The Orange Hat

After living in Kenya for almost two months I have seen sickening prosperity and humble poverty, I have listened to pathetic ill-backed arguments founded on bigotry and been asked questions which I had no way of responding, I have inhaled the crisp clean air of unadulterated hills and had fowl piles of garbage block my path for no reason other than peoples unwillingness to mind their own waste.

I find that I love where I am, as I love anywhere I can call home, and I am tired of not giving back what Kenya has given me. I have idly floated along with a culture I enjoy and hate. I have accepted too much that I disagree with, and rejected some of what I need to discover.

It is time for me to act. It is also time for Kenyans to be on time. It is not acceptable to be an hour late for a meeting; thirty minuets late for work, or to arrive two hours after your clients arrive on time. It’s not about the time it self, it’s about the lost opportunities and the wasted potential. I have spent entire days waiting on people to show up for a meeting I scheduled just for them, only to have it rescheduled twice and then pushed a day back. I can’t work like that, not when I have control of my situation. I refuse to wait any longer, to be postponed one, two, three, hours because of someone else’s incompetence. Allowing the behavior I have seen to continue would only be rewarding tardiness. One time is ok, two times is fine if you call ahead, but six, seven, eight, every day – I cannot attribute such a behavior to external factors. If you’re reading this then be warned, I’m not waiting.

Clean up. Everything. I am not one to profess a room of orderly clothing, books, or even paired socks, but I do not, have not, and refuse to leave trash anywhere besides a can, bin, or dumpster. I see people throwing candy wrappers in the street, see dirty diapers on the sidewalks, and in the markets/slums, there are sewage rivers flowing down walkways- piles of garbage outside schools of plastic bags, organics, and human waste. This is not only unpleasant it is revolting. The worst part is there is no reason it has to be like this. Not only is it easily taken care of by putting you leftovers in a designated location, it raises property value, resolves unneeded jobs which can be put to better use, and is better for the environment. Friends of mine don’t think twice before tossing a can behind them. I will change this. Tomorrow is a meeting of many people I know and I will put forth the idea of “sustainability” something Africa is in dire need of and I hope desire of. Creating an environment with is not dependant on foreign aid, unneeded attention, or constant maintenance is possible; you just have to want it.

Open your mind. I try to respect you, please, please, please try to respect me. I do not openly make fun of your customs or practices, I’ve tried them, and I’ve tasted your food, drunk your drinks, walked in your school, and ridden in your Matatus. One of the main reasons I came here, to Africa, to Kenya, to a world away from mine, is to be immersed in a different culture. Would you also not find it incredibly different where I come from? I know my music is funny, and it’s not something I dance to, in face I really don’t want to dance to it, I want to sit back drink a beer or two and talk about my day of work, climbing, hiking, or what ever it is I do for fun while listening to what you did. I like to eat, I like to go out, but it’s not in the same context as you, and I’m sorry if you don’t like that you don’t have to come, but I’m going to invite you anyway, just like you invited me and I accepted. Don’t make fun of something different, and even worse don’t mock it. I will try to impose some of my way on you, and I hope you are sacred shitless and uncomfortable has hell when you experience them, then you’ll realize what it’s like for me in a land where I stick out like nothing else can- and I hope you learn to embrace it, and I hope you learn from it, and I hope you find more because of it.


Theses allusions are only the beginning, and certainly not the end of what is to come of my stay here. In the follow through I want a list of reactions, what it is that Kenya wants from me, what it wants me to take with me, what other people want me to take away and share with them. These are simply aspects I want to influence, and I want to influence me. Let the party begin.