missing Kenya

Just going through pictures and my blogs I shared with all of you and am feeling overcome with emotion. Kenya I miss you. I miss everything about you. I miss my kids, I miss William, I miss the simple beautiful life I lived there. I have spoken with many of my close friends there and I know the wheelchairs are going to be delivered next week! I wish I was there to see my beautiful kids finally get what they deserve. It is hard being back and I am struggling to find as much meaning here as I did there, but I know life can be beautiful wherever you are, it's up to you to decide how to live. Just thought I'd share an update with you and my feelings!

with a little piece of my heart,

Julia

california in a new light

Leaving Kenya was one of the hardest things I've ever gone through. I was crying so hard I couldn't catch my breath. The taxi driver at one point said "okay. calm down." hahaha. So after about 30 hours of flying, I made it to my California home, where I was greeted by my whole family :) I'll tell you it was nice getting into a car and not a matatu! But everything is different now, although nothings really changed except for me. America is so beautiful and its not hard to get back into the swing of things when you live in luxury. We take so much for granted, including streets with no pot-holes, trash cans on the side of the streets, walking out in the night and not fearing for your life, and just about everything in between. Life is easy here and although I know we all face struggles and sometimes downright tragedies, we are the lucky ones, we are the select few that do not live on less than a dollar a day, and at the end of it all we are Americans. Just because my time in Kenya has come to an end, it does not mean my work is done. The hardest part for me is that no matter how many stories I share or how many pictures I show, you can not see what I saw, thus the urge and hunger to help may not be as passionate as mine, but I promise you the world need us. It needs people who care and want to make a difference and if we all come together we can change it for the better. But please I beg of you do not turn a blind eye, to do nothing and know it exists is unacceptable and inhumane. It is our duty as human beings to lend a helping hand. Please visit the majimazuri.org website to find out ways on how to help. Also feel free to email me at juliafingleson@gmail.com with questions, comments, or anything else! Thank you again for sharing my journey with me and continue to check in for updates on Maji Mazuri and what I am doing here to help!

with a little piece of my heart,

Julia

Wheelchairs all thanks to YOUR donations! VERY happy children :)

saying goodbye

saying goodbye is not easy. especially when you have become so close to the people around you. I leave tomorrow night and every hour gets harder for me. Tomorrow I will see 3 of the 9 wheelchairs be delivered  and I couldn't ask for a better goodbye. The other 6 will be delivered next week and with the money that was raised I was also able to buy an amazing sewing machine that will be used for vocational training. Tomorrow will be bitter sweet. I'll write again when I am home (my American home ;) ). Thank you to everyone for supporting me in my journey and coming along with me through following my blog. I had my ups and my downs, and all in all I'm leaving a new person ready to keep on helping.

with AN ENORMOUS piece of my heart,

Julia

coming to an end

        As my time in Kenya is coming to end, I self reflect. Remembering back to the day at the airport when my parents dropped me off, crying uncontrollably as I made my way through security. I knew my tears stemmed from fear and doubt. Can I really do this,  will I really be able to  live in Africa? As I waved goodbye to my parents and watched them turn to walk out, I cried a bit harder. I knew in that moment I only had myself to rely on, it was in a matter of seconds I had to grow up. Panic once again met up with me in London when I was told my flight to Nairobi has been canceled, " I'm sorry today Virgin is not flying to Kenya." "Stay calm," I told myself, "I'll figure this out." And so within an hour I had a new flight to Kenya on Kenya Airways, and a part of me thought, "Maybe after all I can do this." Two weeks into my journey I knew I was "safe," keeping in mind what everyone told me, "The first two weeks will be the hardest and if you get past that you'll be fine." So I settled in and made Kenya my home and it welcomed me with open arms. And over the past couple months I listened, watched, and embraced. I listened to everything that was being said, I watched everything around me and I opened my mind and my heart to country that has seen so much pain, yet is one of the happiest and warmest places I have ever been. The children, the beautiful children, are the leaders of tomorrow and the future of a better world. The youth, I have no doubt will lead this country to nothing but success with a passion for change. The men and women    of the older generations keep tradition close and remind us to stay close to our roots. This country is nothing short of a miracle, a place that will have a piece of my heart forever, a place where we could all learn from, and a place that I now call home. Leaving will be one of  the hardest things I'll ever have to do, but know that I will return only to learn more.

with a little piece of my heart,

Julia