The Long Rains Arrive in a Parched Land

We are entering the second night of sporadic yet heavy evening rains in Nairobi, signaling the long-awaited arrival of the long rains.  Though often a nuisance to life in the city, rain is regarded as a blessing across Africa, for without it life cannot be sustained in this agriculturally dependent continent. 

Kenya has been facing a food crisis since the beginning of the year, as the election violence drove many farmers off their land and the short rains which usually come in October and November were almost completely absent. We have watched over the past month the mounting worry on our Kenyan friends’ faces whenever we spoke of the weather and noted the absence of clouds in the sky. There are usually some short showers in early to mid March in the runup to the long rains, and so many were worried that a dry March foreshadowed inadequate rains in April and May.

And so the arrival of heavy showers yesterday has lifted everyones spirits, plants have already recovered from a dingy brown to emerald green, and the boys are delighted to be able to put on their rain boots and stomp about in puddles.  

Despite a bit of celebration, we continue to pray earnestly for these months ahead. There are two perils–the most obvious is that the rains could fail, which means that they would be too short and too little to nourish the crops through the dry season to harvest. On the other end of the spectrum, too much rain too fast will cause flash flooding–the water will run off the fields, overflow rivers, and return to the ocean before the ground can soak it up and water tables can be replenished.  Kenya needs steady, consistent, even rain over the next few months if a much larger famine is to be averted. 

But for today, the boys spotted a rainbow as the evening showers approached, and as I type I can hear raindrops outside. Mvua ni baraka za Mungu (Rain is a blessing from God).