Risotto

I can't remember ever having had risotto. I certainly have never made it. Till today. I had brought some stuff with me to cook a nice meal for my colleagues who simply seemed worn out by all that's been unfolding around them. And since we've been having power outages every night from 7 till almost 7 am, I thought it wise to cook the chicken I had bought on Sunday as well as the ground beef. (And no, I didn't put ground beef in the risotto. I made meat balls, just in case someone didn't care for the rice dish.)

I cooked an entire chicken in my iron pot so I'd have good chicken stock as well as chunks of chicken to add to the rice dish. And I used some dried shiitake mushrooms I also picked up in SA. (The bag of mushrooms weighed a fraction of just the lid of the pot. Should've brought more!)

Now, I agree that risotto isn't the simplest dish to make, simply because it requires a lot of stirring. But I think it's worth it. If one could find arborio rice in town, I'd make it again! But I strongly doubt you can find that in Eldoret. Perhaps in Nairobi. Not here, though.

So, back to dinner. It was good to simply "break bread" together. Life is continuing. Conversations over a meal may be different these days, but we were all in good spirits. Our village seems far removed from all that's unfolding around the country. Much was happening today. Please read the news.

On a different note: Flannel seems delighted to have me back. She's been spending much of her day right by my feet. I don't think she's pregnant, btw. Oh, maybe I haven't told you. Michelle, who was taking care of her while I was gone, thought she might be pregnant.

The kids are glad I'm back, too. I went to visit the children's home yesterday afternoon, and saw little Dennis smiling from ear to ear when I walked into the gazebo. When I looked again, he was sitting by my feet. I picked him up and chatted for a while till I needed to continue my rounds of greeting everyone at the children's home. I'll go back tomorrow to hang out with the kids for a while. I really, really miss the kids in Ilula, especially during this time. I wish I could be there with them, but right now, it's not possible for me to go to Ilula.

I'm glad to be back in Kenya, despite all that's happening around the country. I'm incredibly saddened by all that's happening.

Please keep praying for peace.