all i really want to do is baby be friends with you

Hello! Today was the culmination of weeks of hard work, blood (from thorns in the bush), sweat(from long walks between bomas to collect data in the hot sun), and tears (from frustration, exhaustation, and joy). We presented our results and recommendations to over 80 community members of the Mbirikani Group Ranch, stakeholders, and representatives from the Mbirikani Aid Clinic. Mostly babas (husbands) were representing their households. Unfortunately, only a handful of mamas came. This was slightly expected because of the role that the woman plays in this culture as the housekeeper and caregiver. Many of our recommendations were well received by our audience, others not. Topics of pesticide use, diet, and HIV lead to heated debates between community members.
In my time here, I have noticed that a lot of "this is what we have done for years" thrown around. Unfortunately, "what has been done for years" doesn't work with other modern practices that have been adopted by the Maasai. For example, I spoke with a nurse yesterday who informed me that many women do not exclusively breast feed their children anymore simply because Western culture is abandoning the practice. In an area where disease spreads like wildfire, babies can't afford to not have the essential immunities that only breast milk provides.
Our presentation stressed that in order to preserve this society, Maasai must be flexible to change certain practices. They cannot assume all of the burden however; cooperation from NGOS, government officials and the local community must exist. Indeed, public health cannot be addressed by only one sector.
You could not ignore the fact that these people were passionate about the status of their community. They would not have traveled so far on a Sunday, when nearly everyone spends the majority of the day at church, if they didn't.
I'm going to bed tonight feeling incredibly proud to be part of this project. Though I feel like my time has passed without any mercy of slowing down, I know it is time for me to leave. For my first trip in Africa, five weeks provided me with nearly more than I could handle at times. I saw more than I wanted to but didn't really see enough. I'll be back though.