Walking Water

My mom woke me up at about 6 o'clock in the morning. I wined and told her that i'll get out of bed at 6:15. I think she beat the world record for saying no the fastest, but in a second I was ready to carry some water. I met john at Rose Garden Park at 6:30 am. He had gathered a few other kids (beside us) and were mostly all barefoot. We waited a little linger to see if we could gather a few more kids, and we gained Tor. We were off!! The grass was something to have nightmare about. It was burning cold and I was barefoot. Before I knew we were already on the pavement and were heading to Rocky Nook Park. The pavement had its ups and its downs. It was warm and soothed your feet's cold, but it felt like walking on a rock fall. As soon as I went on the bridge there was a sign of relief for the bridge was warm and soft. Next thing I know we are on the pavement again resuming are journey on hell. When I could see Rocky Nook Park, I was almost in tears. One step, two steps, three steps, IM THERE!!! There was second of celebration, then it was filling up from the well.

The well was not like any normal well, it was a drinking fountain. As we all filled our jugs (anything they had) up, we managed to get the whole school to fifteen minuets after we arrived. After everyone arrived and was filled up we got and a circle and massaged each others back and did thirty seconds of silence, AND WE WERE OFF! The beginning was kinda easy, but then I really felt the pain when we started the hill of terror. The hill went to our school so that was kinda depressing to think. I was 3/4 of the way when I could not think strait. Daniel (o so nicely) said he would carry my backpack for me. that was a really really nice thing to do!!!When we arrived at school,  I looked dead. I was aching when I ran down the hill and laid my water on the bench, I was off to the races to get to my class and finally be in peace with my neck and back!

My visit with Nyiel Malual Day 3

Today is the last day that I get to be in Bor and to be with Nyiel. This was one of the quickest visits iv'e had with anyone in a long time. We had barely stayed for even 48 hours. I went into the living room which was the size of an average closet and her family and she was gathered in there for a ceremonial goodbye. They were in a circle and there was lots of food in the middle of the circle. They told me it was there goodbye meal and that he could have as much as I could eat. I hadn't really got to nyiel that well but this last meal I got to know her better than I would of if I had just left. She was a shy person with dark blue eyes. I flew to the airport and that breakfast was a mere memory. I flew away in tears.

My visit with Nyiel Malual day 2

Today I woke up smelling a new world. I opened my window only to find a busy smelling city in Africa. There was a slight pose before I got out of bed, I was still sleepy, but that didn't stop me from seeing Nyiel. I took a taxi to the closest place he could to the main market. I had no exact location on her but all I new is that she owned a fish store in Bor. As the man gestured for me to get out of the taxi, I did so and went on to the new world. I walked down the street full of kids playing and business men walking, and then there was me. As i looked closer at this stand I saw a woman with children and she looked like Nyiel. I got closer, closer, closer. It was sadly a woman with children with the name becka. Right behind her was Nyiel. She was small and skinny yet a little buff. She left her stand to come greet me. She was holding a small doll. She said from me to have it and added that it would protect me from evil spirits. We went to her stand to pick up some fish. She had tons of different types of fish. There was evan a rare fish that you only can get from Cuba. Her fish was next to a tall building but at the same time had bad architecture but good details. Her fish reminded me of the fish tacos I Santa Barbara yet fresher. I was finishing up the fish when her neighbor came to greet us. She was an older lady with a younger husband. Her name was Franzana she was a really nice woman. We finished lunch with her and then Nyiel left her oldest son in charge so that me and her could explore the good parts of Bor. We went to the closest store so she could show me the type of clothes that normal people in Bor wear. There clothes weren't  as different as I thought. Most of the buildings were mostly for business and if it wasn't it was a run down hotel that would fall in an earthquake, but this one was different. It was tall and worn out. I got my first shirt from that store. It was getting late, like dinner time late. We went ate fast food (walking while eating quickly). She said I could stay in her place at night cause they had an extra bed. I said i'd meet them at the mini mart around the corner cause I had to get my luggage from the other hotel that I was in. As I met them and we went to there house she and her kids told me about how her and her husband met. It was a far taxi drive. There house had one neighbor and was made out of wood. We stopped by and got the mail. She was hoping for another loan from someone in the world, but it was just a notice about her kid getting in trouble for school. I walked in and it was smaller than I had origanally expected. I went in and had a snack of bread and went to bed.
http://www.chfinternational.org/files/images909/JOCAP-Community-Assistance-Program.jpg

