Oh Shela how I miss thee

Some of the friends I made in Shela (village on Lamu island) all of whom I miss dearly, include:
Hussein- a football fan with a heart of gold and a truly fun sense of humor ,
his younger brother Hassan- who ran a local shop and had the nicest smile,
Sharif their father- a fisherman who instantly felt like a grandfather to me and every time I called him over to me in the garden to talk about something specific he would reply "yes please",
Moses- a hilarious rasta who worked in a shamba next to the one where we were and joined us often (a fantastic dancer and painter),
Karissa- a local cook who also works in a shamba and took our training (he hand wrote a recipe for ginger crab for me that i am SO anxious to try out),
Mohammed Swaleh- the animated/multi-talented assistant to the lady we were working with who inspired our motto of "fanya mambo" and is also an amazing singer,
Kibele- also known as Yusuf Ali Atman Mohammed Omar- another rasta who has the most comforting voice of maybe anyone I know and can cook ladyfingers in a way that makes me want to eat nothing else,
Ue- also know as Yahia a boat captain who gave me the Swahili name "Malaika" and can also seriously dance,
Ali- the incredible Somali born artist who owns Ali Lamu an amazing independent local business that sells locally crafted gems created from local resources such as old dhow sails,
Jasmine- a fabulous singer with a stunning smile, whom I traded dresses with,
and last but not least
Little Husseini- also known as Keriku- (the one and a half year old I almost brought home with me) who once called me "mama" and handed me a mysterious fruit the day I left (which I naturally saved the seed of and will plant as an experiment).

I know I will carry these people in my heart each and every one of them no matter where life will take me. They were all so genuinely sorry to see Wangui and I leave and Hussein even got in our boat and pretended he was coming with us for about 15 minutes. It is so refreshing, not just to make new friends who are roughly my age, but to make friends with people who also share my interests in sustainably growing food, dancing, swimming in the ocean and not letting the numerous, petty, little things or unreasonable people disrupt their internal peace. What a complete inspiration.

I've just been informed that my internship will end at the end of April. This is a shock since my Director has been introducing me as "an intern who is here for 5 months" to everyone who visits (the end of April will be my 4 month mark). However, I see it as a blessing. Though I am sure I could learn a bit more if I stayed longer at G-BIACK, I feel more than ready to move on, find financial independence and a more ideal living situation for Jack and I.

Jack is maturing so fast. He looks at me differently now and listens more. He jumps less and thank God goes to the bathroom less frequently. I bought a bright blue collar for him at the grocery store and he looks so grown up it sort of break my heart a little. I have to really use some muscles to lift him up now. When the vet came to give him his rabies shot the other day she was shocked to see both how big he had grown in just a few weeks and how much he visibly cared for me. I asked her how big he would grow to be and I guessed maybe as big as him mother. She said maybe bigger "because of the care" :). Yikes, didn't realize I'd be owning a big dog.

Today is Sunday and although I didn't go to church I am feeling grateful. I also plan to pray for rain as I did yesterday. We need it so critically.