In the process we have met several families from the nearby villages and spent time getting to know them and their stories of need. Most are grandparents or neighbors of children whose parents have died or have abandoned them. At first we were shocked by the number of people trying to ‘get rid of’ their children/grandchildren/nieces/nephews. We were also shocked by their ability to lie about the child’s age and the truthful whereabouts of the parents. We were skeptical of a couple of the stories we had been fed so we decided to set out on dirt path to see if we could catch these people at home and witness their actual living situations.
In one instance Ned’s surprise visit revealed truthful information. He arrived when the grandmother we had been communicating with was not home. Her daughter was there so Ned asked her where the little boy in question was… he was at his own mother’s house that day. Oh, you mean the mother that ‘abandoned’ him years ago? Ya, she lives just down the road, do you want me to show you? No thanks, but please understand that we will not be able to take this child in as an orphan.
However in most instances we are realizing these people are in a world of hurt and simply trying to procure a decent future for their children. A common household scenario looks like this: 1 grandma (with AIDs and little time left on her hands), no one from the ‘parent’ generation (AIDs or hit the road a long time ago), 5 or 6 children from any combination of different parents, a missing father figure (probably living with his other wife), and no income. It is the Grandmothers we have been dealing with most. They are strong old ladies who are desperate to find homes for their children before their time is up, and they will tell you absolutely anything in order to do so.
We visited this Bibi (Grandma) today. She is staying in a small house taking care of 6 little rug rats that have been left with her for one reason or another. We are pretty sure two of them will be moving into this house. After visiting I found it hard to stay mad at her for lying about a third child she was trying to squeeze into the original deal. She cooked up a special porridge of ‘milk’, ugi, and dirt in honor of our visit. We felt terrible declining her, we really do try to eat everything…but I tried it and there was NO WAY I was going to finish a whole glass. She was really mad at us and embarrassed that we left her house with out full bellies. Shameful. 
This is Hawa, showing us how she can write her own name…in the dirt. Good Girl!
Here is the second Bibi we saw today. Her health is getting pretty bad and she has a pain in her leg that makes it hard to walk. We went inside to talk and she offered us her two stools, the only items in the concrete room. She has been left alone with three little girls, the rest are just neighbors that ran over to have a look at the wazungu (white people). 
It was a long hot dusty walk through coffee plantations and corn fields, so we stopped at this little store on the way back for a drink and a rest. Dorcas asked to come along and for some reason I let her, she is happy to have Ned and Emily all to herself today. This is what we did on Wednesday.
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