My visit with Nyiel Malual day 1

This trip I had been packing for for days now and today is the day where I am finally going to meet with Nyiel Malual. I had donated 25 dollars to her and now i'm going to visit and see how the loan is working out for fish stand, and for her family. I have just flown from LA to Brussels and from there I took a flight to Botswana, and then took a train to Bor, and that is where I am at the moment. The train came in early and now the current time is 8 but it still feels like the Coastal Santa Barbara time. I called a taxi driver some time ago and he is just arriving now in a green yet tan van. I look at the driver and just see him and how he wears a a torn jacket with smugly colored boots and soggy blue jeans. He smells of salty water and burnt cabbage. He walked up to me and said in a gentle voice, McMullen. I nod and we head off to a hotel. He takes me to one of the nicer hotels in Bor. I pay the driver a lot less than I expected and I head off for my room. The place was just on the verge of staving alive and not going out of business. There was one man in front of me in line. He was from New York and looked aged from the sun. When I got my ticket I had realized that he had also donated through kiva and was also visiting the person that he had loaned. I got to my room and it was good to see a bed. The place reeked of fish and alcohol. I just made the best of it and tried to forget about the smell. I was preparing for my days with Nyiel.

MY visit with Nyiel Malual 3

In South Africa there money is called Zar's. One Zar is equal to .12766 american dollars. There is a currency exchange loss possible when trading in money. I will have to stock up on a lot of Zar's before I go on this trip.

MY visit with Nyiel Malual 2

Ten words that I would want to know in her language would be...

1 today

2 evening

3 hello

4 how

5 is

6 can

7 your welcome

8 no problem

9 thats great

10 sounds fun

MY visit with Nyiel Malual 1

I get to go to Bor, South Sudan. I am going to her fish stand located in the middle of the city. I will pay 500 dollars for a all around trip. I will go from LA to Brussels. From Brussels i will get a direct flight to Botswana. I take a train and arrive in Bor at 9 00 o'clock pm.

I will get my ticket off Ticket Master, and will get it on discount because of the easter discount. 

My visit with Maruge day 2 (#2)

Today is the second day with Maruge. He is excited to show me around his village. The first place he takes me is the closest river called the bothon river and we swam till i couldn't even float. I had been holding back the urge to use the restroom but when I asked to use the restroom he said that he had brought a bucket incase this type a thing would happen. I hid behind a bush and i forgot the toilet paper. When I asked he just laughed and said heres a leaf. It was a painful experience that day. It was only noon by the time I had gotten back to his village and I was hungry. He gave me a hardboiled egg and said enjoy. It was the rottenest thing I've ever even came close to tasting. I was about starved at about 2. He said the closest place to stop would be 40 min away walking. Which he has to do every week. I was not in the mood to do that so I just went up to the closest home and they let me have an egg from there chicken. It was not as rotten as the other one but was still on the tasted terrible list. Maruge gave me a tour of his house and it lasted less than 2 seconds. And his was one of the bigger houses in the neighborhood. His backyard had no space for running around. It had crops and animals running all over and a heap of veggies in a bucket. He said everyday at 6 30 am he waters each and every plant in his entire backyard, which would take him till 8 every morning. Thats what started his day then he would get dressed and walk 30 min to school, and that would finish at 2. Then he feeds his animals. Goes to the market to buy more food for his livestock and himself. By the time he is back it is late and the day is over. Then its starts all over. I was amazed at what he had to do. I get up at 8 45, go to school and my days over. It is now 4 and i'm still starving and very dehydrated. I needed some water so maruge and I went to the villages well and when we arrived there was a long line. The line was shorter than it looked and before we new it we were there! As we filled up maruge told me a story on the way back. We arrived back in time for a stick of bread and a glass of water. We got new hay for my bed and we rested to bed. In the middle of my sleep I woke up only to see maruge with a picture. I asked him if he was ok, that was the wrong sentence to use. He started crying and a look of shame came upon my face. He told me while crying that his family had been killed by the kkk and that he saw the whole thing happen in front of his face. I stayed up the whole night. I could not sleep after that story.

