Practical Christian

Kenya: Day 51 - Portraits

2010-07-05T16:23:00.001-04:00

Portraits of my students.

Francis

Kadera

Linda

Yassin

Amina

Rufia

Fatuma

Abib

Shaban

Osman

Rosemary

Riziki

Kigan

Julius

Michael

Lucas & Jeremy

Kenya: Day 41

2010-06-25T03:08:00.001-04:00

Pray for:
- The future that God is preparing for me and that I will have the faith, confidence, and boldness to embrace it
- Wisdom in continued development of a filmmaking curriculum

In this review: Progress, Networking, Future

Progress
==
Things have been going really well. I've been teaching 2 classes and just started my third yesterday.

One class is with high school students. 3 of them just finished their assembly edits and I gave them feedback/critique and sent them back to re-edit. Another 1 is in the middle of production. While the rest are still working on their scripts and pre-production work. It's been really good to see their eagerness to just get something done.

My second class is with post-high school students. We just wrapped production on their first short this week and going to start editing on Monday. I'm hoping to transition them into teaching roles.

The third class I started is as kind of a consultant at the Kibera Film School. I critiqued their scripts, but it looks like I might help them retool their curriculum.

I've been building relationships, and God's been giving me opportunities to pray for people and make a difference. It's been a real blessing thus far.

All in all, I think it's been a pretty successful trip. I still have another 8 weeks. Planning to do shoot some documentaries while I'm out here. Also dedicating August to shooting a TV pilot. We're working on the script now so I'm hoping we'll be able to get it done.

I'm at the point in the curriculum where I'm rethinking my plan and considering trying something new. What that is, I still need to think about.

Networking
==
These last 2 weeks have been a whirlwind of meetings. It was to the point where I couldn't even blog. I know! Right?

It's been a good sort of business. Making contacts, moving Filamujuani forward and seeing who else is doing development and partnering to share resources, what we've learned, and becoming more effective.

I've also been making inroads to the Kenyan film insdustry. It's a really exciting time and I wish I didn't have to go back to school so I can stay here and jump on the band wagon. As is, the earliest that I'll be able to come back is probably 2013.

I'm hoping that things will orchestrate to bring me back sooner, but at this moment, it seems unlikely.

Future
==
As with all trips like this, it has thrown a huge wrench into my future and possibilities and opportunities. In a good way.

In December, I'll be graduating and taking the next step in this journey called life and faith. I see about 4 different paths and the various permutations of being bivocational.

At this point, I'm almost positive that I'm going to be bivocational, it's just a matter of which of the 2 paths I walk.

I thought coming to Kenya would make the decision easier. Boy, was I wrong.

So, the future is wide open. And one of the realities that I'm going to have to face is that of money. Specifically, how to make it. I wish I could just choose a path and run down it, but unfortunately, you can only run so far without eating or drinking anything.

I don't know which path I want to take. And in a lot of ways, I've been putting off the decision. But in a few months, I'll have to take a step. When the time comes, maybe I'll just close my eyes, spin around in a circle, and take a step and see where I land.

As much as I hope for a hand to pull down a particular path, I've come to realize that it's not always that easy. Sometimes we're given the responsibility to choose because we're big boys and girls and we're capable of making those sort of decisions.

It's really quite a privelege to be able to make those sort of decisions. There are so many people here who really have no choice. Because of their circumstances or the resources they have access to, there just isn't much in the way that they can decide for themselves. It's hard when you have to think about how you're going to make ends meet tomorrow, let alone a year from now. Or in my case, 3 years from now. That sort of forward thinking and planning just isn't available to the majority of people.

Thank you so much for your prayers. They're definitely felt and and great appreciated.

Kenya: Day 32

2010-06-16T13:01:00.001-04:00

Pray for:
- Rosemary's mom, that she would dream of growth
- Me, as I contemplate my future and where God is calling me (I will expound on this more later)

What happened:
- went to Junction. had meeting with Mercy from Hot Sun. talked about collaboration
- met with Gwatila and Sam. talked about TV opportunities
- hung out with Ken a bit
- went to Ken's place. met Cairo, a publisher. he had published Gwatila's book: Blue Mothertongue
- lunch at prestige
- went to check out Faulu, a micro-finance
- went downtown to do some banking
- went to Kibra Academy. met with Rosemary's mom. talked about her competition and how to differentiate from them
- added credits to my phone
- went home

Ken and I went to visit Faulu, a micro-finance operation, in the interest of helping out Rosemary's mom. What we discovered shocked me.

One of the big problems with micro-finance is managing risk. Usually, the "ventures" that those who are borrowing from you are so small, and their margins so thin, that even minor disruptions can bring them to ruin.

Traditionally, micro-finances have succeeded by making loans to groups. If one person in the group is unable to pay, the debt is passed on to others in the group. In a way, they're co-signing for each other. This also creates a lot of social pressure for everyone in the group to pay back the loan. A good thing right?

Wrong.

The problem with this model, at least where Faulu is concerned, is that it requires groups of at least 15 people to take loans.

I don't even have 15 friends that I would trust taking a loan with me, let alone 15 friends who need loans. As a businessman, why would I co-sign loans with 14 other people I don't know? If they default, then I become responsible for their portion of the loan. Why would I want that responsibility?

What's worse, is that the system encourages people to default because the group will support them. The only reason this doesn't happen is because the shame that would be associated with defaulting would be greater and worse than defaulting.

The result is that a lot of people end up being worse off AFTER they've taken the loan than had they not taken the loan at all.

Even if you wanted to take out a loan, you could only take out however much you're "worth". To determine your "worth", they come to your house and look at what you have. TV, chairs, tables, etc. But if it came down to it, they won't take your bed or plates. How kind.

