Graduation Day

Today was the big day here in the village and for the college; Graduation Day!  It started last night with killing a cow for the feast and the ladies were up early this morning cooking beans and rice over open fires. People began arriving at the grassy center of the school and were seated on benches and chairs under the big acacia trees and tarps. The graduates and the professors and John (!) all slowly walked/danced in to music. By the time the program began there were over 500 people sitting about. Many, many children!  John did a great job giving the address to the grads and had a terrific interpreter. Choirs sang and danced, grads gave their stories, we sang several hymns in Swahili and there were many prayers. Three hours later the graduation came to an end and then out came the huge bowls of rice and beans and well done roast beef.   Imagine feeding five hundred people by cooking over open fires and you can have a sense of how hard all the ladies worked. No papers plates or Costco here!

John spoke with genuine love for the grads and they all appreciated his words.   I was VERY proud of him!

Love, Sylvia