my visit with Maruge day 1 (#2)

Today was not like any other day...I was going to meet with a man named Maruge. When I got on the plane it was one of the tiniest thing I've ever seen. It carried at max 25 people. It was a 12 hour flight including the stop in Bor. The pilot says thanks for flying US AIRS and thats when i took my first breath in  Kenya. It was a small airport. I had walked around it in 10 min trying to find Maruge. I saw a man in the back of a rusty barren pick up truck, along with 20 chickens. It turned out to be Maruge. He told me in his best english that he had been waiting for a car to take him to the airport. He told us he was sorry and we waited another hour before the next car came. It let us on for a chicken. Maruge lifted out of his feather made pack and got a small baby chicken. The ride was 30 min to Maruge's part of the village. He had made me a bed the day before out of the mud from his crop field, topped with hay for a pillow. It was a late flight that i took so it was turning dark fast. Before the day ended Maruge wanted to show me where the school was that he had put so much time into, to be accepted into. It was very small with a dirt field and classes about the size of a normal kids room surrounding it. The classes were overflowed with kids the age of 4 and up. The look on his face was the look of pride and hope for this school to succeed. After 10 min of a walk we got back to his hut and started a fire. He told me stories about the school and how his family had got killed. I told him about electricity and he was shocked that there was even a word as long as that. I wasn't in the mood to explain that to him so we went to bed on our man made dirt made beds.

Jared's story for SS

My Hero's Journey

In 1967 the small town of Grant, Nebraska, there lived a boy named james.  James birthday was coming up and all he wanted was to get a gun. His parents weren't happy when he asked, but they had to get him the gun. James had no friends at all. He was home schooled for all 14 years of his life. His birthday was in a day and james was super static. That evening james heard something that he had never ever heard before. It sounded like an earthquake but it was different. James rushed outside only to see everything around had been bombed. Another sight that stuck with him was a body laying outside. James ran outside only to see his mom in flames. This town was really small and had no big hospital. They gave up hope, and that night she passed away.

   

 TWO YEARS LATER

I am 16.  Now and have no money nor family. After my moms death, my dad committed suicide. And all that is left is me. When I had just arrived from getting gas, I heard a nock on my door. The next second all I heard was "We've chosen you". I new what it was right away. THE DRAFT. I grabbed my gun and all my money and ran upstairs. I heard climbing up the stairs and all I could do was go out the window. I shattered the glass and jumped out. When I was running I felt a sharp pain in my leg. It was a bullet. I ran into the woods. I kept running until my leg gave right out. The bullet had only clipped my leg, so I was fine. I had no sense of direction. I got up and ran to the nearest shelter. I found that there was a coconut tree right in front of me. It was late, at least 11pm. I decided to burry myself in mud for warmth, and bush leaves over myself. As I woke up i found the nearest water spot. There was none close by at all. After walking almost 4 hours, I found a stream. I drank so much, I was sucking down water like a tornado. Nebraska is really cold and I was dressed terrible. Jacket and light pants, to the 34 degrees weather. One day I found a shack and it looked like it was being used. I headed towards it. I was surprised to see an old man dead. I poked him to make sure. I stayed the a long time in that shack. Until at night I heard a sound outside. I went to go see what it was, until I felt a very hard item thrown at my head. As I woke up my head didn't hurt, I realized I wasn't in the woods, that I was in the hospital. I moved around, I felt a soft bed. I saw my parents. The doctor said I had been in a deep coma for two years. My parents had never died and I had never got lost. I was surprised at the news. It had only been one bad dream!