So I can't find a 14 other people to take loans with. So Faulu has something for individuals. But before the individual can take out a loan, they have to have started a savings account with them and deposited at least 500 KSH ($6.25 USD)/week with an initial balance of 300 KSH ($3.75 USD). That doesn't sound like a lot, but in Rosemary's case, her mom is living paycheck to paycheck. She can't even make ends meet as is. In order to get by without falling into egrecious debt, she can't afford school fees or feminine hygiene products. This is the sacrifice that is made so they can continue "living". For them to put away 500 KSH / week for a year is insane.

Even at the end of all that, they can only borrow 80% of whatever they have saved. And Faulu will hold 20% of your savings as collateral. Essentially, you're borrowing your own money from yourself. So, if you were to do the minimum, 300 KSH initial, then 500 KSH/week, after a year, you'd be able to take out a loan of 26,300 KSH ($328.75 USD) with an interest rate of 22%.

Most of the people who need these kinds of loans can barely plan for tomorrow, let alone for a year.

The system is completely impractical for those who really need it.

This micro-finances have become more interested in loan repayment than actually helping people.

Has this system helped people? I'm sure it has helped a few. But I don't believe that it has brought real change to the community.

As for Rosemary's mom. We're going to do our due diligence on her business plan and help her see ways to grow her business, not just get by.

We are investors, not a charity, not a bank. And we want to see a good return on our investment.

Kenya: Day 30

2010-06-14T14:09:00.000-04:00

Pray for:
- God's provision to Rosemary and her family.
- Micro-finance to go beyond just giving loans, but doing business evaluation too

What happened:
- morning class got rained out
- met Ken at prestige, went down town
- went around different places to get brochures, did some souvenir shopping
- went to lunch, met Felix, a documentary photojournalist and filmmaker.
- went around to look at various banks
- went to Yaya
- went to Kibra Academy. met with Rosemary's mom
- went to Prestige, had dinner with Ken and Eva
- went home

Today, I met with Rosemary's mom, along with Ken and Principal Sobwa. She hadn't been able to afford school fees, so the intention was to find out what was going on.

Her mom had a small business as a caterer. But she got sick, fell behind, and couldn't afford stock to keep the business going.

We started by looking at her weekly business expenses. Groceries, rent, salary for her 1 employee, etc. Then we looked at how much she was making gross.

Afterwards, we looked at her personal expenses for herself and her two daughters. We asked about food, rent, clothes, toiletries, etc. As we were asking these questions, some of them numbers she quoted regarding toiletries and clothing were woefully low. She was quoting 200 KSH ($2.50 USD) a month for 3 women, which would include pads for feminine needs. Unrealistic by any standard.

After budgeting more appropriately, it was determined that she would not be able to make ends meet. She would be short by 2000 KSH ($25) per week.

Then, we asked her if there were any ways that she could expand her business. She said that the area that she was in was oversaturated. One solution was to move to a different area to set up shop, but rent and expenses would be higher too.

Before we sent her home, we asked her to put together a business plan, do some market analysis, and return on Wednesday so we can look it over.

If all goes well, we'll be entering the micro-finance business.

In the meantime, the money raised for Rosemary's school fees will be used like a scholarship to ease pressure on her mom.

Kenya: Day 27 - Week 4 in review

2010-06-11T15:52:00.001-04:00

In this review: racism, vision for change, markets

Racism
==
The other day, I finished reading The Heart of Racial Justice by Brenda Salter McNeil and Rick Richardson.

The Heart of Racial Justice, talks briefly to my comments I brought up on Day 8 on race. I think it makes a very valid point, that we really aren't post-racial, at least, not entirely. There are still places where race, racism, and ethnocentrism still play very important roles. In fact, I kind of face it every day.

I walk down the streets, and I'm judged by the color of my skin. "China"; "How are you?"; "Hello!"; "Ching chong"; etc. I know it's not rooted in racism because it's not hateful. But it's ignorant. It's obvious that I'm a foreigner. It's obvious that I'm of a Chinese or at least Asian ethnic background. But it's assumed that I'm wealthy. By no means am I poor, but those words make me feel like a walking money bag.

Ok, so it's not ethnocentrism that I face. But I do my best to let the other comments roll off my back.

Even if I don't have control over the actions of others, I do have control of how I react and respond.

Vision for Change
==
I had quite a few meetings this week. And as I met with people and had conversation with them, I realized that not everyone has a vision for change. I can appreciate not knowing how to get there, but not having a vision at all is bizarre for me.

I take it for granted that vision is a rare thing. Skill can be acquired. Competence comes with time, experience, and correction. But vision, real vision, is a rare thing.

So I've found it difficult working with people who can't even imagine change, let alone the desire to work towards it. How do you work towards something you can't see?

Markets
==
Last Sunday, Pastor Oscar mentioned seven sectors of society. I would argue that he forgot the eigth: development.

One of the big problems with many NGOs and NPOs, is that they have a vested interest for things not to change. If the situations they were working in actually improved, they would be out of a job.

The goal for those in the business of development should be to put themselves out of business. They should strive to set up structures that are sustainable, with leaders raised from within the community.

Granted, this may not be possible with every NGO. But the question of sustainability, the question of how is this going to change the community, are often not asked or simply shrugged off.

As I read "Atlas Shrugged", the struggle of pure industrialists is pitted against one with a social conscious. The reality, is that the two cannot be separated.

Pure capitalistic markets don't work, we see that with the market crash of 2009. A result of unbridaled and unregulated capitalism. But pure charity doesn't work either because it's not sustainable.

The missing key is socially aware markets.

If the old adage, "One man's garbage is another man's treasure", is true. Then that other man will be willing to pay for that treasure.

We like to believe that huge multinationals are evil. And no doubt, I'm sure there are some that are. But it is these multinationals who are able to employee a lot of people.

