Tuesday Uganda will celebrate 50 years of independence from Britain! They are calling it the Jubilee and everyone is really excited, the kids will be home from school and we're going to make them cupcakes!
This morning at church they had a huge celebration. They asked everybody to come in traditional Ugandan attire, I did not purchase any, but was adorned in all black with red accents, and considered my skin to be yellow (red, yellow and black are the colors of the ugandan flag). We sang songs in Luganda, the native tongue, as well as English. In Uganda, they don't just sing, but they dance, shout, sing, praise, sound trumpets, and jump up and down. It was quite an exciting experience. The church also honored anybody over the age of 50, only 20 people stood on stage in a church filled with over 1000; speaks volumes to the national average age being 15! A 74 year old woman was the oldest and so she got a bit of an interview and then a rowdy applause, 74 is quite a feat!! I hope you enjoy some photos of this morning's service.
I also wanted to ask you all to pray for me and Uncle Joseph tomorrow. We are driving to a town called Mukano and getting as much information about a 4 year old girl, taking her for HIV testing, getting her immunizations and hopefully bringing her home to Rafiki tomorrow!!!
I thought at first we were just going to meet her and find out about her history, etc., but then this afternoon Joseph told me that we should be bringing her home tomorrow! Tears filled my eyes at the thought of bringing this little girl home; after losing her parents, to be able to bring her into a fun, loving, Christ-centered environment where she can grow, prosper and be full of joy. Please pray that all goes well tomorrow and that this little girl will adjust well if we have the opportunity to bring her to Rafiki!
Sorry, this is going to be a bit of everything...
The other night I was lying on my back in my room to do some ab work and what is up on my ceiling but 3 lizards; its a bit harder to fall asleep when you see mice, coockroaches and lizards in your living space close to bedtime! I do partially blame myself for the lizards in my room, I never close the door to my room and as soon as I walk out the door I am outside, what do they know if its inside or out!
So about 10 minutes after I posted my blog yesterday I was going to return my computer upstairs before the kids got up from their rest time. It had been raining outside and as I approached the step I reminded myself to be careful on the very slippery steps. (I've already skidded a few times!) The stairs certainly wouldn't comply with ANSI A117.1, which is the governing handicapped accessible code in the US, because of the lack of an abrasive surface. But despite my reminder...boom, I was flat on my back, well not exactly flat cause they were stairs. (Luckily the computer sustained no damage!)
One hospital visit later to make sure nothing in my hips or tailbone were permanently damaged, I am a walking sore disaster. You ever hear that saying when someone complains about their pain, for instance in their arm, and then you say want me to punch the other one so that will stop hurting? Well, the pain that I had in my back before doesn't hurt anymore, but it could be because the other new pain is just much greater. Please don't have much pity for clumsy old me, I only went to the hospital because it cost me $22 to be consulted and examined, $18 for several x-rays and $5 for some medicated deep heat rub, and now I know there is nothing really wrong with all this pain I've been having in my back, new and old.
I had great reservations about going to the hospital. My pride being one of them, my pain is so little compared to what others endure, and is it really that bad or am I just not being tough?! Even as we drove home I see this man walking with a huge limp in his gait and think, what am I going to see the doctor about?! So I'm sore and walking funny, but this too shall pass. A little prayer for healing would be much appreciated. Guess what I'm doing on Wednesday again? Hello $8 massage!!
I was reading an article in the newspaper last week about electricty per capita in Uganda and they compared the figure to that of the rest of Africa on average, and to the US. Well, its no wonder Uganda has constant power outages...the per capita kilowatt hours of available electricity for Uganda is 75 kwh, the average for all of Africa is 798 kwh, and the average in the US is 2645 kwh! (My figures are not exactly correct because I don't have the article anymore, but they are within a few kwh!). By the way, power has been pretty good the last week or so (knock on wood).
Today we finished up learning about Moses and we made a book about all we learned. I made a quick cover page and then wrote at the top of each of 12 pages a different part of Moses' life and then the kids drew on them and then signed the last page of the book, it looks really cute, I can't wait to read them the finished product tomorrow!
