A School Lunch Story: The Generous Invitation

A 10-minute walk from my residence was an academy within Busia County. I targeted it for my second lunch visit. On the material day, I walked into the school, focused on finding the reception to the head teacher's office.

A teacher on the premises was chatting with another visitor and greeted me proceeding to show me the direction when I asked for it. It was a few minutes past 1 p.m.

At the reception, the secretary ushers me in when I can enter the office. We chatted and I was informed I had missed the lunch session but could come in another time. I'm glad to make her acquaintance and plan my next visit.

Days later, I arrived at the premises in time for the lunch. The ECDE children are standing near the dining hall for the food to be served. I'm amused by their eagerness.

The head teacher allowed me to sit in her office as I waited for the kitchen to prepare for serving. Then I’m ushered to the dining hall where an organized queue started to form. It's rice and green grams on the menu.

I stand by note-taking as children settle down with their meals. When the queue dies out, the head teacher offers me lunch. I agreed to the experience by taking a seat near some upper-grade pupils.

Back to the office after lunch, the head teacher asked for my opinion of my observations. We get into both what works and what needs improvement. She graciously then helped fill my survey paper as the meeting ended. I’m grateful for the opportunity to interact with the school as she prepared to attend to her schedule.

I’m motivated by the openness of such schools to allow me to participate in their activity. I looked forward to presenting my survey to another school because of this positive experience.