Lessons from the ropes with Amani Sasa

The youth of Amani Sasa are learning through experience about courage, perseverance, and peace.  And others are too!

Ruth & Yayo hit the ropes!

Ruth Deam works in the Amani Kenya office in Nairobi.  As with most women at Amani, she is also involved with Amani’s outreach programs as part of sharing God’s peace.  She recently joined Amani Sasa (“Peace Now”) for a sleepover trip at Diguna outside of Nairobi.  Amani Sasa is  an extension of the Amani Watoto children’s camp which uses outdoor adventure treks to build relationships that impart the principles of peace to teenage children of Amani women.  At Diguna, the group caught up on happenings as an Amani Sasa family and enjoyed adventures on the ropes course.  She wrote the following reflection after her experience.

One of the fun activities this time included a five-stage rope-climbing challenge. Foni was one of the first to volunteer for this particular activity.  Originally from Sudan, Foni is about 15 years old, and her mother is one of the four women who pioneered Amani. She nearly chickened out as she began the rope-climbing, but with encouragement she took the first step. By the time she finished the first stage, we didn’t think she would continue on to the second. But she did!

Jiji, another daughter of Lucy from Sudan

Despite the fact that many of the young adults like Foni were scared, one facilitator rushed them along and did little to inspire their courage. But Foni didn’t listen to the discouragement.  She kept on and on and on, until we all clapped for her and the others for going all the way and doing such an outstanding job.

In our journey, there are those to encourage us and those to discourage us.  But I know that God gives us the strength to take another step forward.  We can make it just like Foni. Yes, she had a lot of discouragement, but she didn’t quit.  She kept on and on until she finished and then started to cheer for others.

We certainly face a lot of trials.  Sometimes we are not so sure what to think or do. When my husband passed away, I never thought I would make it this far.  I don’t fully understand God’s way of doing things.  But I can stand and say that God has brought me this far.  And I know without a doubt that just as Foni was able to finish her rope-climbing, God is not about to abandon me now.  He will walk with us.

During their excursion the Amani Sasa group played a bit, and then sat together to share how they were doing.  They shared a few good things for which they are thanking God, how they are practicing the lessons from Amani Sasa, and challenges faced during the last school term.

Below are some of the thanksgivings:

Beltra, nephew of Zed from Eritrea with Dennis, son of Josephine from Congo

• Well-being through the term in health & safety.
• Beltra finished Form 4 (French school) successfully, passed exams, and improved her grades.
• Yayo was selected in her school to be part of a conference called Justice for All Children.
• Most of them are now prefects (leaders) in their schools.
• Dennis and Diana Kate were part of National Music & Drama festivals this year.

We also shared about things we want to pray for:

• To keep focused and strong as Christians and not fall to negative peer pressure.
• That those who are prefects at school would be good leaders.
• Good coordination and planning with their involvement in school activities.
• Marline, Daniel, Etienne, Eunice, Jiji, Yayo, and Margaret are all candidates sitting for national exams in October.

It’s evident that these young ones are learning the importance of standing up for peace and growing in their faith.  Thank you for joining with the Amani family passing peace to these and many lives.

Amani Sasa is a special program of Amani ya Juu and funded by donations. You can ensure that Amani Sasa continues passing peace to these young leaders by donating online.

You can also help Amani remain self-sustaining with a purchase from our online shop.

 

Sasa teens share powerful time at Malewa

The Amani Sasa had a successful adventure trip this month with a group of teens experiencing the principles of peace in their lives.  Mary K. helped lead the trip and shared the following report and photos.

We had a wonderful time on our recent Amani Sasa outing. We went to Malewa park, which was the same place we went to last year. It is about two hours away from Nairobi. Eighteen our of 22 teens from the Sasa group were able to come, representing Rwanda, Burundi, Congo, Sudan, and Kenya. We had heavy downpours of rains almost every afternoon, but we ate and played a lot and had great discussions and class time. We gave the group an assignment to come up with skits based on lessons they learned through Amani Sasa. And they surprised us with 45-minute dramas, well practiced and thought out.

