Salvation and Yamaha's

Well hello there everybody,

I enjoy this part of the week because I get to reflect on my week and see all of the things that I’m blessed enough to be a part of and then I get to share it with you. I just hope that all of you are enjoying it. Even more than that, I pray that these stir your hearts. I know that all of you have an amazing heart to begin with because as I look at the list of people that I send this to I realize that I am truly surrounded by greatness. All of you really are amazing and I am blessed to have you in my life. I know that you care about each other and about others. I just hope that these letters stir you even more into becoming a part of the solution because if you aren’t part of the solution then you are really missing out. I have been so blessed to be a part of this and I know that I could be doing this anywhere and making a huge difference in my life and the life of others. It’s just stepping out past the fear and into the love. Just love on each other, your enemies, and even your grocery bagger. Just say hi and genuinely ask how there day has been. There’s a huge gift in there for you as well. Enough preaching, let me tell you about my week and some of the things that God has been doing here and there actually.

The internet is a beautiful thing….if used right. I have been able to talk to a few of you through skype from right here in Nanyuki and from Nairobi. I’ve been able to keep up with you via emails and that has really opened a great deal of communication with some of you and even some that I really didn’t expect it to in ways that I would have never guessed. I’ve been able to share dreams, fears, faith, hope and Love with a few of you. An old friend and I have been sharing some things very close to our hearts. I would have never guessed that would have happened but I am so thankful for it. So thank you for trusting me and sharing such tender things with me. It has been an honor to share that with you.

The great news is that I found out how save every single soul on earth!!!! That’s right my friends I have found the fool proof way of bringing everybody to God!!! Here’s how you do it. First you need a 25+ year old motorcycle with a freshly rebuilt motor so that you can only go about 60 kilometers per hour. Check out how fast that is next time you get into your car. It’s not fast. Then make sure that there is a lot wrong with it. This can be variable based on riding experience. If there is little to no experience then you don’t need anything wrong with it. In my case I used an early to mid 80’s Yamaha XT500 with a rebuilt motor, squirting oil leak, sour carburetor, wobbly rear tire, and a loose chain. The wobbly tire is important because it wears you down quicker because you are getting your rear just beaten by the seat. So it’s a little over 200 kilometers between Nairobi and Nanyuki and that is the perfect distance to really meet Jesus. Any further and you’ll be looking at the next big truck to pass you as a way out of the misery. So as your doing this ride you are getting passed up by large school busses, lorry’s and the most fearful of all is Matatu’s. Right now Chris G. should be either chuckling or shaking his head at me for doing this against his advice. Sorry Chris. So a matatu is a small van with the oddest decorations all over it. Pictures and lines from American rappers is a very popular decoration for these. I have also seen one with Osama Bin Ladden and then there are the ones that have a white Jesus and say Jesus Saves across them. It really doesn’t matter which one you are encountering because all of the drivers are possessed. They are insane and don’t really care about anybody else as long as they don’t get slowed down by you. I seriously almost got to meet Jesus in person by a matatu with a huge picture of Jesus covering the whole back window. I remember just wondering if that is what he is really going to look like when I meet Him in the next second. I think that I prayed more and called out Gods holy name more in that 3.5 hour ride then in my entire life. So if you want to have the most spiritual experience of your life I can hook you up.

Now moving on with the beginning of the week. Really I spent most of the week working with the block builders and George our super Kenyan builder. This guy is incredible and I am so glad that we’ve been able to use him on this house. I would still be digging footings if it wasn’t for him. The new house has been very time consuming. Jerry made it back from Tanzania and is bringing back 6 guests from the states today. I haven’t made it back to the Naibor orphanage this week but might head that way today and stay the night there. I really miss spending time with Chirchir, Mary and the kids. I moved this week into an office. I have become an expert on using space wisely. It is small and there is no bathroom. I sure am glad that I have a roof though.

