NEWS FOR MIDDLE OF JUNE 2009

Dear Friends,

I keep on drawing back onto default understanding! This seems to be an exercise in exploring the human mind! ... I realised years ago that people here attribute their current state to the actions / pleasure / displeasure of prior generations. Their ancestors' actions hem them in today! 'Success' arises when someone can break the ancestral curses. This is done through ritual, prayer, and sacrifice. The latter can be the most important things to happen in life.

'Knowing' this in a theoretical way is one thing. Actually living with and interacting with people as if it is the case, is another. It is so easy to lapse into social, scientific, and 'British' understandings - that take me right out of synch with where people are! Then I end up talking nonsense (to them) and offering 'no-hope' to them

It is amazing to me how clearly I can 'know' something like this. But, because it is so strange and foreign to my upbringing (and considered by my people to be superstitious nonsense) how hard it is to take it seriously! A struggle that I face every day?!

Finding ourselves in an enormous financial squeeze has forced us to greatly hike fees at KIST as from September. This could have a serious effect on student numbers. Intake has already been as little as a third of what it was a few years ago. A public announcement has been made - to the effect that the Principal Don Smith has resigned and is to leave Kenya in August, after 7 years of service at KIST.

Jim