Love and laughter come for free

Volunteers Ryan Callus and Maria Stivala did not know what to expect during a three-week missionary trip in Kenya, but found themselves welcomed with smiles and open arms, which gave Ryan a romantic idea…

It’s a quiet, sunny afternoon and we are sitting on a little patch of grass, surrounded by about 15 street children, all squashed together to find a spot closest to us.

They seem to be fascinated by what we have to say, by the colour of our skin and the clothes we are wearing today – almost as if we’re a species from a completely different planet.

We are in Ruiru, Kenya, a remote town outside Nairobi where muzungus (white people) are something of a rare occurrence.

First impressions

We arrived in Nairobi late afternoon on Wednesday, having left Malta 24 hours before, and we were getting sluggish.

Suddenly, all the volunteers got a rush and thought: ‘Now we know why we came’

However, as we approached Ruiru, our minds started to race. What had we got ourselves into? Would we get Ebola? Will we be shot dead by some terrorist group?

Embarking on a missionary experience was a dream come true for most of us in the 25-strong Karibu Malta group, but now? Our nightmares seemed just about to begin.

Crammed in a school bus that was struggling to remain on all fours (and you thought our potholes are bad?), all we could see were makeshift homes, run-down shops, chickens eating from garbage burned in the streets and people staring at us like some zoo attraction.

If we really had the choice then, I’m sure we would have turned back.

But then the bus finally stopped and we arrived in front of a big metal gate, which opened gently to let our vehicle slide in.

All of a sudden, breaking the silence between us, we heard a hundred screaming homeless children jumping for joy and waving as if they have been waiting desperately to greet us.

We made it to the sisters’ compound: the congregation of the Daughters of the Sacred Heart in Ruiru founded by Maltese nun Tereza Nuzzo in 1903.

All our fears vanished into thin air and a sea of smiles and hugs was waiting as we stepped down the bus – an unusual welcome from children who had never seen us in their lives.

This is what we would call home for the next three weeks! Suddenly, all the volunteers got a rush and thought: “OK, we’re here. Now we know why we came.”

It was an incredible moment.

Getting to work

The next few days flew by. A typical day at the compound consisted of a quick bite to eat for breakfast, then going out to play with the kids who would otherwise live on the streets.

Children used to arrive at the compound by 8am, after attending Mass with Sister Celine at 6am.

Our tasks usually involved playing a sport, teaching them a new game, educational lessons such as geography and basic mathematics, drawing, doing crafts and, best of all, dancing.

How they love to dance! Their best laughter came from watching us try.

“Muzungus don’t know how to dance!” a little girl joked with me once.

On the other hand, we took it in turns with other members of our group to be in charge of laying tiles in the newly-built Timuru church, which was about 30 minutes away from the sisters’ compound.

The church was built by Fr George Bezzina, OFM Cap., a Maltese priest who has been serving in Kenya for many years.

It took me a few months to plot the right scene to propose to Maria, but upon our first few days in Kenya I knew that this was it

Having about 700 square metres to cover, finishing the job in just three weeks seemed impossible at first, but we all pitched in to help and it was complete by the end of our stay. The group remains indebted to Halmann Ltd for sponsoring the tools.

Down time

On our off days, we made sure to explore the best that Kenya has to offer. One of those days comprised of a four-hour journey to Lake Nakuru for a picturesque safari.

Lake Nakuru national park is a natural reserve where visitors can see deer, zebras, giraffes, rhinos, lions, countless species of birds and even wild pigs, all in their natural habitat.

At 1,754m above sea level, the lake’s abundance of algae also attracts hundreds of flamingos every year.

Another time we visited the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, an elephant orphanage where baby elephants from as young as three months up to about four years old are rescued and nursed after being separated from their parents, which were victims of ivory poaching.

The keepers explained how a baby elephant could not survive alone in the wild, since they are not able to maintain themselves without help.

We also witnessed a beautiful scene when the orphans were being fed milk through bottles by their carers.

That same day, we went to the Giraffe Centre, a non-profit wildlife conservation education organisation.

Here, giraffes are bred and raised on about 120 acres of land, and then released back into the wild once they turn two years old.

Our guide invited us to feed the giraffes by placing their food between our teeth.

At first, we were all wary, but then we plucked up the courage and found French-kissing a giraffe was very funny.

Popping the question

It took me (Ryan) a few months to plot the right scene to propose to Maria, but upon our first few days in Kenya I knew that this was it.

More importantly, we wanted to give the group an experience to mark our departure.

With the help of our friends from Karibu Malta, who we were just getting to know about the plot, we orchestrated a play depicting a traditional Kenyan wedding – as entertainment for the kids on our last day.

Maria and I were dressed as the witnesses for the bride and groom of this fictitious wedding.

The children, whom we dressed in orange ribbons, helped set the scene with their infectious smiles gleaming at us.

During the ceremony, I surprised Maria, dressed in a traditional Indian sari by Indian-turned-Kenyan Sister Celine, by asking the question in Swahili – “Utani Owa?”

Then I went down on one knee and asked her in English.

She said yes, to a sea of cheers coming from about a hundred children!

Upon her reply, our friends brought Jumbo, the pet goat, decorated with orange ribbons by the Karibu Malta team, carrying the ring around its neck.

Final thoughts

This was the Kenya missionary experience, for us and for each member of the group, a constant battle between what we have always known and this other world that existed to our oblivious reality.

In Kenya, there are no schedules and no to-do lists. They literally celebrate each moment of the day as if they had all the riches in the world.

While we leave them with a newly refurbished school, which we painted, a church closer to completion and a brand new kitchen to help feed them every day, funded by numerous fundraising activities organised by Karibu Malta, we are sure that nothing will ever surpass what we have brought home.

We came back overloaded with love and appreciation for what humanity has to offer.

• Readers who are interested in sponsoring a child’s education in Ruiru should e-mail Maria Stivala on sponsormyfuture.kenya@gmail.com. Karibu Malta is a youth non-profit organisation, led by Fr Carmelo Aquilina, OFM Cap.