It's Time

It's Time once again to set the heart towards Kenya, a place that since 2004 has impacted me in deep and profound ways. In fact July 2016 will mark the 14th visit, an accumulated full year of breathing the sweet Kenyan air. 

It's Time to introduce others to the beauty of Kenya and its people. Dennis White, Renee Rerup and Senem Ozkin bring valued experience from their roles in the Ontario Court of Justice. While in Kenya we anticipate meeting with judicial officers within the High Court of Kenya both in Nairobi and Kakamega. Senem has presented at the Supreme Court of Canada and the Ontario Court of Appeal and for the past 5 years has focused her efforts to promote legal advocacy to those in financial need. Dennis, Renee and I are members of the Judiciary, serving as Justices of the Peace. We hope to learn from each other in a number of areas of mutual interest and concern and focusing on human rights, women's and children's issues, extra judicial measures, advocacy and matters relating to youth criminal justice. 

It's Time to hear again the cries of children whose voices are so faint they are not heard beyond a mud hut or a dried field of maize or sugar cane. Their stories need to be told.

It's Time to bring some hope to an area where acute poverty is the norm. In return there are unspeakable joys that can only be felt by being there.

It's Time to refocus and renew our vision of what can be done with the little we have, knowing that all our resources and strength come from above.

It's Time we hold fast to the ideal that together we can help restore people and communities to what they were meant to be - self reliant, free from fear and persecution, living in dignity with justice for all.

It's Time...

In the fall of 2015 I had the extraordinary experience of crossing the Mediterranean Sea on a flight south from Amsterdam to Nairobi. It is precisely here among these beautiful Greek islands that the world's attention is now focussed. Those forced to flee their homeland seek passage in vessels unfit for the passage. There is no guarantee they will make it anywhere, let alone a place free of tyranny and oppression. Their very existence on planet earth hangs in the balance. Most make it while tragically growing numbers become statistics, washed ashore, forgotten. We are seeing a migration of people by the tens of thousands, refugees leaning on the mercy of those who are unprepared yet willing to take them in. The cries of displaced peoples have touched our hearts. Wounded and broken, they deserve better. 

Desperate Syrian refugees will hopefully find the shelter they deserve. In their time of crisis, whispers of hope will hopefully be heard through a welcome cup of tea or some cool water. As Mother Theresa said it, "Let's do what we can, when we can and as often as we can, for as many as we can." I know Canada is doing its share.

We cross into Africa. The stunning view of Egypt's aquamarine shoreline to the west seems endless. From this altitude I can see a hundred miles or more. Then like an African nightfall, the vastness of the desert floor suddenly appears beneath. Heading towards the source of the Nile River, the topography undulates like the waves of the sea. The wind has carved out its own version of valleys and peaks. River beds that once had a courageous but fleeting life of their own grace the parched landscape. A sand storm as thick as a Canadian winter whiteout is making its way north. Such power, with dimensions some 500 meters high and a kilometre thick, it marches like an army platoon bent on destruction. 

With no vegetation in sight, a thousand shades of light brown, orange and creamy yellows are alive to the light of day. It must be 50 degrees Celsius on that carpet of sand. It is hard to imagine that for centuries caravans of travellers have passed through this area and made it to the other side. The vastness of the Sahara is staggering. In a place close to where human habitation began, there is nothing on the horizon that would suggest any form of life other than reptiles and scorpions. What secrets can be found in its history? What resources lie under its surface? 

Listening to the jazz sounds of South Africa's Abdullah Ibrahim playing African Marketplace, I see a straight line fully built highway passing through oil fields on either side. There is life after all, just a different kind. Perfect timing and as if by brilliant design, the KLM stewardess offers some tasty vanilla ice cream and a cup of cool water. If only the rest of Africa could experience the same.

Kenya now appears on the southern horizon. The magnificent Rift Valley is beginning to reveal its glory as it reflects a brilliant sunset. I hope and pray that the work of CES Canada continues to bring hope for Kenyan scholars who seek to survive, adapt, and grow no matter what. They too deserve a chance to contribute positively and find fulfillment in all fields of work.

Humanity groans for freedom and a new way of living. Surely we are part of that in ways we cannot comprehend. 

It's Time...we leave June 26 for Kenya.