The Masai tribe is found throughout Kenya and Tanzania. They wear several long pieces of cloth draped and pinned over their body. Ornaments are a huge feature of the Masai tribe. This jewelry can consist of long necklaces, earrings, head bands, silver, and bracelets. Men and women both desire to have large holes in their ears which includes stretching their earlobes. The men also tend to have long hair or they will add extensions. They are traditionally nomad herders of livestock. The Masai have lost a lot of their land due to tourists wanting to go on Safari and see the wild animals.
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This last week I had the opportunity to camp near a family of Masai. They opened up one of their homes for us to use as a dining room and storage area. The man had four wives before the family became Christians and so it’s an interesting situation to be in. It is common for the Masai to have many wives. This man also has 28 children! I loved hanging out with the wives especially Sabina. We couldn’t communicate except with hand motions and my bits of Swahili, but she’d say my name all the time. It was so sweet.
On Saturday, the women got a huge kick out of dressing us up in their traditional Masai attire. This was a really fun day. I love being immersed in their culture.
Our ministry involved “seminars” in the afternoon with one of us sharing a message and worship. Then film ministry in the evening. Church was held outside under a tree. My favorite kind of Church service, in the midst of God’s creation!
Hi Sarah! I am a social worker & my background was Buddhist. Since I completed graduate school last year, I made the decision to become Christian & got baptized last Easter. I thought continuing my pilgrimage (e.g., visiting missions in CA, attending church weekly, working with the unfortunate, etc) would alleviate my emptiness. But I still feel empty. I think I need to continue my soul searching before helping people. Maybe spend a week with the Masai tribe? A tribe in Mexico?? What would you recommend??? I appreciate any advice you can offer. Thank you in advance.
Hi, Thanks so much for sharing your story! I’m so glad you’ve decided to follow Christ. I think doing mission work and helping others is a great way to grow in our faith relationship. But I also believe in the importance of seeking Christ through prayer and scripture. I would suggest finding a Christian mentor or pastor that you look up to as a role model and asking if he/she would meet with you on a regular basis to help you establish your personal relationship with Christ and learn more about what it means to be a Christian.
I hope thats helpful!
Blessings, Sarah
Great post, Sarah. Very cool photos. Love the seating under the tree – that’s unlike any “church” service I’ve ever been a part of!
Thanks! I know, I loved it!
Great feature! How’s my times have you been to Africa? How long do you typically stay?
Well, I went to Burkina Faso for a month. Then I left on the World Race, which is a mission trip for 11 months in 11 countries. During that time, I spent a month in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. Traveling to every African country is pretty high on my bucket list! I love it there! Thanks for commenting!
Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for sharing this lovely story with us.
One of these days I would like to go over to Africa. It is just a question of time and money.
It is always interesting to hear about different cultures and what they do. For example, what you said in your write up about stretching earlobs.
Thanks again.
Thanks for your comment! Africa is my favorite place besides of course home. So, I highly recommend going if you ever get a chance!
Sarah, for how long did you stay with them? As you outline, communication must be tough?!
I will head to Embu in Kenya in August and start off a round trip from there.
I was in Tanzania for a month, and we traveled around spending a week in 4 locations. Two of these were with the Masai. Yes, communication can be very difficult or frustrating, but we typically had a translator to help most of the time. I really enjoyed my time in Kenya as well, Nairobi is a fun city, though we were mostly near Lake Victoria.