Of course, there are certain things that are best left for governments because they exist for the common good. Like roads and the like. And for the things that government can't run, but has an interest in, they get invovled through regulation. Think the FDA which makes sure that the food you eat is clean.

Not that markets are a panacea. But they are a powerful component that are often ignored.

Kenya: Day 26 - Photos

2010-06-10T16:15:00.001-04:00

Yesterday, after the shoot, the cast wanted their pictures taken. The lighting was so gorgeous and they just kept posing, that I had to keep shooting. Enjoy!

Kenya: Day 26

2010-06-10T14:45:00.000-04:00

Pray for:
- Rosemary gets the provision to return to school
- Wisdom and insight of what to do about Rosemary and what to say to her parents

What happened:
- met with Koo at Java House to talk about climbing Mt Kenya
- went home and converted footage from MOV to WMV for Windows Movie Maker
- went to Prestige to meet with Pastor Faith, who didn't show
- went to Kibra Academy. Futama finished shooting today. i brought the kids chocolate cake that Helen, from my small group, had made

Yesterday, Rosemary, one of my students, at Kibra Academy came up to me and apologized for not being around. She hasn't been attending school because she can't afford school fees.

I talked to the principle today, and he told me that he had already let her come for one term, waiting for payment. She has since started her second term.

In total, Rosemary owes 12,000 KSH ($250 USD) for this year. And most likely the same amount for next year, where she'll be a senior. Then 5,000 KSH ($75 USD) for the national exam. For a total of $575 USD to finish high school.

It seems like a shame that she should be kept from her future because she can't afford to go to school. Sadly, her story is indicative of many in Kibera.

My heart goes out to Rosemary. She's bright, she's eager, and she's studios. I would consider her one of the stars in my class. I want to tell her that she doesn't have to worry about school, that it's covered. But is that the wisest solution?

This is one of the problems Filamujuani is looking to fix. But how best to fix it? How do you make it sustainable?

I asked the principle if I could meet the parents on Monday. I don't know what I'm going to say or ask. But if I can figure out a way to keep her in school without directly sponsoring her, that would be preferable. But if we can't come to a decision, am I willing to sponsor her?

Say I do sponsor her. What about the other kids who can't pay school fees?

Today, Futama wrapped production on her first short film today, Sumatra.

It was really great seeing a crowd form to watch them shoot. It was to the point where they were getting in the way of the wide shots that Futama was shooting.

Monday, we will start production on Shaban's film.

Kenya: Day 24

2010-06-08T14:42:00.000-04:00

Pray for:
- Bind the strong man over Nairobi
- Release God's blessing on Nairobi

What happened:
- went to Jah Army
- went home
- Ken came to pick up some gear for his shoot
- went to Prestige to journal. Ran into Rachel. she's going to take me to Kibera tomorrow morning
- went to Kibra Academy. Futama was ready to shoot.
- went home. spent quite some time talking to the security guard. he basically told me his life story.

Today was Futama's first day of production. She was so thoughtful and kind that she bought the entire cast and crew soda. Knowing where the soda came from, it was one of the best sodas I've ever had.

Reading Futama's script, watching her direct her own script, working with her actors. And then going that extra mile to treat us all to drinks. Then, she's going to get the chance to edit it all together and have her very first short film. This toast had so much meaning. This toast, makes everything worth while.

Count me encouraged :D

I also spend some time talking, Richard, one of the security guards for our complex. We usually exchange pleasantries as I leave or return for the day.

Today, for some reason, he started telling me about his life. He has a wife and a 4 month old son named Sean. His wife helps take care of his mom after his dad passed away several years ago. They live far from Nairobi.

He makes 200 KSH (~ $2.50 USD) per day. Between rent, groceries, and supporting his family, he doesn't have the capacity to save. "Struggling" was what he called it.

On a side note. Vice President Joe Biden has been here for 2 days. His wife went to Kibera today. They got to experience some "mud".

Such is life in Nairobi. Highs and lows.

Kenya: Day 23

2010-06-07T14:28:00.001-04:00

Pray for:
- Vision for Filamujuani

what happened:
- went to Jah Army. path was all muddy after the big rain the previous night
- went to prestige to meet with Ken. talked about the Filamujuani website. when we looked, it had gotten hacked.
- dropped off Ken's gear at my place.
- went to Ken's place.
- went to lunch: chipati + beef stew
- went to Kibra Academy. taught directing. Futama finished her script and pre-production. we'll start shooting her script tomorrow.

Today, over lunch, Ken and I talked about how the project has been going thus far. And it was a bit discouraging because only about half the class has been coming out.

The morning class is understandable considering all the mud. As I walked back to the mutatu, Kigan was telling me about how most of Jah Army doesn't come out when it's muddy like that.

Then, when I got to Kibra, Futama surprised me with not only a finished script, but finished pre-production too. She had an extensive shot list, storyboards, and everything else. She even went the extra mile and asked her actors to bring their home clothes to make it more real.

It was also really encouraging to see how well written the script was too. There were sentences that were grammatically incorrect, but that's ok. What really impressed me was how visual the script was. I could see all the action come alive off the page.

Still, we're rethinking our strategy for how we approach Filamujuani. How to have the most impact and really give these kids a future and not just have it be another after school club.

We also got a chance to sit down with Anima and Frances to do interviews for the Filamujuani documentary. Frances gave us a lot of really good stuff.

On Saturday, I'm going to be going to their homes and getting some coverage for the documentary.

Kenya: Day 20 - Week 3 in review

2010-06-04T11:42:00.001-04:00

This week in review: Jah Army, Children's DVD, Cold.

