Reality Check

I am reminded today that Kenya can be a dangerous place, and that people can be mean and ugly.  **MOM, DO NOT WORRY, I AM FINE AND I AM IN A VERY VERY SAFE PLACE ALWAYS WHILE I AM HERE.**

This morning we got up and got dressed for church.  Our driver was to pick us up at 10.  By 10:45 he still had not arrived.  Julius, our coordinator, felt like he should go check on our driver as he said this was not like him to be late and not answer his phone.  I reminded Julius that our driver was 2 hours late one day last year, so yes, it can be like him.  All the same, Julius wanted to go to the motel in town and check on him.  He called us from the motel and said that our driver was attacked by thugs last night.  He said he was just laying on the ground and his leg was swollen when he got to him.  That's really all of the information I could glean from the phone call because Julius was trying to say he would find us other transportation for the day and he would get our driver in a taxi to the hospital.  I told him to take care of the driver first, and once he got him to the hospital to call me back and we would go from there.  

**MOM, DO NOT WORRY!  I AM FINE AND I AM IN A VERY VERY SAFE PLACE ALWAYS WHILE I AM HERE.**  You have to understand, our driver was staying in town, in a seedy place.  We tried to get him to stay in the guest house where we are staying so he would be safe and on time.  He did not feel comfortable doing so.  Nakuru is a safe place as long as you take precautions.  I would not walk the streets alone at night, I stay in a house with a gate around it and a security guard, etc. etc.  It's perfectly safe in the day time.  And, honestly, I don't know at this point if it was just a random attack or if perhaps he had words with someone while dining or at a bar?  I just don't have all of the information.  But there is no reason to suspect any of us would meet with a similar fate.

The moral of the story, other than **MOM, DO NOT WORRY! I AM FINE AND I AM IN A VERY VERY SAFE PLACE ALWAYS WHILE I AM HERE.** is that you do have to be aware of your surroundings ANYWHERE and you do have to take precautions.  I feel bad that I suspected the driver had just overslept again, and I do hope he is okay.  I will be interested to know more information.

For now, my boys have taken motorbike taxis to town with our caretaker, Trini, to purchase a Kenya phone (we feel like this is an important precaution for us to have a phone) and to explore a bit.  I'll hopefully meet up with them for a late lunch.  We will not be able to go to the Virginia Home or the Remand Home today.  I am not sure what tomorrow and the rest of the week will bring.  

You know as well as I do, this could have happened anywhere in the world.  You can never predict this sort of thing, the best you can do is use good judgment wherever you are.

UPDATE** While we still don't have all of the pieces in place, our driver was not beaten by thugs...he was beaten by security guards because he was asleep in his van and they thought he was a thief.  The police actually made the security guards stop beating him and they all left him on the road to sort it out and make his way (whatever that means).  Yes, that brings up a lot more questions (we've been asking them all afternoon), but the bottom line is this: **MOM, DO NOT WORRY!  I AM FINE AND I AM IN A VERY VERY SAFE PLACE ALWAYS WHILE I AM HERE.**

We will have a new driver for the rest of our stay here in Kenya.  I do wish Charles the best.  And Mom, hopefully you haven't had a heart attack while reading this.  I truly am fine and very safe.  Kenya is a lovely place!