Jambo! Kenya, where the air smells of sweet spice and the colors awaken our vision, has been so welcoming to us “mizungus” thus far. We have come to know a bit if Swahili which the locals very much love. Our days have been spent with Missions of Hope here in the Mathare Valley. We have seen so much poverty, malnutrition & need, but also so much innovation, hard work, & hope. Our team started a small medical clinic today where 134 people were tended to within 3.5 hours. We have also done training with a business development program including a skills and production process in which people learn skills and methods to be empowered & encouraged to start their own businesses. Furthermore, the students have loan opportunities that can be used to jump start or grow their businesses, which can change their life and the life of the family and community. Tomorrow I will be working with a sewing production studio. The women in the studio have already graduated from the 6 month skills class and are now designing and creating items to sell. They really want to see a western look at patterns and design, so tomorrow I will be sharing ideas and sewing with them on their treadles. The program has a 95% success rate for businesses (amazing!). I’m not sure what the day holds and I have a loose plan, but I am so excited to see what God does tomorrow. Although I will be sharing with the group tomorrow, I know that they will teach me more than I could ever teach them. We are all co-creators with our heavenly Creator- what an honor it will be to create and learn tomorrow. Kubarikiwa- be blessed.

ONE day until departure!  Here’s just a portion of my stuff on the floor that’s gotta fit into my carry-on!  The entire team is packing personal items in carry-ons alone so that our checked bags can be used for donations including medical equipment, teaching supplies, and loooots of toothbrushes and toothpaste.  That just means lots of souvenir space on the way back to the States, right?!  Just kidding.  We are SOOO excited.  Check back here but also make sure to check our team’s blog at www.npgenerosity.com and our facebook page called “Kenya Partnership” (go “like” it now!).  Thanks for your partnership & your prayer…a wild adventure is about to begin!  Bwana Asifiwe!
Pop-upView Separately

ONE day until departure!  Here’s just a portion of my stuff on the floor that’s gotta fit into my carry-on!  The entire team is packing personal items in carry-ons alone so that our checked bags can be used for donations including medical equipment, teaching supplies, and loooots of toothbrushes and toothpaste.  That just means lots of souvenir space on the way back to the States, right?!  Just kidding.  We are SOOO excited.  Check back here but also make sure to check our team’s blog at www.npgenerosity.com and our facebook page called “Kenya Partnership” (go “like” it now!).  Thanks for your partnership & your prayer…a wild adventure is about to begin!  Bwana Asifiwe!

Under Attack

Sitting in the Art Gallery today with not one visitor.  Perhaps the weather is too nice to enjoy fine art?  Or perhaps the empty soup bowl, roll of toilet paper on the desk (make-shift tissues!), and fuzzy hat on my head is steering people away as I sit here looking pretty pathetic.  Well, a mere five days before our departure for Kenya and I get slammed with a cold.  Awesome.  I’m not worried about the cold itself but instead am worried for the congestion on the plane, so I have big plans to fill my already small & stuffed bag with antihistamines and pain relievers.  Great use of space.  The devil knows that HUGE amazing things are about to happen in Nairobi, and I think he’s shakin’ in his boots (which he should be!).  So he’s attacking our team in funny yet annoying ways, trying to take our eyes off of the mission, trying to depress our spirits, and trying to distract our efforts during these last few days of preparation.  But we all remain excited, energetic, joyful, and full of hope for what is to come in Africa.  I can hardly believe that we’ll be there in less than a week.  I’ve one more project and then my studio closes for a much-needed breather.  I just made my personal packing list for the trip making sure to include things like my new “P-Style”, (given to me by a fellow female team member who guarantees it will come in handy when we girls have to try to pee in a hole- hilarious!), bandanas (which I heard Africans just LOVE!), and a fake wedding ring (sorry love, it’s just too risky to wear my ENORMOUS diamond to Africa). ;)  But seriously.  It’s not like I can run to the store if I forget something.  I keep thinking of what bag to take that will fit everything and remain small and lightweight.  It’s still not a reality and probably won’t be until my feet hit Kenyan soil, but I continue to prepare, to think-ahead, and to pray for our trip, our team, our hearts, our safety, and the people we are going to serve. I’m going to try to update on this blog, but if I can’t for some reason while in Kenya, make sure to check out www.npgenerosity.com for live updates from “God’s place”.  Kubarikiwa.  Be Blessed.

Hope is always here.