Jah Army
==
Jah Army is a a group of about 20 guys (and a few girls) in their early to late 20s from, living, and working in Kibera. Jah is swahili for God. They mostly grew up together and do a lot of art together. They sing, draw, paint, act, make documentaries, write, and now, making movies. They do a lot of socially aware content with an eye towards being role models for others in the community and encouraging young people to explore their creative talents.

Children's DVD
==
There's this DVD of "children's" song that Jeremy (the 18 month old) absolutely loves. When it's on, he's entranced, he's quiet. I can understand the appeal of something like that to parents.

Far too often, the DVD is set on loop, even if Jeremy isn't there to be inprisoned by it. And I do mean inprisoned because it is a torturous affair.

Poorly lipsynced children singing to their own voices. Arduous fades between shots where normal cuts would be sufficient. Terrible camera angles. And of course the rancorous noise that's considered music. With lyrics such as "Blue bird blue bird, through my window"; "when the army is up they're up, when the army is down they're down"; "everybody should love Jesus"; "the farmer in the dell"; and of course, who can forget "the cheese stands alone".

I won't even get into the inherent flaws in theology in the songs.

It may seem like I'm spewing bile on what many would consider harmless. But trust me. There has to be some statute in the Geneva convention that defines subjecting humans of any age to this torture as a war crime.

I could try to justify my hatred with some logic such as how the DVD is adverse to Jeremy's development. How it's destroying his ability to hold a semblance of attention. Or even the idea of a DVD as baby sitter.

But I won't. This is unbridled hate towards the product. I hope the company that developed this material has long filed chapter 11 and moved on to more meaningful work.

Cold
==
We've entered winter here in Kena and the month of June is supposed to be the coldest. "Cold" seems to be in the mid 60's and overcast. There isn't any sort of heat in the house, so I often wear 1 of 2 hoodies that I brought.

There have been a few days where I wish I brought my Northface as I had originally intended. I had removed it in order to reach the weight limit for my luggage.

When the sun is out, it's gorgeous. And there were days when it was down right hot. Those days were great.

It doesn't help that it rains almost every night, keeping the air cool during the day. It's funny, because it's not supposed to rain as much as it has.

But the cold is a real problem for those in Kibera. A transformer that brings a lot of electricity deep into Kibera has been out of commission for the last 4 weeks, with little sign of it being fixed any time soon. Along with the cold, comes illness.

One of the members of Jah Army, Zayna, both her and her child has been sick for what seems like 2 weeks now.

Kenya: Day 19 - Jah Army Art

2010-06-03T16:37:00.000-04:00

Art made by Jah Army

Kenya: Day 19 - Photos

2010-06-03T16:34:00.000-04:00

Kenya: Day 19

2010-06-03T13:19:00.000-04:00

Pray for:
- That we'd be able to get the Filamujuani documentary done
- that Risiki's finishing her movie will encourage the others in the class to step up

What happened:
- worked on my screenplay
- chatted w/ M
- went to Kibra Academy. Risiki surprised me with all her pre-production done. so i told her that she would be the first to start production.
- went home

It was really exciting to see the kids engaged in production. Not before too long, Risiki had a small crowd forming around the "sets" to watch what was going on.

She had drawn a whole bunch of storyboards, but when we started shooting, she maybe only used 5.

As we approached the end of the day, she wanted 1 more shot. When she got it, I asked her if she needed Monday to keep shooting, but she said she was done. It'll be interesting to see it come together in the edit.

Hopefully, I'll be able to take the finished movie and toss it up on youtube for everyone.

On a side note. Ken and I weren't able to start the Filamujuani documentary. Hopefully, we'll be able to make up the time tomorrow or Saturday.

Kenya: Day 18

2010-06-02T15:50:00.001-04:00

Pray for:
- Wisdom in interacting with beggars
- That the Filamujuani documentary would show the world what's happening here

What happened:
- went to Jah Army, some of them started doing their screenplays
- went to Prestige to have a meeting with Ken. talked about the Filamujuani documentary; Kibera TV; the role of markets and entrepreneurship in community development; and a bit about story structure.
- went to Kibra Academy. the kids did poorly on their general exam, so a lot of them got punished. didn't really have class.
- went to Prestige to wait for Ken
- went to Small Group. we talked about success.
- set up a meeting with Erica about Kibera TV for next week.
- went home

Tomorrow, we begin filming the Filamujuani documentary. We're going to focus on 3 stories: Frances, Amina, and Yasin. The 3 of them are going to be graduating this year, so the things that we're teaching them will be particularly important. It's also a very timely project because Ken will be going back to the states to "show" people what's going on here.

I love doing quick and dirty documentaries.

The other day, I finished Compassion, Justice and the Christian Life by Robert Lupton. It was great. It totally changed the way I view charity, community development, and the role of markets. It didn't answer my question from Day 5 where I encountered the beggar. That's not true. It answered it tangentially, in that when we give charity, we remove dignity and perpetuate the problem. There are definitely times when charity is needed and when those times are require a lot of wisdom and discernment in the Spirit.

Instead of charity, "we must come to deeply believe that every person, no matter how destitute or broken, has something of worth to bring to the table." But the question is, what do these poorest of the poor bring to the table? It's a question I struggle with with each child that runs to me with outstretched hands.

When I see the poor, I see them begging, I ask myself, how can I best help them? This morning, I saw a kid, maybe middle school aged, getting up from sleeping under a blanket on the side of the street. Sure, I could give him 100 shillings, and he can buy a snack. But what about tomorrow? I can give him 1000 shillings, and he can feed himself for a week, but what about the following year? What happens when, come August 30, I leave? What happens to my "dependent"?

I think, "If I only had an office where I could employ them, then they could earn their day's wage and we both win." But what can they do? I guess it's my fault for not asking. I'm going to find out.

