To Be In Africa by Daria Barwinska
"I tried to live those days to the fullest...letting myself dive deep into the culture, language, cuisine... accepting it, learning,and applying it."
These are the words of a Polish college student who, while studying at Anderson University, in the United States, was invited by her Kenyan friend to go home with her to Kenya.
Ms. Barwinska, joins her friend Emily, and the Martin Family plus 16 other students and staff for a journey to "be present" in Kenya. She stays in peoples homes, stays with Kenyan college student in the dorms, sits in dinning rooms, and living rooms and on the side of the road, were ever there are people.
Join her as she walks muddy paths, drinks chai, and is impacted by the essence of Africa. See what she sees, and get a glimpse of a beautiful and mysterious place and people...in Africa.
Preface
My life journey started a long time back, in Poland with my parents. It then continued as I moved to the U.S.
for University. This is just a part of it but a very important part. I describe on the following pages three weeks
of my life. Those three weeks when I traveled to Kenya with a group from Anderson University. I spent my time in
Kenya observing, learning and understanding the culture of the people who live there. Not only that but also
understanding myself. The knowledge I gained is priceless and comes from the wisdom of locals and my own
observations. I tried to live those days to the fullest, absorb as many of new things as possible, letting myself
dive deep into the culture, language, cuisine, and everything that is new to me, accepting it, learning, and
applying it. I also tried to give as much of myself to others as possible, sharing or just being present with
them.
An old Indian saying states that to evaluate someone, you need to cross the mountains and waters that he had to cross before. It is true. That is why I decided to join those people in Kenya, in their daily lives, to understand them better. Africa, a place that is a home for so many, became hospitable to me. It’s a place that is driven by a rhythm. It is a place that lives by the beat of the drum: synchronized, eternal, primordial. Now, I close my eyes, free my mind, and remember. I remember how it is TO BE IN AFRICA…