It has been an interesting week for me emotionally though. There have been some struggles here that I’ve had the chance to work through in myself. It was tough not having my close friends around to help out with them but it was good to be able to deal with them through God. I did get some great advice from Pastor Mike though. What a blessing that was. I was praying a few nights ago and He was so clear with answers for me. It was great for me and my faith to grow in Him in those places. Even then I questioned it and had to be re-centered. Thanks again PM. I had a cold that I’m still shaking a bit. If any of you have spent time with me when I’m sick then you’ll have pity on all of those who were around me during that. I was a miserable person to be around and I wasn’t even all that sick. Being sick didn’t help with the emotional stress at all but in the long run it was all for the best.

I hope that this is finding all of you well and walking in His presence. I sure do miss you and look forward to seeing your laughing face again. For those of you who have been wanting to send packages use the USPS and let them know that it is for a charity and they will give you the best price. I think it’s around $140 for a 50lb. package so smaller ones are pretty reasonable. UPS is horrible so don’t even think about it. It’s around $500 for a 20Lb. package I think. Well I love you all and look forward to hearing from you about your life and the amazing things in it.

Peace Love and Blessings
Caleb

A great week in Kenya

Hello everybody,

How are all of you. I have received some emails from some of you and am so happy to get them so thank you very much for the support and filling me in on your lives. For some of you this is my first email to you so please feel free to write back and let me know how life is treating you. It was a good week to be in my shoes. Actually they are all pretty good now that I really start to think about it.

By the end of the last day that I wrote to you had killed and eaten a chicken. It was really very tasty and a lot easier to kill then the goat. It’s very easy to clean up as well. I was told that it would be a lot chewier than it really is. Don’t get me wrong it’s not some fosters farms boneless skinless chicken breast but it sure is good. It’s odd when you really see people look at food purely as survival and fuel for the body so that they can just get through another day. Yesterday I was privileged enough to help out in feeding 210 local children while at the Naibor Orphanage. The orphans were amazing!!! They made sure that the community kids ate first and did the whole thing. They prepared the food and then served it. It was a giant pot of beans and rice that two of us could barely lift up onto the table to serve from. These orphans were such amazing servants!!! I feel so honored to be able to be with them so often. What a blessing it is.

I got a little ahead of myself there so please let me go back a bit. I spent most of the week in Nanyuki working on the foundation and footings for the house. It is coming along slowly due to the tedious work of laying these blocks perfectly with a mortar course between the two rows and between each course of block but it is coming along. There was a lot of dirt work that had to happen as well. Labor is cheap and they do a great job with a little supervision. I have noticed that even if you can barely communicate with them they gain a lot of respect when they see you pick up the shovel as well. At first they don’t know how to take it because apparently it is odd for white people to do work like that. I enjoy it though. I also enjoy going over to the kitchen to chop wood. The workers here at the school and the church found that amusing at first as well. They were surprised that I knew how to chop wood. This makes me sad that this is something that they don’t see. There isn’t very much social mixing between the whites and blacks. This has been another area that I’ve had to struggle with as well.

So that took and working out kinks in the block making process have taken up most of my week. I’ve been putting in about 12 hour days this week but it feels good and I enjoy it. My back has been getting more and more sore so please pray for it. I’ve been taking a lot of Ibuprofen and trying to baby it but it’s just not the best environment with the bumpy roads and hard work.

This weekend I rented a little Chinese motorcycle and went to Naibor to stay with the orphans. I miss my bike badly!!! I hope that I never have to buy a Chinese bike because they are horrible!!! It did feel good to be on two wheels again. The orphans never knew that you could a wheelie on a motorcycle and were amazed even though I could only get the front tire a few inches of the ground. On Saturday we took off for a preserve and spent the day with Rhino’s, big cats including a black leopard, hippos, tons of birds, gazelle, Impala, élan, and tons of other animals. I rode an elephant that was 10 feet 8 inches tall and it was amazing!!! I chased away three white rhinos. This is one of the scariest things that I have ever done, probably not the wisest. It’s okay Mom I had a rock and a stick ;o). One of them had a horn that was at least three feet long!!! I saw giraffe run and let me tell you it is so graceful and beautiful. We hid while a herd of water buffalo came and drank from a watering trough. All in all it was incredible. I will post pictures on my face book so check them out there.