So far so good: on this second day of January I’d say things are off to a good start.  Less than two weeks until we embark on our grand adventure to Kenya and our calendars are full until then.  We just returned from a driving adventure across the eastern continental divide and through the mountains of the east and now here I sit in a coffee shop working on my to-do list to get things started this year.  But as I sit here I can’t help but reflect on this past year: where I was one year ago and where I was as the year came to a close.  And that brings me to the here and now: who I am today and who I want to be a year from now. My darlin’ and I listened to a great sermon while riding in the car through the fog of Connecticut, and we were encouraged to inspect our hearts and to ask questions umbrella-ed under the main idea, “how’s your heart?”.  I can’t stop thinking about that question and all that it entails.  How is my heart?  How are my relationships?  Am I harboring any guilt?  Any negativity?  What’s my perception of myself?  Where am I going?  Who do I belong to and for what and for whom do I live for?  I think I need to get a new journal, ‘cuz it’s going to take a lot of writing and prayer to come up with anything even close to an answer to those questions.  But I tell you what, I’m excited to discover more of myself this year.  I’m anxious to see where I go and what I will do.  Where will Flewtstrings go?  What will I create?  Where will my heart rest?  What will God teach me?  Welcome 2012 with hope today: it’s everywhere around us, and it’s our for the taking.  Don’t miss out.

Our departure to Kenya is a mere 3 weeks away.  This past Friday night I hosted a “Kenya Coffee & Tea” in my studio where we sampled coffees and paired them with each with corresponding treats.  A treat for the palette for sure.  I also created some artwork to sell to fundraise for the trip, and I wanted to use African fabric in whatever creation I made.  With that said, I drew up some African animal silhouettes and cut them out of authentic African threads (which my hubs brought back for me from his trip to Kenya last year- so it’s legit!).  They were a hit!  In fact, I have several orders for more!  The only catch is finding more frames which means I’ll have to hit up a few second-hand stores in search for them (which I don’t mind at all). :)  Anyway, I just wanted to thank you all for your support.  Your support for the Kenya partnership, your support of our trip, your support for me and my business, and your support of the arts!  I mean it when I say I couldn’t do it without you.  Thank you!
Pop-upView Separately

Our departure to Kenya is a mere 3 weeks away.  This past Friday night I hosted a “Kenya Coffee & Tea” in my studio where we sampled coffees and paired them with each with corresponding treats.  A treat for the palette for sure.  I also created some artwork to sell to fundraise for the trip, and I wanted to use African fabric in whatever creation I made.  With that said, I drew up some African animal silhouettes and cut them out of authentic African threads (which my hubs brought back for me from his trip to Kenya last year- so it’s legit!).  They were a hit!  In fact, I have several orders for more!  The only catch is finding more frames which means I’ll have to hit up a few second-hand stores in search for them (which I don’t mind at all). :)  Anyway, I just wanted to thank you all for your support.  Your support for the Kenya partnership, your support of our trip, your support for me and my business, and your support of the arts!  I mean it when I say I couldn’t do it without you.  Thank you!

Kenya Coffee & Tea TONIGHT!

Like coffee? Like GOOD coffee? The awesome & local Starbucks, New Harvest Coffee & Coffee Exchange roasters have donated some sweeeeet African coffee for us to taste tonight. Check out what we’ll be sampling tonight:

  • COFFEE: Kenyan, Ugandan Peaberry, Ethiopian & Ethiopian Yirgachaffe
  • TEA: Tangawizi Ginger, Cinnamon, Cardamom (all from Kenya) & Rooibos Chai

And we’ll be french-pressing it all (or fresh-steeping) and pairing it with foods that will bring out the flavors…you’ll never see coffee the same. We’ll show you how to properly “taste” coffees which starts with the grind, the water, proportions, & the freshness of the bean, to how well attuned you are to your senses of smelling & slurping & where you feel the flavor sensations on the tongue. Like we said, you’ll never see coffee the same. Some of the coffee will be available for purchase.

We’ll also have a bunch of handmade art for sale to support the Kenya Partnership. Some of the things available for purchase will be:

  • Paintings
  • Original Prints
  • Jewelry
  • African Animal silhouettes
  • Aprons
  • Bags & Wallets
  • & jackets…just to name a few.

Hope to see you here tonight, if none other than to check out the studio or have a great free cup ‘o joe. We’d love to have your company.

When you drink a cup of coffee or tea, you are connecting with the world. Join the cause.