"If you want to get somewhere fast, go alone. If you want to go the distance, take a team." --Ancient African Proverb
Moses Mathenge and me with Lodge Manager, Josphat Ndegwa
Some of you might remember from earlier posts that when I was in Samburu last year I enjoyed the hospitality and accommodation of the Sarova Shaba Lodge. It is a lovely spot, slightly inside the Samburu National Park along the Ewaso Ngiro River where elephants and other wildlife often come to drink at sunrise and sunset. While there, I met a number of lovely people who greeted me with open arms when I arrived back again this summer.
Moses Lekomet, and his beautiful smile
When I had a problem with a flight last year, Moses Mathenge introduced me to Carol Ndegwa from AirKenya. Carol helped me with my flight problem, was a lovely dinner companion at Shaba and has come to be a good friend to The Samburu Project. AirKenya is now the official airline sponsor of The Samburu Project due to her efforts.
Going on safari to Samburu is probably a 2 or 3 day excursion for most visitors. I don't think many guests have the opportunity to stay for more than a week as I have. This truly has given me an opportunity to get to know Josphat Ngali, "Chicken George," Moses Lekomet and the other lovely staff at Sarova Shaba. They have made my time in Samburu seem like home and have truly become friends to me, Lucas, Eric and everyone associated with TSP.
After a particularly long day at dinner regaled Josephat with the story of our day, traveling several hours through the deep bush to discover that a HUGE tree had fallen on the well. We all stared at it in amazement before we could even get out of the car. There were still a few people milling about and lots of donkeys drinking from the trough. It was quite a shock!
I went on and on about how the community would ever be able to get that tree removed, never anticipating Josphat would, without hesitation, offer to send a man with a chain saw to cut away the tree. TSP and the people at the Lerug well were blessed twice! Once that the tree did not damage the pump and secondly, that our friends at Sarova Shaba Lodge offered themselves to assist with this problem. We could not have cleared this tree without the generous spirit of our friends at Sarova Shaba Lodge.
Once again, I was overcome with the impact that this tiny organization is having by really uniting people in so many ways, every day. For me, that is the true meaning of globalization. While I was in Kenya I was told "if you want to go fast, go alone but if you want to go the distance, go with a team." I'm so happy and gratified that the good people at Sarova Shaba are on the TSP team and we are on theirs. Ashe Oleng to everyone there.
Bonus Footage: Click here to meet the one and only "Chicken George" of Sarova Shaba Lodge.