That night we played some more baseball at the orphanage and they are getting better. After that we loaded up the pundas (donkeys) and went to the muddy creek to get some more water. Everybody crammed into Johns and Mary’s sitting room to hang out and talk. The girls made jewelry out of beads so I am now wearing a very girly looking baby blue and pearl ring that has a matching bracelet. That’s okay, I’m secure enough in my masculinity to wear it. While we were all hanging around Mariamo (my little Masai orphan friend) climbed into my lap and fell asleep. It just flat out turned me into putty. After someone grabbed her and put her to bed I went outside to do something that I still can’t remember when something amazing happened. I looked up!!! That’s right I looked up…and the stars were amazing. I’ve been in the middle of the dessert in the US and those stars had nothing on these stars. The milky way was so clear and beautiful. There were more stars than I could ever imagine!!! So I decided to sleep in the tent. This was a completely foreign idea to anybody there. They thought that it was great. I was surrounded by 30 orphans trying to figure out what I was doing. I don’t know how anybody could think that we were and accident or that the stars are just some random thing. How could anybody deny that what I saw that night in the heavens and in those kids is just evolution and an accident. It was incredible to say the very very least.

The nest morning I woke up a little before 4:30 am to a rooster that I named breakfast. I need to remember to buy them a new rooster. Just kidding, I didn’t kill it but I am thinking that it would taste great if I ever decided to stay there again. It was a slow morning. We went to Johns church and I understood nothing that was said. After the sermon everybody starts singing and moving out of the church in single file moving past each other in such a way that you shake hands with everybody that is there and ending in a full circle in front of the church singing. I really liked that. I’ve never seen a church service end that way and it was the best that I have ever seen. There is so much community in it and such a great feeling of unity. It was beautiful.

John asked me to speak to the high school kids after the service. Mist of them speak enough English to get most of what was said. It was hard to really get them engaged and interacting because of the poor understanding of each other. We talked about Love though. It really is one of my favorite subjects in the world. It went well all things considered.

So there is my week. Thank you to all of you who have been gathering clothes for the kids and donating financially. Thank you for all of your prayers!!! It really works!!! Thank you so much for just showing so much love for these people and myself. I love you all and miss you.

Love Peace and Blessings
Caleb Oshier

2nd week in the field

Greetings all,

I hope that this is finding all of you in good spirits and Gods grace. You know the only thing that will prevent that from happening is you, just in case you were wondering. I saw a beautiful rainbow this week. I was in Naibor driving back to Nanyuki and there was rain at the base of Mt. Kenya. It made a beautiful rainbow that reminded me of the promise that God made to Noah that He would never again flood the earth. He sure isn’t practicing to do it here. Unfortunately the drought is getting much worse. You can drive to Doldol and see dead cattle all over the side of the road due to the drought. Cattle and people are dying due to starvation and lack of water. Did you know that the Sahara Dessert is growing considerably every year due to the cattle industry in South America. I wonder if that has anything to do with the drought here.

It blows me away how the decisions that we make on one side of the world effect the rest of the world so much. You wouldn’t believe how many Obama things you can see over here. Pastor Jerry and I were having lunch in Nairobi and this semi flat bed trailer went by with a huge Obama banner and people dancing and blaring “the roof is on fire”. So don’t forget that your decisions do impact not just you but our world.

Monday I delivered a goat to the orphanage in Naibor. I don’t know if any of you have ever slaughtered a goat but it is a lot of work. Just killing the poor thing is difficult. John Chirchir said that I am the first wazungu (white guy) to ever slaughter a goat with him. The last Americans ran off crying before they even cut it’s throat. The kids love it!!! It’s a feast for the next few days. They can’t wait to see who gets the goats testicles or head first. The Masai believe in drinking the blood of the animal, they’ll even use it to survive in drought situations by just taking a little at a time so the cow stays alive. Well there are a few Masai kids at the orphanage who ran off with the bucket of goats blood for the dogs and came back with dried blood around their mouths. This was a shocking thing for to see Mariamo, a 3 year old girl who has become very dear to me, return with a big smile and some dried goat blood around her mouth. Before we had even finished cutting it up Mary (John’s wife) had cooked up some delicious goat ribs for us. It was a real treat but kind of hard to think that I had taken the life of the animal that I was now eating.

