Last week we stayed in a small Maasai village called Lemonata and partnered with Maasai Wanderings to paint some classrooms in Matimu Primary School, a school that they sponsor. While we were in Lemonata we were blessed with the opportunity not only to live along side the Maasai but also to be integrated into a little bit of their culture. It is during this time of the year that the Maasai how their Emuratta Ceremony aka circumcision ceremony for the boys of the tribe to become Murani or warriors. These ceremonies are a boys transformation into a man and involve a long two day celebration while the boys are told secrets only Maasai warriors know and end with the circumcision of all boys involved. On our first day in the village we were lucky enough to meet a young man, in his early twenties, who was having the celebration at his house and also participating in the ceremony. He invited us to the celebration and we eagerly accepted. It started on Saturday afternoon and there were five boys that were to become men and hundreds of other Maasai men, women, and children. We all got dressed up and carried the two crates of soda, that we bought as gifts, over to the house. We were immediately given seats on the front porch and brought plates of food. After eating we were welcomed into the circle of dancing Maasai warriors, a very rare opportunity, the girls in our group got the beautiful beaded necklaces on and entered into the middle of the circle while we danced around the outside. It was an amazing experience but when the boys were taken to the woods for the night by the elders we went back to camp to rest while the party raged on. In the morning the women were not permitted to go so only us boys went to the part where the young Maasai would actually get circumcised. Due to the fact that we were not Maasai Warriors we were not able to watch the actual circumcising but it was a once a life time experience that I will never forget.
Elijah Slattery-Heidrick