Then there's the old woman at the gate into Prestige. Every morning, she comes with her mat, sets it down by the gate with her various cups to collect change. She has a cane to help her with her pigeon-toed gate as she goes to the plaza to relieve herself or maybe make a deposit at the bank. I don't know because, again, I don't ask.

I guess that's why I'm here, isn't it?

Kenya: Day 17

2010-06-01T11:50:00.000-04:00

Pray for:
- God to do his thing regarding Kibera TV/Slum TV
- real community development to happen that will transform Kibera

What happened:
- today is Kenay's independence day. Pretty much everyone has the day off. No school!
- went to Jah Army. Michael, after some struggle, is starting to get loglines.
- Jah Army was performing at DC, so I went to give them my support. The event was supposed to start at 12, but when I left at 1:45, it still hadn't gotten started. the event was presented by KCODA (http://kcoda.org) to build awareness for good governance
- Jah Army went to the KCODA hq, where I met Erica and Brian, who are running Kibera TV. some of their people had come to interview me last week (http://www.ninjavspenguin.com/blog/2010/05/25/kenya-day-10/).
- went to Prestige and met with Gwatila to talk about Zuki
- went TV shopping with Gwatila
- went home

Apparently, this whole Kibera TV/Slum TV thing is a pretty good idea, considering that we weren't the only ones that thought of it. KCODA has been doing what they're calling the Kibera News Network since April (http://www.youtube.com/user/KiberaNewsNetwork). Most of their stuff is uploaded straight to Youtube after some basic editing.

I think it'd be a really cool idea if we managed to partner with them and develop a proper Kibera TV network with more than just news, but other programming as well.

Putting the stuff online is cool and all, but it would be even better if we could develop community around it as well. Still need to think through the details on that, but I'd rather join with a group who's already doing something, rather than start our own thing completely. Even if we're only sharing resources, we may be a huge benefit for each other.

It's pretty exciting how it all came together. I had just tagged along with Jah Army. They met with the program director and I was just chilling. Then, Erica popped her head into the office and saw me. She had seen the interview I did the previous week and we started talking.

Funny how things like that work out. Hopefully, the rest of it works out just as easily.

Praise God!

Kenya: Day 15

2010-05-30T14:33:00.000-04:00

Pray for:
- Shooting a quick and dirty documentary about Filamujuani
- Looking for a small group

What happened:
- met Ken at Adam's Arcade
- went to Nairobi Chapel for church
- went shopping with Eva. she bought a new wallet, talked down from 950 to 500. bought a scarf, talked down from 250 to 200. bought a pair of boots, talked down from 2500 to 1200.
- went to Steve's thanksgiving. his daughter, Siva had been sick. her intestines and tubes hadn't fully developed, so she couldn't pee or poop. now, she's ok, and it was a thanksgiving for her. i took pictures for Ken.
- went to Prestige to meet with Gwatila and Ken to talk about Zuki
- dinner: beef briani
- went home

In this review: Normalcy, Seeing, Missing

Normalcy
==
As I settle into my second week in Nairobi, I settle into a sense of normalcy. I wake up, go to work, have lunch, and then go home, waiting for the cycle to repeat. It definitely helped that I started right away.

Normalcy and rythm is actually a very good thing. It sounds dull, and in some ways it is. Thus, my decision to stop blogging daily updates (http://www.ninjavspenguin.com/blog/2010/05/26/kenya-day-11/). Though I'm still blogging daily thus far.

What makes it a good thing is it allows you to plan the future. It allows you to make decisions about what's to come. Decisions about your life.

I'm starting to get familiar with the lay of the land. Prestige, Adam's, Junction, Nairobi Chapel, all along the same road.

Seeing
==
After Gwatila's shoot (http://www.ninjavspenguin.com/blog/2010/05/28/kenya-day-13-planning/), we sat around and got to the topic of the power of seeing.

Often times, we take for granted what we have seen, experienced, and learned and how that changes not only our perspective, but also our ability to project and envision.

Sometimes, people need to be shown exactly what's going on for them to understand. That is the power of video. It enables people to see things that they wouldn't necessarily be able to see.

So, this week, we're going to shoot a quick and dirty documentary about Filamujuani and what's going on here and the change that it is bringing to Kibera. We're hoping that it'll be shot and edited over the next 2 weeks.

Missing
==
Being here for 2 weeks, the thing I've missed most is the people that I left in the states. Family, friends, people I care about and care about me. The physical and temporal difference has really started getting to me.

I knew that I was going to miss people, but I didn't realize I would miss them this much and so quickly.

It's been nice receiving emails, even if they're breif. It's also been nice being able to text M, even if they're within very narrow windows of her being awake. It's an 11 hour time difference between the two of us.

Kenya: Day 13

2010-05-29T02:04:00.001-04:00

What happened:
- went to Adam's Arcade at 9:30. had breakfast, journaled. Ken was supposed come pick me up for Gwatila's music video
- Ken shows up with Kim, the guitarist, at 11:20.
- get to Gwatila's at 12, start setting up lights, etc for Gwatila's music video.
- I shoot some set photographs
- by 4, we've only finished Kim's shots and he has to go.
- we consider shooting some scenes with Gwatila, but we don't really have the time and start packing stuff up at 5:40
- we sit around and chat about Filamujuani (http://filamujuani.org/) and decide to shoot a quick and dirty documentary this coming week so people can see what we're doing and the sort of impact we're having
- we go to Spice Roots, an Indian restaraunt for Tom and Deb's farewell dinner. we're supposed to get there at 8, but get there at 9. they order food, get some appetizers at 10, get the actual dinner at 11.
- we go to Havana at 12:30, a local bar/club and dance the night away
- i get home at 2

Gwatila (http://http://www.ngwatilo.com/) is an actress, poet, singer and has her first published book of poetry, "Blue Mothertongue" (http://www.ngwatilo.com/blue-mothertongue/). Ken is shooting a music video for a poem she wrote called, "Dear E", which was put to music.

