Operation Smile Concert

Operation Smile/Composers Concert

One of the most rewarding things for me is being able to do something I love, while at the same time getting to help deserving kids.
I have always admired the composers club. From its start last year, I promised myself that my junior I would join. And I did! I have learnt so many things about music, and what it really means to be an artist. I love being in a group being surrounded by people who truly love to sing, rap or play their instrument. Being around this unique group of dedicated people has brought excitement and drive into my life. The music connects us, making composers club much more than just a club. When we do a number that we have all worked on, and it means something to us, and its successful, the moment is indescribable. I could live for that moment. Its not just the big moments, its the small ones as well. For example, when we go off on tangents and put our own spin on classics, enjoying each others talent.
We were fortunate enough to put on a concert for the Operation Smile Club, a club which helps raise money to pay for kids with clef lips to get surgery to improve their smiles. Johann Kasper Lavater once said that "There are many kinds of smiles, each having a distinct character. Some announce goodness and sweetness, others betray sarcasm, bitterness and pride; some soften the countenance by their languishing tenderness, others brighten by their spiritual vivacity." Someones smile is a part of them, and just the chance to help these kids get a chance to be proud and confident in theirs means the world to me.
The bar was set high. Operation Smile was expecting to make a hefty profit from the event, and we were scrambling to try and get everything ready and done. The most influential song for me was Fix You, the anthem of the Operation Smile club. The songs powerful messages, and the way we set the blocking of the song communicated those messages. We all felt it when we came out and performed it.
The concert was a raging success, raising over 100,000KSH!

Grandmother's School: Having fun with a Camera :)

Grandmother's School

My grandma lives in more rural Kenya, near where she grew up. She started a girls school, which takes girls from underprivileged girls who need a safe place to grow, learn, and be a part of a community. Growing up, I have always visited the girls and the school, made friends with them and helped out. Recently I went an other time and bonded with the girls. Most of the girls are around my age, so we related to each other by talking about music, dancing and singing, all things we loved to do. Before this special visit, we helped admit a new girl into the school. Quiet and shy, her mom was terrified, afraid she would not make any friends and long to come home. This school would provide much better opportunities for her, so it was important that she wanted to stay in the school. When i visited, she was one of the most popular girls in her class, immediately blending in with classmates. I had never seen her so happy; she was practically glowing, and couldn't wait to introduce me to her roommates and show me her books.
Visiting this school is always a special experience. It makes me appreciate what I have, and what ISK offers me and provides for me. I'm extremely lucky. It also makes me happy; not only are these girls so much fun to hang out with, helping them wash their clothes and cook their food, making their lives easier, makes my heart feel 5 times bigger than my chest. These girls are smart, responsible and hard working, they inspire me to be better and enjoy going to school and getting the chance to learn more. They teach me that education is a powerful gift that shouldn't be taken for granted. If I'm having a bad morning, and I really don't want to go to school, I think of them and they give me strength. I may help them out by assisting them in their chores, and making them laugh, but what they give me, the inspiration and gratitude; they are the truth ones giving me a gift.

Mara Pictures

Mara 3

Conclusion:
I wrote an article for the Link (school newspaper) on the trip. I think its a good summary of how I felt about the trip and what it did for me and the Mara community:

It would be insuffient to say that this years IC trip to the Mara was amazing. From the extremely enthusiastic Me to We team, the beautiful, fresh, open Kenyan countryside views, to even the bag showers, this trip created an aura of such conformability and serenity, it allowed us to open up our minds and hearts to comprehend new situations and cultures, as well as examine and evaluate issues that are not just happening in our own backyard, but in our global community and how as young people, who obtain the power to change our international future, what can we do to achieve ultimate success and appreciate to all? From a student’s perspective, this trip was especially special for many reasons. On a person level, the facilitators challenged us to become ambassadors for the Free the Children message (children helping children) and pass on ideas and actions executed in the camp to our campus and community. In addition to this, they made us question our character, engaging in many activities that made us stop and think: What would I do in this complex situation? Is this who I really am? As the trip went on, I often found myself sitting quietly, thinking about what we talked about as a group, and how it applies to me in my life and what can I do to impact and catalyzing growth like these facilitators. On an external level, the facilitators opened our eyes to the depravity of world issues that plagued our global neighbors. "Only saying "I had fun" on this trip would not be enough to answer your question so I’ll say this. The whole experience gave us a close up look at the lifestyle of the Maasai people and the initiatives that organizations like Me to We are taking to help those in need. I found it not only inspiring but also a very informative trip on a culture that prior to the trip I knew close to nothing about" Mico Rudasingwa commented. We were aware of the existence of these issues, but once we were exposed to scary statistics, I think everyone was appalled. It was intriguing hearing everyone’s worldviews, it was clearly evident that we all come from contrasting backgrounds, which effective our perspective, but the most remarkable was seeing as find connections within each other in mist of what seemed to be such incompatible thoughts. Aside from the facilitators, we also found great support, strength and mentorship from our Massai neighbors.  We watched them in awe, their strength and ability the overcome to provide for the family and then themselves, in that order, was the most inspiring.  Walking 3 hours for water, 4 hours to reach the market in the blazing Mara sun was life, that’s what had to be done to, survive. And somewhere within all that hardship, the mamas and the families found joy in life. The children found pride and joy in education, the mamas finding solace in by each passing day, Me to We was making life easier for them. One distinct memory I know I will remember forever, the image of us watching the sunrise, freezing, faces cocooned with only half open eyes exposed singing songs, laughing weakly, watching not only the beginning of a new day, but the start of a whole new adventure.  

