Mom and Dad

 

Last week Nicole and I had the privilege of having my parents come visit us here in Kenya.  We were very excited about them coming, and it was great to be able to see them.  We have missed them a lot.  Nicole’s parents are also coming to visit us this Friday.  As many of you probably know, my mom was very nervous about the trip.  I am not sure where she came up with many of her scenarios about being eaten by a lion (Mom's Theories) or getting malaria, but in the end, she survived.  I think she actually enjoyed the trip as well. You will have to talk to her yourself to confirm.  We had the opportunity of taking them to several Kenyan homes, where they were able to learn a little about the culture and about how people live in Kenya, which is much different than in the United States.  We take for granted things like clean water, food, and shelter, but many families here struggle to survive because a lack of these essentials.  My parents were very open and willing to get outside of their comfort zones, which impressed me very much.  We also got the chance to go on our first safari with them, which we really enjoyed.  It was a wonderful experience, and I cannot think of anyone I’d rather go with on safari.  We saw many many animals including elephants, zebra, hippos, hyenas, cheetahs, warthogs, buffalo, giraffes, and of course lots of lions. The landscape is beautiful and getting to see animals in the wild is much more exciting than seeing them in a zoo.  We were able to get very close, within a few feet of many of the animals, including lions, elephants, and cheetahs.  The lions were the most exciting and a little intimidating.  One morning, we found six male lions and got within 10 feet of two of them, who were feeding on a young buffalo that was killed earlier that morning.  The other four were waiting their turn.  As we pulled up, my mom  saw the six male lions and whispered, “This is awful.”  My wife and I had a good laugh later at her expense.  The most exciting part was when the two that were feeding began to growl at each other and even began fighting over the buffalo.  You can watch the video of it here, (Lion Fight) though it is not very good quality.  We also got the chance to visit a real Maasai village, which was a wonderful experience.  The Maasai taught us about their way of living, showed us their homes, and danced and sang with us.  As you can see, my dad struggled a little during the jumping ceremony as seen here.  Above all else though, it was just nice to be able to see my parents again.  It has been a long time, and we missed them a lot.  Mom and dad, we love you both so much and could not be happier that you were able to come stay with us.  Thank you so much for everything.  We are looking forward to seeing you again in a few months. ~ Jeremy