We also instituted game night tonight, shout out to my mom who always played games with me, it helps you learn so much! The littlest ones played Candy Land, the middle ones played Memory/Matching, and then we played Alphabet Bingo with the biggest kids, it went quite well for doing this for the first time. Hopefully it can become a Saturday night ritual since Friday night is movie night (when the power is on!).
I led devotions tonight on Romans 14. I've been reading Romans, one chapter a night and tonight I'll finish the book. I really enjoyed Romans 14 because it discusses strong and weak characters. In verse 13 it reads, "Therefore let us stop passing judgement on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way." And then in verse 17 it says, "For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.". Go ahead and pick the old Bible up, its got plenty of wisdom in it!
Last week we learned about Creation. On the 5th day God created the birds of the air and the fish of the sea. I've been collecting toilet paper rolls, to not only save them from the trash, but also to do something creative with them. Well, Auntie Jo and I looked up some creative ideas on Pinterest and boom, we made some octopuses with the kids and hung them on the chalk board.
I've also been working with the two oldest kids to learn how to tell time...we're almost there in one week!! I'm so excited to be able to teach them something practical. Ironically enough I've been told that Ugandans use a different time table (hence their lack of timeliness probably); they use only 12 hours, sun up to sun down, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. For instance, they'll say they are coming by at 2, which means 9 a.m., because it is 2 hours after sun up...oy vay, someone else is going to have to work on that with them!
Today is Teacher Appreciation Day, meaning the teachers have the day off, which means the kids have the day off. Auntie Esther wonders why Teacher Appreciation Day couldn't be held on Saturday...haha!!
I used the opportunity of having all the kids at home to snap some new photos, so enjoy! And as promised I added some photos of food/cooking that I explained the other day!
This week I am teaching the children the 10 Commandments and other Moses stories, we've got about 7 of them definitely memorized, I'm shocked and amazed at what they can remember! Today as we were working on the Commandments I told the kids that if they were well behaved then we would watch a Veggie Tales movie about Moses, too bad the power went out, maybe this afternoon power will return!
The other day when the power went out the children closed their eyes and folded their hands and asked God for the return of power to finish watching their movie, within 30 seconds it was back on. Today, however their prayers went unanswered, at least I was able to teach them about patience and that God doesn't always answer our prayers when we want Him to, or even the way we want Him to.
Several of you have sent me emails or FB messages asking what prayers are needed:
Mama Sara, the Director for Rafiki, and her baby Abby, and another missionary, Kailey left for the States today, please pray for traveling mercies for them as they return to America, and that Mama Sara's speaking engaagements and fundraising opportunities are fruitful.
The ministry is looking at purchasing land within the next several years and have visions of a much larger orphanage that includes a school, a church, a vocational school and housing and dining and living for 100 children. That's a big vision, I ask that you pray for direction and discernment for Sara and Joseph as they look at land and begin fundraising for its purchase.
I'll ask for continued prayers for me, the other missionaries and the staff as we raise these children up to be follower's of Christ, to help them grow in wisdom and intelligence, and to help keep them healthy and growing. Sometimes its so hard being patient after you've told them 5 times already to sit down and keep quiet so you can continue reading the story. This morning Emma was crying because Carol pinched him, so I pinched her, not hard, but enough so that I could tell her, you don't like it and neither would he, and that two weeks ago our Bible verse was about 'Do unto others...'. She sulked for 10 minutes, and as she cried and I told her she was fine, I thought about the Bible's teaching, do not repay evil for evil, or an eye for an eye; did I discipline her incorrectly?! I also revealed to my parents, who never spanked me, that I spank the children. If they don't know who is in charge than they, well, act like kids and go crazy. It breaks my heart every time I have to do it, but they've already been sent to their beds for a time out and still act out, am I wrong? And then I think of 'spare the rod, spoil the child'. I'm doing things the Ugandan way and that means a spanking when its well deserved, of course I hug and kiss them many times everyday and tell them how much I love them and how much Jesus loves them, and that is the loving way!
Oh my, how could I have forgotten to talk about the pineapple. It is so sweet and so delicious, and the bananas, they are much sweeter too. The kids eat the skin of the mangoes, ew! And the corn, no matter how it is cooked is rubbery and bland.
