Mud Houses & Mud Fights....

In our sponsorship program, we have six beautiful grandchildren: Lucia, Maureen, Abel, Joseph, Benjamin and Benard. They are being raised by their equally beautiful grandmother, Sophia.

Their plot consists of one little round mud and grass hut that is the kitchen and another little round mud and grass hut where the seven of them sleep. The grass thatched roof has holes in it that allow the rain, especially during this heavy rainy season to come in to their home and dampen everything.

Through the sponsorship program, that so many of you are a part of, we have been able to begin construction on a big mud house with iron sheets as a roof (this will keep out the rain!). The wood frame of the home has been built already and the iron sheet roof, in tact. The house has 3 rooms: one sitting room (aka living/family room) and two bedrooms, one for the boys and one for the girls.

Yesterday, the TI team: Tim (intern), Daniel, Holly (volunteer from the US), Anne (our social worker), Hoglah (Kenyan university student doing her attachment/internship/co-op with TI) and myself, got dirty and built the mud structure.

When we arrived at Sophia’s house, there was excitement. I think for the fact that white people were going to be doing the work. To many Kenyans, they don’t see white people “working” very much. There’s a perception of perhaps, laziness or that we have tons of machines to do the work for us (which in reality, in mostly true). So to see us walking up to their plot, ready to work…well, they were just excited.

In the corner of the plot were four Kenyan men, digging up the ground and dumping water on it, to make the mud. After a few minutes, Anne and I looked at each other and said, “Let’s get to work!” So her and I ran for the mud pile and jumped in. It was about mid-calf deep and of course squishy. Holly, Hoglah & Tim followed us in. As the four men, dug up the earth and added water, we walked around mixing the mud and water with our feet. The purpose was to get it in to a smooth mixture. There was the odd painful crunch of a rock when you were stomping but other than that, Holly and I were quite thankful for the cheap exfoliation that was being done on our feet and legs.

(The house before we started working on it)

(Stomping the mud)

(Good times...Tim, Hoglah, Holly, Me & Anne)

After the mixing was complete, Daniel and Ben (our Kenyan friend), got inside the mud house and we made big mud balls and passed it to them through the wooden frame. They then put them in piles in the middle of the rooms in the house. After we had run out of the first layer of mud, we all went inside the rooms and started making the mud walls as the four men dug, added water and stomped the mixture for more. After the mud piles were finished, we started the process all over again.

(Tim working hard)

(Holly hard at work)

(Me...hard at work...seriously!)

(Hoglah, Holly & I taking a photo op)

(Holly & I...calling a truce after all the mud fighting)

Along the way, of course….we had mud fights. Holly got me good in the face, well the eye actually. I got Tim good….in the mouth. Yes, he ate a small ball of mud…stuck to his teeth quite well. Even Hoglah and Anne joined in the fun. I was a little hesitant throwing mud at Hoglah, so neat and clean, but thought, “She’s gotta join the group.” So after a big mud ball to her back and arm and she joined in.

The children and community members that gathered around (and some even helped) to watch the wazungu (white people) build this mud house, enjoyed our silliness of mud fights. People from around came just to thank us for doing what we were doing.

(Our sweet little Benard)

(Old man from the community - thinking the wazungu were crazy!)

It was an amazing day, so much fun.

(The first phase almost done.)

And yes, our muscles ache. From the calves to the shoulder blades, we groan with every bend and reach. But it was all worth it. To see the grandmother and grandchildren happy that they will be getting a new home with no leaks of rain, rooms for the girls and the boys and a sitting room where they can eat their meals….it was definitely all worth it. I’d do it all again tomorrow.

We'll do the next phase of the house soon. Keep you posted.

(The grandmother and her grandchildren - plus a few extra people.)