A Maasai Celebration

In honor of my last night in Ole Keene, the Maasai held a small celebration for me. The chief Peter and about 16 Maasai boys gathered at our camp for dinner. Normally, women are not allowed to attend these gatherings but since I was a special guest I was allowed. They slaughtered a sheep to roast over the fire. It was quite an experience to see a sheep alive and then less than 2 hours later it is roasting over the fire. The smell coming from the meat was unlike anything I have smelled before. It was so overwhelming and made me not want to eat the meat. But, since I was the special guest, I received the honor of making the first cut in the meat. I had to use their ponga (large knife they are carry on their belt) to cut the meat. I think they made fun of me in Swahili as I tried and failed to cut a piece, With a little help from the boys, though, I was able to get a piece to eat. I can’t say that I enjoyed eating the roasted sheep but it was a great way to end my final night in the Mara.

At our small celebration I was also able to see the Maasai dance, which consists of a lot of jumping and chanting. Of course they made me join in with their dance so I was surrounded by 10 boys jumping and chanting. I am sure there are not very many visitors that are get to dance with the Maasai. What a great honor to be welcomed into their culture.

Today I head back to Nairobi so that I can board the plane back to America. As I begin my journey home, I am filled with both sadness and happiness. I am glad to be returning to my family and friends in Ohio and I definitely miss my bed and shower. But, I have had such a wonderful experience in Kenya. I don’t think pictures will be able to capture the essence of Kenya. Wherever I traveled, I was always greeted with a smile and a handshake. I met so many wonderful people that welcomed me into their homes and fed me lots of food and tea. The people here live a simple life but seem completely content and happy with their lives. If there is one thing I have learned from Kenya it is that simplicity is bliss. You don’t need a lot of things to make you happy. Happiness is found within you.

I have enjoyed traveling with the Kids in Kenya fund and seeing the many schools and children that Kids in Kenya sponsored. It is wonderful to see many villages beginning to invest more importance in education. I hope that when I return I see more girls in school!

Once I return home and sort through my many, many pictures I hope to share a few photos of the places I have traveled.