Mara 2

School Kids: 

Everyday on the trip, we got he pleasure to interact with the kids of the school we were working with. They had such an energy and wanted to be with us all the time. It was nice feeling so appreciated in a community, it made me feel purposeful helping such a thankful and deserving community. The kids played with our hair, pulled our arms and legs, and just loved being close to us. Playing with them was so much fun, the mixing of our ISK culture and their Masai culture was great and seeing the two worlds merge was really rewarding. The kids melted our hearts; It was really nice seeing people open up and be sincere, happy and sweet, a side we don't usually see around school. The kids were our motivators, when we were tired and hot and working on the building site, remembering that this was all for them, it gave us strength 

Building: 

I have never built anything before. My only building experience was building a house out of popsicle sticks in Girl Scouts. Building was particularly challenging and was something I wasn't comfortable with, but each day got better and easier and I learnt a lot about construction, and what you need to have a good foundation and keep the house stable. The mara heat was scorching, so building was particularly demanding on our bodies. But we pushed through together and supported each other. Having the support of the group really helped me get through it and do a good job. At the end of the trip, we had about more than half of two classrooms and a teacher dorm done, which was great progress. Those buildings are a part of our ISK community in the Mara, something that the kids and teachers can remember us, their friends at ISK. 

Masai Culture: 

We also got a chance to learn more about Masaai culture. What I found to be the most interesting was how they utilized the environment. For example, there are specific trees which the Masai use there leaves to brush their teeth with. In addition to this, there are specific plants they use to cure malaria, yellow fever, cholera and other diseases. We also learnt how Masaai's fight and protect themselves from various different animals, and we all got a chance to shoot a bow and arrow and throw a club which was fun. I thought it was also great that the Me to We people didn't try to change the Masaai culture, or eradicate any traditions that composed the culture; the Me to We people dedicated their time to learning about their culture, while m making their way of living easier.

IC Trip 2012 (Jan 30-Feb 4) : Mara 1

The IC Trip, in my personal opinion, is the one of the most rewarding experiences that ISK offers. We are really fortunate to get the opportunity to learn new things about different cultures in Kenya. Not only do these trips offer external learning about others, it also challenges you to learn new things about your self, presenting challenges that force you to look within and discover parts of yourself that you didn't know you had. For example, in my freshman year (which still applies now) we were all required to climb Mount Kenya for our IC trip. When I first heard of this, I was terrified. The idea of climbing a mountain sounded horrible and torturous to me. But when we got there and began our journey (yes it was extremely hard and tiring), something changed within our group. We got closer and supported each other who needed the help and the support system. By the end of the trip, not only did we grow as individuals and had a greater appreciation for our lives and our moms, we got closer as a group and learnt things about each other we never knew before. 

This year, I went to the Mara for my IC trip. This wasn't my first choice, so when I heard that I was on the trip, I wasn't the most excited. We were quite a unique group of people, none of which were people I spoke to a lot in school, so I must admit i was afraid to be put in this vulnerable new environment without someone i knew very well. But, rather than dwelling on this, I decided the best thing to do was to maintain an open mind and find excitement in the trip. Accompanying us was Ms.Bakke and Mr.DesRoches. 

The journey was long, and the roads were bumpy. Nevertheless, we sang songs and laughed to pass the time. Unfortunately, our journey was extended because we got a bit lost, but we got to explore the area a little more so it wasn't a completely negative. We arrived to our meeting point with the Me to We group and we were immediately captivated by their energy. This fascinated me from the beginning to end of the trip. They all seemed so happy to be in the Mara, helping people that they had grown to care about. It lifted us up. 

They took us on their Lory, with a lovely sign saying "KARIBU ISK", to the Me to We camp site where we would be spending the next week. The view was breath taking. I was quite anti-social on all of our travels around the area in the lory; I just couldn't take my eyes of the beautiful mountainous and the smell of the fresh air. It was so peaceful and quite, I felt at such ease. 

We reached the camp and we explored our surrounded our area. We had quite good accommodations: big tents, cots, dinner tables, comfortable chairs and showers! 

Once we got situated, it was dark so we ate dinner and played bonding games. Already I felt that I was learning more about people in our group. We tackled greatest fears, ambitions, and what makes us comfortable and uncomfortable. We also talked about the meaning of respect to establish a particular dynamic. 

After that we got briefed on what we had in store for us the next week: Going to meet the school kids, Building classrooms and teacher dorms for the school, walks, and exploration of the Masai culture. We knew this was going to be a great trip