Situma

One of the best things in Kenya is no doubt the variety of amazing different people I have met, during the recent school holidays I spent a lot of time with one such person.

Gregory Situma is a happy, cheeky, friendly and fun loving 11 year old boy that lives near the school. He was around almost every day in the holidays, skipping into the library where I was working with a happy smile, keen to help in whatever way he could. Considering his young age  I was super surprised at what a quick learner he was- he quickly picked up how to use my computer in only a few minutes and helped me re-catalogue all the library books, cleaned up the library with me, helped me in the garden- even came around and did my washing with me. 
Situma loves to dance and we often ended up doubled over in laughter at our dance off efforts when having a break from work. He is good at sports as well and picked up how to play Oztag and ultimate frisbee quicker than any of the other kids. He is a real gem of a child. 

Unfortunately, when Situma was a young boy he got sick. As a result of this sickness he is now completely deaf.

For people with disabilities, Kenya is a very unforgiving place. Situma is lucky enough to go to a boarding school for the hearing impaired and as a result knows sign language very well- however, most of his family and friends don't know how to communicate with him. Many people simple ignore him or don't make an effort, explaining by saying they 'don't know how to'. After spending so much time with Situma I got to know a little sign language and we also wrote a lot of notes to communicate. 

One day Situma told me his mother wanted to meet me, unbeknownst to me he then told his mother I wanted to meet her and thus I rocked up at their house with both me and his mother unsure as to exactly why I was there. 
Situma loved it, giggling away he introduced us in his own little way and sat me down in their little mud hut. Friends and extended family members started coming from everywhere to meet Situmas 'muzungu friend'. It was apparently a great honour for them to have me in their house and I was given two bottles of Fanta and shown through the family photo album. After chatting for a while in their broken English and my broken Swahili his family started asking me what vegetables I ate- they then proceeded to take me outside to their little farm and shower me with presents- 15 avocados, a whole bunch of bananas, half of their sweet potato crop and a 5 litre bucket of peanuts.
Here was this poverty stricken family with little more than the clothes on their backs and the food they were growing and yet they were all so keen to give. 
I knew they needed the food a lot more than I did and felt bad to accept it but I knew it would be much more offensive for me to refuse so I thanked them profusely and then went home and baked a cake with Situma to give as a thankyou gift- they had never eaten a chocolate cake before and were so excited and thankful.

Situma cannot hear a word I say and yet he knows me well, I have never heard a word from his mouth, and yet I have had some of my most hilarious and enjoyable times with him. 

This little boy and his family are so welcoming, friendly and generous despite their circumstances. Their attitude of positivity and willingness to give is something we can all learn from!