While Ken was shooting with his 5Dmk2, Gwatila was coming up with a shot list. At the end of the 4 hour shoot, we had 6 of 32 shots done for a 2:18 music video.

This is one of the reasons why planning is such a crucial part of filmmaking. In fact, planning starts in the script. The script is a series of descriptions of what is and what isn't on screen. Pre-production takes that concept a step further and figures out, practically, how do we show what's in the script.

Now, there are definitely instances where it takes a long time to even get 1 shot. That's not what I'm talking about. I'm also not advocating sticking so close to the plan that you don't allow for inspiration or serendipity, nor is getting the shot THE primary task.

What planning does, is it forces you to think through everything before actually doing it. It frees your mind so those moments of inspiration and serendipity are free to happen. Since your mind is no longer thinking about what HAS to be shot, it can be freed to wonder, explore, and play. You've already considered the possibilities and tossed out the ones you know won't work. All that's left, are the ones that will.

Planning also frees up time so getting the shot isn't what you're doing. I hate it when I get to the end of my day and I still have a ton of shots left to get, but I can't miss my day either. So I switch into functional mode. I get the shots I need in order to tell the story. But often times, those shots are devoid of life. They work, but they don't have that sense of magic that really connects.

Planning, it's your friend.

Kenya: Day 12

2010-05-27T13:56:00.001-04:00

Pray for:
- a vision that transforms the community
- wisdom of how to implement that vision

What happened:
- went to prestige. did my devos. waited for ken, who didn't show up.
- met with Gwatila to talk about Zuki. plotted out episodes 3-4 and started talking about ep 1.
- went to Kibra Academy, taught pre-production: location lists, character lists, stripboards, prop lists, storyboarding, and shot lists. tom also came out and did an exercise with the kids, had 2 actors try to both get what they want
- Tom dropped me off at Adam's Arcade, walked home w/ my headlamp lighting the way
- had first power outage

Today, Tom came out to class. Most of it was pretty uneventful, but as we approached the end, it was time to say goodbye. Tom is moving to Rwanda after spending a year in Kenya. He's spent quite some time with the kids, teaching and helping them work on Zuki.

Zuki started out as a soap opera written, shot, acted, and produced by the kids. The goal was to produce this and sell it to local TV stations as a way to bring money into the community. But as the project went along, many of those goals got put on the back burner.

One of the problems, was that the kids aren't very experienced with writing or production. In fact, they don't have any experience. As much as we like to believe in gold coming out of the most unlikely places, the reality is that screenwriting, video production, and video editing are difficult. Each one is a craft that needs to be refined in its own right through failure, trial and error, and critical feedback from peers and audiences.

In the mean time, writing duties for Zuki have been mostly taken over by Gwatila and Ken.

Another problem is the lack of resources.

A few months ago, a small group of women pooled their resources and bought the school 8 laptops. Then, one day, they were stolen. This is Kibera. It's still a slum with all the things that come with slums: theft, murder, rape... lawlessness.

So what to do?

My recommendation to Ken was to set up a production company. He could start with 2 or 3 laptops, a consumer HD camera, and some Flip HD cameras. The Flips would be used for training and even shooting some low level programming. The consumer camera could be rented out so that they can shoot weddings, documentaries, or whatever other projects. The laptops could be taken in to Kibera as lesson platforms, but more often then not, it would stay at the office for work.

What this does, is it sets up a goal for the students. After they finish school, they have a place where they can actually envision themselves working. Even if they don't work at the production company, they can rent gear or time on the laptops to produce material and bring money into the community.

So, what then of Zuki? Our goal this summer is to write, shoot, and finish the first 42 minute episode and use it as a platform to sell the rest of the 4 part mini-series, potentially leading to a full 13 episode TV series.

I still need to have conversations about SlumTV.

Kenya: Day 11

2010-05-26T16:19:00.001-04:00

Pray for:
- pastoring Ken
- those remaining in my classes, that they would learn a lot

What happened:
- went to teach Jah Army, only half the class showed up.
- went home. lunch: meatballs + fries
- went to prestige to journal. saw ken & tom
- went to Kibra Academy. half the class showed up. taught how to write a screenplay. homework: write a 4 pg screenplay
- went to Junction, met up with Ken & tom. they worked on Zuki. we were at doorman's, i ordered tomato soup
- went to Nairobi Java House for dinner, had a burger
- Tom went home
- sat around with Ken talking about life
- went home

From this point on, my blogging is going to become irregular. The only times I'm going to post are if I have a significant thought or comment. I will continue to do weekly reviews.

Kenya: Day 10

2010-05-25T12:33:00.001-04:00

Pray for:
- kids have motivation and focus
- against the enemy's tactics of discouragement and distractions

What happened:
- went to Kibera; Kigan and I miscommunicated and he went to wait for me at Kibera Academy; reviewed their loglines; taught about character development; homework: write biography for main character
- some local people heard about what I was doing and came to interview me
- did my devos
- went home for lunch
- went to Pristige Plaza, met with Gwatila and Ken to talk about Zuki. Started getting the overall arc down.
- went to Kibera Academy. Looked at the students' book to see how they were progressing. A lot of them didn't do the homework right. Or others had missed class. So class turned into a makeup session. Ended class early.
- went home

It was pretty discouraging today to see a good portion of the kids not doing their work. This is not to say that all of them are guilty, there were those who did try, and those need to be rewarded.

I just need to remind myself that I can only teach the material, they have to learn on their own.

