Visiting Kamba Land

Breakfast is at 8:30, so we make our way back to the Johnson’s house. Gary tells me that there is a harumbi at about 2:00 in the afternoon. This is a fund-raising event so that they can complete one of their church buildings. We go outside and there is Pastor Ngonde, who goes way back with Bible Presbyterians in the gospel work in Kenya. One of the first church leaders. It is a hot day, but he is dressed in a suit and tie to prepare for the events of the day. We relax in the morning and mid-afternoon we head out to the harumba, stopping to pick up a few who need a ride along the way.

When we arrive, they have already begun. They are sitting under a tree and Pastor Ngonde is preaching on Nehemiah to encourage them in the completion of their building, and not to be discouraged by the enemies such as Sanballat and Tobiah. When we arrive he calls on Pastor Paul to translate for our benefit. After the sermon, I am welcomed and asked to give a word of introduction. Then the excitement begins. A few people bring bags of goods to the front and one woman brings a live chicken! Then the name of the first church is called out, and Pastor Johnson gets up and tells me to follow him. He says don’t give everything at once! This is done in stages. So I pull some money from my pocket and we get into line with the members of that church. This goes on for each of the four churches. Then it is time for the auction. There are some bags of peas and maize, but I bid on a bunch of bananas and give them to Gary – his favourite! I also get a nice length of rope, but when Gary tries to get the next one, it goes to someone else while he is trying to figure out how much money he has! You’ve got to be on top of the action here! I also get a serving bowl and spoon made of gourds. Sodas are handed out to guests while the dinner is preparing: rice with beans mixed in. Delicious. I’d better not have too much, or I won’t be able to eat supper when we get back to the Johnsons. They tally the money collected, and they have raised 11,007 Kenyan shillings, about $175 Canadian dollars.

We head back to the clinic where there are a couple of carvers waiting for us. These men work in ebony, one of the hardest of woods, basically a black wood, with some strains of white in places. Jacob has an exquisite piece with two antelopes grazing. I negotiate a price with Gary’s help. The other man has ebony bookmarks and letter openers, and I am able to get a few of those also.

Gary shows me the Bible School and then over to Pastor Kilonzi’s new house. He has been given an acre of land and the house is almost finished. All that is required now is for the whitewashing to be finished, the floors installed and the glass to be put into the windows. The biggest barrier is the glass, which only amounts to about $50. It is a very simple structure, just two bedrooms and a shower area; the kitchen will be a covered area outside.

Supper is a dish with chicken, bacon, and beef! A meat lover’s delight! After dinner Juma sets up the video again and we return to the Team House to prepare for the Lord’s Day.