IC Trip: Marich

For this IC-Trip I chose to go to Marich, out of all of the other trips that were offered.  Last year, I would hear my sister talk about the trip, and that made me want to go. She told me it was a lot of fun, because you bond with friends, but you also have the

opportunity to help the people from the area, as well as learn about their culture. 

I really didn’t know what to expect of the trip. I was the only 10^th grader, along with another girl, with whom, I wasn't really friends with. But as the trip went by, I was able to meet people. 
Apart from the bonding I did, the trip to Marich also taught me to be grateful, and appreciate all the things I have. Because nowadays we take everything we have for granted. I've noticed that Marich is an area that has been isolated from Kenya, a place that doesn’t receive much help, and still needs development. Yet, the people seem to be happy with what they have, even though it’s not much. I believe that in our lives, we have the need to want more and more, even when we are given so many things and so many opportunities and we still don’t seem to be grateful for what is given to us; whereas for them, they are thankful for the smallest things that they are given. 
When we went to the bridge ceremony, I saw that so many people gathered to celebrate, to dance, and to give speeches and thank people, including thanking God.  For some of us, it might just been a bridge that will enable people to cross from one side of the river to the other, but for them it symbolized hope, and a bigger step towards improvement, and development. It is a bridge that will save lives, and that will help them in the future. Another aspect that I noticed and enjoyed from the trip was the fact that we were able to interact with people from that area. I wasn’t able to take part of the building

of the playground, but I still had the chance to play with the children from the school. Playing with them taught me that they can have fun in the simplest ways, which are singing, dancing, and running around. Which is something, most kids in our society have forgotten to do. Nowadays, children need computers, phones, and video games to have fun. It was nice to share different games we all knew. We didn't speak the same language, but it still wasn't a problem for us, as we always found a way to communicate.

Whether it was making signs with your hands, or saying a word or two in Swahili. I saw that the children over there took whatever they had, and made the most out of it, and had huge smiles on their faces. I was even given the nickname “my favorite mzungu” by a few children. Which made me really happy, because I was enjoying their company, and so were they. To me, this trip was also a way to disconnect from the chaotic life we lead in the city, where we don’t have time to appreciate much, where we are always in a rush. It was a trip that allowed us to stop for a moment, and see all the things that are given to us, and appreciate them, as we can’t appreciate them in Nairobi, or any city.