A friend and local gospel singer joined us to help with the high ropes course. She shared her story on getting into bad company, getting pregnant (she later had a miscarriage), and what it all meant for her life, family, church and ambitions. After she shared, there was silence for a while. Her story was the real-life evidence of the lessons they’d focused on in their skits. Later, we took some time to pray for one another, which felt like a great closure to all we learned together.

Amani Sasa is a supplemental program to Amani’s self-sustaining work and is supported by donations.

 

Amani Sasa: 2008 in Review

Mary Karanja (pictured here on the left) serves as the Accountant for Amani Nairobi. Mary also provides leadership for Amani Sasa – an extension of Amani Watoto that uses outdoor adventure experiences to impart the principles of peace to adolescent children of Amani women. Below is Mary’s reflection on Amani Sasa’s happenings in 2008.

Last year was one-of-a-kind in many ways for the young adults and leaders of Amani Sasa. We learned a lot about ourselves, about God and about those around us.

In August, the hike we went on provided a wonderful opportunity to catch up and reflect on the great impact Amani Sasa lessons have had on our lives. Foni, Eunice and Yves shared how even their friends have noticed significant changes in their lives, even explicitly asking them what it is that had changed to make them so very focused. DianaKate experienced growth of a different kind: she is now more courageous. In the last term of school, DianaKate walked with a friend grieving the loss of a parent through that very difficult season. These are just a few of the many tales of how these young adults have been impacted by the lessons and fellowship provided during Amani Sasa ‘08.

We wanted to end the year in the same way we spent the year together. What better way is there than by giving back to the community? In December, we volunteered at Happy Life Children’s Home in Nairobi, a home for abandoned and orphaned children. For two days we painted bedrooms, helped with cleaning, and spent the afternoons playing and singing with the children. We were struck by the children’s desperate desire for love and attention – so evident in their desire to be held all the time. We were thankful to be able to share with them the love and peace with which we ourselves have been blessed.

Our time at the Happy Life Children’s Home gave us yet another opportunity to grow. It opened our eyes to the fact there is something we can do to make a difference, if only by giving our time. The babies’ stories made us grateful for our own homes, family, and friends. Moreover, it spoke volumes of how much God cares about our needs just from watching and listening to how faithfully He has provided for this particular home with food, clothing and friends that walk in and give in kind or financially.

And of course, another major milestone was receiving new friends who have just graduated from Amani Watoto into Amani Sasa. We are very excited to have them with us and look forward to seeing how they will grow together with us in the coming years.

We are very grateful to those that continually supported us through last year. The Amani Sasa program could not have blossomed as richly as it did without your love.

Blessings,

Mary K.

Amani Sasa is a supplemental program to Amani’s self-sustaining work and is supported by donations.

 

Amani Sasa Camp Update

This April Amani had the Amani Sasa “Peace Now” Youth four day camp. The youth traveled to Malewa- Bush Ventures, 2 hours north of Nairobi. The 18 teenagers had been looking forward to the camp for a while. It was a new experience for many – a camp site, thatched shower rooms and dining hall, tents, high ropes course, clean and fresh air and the natural sounds of birds and animals.

Our first day consisted of a CPR (Creating Positive Relationships) short course on the theme ‘Our sexuality is a special gift from God worth respecting and protecting.’ It was relevant and geared towards their age group. The campers interacted and listened to personal experiences by the facilitators from Dawntreader Adventures, Nairobi Chapel and Tanari Trust.

The second and third day offered the teenagers a chance to do low elements as well as the high ropes course. The low elements challenged them in teamwork and assisting others while having fun in the process. The high ropes course challenged them as individuals to conquer their fears. This was a different experience as they took the roles of encouraging those climbing and even those that were afraid to try. They realized that everyone has different strengths and weaknesses and together we compliment each other and make a better, peaceful community. For example, the ropes and harness experience caused each camper to realize there are times when we will need to trust those around us. The entire trip was a great success. The teenagers bonded through times of fellowship, exercise and devotions. We also watched environmental documentaries which reminded us of the importance of taking care of the environment.

We would like to convey our heart felt gratitude to everyone who made the camp a success through giving of their time or other resources. May God bless you for making these memories and teachings a reality!