We have been so busy that I can't even take the time to email. Hopefully it will get better. We are eating and shopping very simply...cold cereal for breakfast, tonight eggs and rice. We have to wash fruits and vegetables and eggs in chlorinated water before consuming, even those that are peeled because our hands on the peelings would contaminate the fruit/veg. We also have to rinse the dishes in chlorinated water. However, the Church has provided us with a great filtration system for drinking water. The mangoes are wonderful. There are a variety of bananas and other interesting-looking produce. We buy skim milk in small cartons that don't have to be refrigerated until opened so that they won't spoil with the lousy refrigerator (and frequent blackouts....like today all day). Fortunately we could cook on our stove since it is gas without an electric-powered pilot light. The first cake I baked was an absolute disaster...no mixer, oven in centigrades, no high altitude directions, no frosting. Even though I took it to missionary conference, it didn't get eater. That shows you how bad it was! I brought it home and trashed it. However, I fixed brownies last night and they were good. It can only go up. The hair products are either very expensive American or cheap local products that don't do well with my type hair. The paper towels I bought disintegrated when I tried to wipe the counters.

The phones are inconsistent. We are in the season of the "long rains," but the rain comes in the evenings or nights while we are sleeping so it keeps the plants growing but does not inconvenience us. The weather in the upcountry, where our water projects are, is hot, but doesn't compare to AZ. When we go upcountry, I keep thinking about Mark and how he loves to go fourwheeling. We could also use his opinion on the location of water. However, the pay is not good! We have been on some killer roads...one-lane dirt, filled with rocks and holes...unbelievable. The state roads didn't seem so bad this time. There was more blacktop, with fewer stretches of rocky detours. The pit stops are not great...very little porcelain...and the one we found had no t.p. nor soap.

We've been to a handover ceremony where we had to sit through a couple of hours of Kiswahili with lots of singing and dancing (I participated a little shyly). There was even some uulating and water throwing. Elder Esplin's handover speech was wonderful with lots of talk about all of us being children of God. He said that a lot of small people in our Church who are "just like you" make small contributions to bring water to you. Contributions are not made by the rich, but by the small people from all over the world who love you. Kenyans are 80% Christian, and religion is taught in the schools.

Next week we are going to an all-day seminar upcountry that focuses on AIDS education...another project we have funded. They focus on children and families from 9-15 years of age. It should be interesting.

We went to another wonderful Church meeting on Sunday. None of the churches are air conditioned, so the windows are always open. One of the couples got a picture of a monkey who had come in the window during Church after the Sacrament was served. He sat on the table and ate bread from the tray. They are quick and mischievous!

The talks and lessons in Church were very good. In RS we were talking about forgiveness. The experiences shared here are different from those in the States.

--One woman talked of how her baptism caused a rift between her and her Mom. Before the baptism, they were best friends and talked several times a day. Her mother wouldn't speak to her for a year afterwards. The Mom came around only after she heard her daughter cited by a family friend in a college thesis as a devil-worshipper. Mom came to her daughter's defense and is now even okay with a son going on a mission. (LDS are commonly cited here as devil-worshippers.)

--Another woman talked of how she supports her 6 children and out-of-work husband by raising, slaughtering and selling chickens. She taught a neighbor how start a similar business, coached her along, and loaned her 90 chickens to "make a sale." The woman has not repaid her the chickens (huge part of her income). The Church member (RS Pres) has been able to fight down her anger, write a letter telling the woman that she will personally be blessed by the Lord despite the dishonesty.

--The RS teacher said that her cousin was beaten and kicked out by her husband 30 years ago. She was left with the children and was supposed to receive child support....never received any. One of the daughters has just graduated from college and was asked to marry a young man. In Nairobi, the father give permission to marry. The daughter went to the father, who has refused to be involved with the family for 30 years. The father has now refused to allow the daughter to marry. He wants to run the family bridal negotiations and receive the bridal dowry for himself. The teacher said that this has taught her once again the beauty of the gospel and having the Lord as part of the relationship between husband and wife.
Such sweet, faithful people. They really know their scriptures.

We were talking with one of our borehole contractors about religion. He is a born-again Christian who came from very humble origins. He is very focused on God and the principle of work. He really liked the quote from Pres. Benson that the world takes the man out of the slums, but we try to take the slums out of the man and he takes himself out of the slums. He told a story about his 9 year old son that made him very proud. He and his son were shopping and the son saw a small motorbike that he wanted. He asked his dad if he could quit school for a couple of weeks and go to work so that he could earn the money to buy the bike. Of course he didn't allow it, but he was proud that his son didn't ask for it, but wanted to work for the bike.

Walking in the morning is not great. The sidewalks are narrow to non-existent. The roads are also narrow, so the cars get very close to the curbs. Pollution is incredible. And safety is an issue. We found a great arboretum that we walked in one morning. However, after reading the regular mission posting on safety (kidnappings, robberies and car thefts are common), we decided not to go into the densely vegetated but lightly used park (we saw a couple of joggers and a family of monkeys). We may start walking up and down the 4 flights of stairs in our apartment stairwell.

The work is intense but challenging. We are growing in the calling and in our relationship. The need is great for senior couples to fill the wonderful positions created by the Church: PEF, humanitarian, CES, employment, leadership. It is rewarding, binding us to the Lord through service and to each other with our common experiences and goals. The other senior missionary couples are incredible, spiritual, bright, and social. We have dinner on Saturdays and FHE on Mondays. We also go to game parks and various other attractions every month or so. We were asked by two different couples to go on an outing this weekend...however things are too hectic to get away now. Next Monday we host FHE at our apartment, provide dessert, and do a "get to know the Udalls" evening. We will talk about ourselves, then will be subjected to questions from the group. I can't think of a better way to retire together.

Caroline...would you mind putting this on the blog? I will send pictures someday. Hunt, thanks for your sweet letter. Hope the house hunting is going well. Any more bills? I would love to hear from all of you.