Oh God of my salvation! Even if my mother and father abandon me, the Lord will hold me close. Psalm 27:9-10
Today we went to Sanyu Babies Home. A Christian home for abandoned and orphaned babies. I really wanted to bring one home with me, correction, I want to bring one home with me. However, it is not an easy or cheap process, so no Ugandan orphans for me.
While I was in playing and singing with the 6 month-2 year olds a class came in from a neighboring district and sang and held the babies. It was a brief interaction but hopefully a meaningful one that encourages the school children to serve often, love more and be grateful.
I do hope all of the babies find a home, or can somehow get reintegrated with their families. Currently there are probably 60 babies ranging from one week to 4 years of age residing at the home. They are very well cared for and loved by all the mamas. The parable of the lost sheep has been on my mind recently and Matthews recalling of the parable has a great verse, Matthew 18:14, "In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost". I hope the babies are all found, I mean look at their gushy faces, who wouldn't want to kiss them to pieces!
At the end of my last blog I brought up food, which beckons me to offer some more insight to the food here in Uganda. I might have shared a bit earlier but have a few other interesting things I think you might be interested in. (Also, my friend Caroline wanted to hear about the food, so this one's for her!)
First, I'd like to talk about storage in general. Here, they keep their eggs in the pantry, not in the fridge, they also have storage containers for the eggs that you take with you to the grocer/market, no recycled cardboard here. And then milk comes in bags and are kept in the freezer until the night before they are used when the cook puts the two bags she needs for the next morning in some water overnight. The unripened plantains (matoke) are left outside (I previously posted a photo on FB of a man on a bicycle with a bunch, that's how many we buy weekly), also outside are buckets. One is full of rice, two are full of sweet potatoes and others are full of charcoal brickets (I'll get to cooking next). Then the pumpkin, Irish (which are red potatoes), watermelon, pompom (Papuya) and greens are put under the kitchen prep tables. Oranges here are actually green, which is soo disconcerting, I have yet to eat one, but they are stored on a basket next to the prep tables, along with ginger roots and onions. Bananas and avocadoes are stored on the dining table in large baskets and often are covered in fruit flies. (Disgustingly enough I moved the kitchen prep tables the other day so Uncle Godfrey could sweep, clearly he hadn't swept there for some time, the rotting plantains were gag-worthy).
So we actually have a gas stove/oven which is hooked up to a propane tank, but only certain things are cooked indoors. Rice and the meat, along with the greens are prepared indoors, but most other things are cooked outside over charcoal brickets which are placed in a little metal bucket. Our clean drinking water is boiled on the charcoal, as is beans and posho. The cook, Auntie Monica, also cooks the plantains and sweet potatoes outside wrapped inside of banana leaves, I need to get a photo of this for you to really understand (I owe you one).
A couple other random items of note...I've tried the African tea, and just can't get past the smell of it. Posho and beans are for lunch every day, when we go on outreach days though we have PB&J. not sure when I get home if I'll ever want PB&J or posho again. The meat often has bones on/in it and the kids practically eat the bones as they clean them off and leave not a trace of meat. I eat less than the tiniest child, unfortunately since the food is very carb-heavy I have yet to lose much weight.
I tried to cook for the kids one night, bought black beans (instead of kidney beans), corn, and a mexican seasoning, along with some chillies, and diced up tomatoes and peppers to make a nice Mexican style meal over rice. That was the last time I do that, first of all I didn't add salt, I never cook with salt, but these kids can't live without it, so right off the bat it was bad. Then the chillies were more than they could handle, I think only 2 children actually got a bite of the chillies. Brenda was one of the two poor things that got a hot pepper; she was forced to finish the meal (not by me) and when she came to thank me for the meal (again, something they do culturally), she had tears streaming down her face. I'm not sure if it was because of the heat or because she was forced to finish her food. Poor baby. The fried plaintains and chapati were good though! Needless to say I'm staying out of the kitchen for the remainder of my time here, well, maybe I'll be a sous chef, but definitely never the head cook!
