Day Four - Monday, 8 June 2015
Today was a challenging day. We visited the homes of several clients in the Kilgari area that just began the CFA program a month ago. These clients are still adjusting to discussing their HIV positive diagnosis, and the idea of Mizungus (what we hear all the time when we drive around, it means "white people") in their home was a very overwhelming thought to them. Our team split into two groups and walked through the slums. We ended up visiting a total of four homes in the mornning.
Ann
Ann was the first client we visited. To get to her home we walked from the city center, which consited of dirt roads, into the lower area of the city, which quickly turned to narrow, mud-filled streets. We did not take many pictures of this in an effort to be respectful to the people that lived in these areas. Throughout the morning we had two armed guards walk with us, because a group of Mizungus together in that area is just asking for trouble. The guards were very friendly, and I was glad to have them around. When we arrived at Ann's home, we walked into a small tin shack with a muddy dirt floor. She apologized for not having things more put together; she was in the process of moving because her previous home was under a foot of water. Ann takes care of her son and two other family children, all under the age of ten. For income, she sorts through the trash to find things that can be cleaned and resold. It was amazing to hear her describe her work to us; there was no shame that she felt in telling us that she sorted through trash all day. She rents two rooms, one for sitting / food preparation, and one for sleeping. For both of these rooms, she pays 3000 shillings a month. To put this into perspective, for the one hour yoga session yesterday I payed 1000 shilllings. She also must pay for school fees for the children in her care ( to cover the cost of uniforms and other miscellaneous expenses) as well as food.
Ann was diagnosed with HIV many years ago when she went to give birth to her son (it is policy in Kenya that all mothers be tested for HIV in order to give birth in a hospital). She "did not accept her status", a common phrase we heard throughout the day. Her husband left her, and she was force to relocate and to continue to care for her children. She is now in the CFA program, which she heard about from a friend. Almost everyone we talked to said that is how they heard about the program. Throughout our conversations we had to whisper, because her friends do not know that she is HIV positive. This is another perk to CFA being done through the church - no one assumes anything about Ann other than that she is very religious. Her new neighbors were very curious about why a group of white people were coming into her home; she told them that we were from the church to welcome her. By the time we left there was a crowd of people surrounding the outside of her home. We ended our visit by praying for all of them, further validating Ann's story that we were visitors of the church.
Margaret
After visiting Ann, she showed us where her friend Margaret lived. Margaret had three children, a 14 year old, a 12 year old, and a two year old. Her space was similar in size to Ann's but much more established. She had covered the walls in lace and had doilies on almost every surface. There was no window so we kept the door open for light. Margaret
Nancy
Quiet. husband was asleep in back portion of room. Has had suicidal thoughts before related to diagnoses. Went to be tested when she was sick.
House had lace all over
Young child - fell asleep in Cornell's arms
Belongign to a different church than the one offering treatment
Jane
Very sad about not being able to pay for school fees for her son. diagnosed when she was fuond to have TB. Has lived in home for a long time. no one knows status. has to go for medications every month.
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