The Spirit of Kesego!

"If today I had a young mind to direct, to start the journey of life, and was faced with the duty of choosing between the natural way of my forefathers, and that of the present way of civilization, I would, for it's welfare, unhesitatingly, set that child's feet on the path of my forefather's---I would raise him to be an Indian."  Brown, Jr.

Children are our only natural resource, we should implore to see through a child's eyes, hear through their ears, and feel through their hearts.  The children of Africa know a world filled with hunger, malnutrition, disease, and poverty.  Many of them become orphaned as a result of these realities, and thus become vulnerable targets for such things as sexual exploitation, or just plain lack of love and nurturing---And we all know where that can lead to!  I have not yet been assigned to my final site for the two years, but a harsh reality lives in my present home stay, though it may not be drastic as I will potentially see in two months.  Kesego is a six year old child who has stolen my heart.  She lives here with my family who have adopted her of sorts from a family who has little means, and sounds somewhat dysfunctional to me.  They took her in well over a year ago to give her the chance to experience being in a good school and a good family.  I am told that she has 4 or 5 other siblings, and the times she has gone home for holidays, she has come back only to have to start from square one again.  Now it is said that Kesego does not miss her siblings or her parents, and given a second chance in life, she is embracing it with all of her spirit.  Kesego's eyes dance when she is engaged with.  She is quick to learn, quick to play, quick to love, and with each day, she becomes increasingly more relaxed and silly: it helps when she is modeling a silly nut like myself!  The children, at least in this home, and from what I can see in the neighborhood, are not raised with board games, computers, video games, or even educational blocks to play with.  They play with what is natural around them, and they can make a game out of anything and everything.  It is the way the Indians probably played, and our own grandparents of my generation.  It is the natural way!  Tonight for over an hour, Kesego was doing some traditional African dancing that she saw on the nightly news.  Her rhythm was not that of a child, but of someone who has a soul that wants to be free to fly with the spirits.  Everyone who knows me, knows that I have no rhythm when it comes to dancing, but Kesego made me feel that if I just closed my eyes, I could get into that African rhythm just like she does, and to let go like that of child is a feeling to behold.  She is also following my lead when I do Tai Chi or Yoga, something so foreign to her, but it is natural, and she is a natural in doing it along side of me with the same spirit as her native African dancing.  I have only 7 more weeks to learn from her, to see through her eyes, and feel through her heart.  It is going to be the best 7 weeks because of a kid named KESEGO!