Simon

We call him Uncle Simon, though he is just a few years older than we are
He is our driver, though by now, just our dear friend
His voice is soft and his beautiful Swahili accent thick
We feel safe when we're with him and he laughs when he's with us
We drive through the thin, crowded streets of the city
We walk through the great, lush National Parks
We see everything with him
The slum villages, stretching the perimeter of the city
The colorful markets
The Masai herdsmen
The old, hunched man who sells bamboo off his cart
The young boys playing soccer on our way back from Tracy
The Kenyan runners
The Kenyan people
We learn Swahili from him
We learn patience from him
Simon
Rafiki



Rafiki- friend in Swahili