Mama Pamela

Agata Ivanna Pogorelsky

This is a photo of one of the volunteer mothers in the orphanage and one of the most lively, beautiful beings that ever crossed my path. Mama Pamela. I admire, respect and love this woman deeply. Mama Pamela was working very long hours to make sure we had everything we needed, such as drinking water and daily meals. I spent most of my time in the kitchen with her and Mama Helida, learning to cook, to sing, to dance. Life for them was a celebration and this image represents just that.

Emanuel

Agata Ivanna Pogorelsky

If there's any food I really miss from Kenya it's sugar cane, the candy of rural Kenya. If I was craving sugar, all I needed to do is grab a machete and go get some cane—apparently it also cleans your teeth because of the way you have to eat it. This boy, Emanuel, was the one who taught me how to chew cane. Even though he didn't speak English, we learned how to communicate. All it took was time and a little patience—mostly from his side.

Coconut Anyone?

Agata Ivanna Pogorelsky

After I volunteered for a month in Dago Dala Hera Orphanage, I thought it would be nice to stay a little extra time and travel to Kenya's coast. I spent some time in Mombasa and then took a bus and a boat to get to Lamu. This is the island where the Prince of Monaco has his house. It's also an island where people are friendly and life is easy. I met some locals with whom I became friends in no time; Oscar was one of them. He invited me and my friend to his home that was close to becoming a treehouse and treated us to a nice lunch—grilled fish that we all went out to get the night before and potatoes with a coconut sauce. The experience was unforgettable and the people I met will always remain in my heart, for their warmth, hospitality and friendship.

Boys Will Be Boys

Agata Ivanna Pogorelsky 

These two boys were from Dago Dala Hera Orphanage. Steve, the one in front, was the one who taught me how to play drums with a bucket and a stick. On my way to the village, I had bought a nice drum to bring back to Canada, but I ended up giving it to this boy. Not only could he play, but he could also sing very beautifully. It was hard not to tear up every time I heard his boyish voice teaching me some Luo song. Emanuel, the one in the back, is his best friend and a trouble-maker. We spent a long time just laughing and singing and they'd would teach me their language so that we could communicate a little bit better. This picture represents perfectly who they are and my relationship to them.

The Girls

Agata Ivanna Pogorelsky

These four girls all live in the Dago Dala Hera Orphanage. Some are orphans, some aren't. This image captures the spirit of each one of the girls.

Rain on Mwewe Lane

Agata Ivanna Pogorelsky

This is probably my favourite photo from my first trip volunteering in Kenya. It was taken the second night in Nairobi. The following day we were on our way to Dago and the whole town was flooded. The smell of the rain on the pavement was beautiful and the sound was soothing. I remember sitting outside the hotel, just looking out to the street and realizing I had finally made it to Kenya—this was the moment I took it all in. In that instant I realized I had fulfilled one of my long-term dreams. I was there, there was no denying it.

Rooftops

Agata Ivanna Pogorelsky

This photo was taken in Kibera, which is the biggest slum in Nairobi, Kenya. We, a group of students from Toronto, went to work together with a youth group from the slum called KCYP. The members all live in Kibera and organize street performances to bring awareness about issues in their community such as AIDS, abuse and education. The experience was very powerful. Before the street performance, in which I participated to attract an audience, I remember standing at this particular point and thinking there were too many rooftops, how could they all stay up? At the same time, there was a sense of unity. There's something really beautiful about this photo that is hard to put into words, not only how I felt when I was looking over Kibera, but how I felt after I left and how I feel today looking at the image. 

Far Away

Agata Ivanna Pogorelsky 

This photo was taken on a weekend escape to Masai Mara. We took a short break from working at Dago Dala Hera Orphanage and spent a couple of days on safari. It was a beautiful experience. Masai Mara is a national park on the border with Tanzania and it's the home of lions, gazelles, cheetahs, buffaloes, monkeys, giraffes, elephants and all the animals in the cast of The Lion King. Funny enough, the whole place looks like the set of the Disney movie, you can see where the inspiration for the movie came from. I also learned from the driver of the vehicle that Simba, the Lion King, means "lion" in swahili. 

Shopping Day 

Agata Ivanna Pogorelsky

When I looked out the window of our 16-seater minivan, on our way from Nairobi to Dago Dala Hera Orphanage (in a rural area of Western Kenya), I was shocked to discover the chaos that 20 minutes of intense rain had caused. A few metres ahead, the main bridge to town was obstructed by an incredible amount of running water. In spite of it all, locals kept doing their everyday business as if it wasn't a big deal. This image to me represents the true acceptance of circumstances.

Bath Time

Agata Ivanna Pogorelsky

Here you see Mama Pamela giving a bath to Magda, who is not her child. One of the things I saw a lot during my stay in Kenya was a strong sense of community. A child is raised by the village and scenarios like this one are pretty common. This image also makes you think about the use of water, how precious it can be when you need to walk miles and carry loads just to get "clean" water, versus the commodity of turning the tap on and off. After having to take cold "showers" with one full bucket of water, I realized you really don't need more than that to clean yourself. Seeing things like this make you realize we do live in a wasteful society and that it is indeed time to make changes.

Jump

Agata Ivanna Pogorelsky

This is a traditional Masai dance. As we entered their village, we were received with this beautiful ceremony, in which each man has to jump, one at a time, to show strength. The men in "our tribe" were invited to participate as well and the whole scene was incredible. To watch different cultures come together in a single dance was very touching and a great reminder that we are all human beings, regardless of where we were born or where we chose to live, and it only takes to jump to connect with each other.

A La Deriva

Agata Ivanna Pogorelsky 

This shot is from a small trip to Lamu island, five hours away from Mombasa by road and a 30-minute boat ride. This image captures perseverance as well as team effort. Something I saw plenty of in Lamu, as well as in other parts of Kenya, was the sense of community. Everyone works together because everyone pretty much lives in precarious conditions; at least that's how I perceived it. The less you have, the more you give, because you understand what it's like to be without and you don't want that for others. This boat, these three men and the bucket are a metaphor of what life is about. If your boat is sinking, keep going and learn how to work with others, because that's the key to getting where you need to go.

Don't Forget About Me

Agata Ivanna Pogorelsky

This picture was shot in Kibera, the largest slum in Nairobi and second largest in all of Africa. The first time I was there, I couldn't believe my eyes. I have seen photos of slums, I have been in the outskirts of slums in my country (Argentina), but I have never been in the heart of one. It is hard to describe in words what it feels like to be there. On one hand, the living conditions are below what you can imagine as poverty, but on the other hand, people don't seem to be as miserable as one would expect. Most work, raise families and socialize with neighbours like anybody else. The girl in the photo has an intrigued look in her eyes. I don't think is sadness, I think is hope. It all depends how you look at it.