Today was my day off. I work hard all week, well, at least according to Ugandan standards; every week someone tells me, slow down, take a break, you work so hard. If you know me, than you know it probably is true, I'm always on the go, always burning the candle at both ends. But my boss Bob will tell you that I work hard, but when I go on vacation, I shut work out of my life and know how to thoroughly enjoy myself. And every Wednesday I shut down and thoroughly enjoy myself. Today, I went to even greater lengths.
I woke up around 9, most mornings I am helping bathe the kids by 6:45. For some reason Oscar couldn't sleep and we both happened to be on Skype, so I got to talk to him for a few minutes and introduce him to 3 of the kids before the signal got bad. Then after some light housekeeping in my room, which really I don't consider work because I love and crave cleanliness for my own clarity and function, headed off to the market. Yes I would participate in getting food items for the house, but I also looked for a colorful belt to add to my wardrobe (without success) and bought cucumbers and zucchini.
The biggest treat was on the way home from grocery shopping. I got dropped off at a salon and for a 45 minute long full-body, with oil, massage. My back has been hurting for quite some time, leaving me most days with a limp, but as of late it has been improving, I just wanted to give it a little boost. So this 45 minute massage that would have cost me at least $75 at home, cost me a whomping $8!!!! Well, $10 when you include the tip, my mom would be so proud of the bargain! I left feeling really great, the masseuse had put a medicated oil on my problem area and dug her elbow right in.
When I got home, I made myself a late lunch of tuna with some chopped veggies...mmmm!!! And prepared a salad for supper. I have not had a salad in over a month. It wasn't the best, because the spinach isn't as tasty as home and I used some other unidentifiable green, but it was delicious. Really, I'm craving salads, when you don't eat many veggies, a salad sounds amazing! Today was my Sabbath and it felt so good!
Today was an outreach day!
This morning we went to a government run special needs facility for those with mental retardation, it was both a school and a home. Although they encourage new families to have their children go to school just as their "normal" siblings do, most often the families drop them off and then go into hiding so as to skirt the responsibility of having a child with mental incapacities. There is such a negative stigma in this culture, but as I think about it, we're (Americans) often not much better. After an introduction and tour we got to work, sweeping and mopping their rain and refuse trenches, this was some dirty work. Sweeping and mopping in America is vastly different from Uganda, plus we were cleaning these outdoor spaces, which also seemed very foreign. The brooms they use are dried straw bundled together and they are about 2 feet long, requiring a lot of bending. They don't have dustpans at this facility so we use a shovel as the dustpan and make our best attempt to sweep the garbage and debris onto the shovel. The mopping portion involves filling a jerry can (a common way of storing and transporting water), scattering powder soap across the area and pouring the water out while using a short-bristled 'American' broom to scrub the area and push the soap and water towards the drain/discharge.
Because previously people have come and taken photos of the government home and then posted them on the internet asking for money and then never given it to the home, photographs can no longer be taken at the special needs home. The government is also suspicious of their home being criticized when compared to private institutions, they are doing the best they can with the budget they receive, but it is far from pretty.
At 1 pm we headed for our next outreach destination, a ministry for street kids, specifically 10-17 year old boys that live on the streets of Kampala. The organization is called A Perfect Injustice. After a quick game and some praise music with the 40 or so boys and a few little ones scattered about I began to read the story I had written the night before. The rest of my team acted out the story that was about everyone serving a purpose, and I used a quote from Jeremiah about God knowing his plan for us to tie it in Biblically. After allowing the kids to do some coloring, a few volunteers began treating minor wounds, while others began putting the meal together, posho and beans. Mice were actively trying to get at the food as well, what horrid conditions. Despite the dirt and grime and mice, this was, so far, the most fulfilling ministry work we've done. The poverty and lack of opportunities for these children was so ripe, their tattered clothes and lack of discipline was heart-wrenching, it hurt to leave them as they ate.
I arrived home dirty, like really dirty. I could beat my pants and watch the dirt and dust fly off. And I smelled, I smelled from my sweat, and I smelled from being around all the kids that probably hadn't bathed in weeks.
God, thank you so much for absolutely everything you've given me, from a roof over my head to more than 1 meal a day, thank you for keeping me from begging, thank you for giving me running water. Thank you that I can be in Kampala to serve a purpose, your purpose for my life. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.
