I'm still in Nkoaranga and writing this from a nearby internet cafe. Scarily Emily, Ross and I (Megan) are running out of time. I only have 19 days left before I'm off back to England, which is hard to really imagine. The children here do become so much part of your life when you see them every day. We'll be going in to help put them to bed tonight and I'm planning to be back at 6am to help with the bathing, changing, dressing and feeding. It's frantic, but it's my favourite shift - when you've finished you feel like you've really done something useful (this is occasionally confirmed by the mamas offering you chai for 'kazi njema,' (good work) then you really know you did well!)
The last few days I have loved watching Zawadi walk properly, standing straighter than I've ever seen her before and marvelling at how big they've got in our 3 weeks we've just been away travelling. I got a disapproving correction from Faraja on Saturday when I thought little Maureen was Gracie from the back, because Maureeni couldn't possibly be that big!
This picture is one of my favourite ones of Andrea out the front of the orphanage because he just looks so happy. That was a brilliant afternoon for photos.
It's amazing how much you learn from being here, how much the children here can teach you. It's wonderful to be in a place where you know you can make a real contribution to their lives, but they are also well-cared for and happy. Every time they see you arriving they all throw themselves on you and make it perfectly clear that they are glad you came, even if you've only been gone 2 hours. I'm looking forward to spending my last weeks here with them, but already dreading having to leave.
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