by the time our movie was over, it was dark. the huge fire we'd witnessed earlier in the day had been put out, and the police -for the most part- had broken up the huge mob that had been watching the process.
when we got out of our movie, we started walking the few blocks back to our hotel... until we were stopped by the police who had roped off a couple blocks of space around the building that had been burned. those blocks just happened to be the normal -and safer- route home to our hotel. the police officer -with an extremely large gun- directed us down another street, and daniel looked over his shoulder at lauren and i and michele, and said "we're taking the long way".
what would've been a five minute walk turned into one that i couldve sworn was an hour (really, it was like 15 minutes).
we were in nairobi. at night. walking through a scary part of town.
two white girls... one supermodel... and one white guy. we stand out in a crowd, but we stood out even more, as our white skin practically seemed to glow in the dark as we walked down the street.
i was a bit scared... not gonna lie... and when i get scared, i get real quiet and tense... and that's what happened.
i dont know what the other girls were thinking, but when i saw the dark streets ahead and realized we'd be walking them, every sense hightened. every shadow looked darker, and i imagined that every corner i couldn't see past contained evil men who were going to attack us the second i looked away. after a minute of thinking this way, i realized had to control my thoughts or i would lose it. so i decided to do what we all do when we dont know what's going on...
look to daniel.
okay, men... all men...
you're impressive. you men in your own way are seriously some of the most impressive creatures that God ever did create.
can i get an "amen!" ladies?
although we women may laugh and poke fun at your manly ways sometimes, there are those times when our breath just catches because you excel at being... well... men. really, it's one of the only reasons why we sit and watch y'all play sports like football.
taking whatever each other can dish out, chasing after each other like maniacs who stole each others' women, and then slamming each other to the ground (all while in tights) just to hold a piece of sewn together pig skin which is apparently the object of your affection... and all of this just FOR FUN.
man. guys, we females might not understand your motive for such things, but we can appreciate how impressive you are when you get your heart pounding, pulse racing, "i feel invincible right now, and i'd like the chance to prove it" feeling...
when that drug-like adrenaline whispers in your ear, "i've got your back if this gets ugly", and you sincerely wish -and secretly dread- for someone to challenge your committment to protect what is yours. when our safety is in question, we women encourage your utilization of all the adrenaline you've got.
i'd imagine it's kinda like being infused with the hulk's magic potion.
for lauren, michele and i... we were glad McHulk was leading us around nairobi that night.
completely silent, listening to every footstep, and snapping our heads around whenever any noise got close to us, we followed daniel's lead.
he had one hand in his pocket as we walked by the edge of a park with a huge wall of bushes on our left side, and a dark street with random people sleeping in bus station alcoves, on our right.
then he casually took his hand out of his pocket and kept walking.
something was different though.
my eyes fell on the cupped hand at his side. he was wearing long sleeves, so i could barely see it, but he was cupping what looked like the end of a piece of metal in his hand... and half of it disappeared up his sleeve. i realized i'd seen it at the house one time.
he has this weapon he carries around when traveling. it looks like a five inch metal cylinder, but it drops down and expands to a good 16 inches or so in like a second if you need to defend yourself. you just hold it in your hand, and keep a finger on the end, and if you move your finger aside, it becomes a very threatening metal baton that could easily kill someone.
daniel tensed as someone moved in the bus alcove, and we girls shifted the tiniest bit closer to him and towards the bushes as we walked by a man who was moving in his temporary home on the bus stop floor. daniel developed eyes in the back of his head i think, as we kept walking.
daniel kept his hand out of his pocket and at the ready as we walked the last (and darkest) block to our hotel, and then we were safe. i walked into the hotel lobby and felt my whole body relax. it actually hurt when my muscles eased... i was THAT tense.
i have never in my life been as appreciative of a confident man who knows how to handle himself, as i was that night.
when we girls got back to our room, the door shut and we and let out a collective "HOLY CRAP!" in regard to our intense bodyguard and his secret baton weapon.
guys? bring on the hulk...
we women approve.
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