The Roots that Connect Us All

Since July, when the attacks on the Samburu started heating up again, I have also been part of a small group here in Malden, Massachusetts planning a community cookout for today, October 18th. What’s that got to do with the Samburu far away in Northern Kenya? Well, the group is called Malden Grassroots and the cookout also included a Justice Fair, where local organizations told others about the work they do.

This morning I baked six loaves of bread to be served with the halal/kosher hotdogs and hamburgers and other foods.   I had homemade Samburu pieces laid out on an orange cloth atop the church’s grand piano. They came over to look, to listen, to talk, to be concerned… and to bring a little of the Samburu into their own homes and lives. 

And you know what? People cared. About 150 people came to the local church and crowded inside to share food (it may have been planned as a cookout, but today it decided to snow!!!).  And in return, the residents of Malden, Chelsea, Medford and other small communities here just outside Boston willingly contributed. Those funds will go directly to the Samburu of northern Kenya.

It’s that simple. It’s that easy to connect. Justice is about sharing the resources we have with everyone in our community. The grassroots which we fed and cultivated here today in Malden, Massachusetts spread wide and deep, as far as the dry and dusty plains of Samburu in northern Kenya. When we care, we find that we are all part of one community and we welcome each other into our lives.

Roxanne

p.s. And I especially want to thank Dominica…she’s helped me with my knitting and enjoyed my shortbread and today she tirelessly helped me sort, layout, admire and wonder at all the pieces the Samburu made.  And then she packed the beads up and lugged the big container out to the car with me.