Kenya: Day 9

2010-05-24T12:50:00.001-04:00

Pray for:
- pastoral mentor
- opportunities for God to show up

What happened:
- woke up at 7:10 to travel into Kibera
- Kigan met me at Nairobi Kibera Academy and walked me into the heart of Kibera
- met some of Jah Army; have 6 in this post-high school class; had them share their stories; taught loglines; homework: write 5 loglines
- took the mutatu back to prestige
- did my devos
- went home
- went out to lunch with Ken; went to Westlands mall; had mutton masala
- went to Kibera to teach afternoon class
- continuing to learn Swahili
- went home

Today, I went into the heart of Kibera.

The ground I walked on was covered in garbage trampled by thousands of people. As I climbed the steep slope and crested the hill on to a pair of train tracks, I saw a whole nother world.

I saw the rest of Kibera.

If you've seen Slumdog Millionaire, you'll have an idea of what Kibera looks like.

Kigan, one of the Jah Army, led me to their home, to their HQ. In the midst of the garbage, of the forgotten, of the refuse, there was this group of friends who group up together, who are trying to make it together, who are trying to give back to the community together. Jah Army.

They are artists. Singers, rappers, musicians, illustrators, painters, filmmakers, and photographers.

They use their skill and talent to make statements.

"Burn the rapist"
"Rape is wrong"
etc.

What kind of place is this where signs need to be made to remind people that rape is not a good thing. How does something like that even happen?

Do they embrace their status as disenfranchised? Do they buy into the fact that they are forgotten by the rest of society? Do they accept their lack of dignity as truth?

Whatever the rational responses are, I know that the kingdom of darkness is there. The enemy created the situation and the enemy continues to oppress God's people, keeping them in bondage.

No amount of NGO work is going to "fix" Kibera or even poverty. Not to say that they shouldn't try. But there is tremendous arrogance in any individual or any organization who says that they know how to solve poverty.

Kenya: Day 8

2010-05-24T12:49:00.001-04:00

What happened:
- went to Nairobi Java House at adam's arcade; got coffee, chatted w/ Ken
- went to Nairobi Chapel; Oscar Miuri's, of Urbana fame, church
- went to Ken's parent's home
- lunch: rice + beef stew + fresh banana
- Ken loses his car keys for 20 min
- go to Gwatila's place; met her parents
- went to Junction to watch Robin Hood, but we were already 30 min late
- went to Ken's place to drop off his Redrock Micro rail kit
- sat around and talked about Zuki, film marketing, Nairobi televesion, and the Nairobi audience
- went home

It was interesting seeing Oscar outside of the Urbana context. So far, both times I've seen him speak (the first in class, the second, in person at Urbana 09), he was wearing what I would consider traditional African garb. This Sunday, as he got up to preach, he was dressed in a suit.

I don't know what I was expecting, but that was definitely not it. In retrospect, it shouldn't be all that surprising. You look around the crowd, you look at the people on the street, the majority of people are in dress shirts, suits, or the like. For him to wear traditional African dress would NOT be contextual.

That got me to thinking. Urbana, and Intervarsity as a whole, is really big on diversity. I don't doubt that there are people who still wear traditional African garb, or Japanese people who wear kimonos, but by playing off those stereotypes, perhaps we are perpetuating this idea of differences when, in reality, a lot of these differences have disappeared.

In one of my previous posts, I talk about how Westernized Nairobi(http://www.ninjavspenguin.com/blog/2010/05/21/kenya-day-6-week-1-in-review/) is.

Diversity tends to be a hot issue in American churches. Understandable considering how churches tend to be monocultural. Even the "diverse" churches, still have a predominant culture. Aside from ethnic churches, I would say they are "Amercian". What these "diverse" churches are really talking about when they talk about diversity, is skin color.

This may say more about race and racism than anything else. It is affirmative action as an ethos. But this isn't meant to start a discussion on affirmative action.

I think we like to believe that we are a post-racial culture. The reality is that race has come back into the forefront.

Before I continue, I want to make it clear that this pursuit of "diversity" is not a bad thing. And the intentions are often very good. So this isn't meant as an attack on those churches or their pursuit of "diversity".

I can't help but think that if we truly were post-racial, there would be no such thing as race. And genetically, biologically, there is no such thing as race. And just as in the Kingdom of God there is no Jew, there is no Gentile, wouldn't putting an emphasis on "diversity" bring those differences back?

As I said before, these churches are mono-culturally Amercian. They also tend to be homogenenous in terms of socio-economics as well. Of course, this is often a function of the church's location. If it's in an affluent neighborhood, affluent people are going to go. If it's in a poor area, you'll have more poor people. Of course, this is a sweeping generalization, but it paints a stark picture.

In fact, you see the same thing in the African churches that I've been to. You look around and they're middle, upper-middle class people of Nairobi. They have the same misconceptions and prejudices of Kibera as a random person from America.

"They're lazy."
"It's disease stricken."
"It's dirty."
"They're empoverished."
etc.

Some of those things may be true, but it's not the complete picture.

There is beauty. People work hard. There is education. There is life.

The thing that stands out is the community's poverty. Just like there are 2nd, 3rd, and 4th generation rich. There are 2nd, 3rd, and 4th generation poor. These are people who, all they have seen and experienced is poverty. They know nothing else. They have no concept of anything else. Therefore, they can't envision a life or even a way to get out of their situation. The very definition of poverty.

Across the street from Nairobi Chapel is a slum. Right there, on their doorstep. And the thousands of people who attend Nairobi Chapel, Nairobi Chapel it self could do some real change.

I think diversity is a noble goal. I believe it's a "biblical" goal. If it were true diversity and not just multi-colored mono-cultural "diversity".