The moon is coming up later and later and the stars are incredible!!!! I’m under them right now!!! I was walking home last night from a friends house that I had dinner at and looked up and my breath was almost taken away. I was walking with Esther and she said that they get even brighter. I can’t wait to see that. I was going to sleep outside tonight but it might rain so I think I’ll stay in. The temperatures are perfect for camping.

We started laying out a house on campus, that I’ll be living in as soon as it is done, today. It will be the first house built here made from the interlocking bricks that we are trying to get going her in Kenya. I look forward to it’s completion. Unfortunately the big hang up will be getting the blocks made quickly enough. I don’t think that they will all be ready in time.

The culture still has a lot to teach me but I’m a willing student. My Swahili is improving. I can get the basics of a conversation sometimes and can communicate certain things. I try to make it to Swahili devotional as much as possible because the hymns sound better in Swahili and it helps to be around it a lot. I did find myself getting frustrated with it last night so please pray for me and my patience in this.

So far this has been a great experience and I know that I have already had an impact here. I feel like I really am right where I need to be. It is hard and I miss many of you but I think that I could live here. It’s much more simple and people tend to be less hung up on crap and focus more on relationships. I am disappointed at how much TV is still watched and that there really isn’t anything good on TV to watch. It really is the “boob tube”. I look forward to hearing from you all and seeing you when that time comes. Please pray for all of us here.

Love and Blessings
Caleb

1st week in the field

In all honesty there is so much to write about and my head is full so hear is a quick summary from an email that I sent out a few days ago.

Today was good. They say good different here and now I am saying it the same. They same names different as well. I am Bwana Calebu. Today I was off on my own. It was very freeing to take off in the Landcruiser and make my way through town to a number of shops and then out to the Naibor area. I am getting ahead of myself. I woke up and was so refreshed and feeling so at home. It was so nice because the mosquitoes didn't keep me up all night like the night before. I got some great time in with God and then went off to devotional with the school staff at 8. It was in english so it was easy to understand. After that i went to the devotional with the grounds workers. I like this one more because they do it in swahili. We start out with tea (everything starts with tea!) and then sing a song in swahili. I think this is how I will learn swahili. It is beautiful listening to all of the men sing in swahili. I can read it and pronounce it but I don't really know what they are saying. It is more informal and there is more friendship at this one.

I ended up packing up all of the welding stuff and spending the day trying to fox electrical gremlins at the shop in Naibor. We did go to the orphanage at lunch and it was GREAT!!! It was only the little kids and they couldn't get enough of me and the camera. There was one little girl who sat next to me and kept petting my arm. None of the people here have hair on their arms so it was so funny to her. When she was done she sat there holding my finger. She won my heart. I really enjoyed my time there but I am realizing what a handicap it is not knowing swahili. I'm working on it with little forward momentum.

Unfortunately I have had little time to read and write. I love my home here. It is to big for me but it is just me living here and I enjoy the quiet. I have giant herds of kids walking by and they love to stare at the the "mazungu" in the headmasters house. Jerry Sherry and I are the only mazungu around so it is very different. All of the kids speak swahili and english but I try to just use swahili with them. I am the only one here aloud to because I am learning it. They have to use english because that is what all of their testing is in.

We need to make a test house for the blocks to market it and we need to make a bunch of buildings around campus after that so I think we'll be making a house for my new friend Noah and his family on their shamba (farm) so that they can move off campus and live on their own land. This would be a huge blessing for Noah and then I could move into his home on campus to make room for other visitors that will be here at the end of the month.

They brought in a little girl to the orphanage who had passed out from starvation. This was heart breaking. I wish that you could be here to see it and feel it because it is so overwhelming. It is not just this girl but more than you can even fathom and you can't save them all. She ate today.

I tried teaching baseball in the evening after moving 4,000 pounds of corn and rice from Nanyuki to the orphanage in Naibor. Monday I take a goat out and slaughter it. Baseball is more difficult to teach than I would have thought mostly due to me not speaking Swahili.

It's amazing how these children have never seen a battery operated toy, a video game, a cement floor in their home, a toilet, or even a sink and they are so happy. They are filled with joy and love because of John Chirchir and his wife Mary. They are well behaved and a delight to be around.

I need some sleep so keep on praying for me. Best of wishes to all of you.