My visit with Maruge day ( extra credit swahili words)

Here are some words that maruge said were basic words in swahili:

1. Hi is Jambo.
2. How are you is Hujambo.
3. Fine is Dia.
4. Great is adhimu.
5. Name is Jina.
6. Bad is Baya.
7. Suit is agia. is
8. Color is Rangi.
9. Hot is Joto.
10. Running is Mbio.

My visit with Maruge day 4

Today we woke up at 5 in the morning cause this was the last day that I had with maruge :( . We went to the new Santa Barbara airport. It was the only time that we could find a flight to Africa. It was the quickest goodbye I've ever said to anyone. In a second he was taking off for Africa! Before he left he gave me a bracelet that said, "see you soon".  It was carved into a bone like material. All I could say was this guy is cool and he is going to be a good friend.

My visit with Maruge day 3

Today we had cheerios. As we sat there we decided where to go that day. I came up with the idea biking in a four wheeled bike. Right as I said that,  I realized that maruge was injured on his right leg so immediately I said another suggestion, we should surf. I needed a tan, maruge didn't so i put on tanning lotion. I was desperate! I used my board and maruge used my brothers board. He was really big for the board so he had to have his legs a little off she he was paddling. We came down to the beach and met a couple of people from my school. Maruge down right sucked at surfing. He was going to die. He fell more than he took steps. (video below). The one thing that was going good for maruge was that he could tan. I am white as paper but he was tan like a good poop. I was an o.k. surfer. I could actually ride a wave. My dad had bought me and my brother  the nicest boards. They were eight foot boards and made of foam. After the day we went to a hawaiian shop and both of us sipped on a fresh made piña colada. After the hawaiian drinks we went home and went to sleep to enjoy a nice night.

My visit with Maruge day 2

One thing I didn't know about maruge is that he loves orange juice. All he could eat for breakfast was eggs and orange juice(I don't even want to know the color of his pee was). For the first day I thought that I should take him to get new clothes. My neighbors are really into fashion. So I gave him to them. Maruges point of view:All I new was that I had to get new clothes. It was tough for me two go shopping. One thing that scared me was a air soft store. It remindedme of the consentration camps that were filled with guns. Including the gun that shot my wife (tear**tear). So I am going to a shop called Macy's. I am supposed to go with a small white kids neighbors. I leave the white kid and meet the neighbors they are really friendly to me and take me to get a different thing to wear. I pass by lots of nice clothes (in Kenya we say clothes like "demu").  I found a really nice shirt and pants. They said juicy, I  didn't care what they said like, it was a girl brand. My point of view: Maruge was looking sharp like a pencil, he was like a american business man.
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As we cam home we noticed that we had a coupon for one free ice cream at McDonalds. We stopped there and got fat. As we were driving he fell asleep. We came home and he slept in his new suit.

My visit with Maruge day 1

Arriving at the airport Maruge was taller than what the movie makes him out to be. He was old, and looked like he was injured because he was walking around with a long stick. I looked like he had been through a lot, just by looking at him.
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The first time i met him he was very very shy. He was one of those people that said short answers for ex.
Q. Do you have any brothers or sisters? A. yes. The only person that could squeeze one word out of him was my mom. Was really skinny and didn't wear the nicest of clothes. He had a small blanket over a long sleeved shirt, with long grey pants.  He had a white ghosted beard that hadn't been shaved for a long time. He only had peach fuzz for a mustache that didn't seem to grow in the time he was with me.
(descriptions of what he looks like are in the picture above). Our family had recently bought a new Lexus that had all the new features. He was very and truly amazed at what the car could do. We were getting so side tracked that we got a speeding ticket for going 68 mph on a 45 mph highway. As the officer came towered the car he looked in the back seats where me and maruge were sitting. He thought maruge looked liked a man that was wanted for steeling a camera from a house in Montecito, so maruge took the ride in the officers car. After a little investigating the officer finally let him go and gave us a warning. As we came home maruge was impressed with our house but even more impressed with our bed as we went to sleep fast.