Kenya: Day 7

2010-05-24T12:46:00.001-04:00

What happened:
- went to Kibera; kids had an exam so only half came to class; watched Up; cried 3 times
- went home, watched a bunch of CSI

Kenya: Day 6 - Week 1 in review

2010-05-21T12:37:00.000-04:00

Thus ends my first week in Kenya.

In this review: Westernized, Kibera, NGO City, Looking Forward.

Westernized
==
One of the things that I've noticed is in how many respects Kenya is like the states.

When I went to church last Sunday, the sermon that was preached could've just as easily been preached in virtually any church in the states. The main thing that was different was the worship. It was a bit more lively with a bit more dancing than most churches I've been a part of.

I've been spending a lot of time at Pristige Plaza. At the ground floor is Nakumatt, the Walmart of Nairobi. There's a food court on the first floor with different cuisines: Swahilian, Chinese, fried chicken, Italian, etc. There's also free public wifi. And people will come, set up their laptops, have some tea, and get stuff done or go on Facebook. This one place, Zinc, has a TV playing MTV and music videos. So far, I've gotten a block of Avril, I got some Lady GaGa, some Christ Brown, and then other stuff that I'm less familiar with.

Kibera
==
My first foray into Kibera wasn't what I had expected either. Granted, I was on the outskirts of Kibera, so there's still a lot of it that I haven't seen. I don't know why, but I had in my mind something like refugee camps. A lot of people packed into a small space. Yes, there was a lot of people, but a lot of them were going about their business. There were vendors on the side of the road selling food, groceries, or other wears. It's just that their store fronts are either hole in the walls or just stations at the side of the road.

I think of Kibera as ravaged by poverty, but the reality is that there are people living their lives here as well. Without asking more questions and listening more, I won't get a clear idea of what it's actually like living in Kibera.

That's the imbalance that so much media paints of "problems". People and their lives become problems become problems to be fixed. Yes there are problems, but life is happening too. There are people who are sick and dying, there are also others who are healthy and living. There are people who are poor, there are others who are doing what they can to get by. It's a complicated system that can't fit neatly or easily into a 30 second spot.

And I think that can be translated to every socio-economic "problem" we see around the world. It's easy to focus on the negative because that's what pulls on the heart. That's what gets our sense of justice riled up. And there's definitely injustice out there. I don't want to minimize that. But it's also not that simple. Nothing ever is.

NGO City
==
Another thing that I noticed was how many NGOs were operating near Kibera. As we were driving into Kibera on that first day, we passed an area where every building was an NGO office. Development has become an industry in itself. Ken is operating an NGO. And on Thursday, I met Vincent who's also doing an NGO. His focuses on soccer with the kids. Last Saturday, I grabbed dinner with a few people, and both Rachel and Debra were in development. Even I'm doing development.

I knew that it was something that was done. And I knew that there was a lot of interest in it, but seeing all those offices clustered together was eye opening.

In many respects, development is almost like entrepreneurship. Not that this is a bad thing. But a lot of the principles are the same. Both start with an idea. Both require money. Both require labor. Both require a market. Both require a way to become sustainable.

And it may be the Gen-X cynicism in me, but I question if the answer is another NGO. I know that development is slow. I know it takes time and resources for real change to happen. But there are already so many and new ones sprouting up everyday. I wonder if the answer isn't more NGOs, but better NGOs. Of course, this is said without actually looking into what the different NGOs are doing. I also don't want to discredit the work that the NGOs are doing.

So what's the point of all this? This is just a long way of saying that development is a very viable career path, one that I hadn't really considered. Not that it makes my deliberations about what career to pursue any easier.

Looking Forward
==
Next week, I should begin to settle into my normal schedule. I'll be starting a new class in the mornings, doing a more intensive workshop with 6 students, 3 days a week, 2 hrs a day.

I'm also going to start doing Bible study and see how that goes.

And within a few weeks, I'll have settled in and this'll all have become "work". I'll have my daily commute, my daily schedule and routine. And just like that, life will become "normal" again.

What happened:
- shoot for Gwatila's music video got pushed back to Wednesday
- drank too much tea and had to deal with the caffein crash for the rest of the day
- guy came to measure the bed frame; he cut a board to fit to give the mattress duly needed support
- did laundry
- worked on the treatment of the screenplay. Got to sequence 3 and realized that sequence 3 is a mess
- watched a whole bunch of CSI

It was a good day off.

Kenya: Day 5

2010-05-20T13:09:00.001-04:00

Pray for:
- Widsom and discernement w/ those who beg from me
- Boldness in the Spirit

What happened:
- Alarm went off at 6, was still tired so went back to sleep, woke again at 8:30
- Went to Nairobi Baptist with Ken to do Gwatila's sound recording
- went to prestige and had lunch with Vincent
- lunch: chipati & beans
- went home to relax
- went to Kibera; took the mutatu on my own; had the kids share their character bios with each other; taught a little bit of structure; homework: plot out their stories
- on the walk home, a man interupted me asking for money; gave him KSE 20 (~$.25)
- went home

I was walking down the street from Prestige Plaza on my way home. The man stopped me to shake my hand and said something about seeing me earlier. He said that we had crossed paths at a different intersection. I had no recollection of this because I look at the area just a few feet in front of me.

In any case, he engaged me in conversation. Actually, it was more like he said his peace. He told me that he was hungry, how he hadn't eaten since the morning, and asked that I would have mercy on him. All this, while still holding my hand.

So I ended up giving him KSE 20. I know that it's not a lot of money. But I restle with the whole issue of charity.

There are times when people need charity. There's also verses that explicitly say to give to those who beg of you. But then, why this man and not the many others that have approached me on the street.

The bigger question is, how can I use these opportunities better?

As the man and I parted ways, the thought came to have prayed for him. Or even to have presented the gospel to him. This wasn't the first time that something like this has happened. Yet, I still do the same thing.