Ayden had the opportunity to visit schools in Kenya during both of his trips. And oh how it touched his heart when he saw that many of those schools are nothing like what he was used to. Many classrooms were overcrowded, and students shared resources. I know you are thinking that we experience that in America. When I say overcrowded, I am talking about up to 100 elementary aged children in one classroom. Sharing resources? Three students shared the same desk and writing surface. While one was completing the assignment on the small chalkboard, the other two students waited patiently for their turns. In one school, a student very excitedly asked if Ayden wanted to see their library. Ayden expected to see book shelves with colorful books. Ayden loved to read, so he just knew he was going to get the opportunity to talk about books with this student. He thought he might see one of his own favorite books on the shelf like Dogman or Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Oh boy, was he mistaken. What the student showed him was a small wardrobe style cabinet with paper books. These books had very few pictures and were yellowed with age. The pages were tearing because they were brittle. 

Ayden's heart broke. Here was a student who was so excited about having a library because most of the schools do not have a library. With tears in his eyes, he told me that the students were so grateful for what they had, but that they didn't even know there was better out there. He just didn't understand why the conditions were this way. He saw school-aged children in the streets during school hours because their families could not pay the school tuition or fees for the uniforms. He watched as students left school and went straight to working in the tea fields to help earn money to pay for school. He shared his snack with students who came to school with nothing for lunch. After all, some of the schools do not have kitchens. And yes, Ayden often shared his own lunch at school with students who did not have lunch money, but it may have only been one student, not 50. A pack of peanut butter crackers doesn't go far when sharing with 50. 

Now, not all schools were to this extreme, but none of them "looked" like school in America. And one thing Ayden noted was that all of the children were laughing and happy while at school no matter the condition.

And let me tell you, as soon as he told Keeton about children not having access to lunch at school, Keeton wanted to save the day. He wanted to feed them all! (Keeton always wanted to save the day. He was very vocal about helping people have better days, but sometimes he was much more reserved about how he helped others. That sweet boy of mine bought lunch everyday for the last weeks of school and gave it to a student who couldn't buy lunch. He never told anyone. He just handled it himself. He saw a need and felt led to handle to it. Ultimately a teacher saw what was happening and made sure Keeton and the other student had lunch. I didn't even know until after Keeton was already in heaven.)

Ayden's time in the schools added one more dream to his list. A school with resources, a library, and lunch. It would have floors, not dirt. It would have full roof and walls. There would be desks for all students. Oh, and bathrooms!