Transitions

It is a week before we leave for Kenya and we are on a plane from Dallas/Fort Worth home.  Molly and I just spent several great days attending orientation and dropping Mackenzie off at TCU.  Every parent who has walked this road can identify with the bitter/sweet nature of this dance.  For those that have not yet crossed this threshold, this Op/Ed from the Washington Post describes it well. 

We feel incredibly thankful for where Mackenzie has landed - from the school she has chosen, to the roommates she is living with, to the classes she is taking, all of it points to a GREAT FIT for her.  

TCU’s mission, To educate individuals to think and act as ethical leaders and responsible citizens in the global community, and the way they seek to incorporate this mission into every aspect of the student’s experience, so resonates with what we have been trying to do as parents these last 18+ years.  She managed to find a medium sized school that has both the benefits of a large University (e.g. state of the art facilities and TCU should be playing for the Football's national championship Monday night) and a small liberal arts college (e.g. 3 of her 5 classes this semester have 15 or less students and the students were encouraged throughout orientation to get to know their professors.) Finally, the season of Spring comes to Fort Worth in about two or three weeks…so she is escaping the endless winters of her youth - smart child.  All said, as we head 8,000 miles from Mackenzie, we could not feel better about this next chapter for her or more grateful for the opportunity she has in front of her.
 
So, now we turn towards the four of us leaving for Africa in a week.  Molly, no surprise, has us in good shape from a logistics standpoint.  We have the house and dog taken care of, shots received, passports updated etc. etc. Unlike our move to Zambia 8 years ago where we packed up our house and took it to Lusaka, we are heading to Kenya with the approach that this is a long trip and we are packing accordingly.   

When we arrive in Nairobi we will initially, and maybe permanently, be staying at Amani Gardens. This is a quiet, 50 year old guest house right in the heart of Nairobi.  It is within walking distance of the office of our partner, TechnoServe, restaurants, shops etc.  Upon arrival, I will be jumping into work visiting clients like Doinyo Lessos, Girum Food Company and Astco and meeting with our partners and stakeholders like USAID, Root Capital and many others.  Molly and the kids will be doing online school, and engaging with organizations like Heshima, a school started for disabled kids (Clara’s passion) by a Minnesota family.  Bennett is also looking forward to playing lots of golf.  

We are excited and grateful to get to re-immerse ourselves in all the things we’ve missed about Africa - time for relationships and the way this is prioritized, joyfulness in the midst of hardships, dynamism, the generally slower pace of life, the wild and beautiful places we love and so much more.

We are glad this time the goodbyes are only for 4 months - we will be back before many of you even realize we are gone.  We look forward to sharing what we learn.