Welome to Nairobi

My first African sunset was glimpsed beyond the wing of the airplane, over the vast Sahara desert and beyond the Darfur Mountains. Everything about this journey has felt surreal. It all hit home after the steward announced, "Welcome to Nairobi!" It was best we landed at night, for my rampant anticipation could not have handled the sensory overload that daylight would bring. A very quiet night at Hogmead and a soak in an old oversized tub was just what I needed.

Dreams as Big as Africa

When I was a young girl, I dreamed of Africa. I dreamed of a world lost in time, windswept plains as wide as my little arms could spread, rhythms, drumbeats, the cradle of man, the heartbeat of the world. I longed to someday see and feel the beating hooves of the wildebeest migration, glimpse an elephant herd or majestic giraffe making their way across a golden savannah, feel myself tucked in at night by an endless blanket of stars.

I would spread myself across a big National Geographic map and dream. Imagination. Freedom. Open space. Never-ending sky. Unlimited possibility. I dreamed as only a child can dream.

Little did I know, decades later, my dreams would come true.