admirative of all that children do here in a day ... when I think that at home, in France, children have a hard time keeping up with their class day and are not very active back to school at home !!!

Thank you John, Thank you Zamira, Thank you Genoveva for this wonderful day of discovery and sharing. I would like so much to thank you for all that you have made me realize today. Perhaps we will have the chance to share an excursion to Kisumu's Impala Park soon.

PS: my many videos have been transmitted to Mondo teams and I hope to quickly receive the small film to share it with them.