Fun Days. Long Days.

That is how life has been feeling lately- I’ve been loving doing life alongside the class of 2026 as they are now seniors, having followed them specifically since their freshman year in 2022.

Last week we were able to escape campus for a day we dubbed “Senior Skip Day.”

When I announced this to the class in November, the announcement was met with great cheers, followed by a few questions in quick succession before I could fully explain what “Senior Skip Day” actually entailed.

When I got the green light to plan something fun for the seniors while the 7th-11th graders did their second term standardize testing, I’d emailed multiple different pools in Naivasha attached to tourist resorts, but none of them were able to accommodate a 70 student school group for a day at the pool. Disheartened I went back to the drawing board, thinking about what would require minimal effort to execute, then I remembered the national park!

The goal was relaxing, getting away, and general rest. A pool sounded like the right way to accomplish this, but with the ACTUAL pools off the table, we had to consider alternate options. Hell’s Gate National Park is one of my favorite places in Kenya.

It has dramatic landscapes, wildlife, and some fun recreational options:

1. Hike the local gorge, inspiration for the infamous death scene in “The Lion King”
2. Rock Climb at Fishers Tower
3. Picnic or camp in one of the rustic campsites set up with pavilions and long drop toilets
4. Rent Bicycles for a cruise through herds of antelope and zebras, a giraffe here and there
5. Educational tours of the geothermal energy plants that supply 40% of this nation with it’s energy
6. Visit the geothermal spa, a pool of hot spring fed mineral water recondensed from the steam vents at the foothills of the local volcano: Mt. Longonot

Since I’ve done almost all of these things myself at various different excursions, I knew what we’d be getting into, and it seemed like a great place to go since admission for students on pupil passes is less than two dollars per student! SCORE.

We offered the students two of the above choices: biking or pool, 3 students chose biking, 64 chose the pool.

So, at 7:45am Friday morning, after loading up 70+ packed lunches, collecting student ID’s, gathering from our travel office copies of each student’s passport and pupil pass along with having made arrangements for transportation, we were off!

The students lazed in the sun, floated in the pool and had a general day of holiday, loving every second! Red as lobsters having not put on sunscreen, we loaded up the busses in the afternoon to return back to campus to continue our fun, long day.

We arrived to campus about 3:15. I had just enough time for a quick shower to rinse the sulfur from my hair, throw on some new clothes and head over to the gym to start gearing up for an evening grilling session for senior store.

A mini-scale version, our students grilled up some meat, blended some milkshakes and prepped dinner for our campus in preparation for a fun evening of games. West Nairobi School had brought three different teams for an evening of competition and rivalry on the football pitch and basketball courts. We sold burgers, krainers and chicken tikka sandwiches as part of the students work-study program that raises money for their end of year senior trip.

Around 7pm, we closed the till and began cleaning our spaces, taking out garbage, scraping grills, mopping floors, the whole works. By the time I finished supervising and working alongside the students and rocked up to my house, my phone read 7:57pm.

The pool- so fun!

Senior store- great! The students really are running it without much additional supervision.

The whole day? A huge success! But also very loooooong. I do not recommend being responsible for planning a field trip for 70 students the same day you’re responsible for overseeing the feeding of 300… it worked, but man! The weight I carried navigating these two big events in one day really wiped me- well, that and a few hours lounging in the equator sun… 😉

I am so thankful my days are filled with things like this! Some other fun recent highlights include taking students down to our newly renovated local coffee shop during their study hall, late evenings spent making hot-coco and playing games during their extended curfew nights, or even just having a few of them over for a taco dinner like this past Saturday. I’m thankful for the days of mentorship lunch meetings and discipleship spontaneous tea times that sometimes looks more like just having fun or walking alongside them in everyday life than a set or specific program. I’m thankful for many of your roles in this, through your prayers, financial support, and un-ending kindness in your interest in the lives of my students. Thanks for being part of my fun, long days.