Though the blinds are shut, I can tell it's morning because the birds have started loudly chirping, as if to announce to the compound, "it's already too damn hot!" I hear a tap-scratching on the floor and panic: 'Was that a cockroach? A scorpion? Will I have to live out the rest of my life in this bed?' I snooze my alarm as many times as I can to prolong the moment I'll roll out from under my mosquito net and face the heat of the day. A new day, though, means an opportunity to absorb life as an IRC staff member at Kakuma Refugee Camp, and nothing, not even 100 degree heat and blazing sun, will deter me from stepping into that role.
My day here starts at 7:45, with a quick breakfast and a daily anti-malarial pill, then it's off to the office where I set up my laptop and get to working on the day's agenda. This week, I've been working on a quarterly internal, IRC newsletter that will be disseminated to all Kenya staff about activities and programs in the country program and their impacts on various groups. I've also got on my desk grant a few reports for a number of our projects that are due to donors like DFID, UNICEF, and BPRM. I'm also trying to make myself as useful as possible to the Kakuma IRC staff, so I end up doing odd jobs throughout the day.
At 10, we have chai tea, which a wonderful woman named Irene brings to the desks. Kenyans love tea time, clearly as they're drinking it in heat over 100F. My dad always maintains that a hot drink on a hot day is a great thing; I personally think the jury's still out on that one, but I'll say 'yes' to tea time nonetheless. By this point, I've gone through 4 or 5 water bottles (see, Mom, responsible!) to the astonishment of my Kenyan colleagues. I try explaining that as a matter of fact, yes, if I didn't drink this much water and plaster myself with sunscreen multiple times a day, you would be peeling my unconscious, melted body off the floor. I wasn't built for heat or sun and as a mature adult I acknowledge that. Also, there's no point fighting it, I've been flubbered by the heat one too many times.
From 1 to 3 we take lunch. The NGO compound rations energy from 1 to 3, so the power is off which makes working quite difficult. It also makes for an ideal excuse for a siesta. All hail the afternoon nap! The food is quite good at the IRC cantine: boiled cabbage, rice, stewed beef, and (sometimes) beans, all of which are pretty staple Kenyan foods.
After 3 it's lights on and back to work until 5:30, when the power is shut off until 7. This energy ration time is for Second Shower (not as wasteful as it sounds) and Reading Outside. I've just finished reading World War Z, which is about a worldwide zombie war and is one of my new favorite books. Seriously, Max Brooks blurs the line between reality and fiction so well and weaves in so many familiar geopolitical and real-world issues that it's a compelling read. And it got me thinking about how I would fare in a zombie apocalypse (spoiler alert: I do very well and am a key player in the ultimate success of the human race). But since finishing, I've picked up Little Bee, a story (fictional) about a Nigerian refugee girl who immigrates to/seeks asylum in the UK. It's spectacularly written and provides a narrative that somewhat parallels the stories of refugee beneficiaries I've met here in Kakuma.
After the power's back on at 7, I've been doing a bit more work then calling it a night and watching an episode of The Newsroom, which is written by the same guy that wrote The West Wing and is equally engaging and nerd-worthy. Then it's attempt-to-fall-asleep-in-the-heat and day's end.
I'll be stationed in here in Kakuma until next Friday, when I'll return to Nairobi. I'm hoping to see more of the camp and meet some of the beneficiaries while I'm here. It's been humbling and inspiring to meet the IRC staff that work here, and I'm proud to be a part of the family.
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