I'm soooooooo tired! The combination of not sleeping, getting up early and manual work has caught up with me today! We managed to leave by 8.20 this morning. Some of us headed out to Kiwi orphanage and others went to Bula, the orphanage Jack visited yesterday. He went there again today and Zoe and I went back to Kiwi.
When we arrived some of the girls were ready to leave for school. They walk there by themselves. Today Jess, Jess, Zoe and I walked hand in hand with them, We walked through the slum where homes are mud huts or shed like buildings with corragated iron roofs. We jumped trenches, crossed a small rickety bridge, walked passed a dump and then dropped the younger girls at nursery and the older girls at school. This is a million miles away from home. Us four white girls felt conspicuous and more vulnerable without the children with us on the return journey.
Once back at Kiwi we set to work decorating. My last three decorating experiences at home were my lovely lounge 2 years ago, with its fancy feature papered wall and new lights, Jacks bedroom last year and Kev & Alis house during a work party one evening. This decorating experience bears absolutely no resemblance. Here we are decorating 'rooms' with crumbling walls, lizards jumping out when we moved furniture, a light bulb hangs precariously, the rafters are all exposed, these are more like out buildings. However, we worked together and gave Benedictas (think I called her Bernadeta before?!) room a coat of paint. Josh & Zo painted Minnie Mouse & Pluto on the wall in the wall in the girls room! We also tackled the boys room. I know lots of farmers that really do have out buildings in better condition than this 'room'. But you know, once we'd painted, stencilled stars and planets & Josh added a fantastic rocket we had some how turned it into a boys room! He loved it, as did the girls with theirs. Zoe painted flowers and butterflies around Benny's door frame - she cried!!
Some of the lads spent much of the day erecting a fence for Benny. They dug holes, and used posts made of tree branches/trunks. They worked incredibly hard with basic tools and in very hot conditions. Africa it appears can be frustrating. The fence looked brilliant and served its purpose but when Benny returned (hours after having to go out for 5 minutes!) she said a water pipe had to be moved to the other side of the fence and half the fence had to be removed. It was disheartening and dimoralising. Communication across the cultures is tricky!
This afternoon, Zoe, Jess, Jess & I took another walk in search of a baby!! The knitting club at school had made squares which had been sewn into a blanket. They gave it to me in assembly at the end of term and asked me to pass it on to a baby in Uganda. We didn't have to go far. We tried to explain and showed the mum a picture of the group who'd made it. She was so very grateful and I was very proud of some children in England who had given their time to make this small difference to a family in the heart of Africa - Well done you lot! I have pictures to show you!!
I flagged by mid afternoon and am sure I'll sleep well tonight?!
Tomorrow we have a couple of days off. Many, many years ago my friend Janet bought me a book called "These things I will do" - in it you write down things you want to do or accomplish and the date on which you decide. Theres a place to fill in when you've done it too - like an official Bucket List! I love my book. In it there are things that are relatively easy to do, like take my kids to see Lion King - that got ticked off 6 years ago. Some are harder and have taken a long time to achieve like "Become a teacher" but got ticked off in 2008. Some aren't yet acheived like "Buy an old cottage"! But tomorrow I get to tick off "Go on Safari" - Yahhhh!! I am soooooooooo excited! This is the bit I have saved up for myself. Musa who has been linked with Possibilites for a few years and who is Robs 'man on the ground' here in Uganda has been driving us around all week in his taxi bus. He is also a Safari Driver and so he is taking us!!! I can't tell you how excited I am about this and of course about sharing it with Jack & Zoe........ Will try to post.
So thats us for now all up to date - thanks for reading. Please excuse the awful spelling, grammar & punctuation - I have to do this quickly as others are always waiting!! A final thought today......"Your life loses its true meaning when material possessions become the content of your life" xx
Monday, 1 August 2011
6 days shall you labour and on the 7th........
Ah, I get it, there’s no electricity every other day!! No internet last night….this is yesterday…..
And on the seventh day God rested! Great idea God, a day of rest – we’ll take that! Today was a lovely chilled day.
First thing some of us went to church. My two actually got up at 7.30am in order to go to church!! What’s that all about?! Church was great. We queued outside to get in, and when the doors opened hundreds and hundreds of us filed into the auditorium. It must have held 2000 people. I loved the fact that here in the middle of Africa, in the heart of Uganda we were worshiping the same God that my church at home would be worshipping – even with some of the same songs. I missed my home church family a little bit and remembered my small group praying for me before this trip. They prayed we’d stay well – check! They prayed that this group of volunteers would gel well together and be effective during our time together – check! They prayed that I wouldn’t feel lonely in a crowd – check, not once – envious occaisionally maybe, life should be done holding hands with someone….. I’m so grateful to God for so much. As my mind wondered during the 45 minute sermon(!!) my mind went back to the slum school I’d visited yesterday. I think that if Jesus walked on earth today, that’s where he’s be, walking amongst the slums, reaching out to those in need, making a difference to those he came across…… That’s what Possibilities is endeavouring to do.
The rest of the day was lovely, chilled and restful. Jack headed off to another orphanage with Rob & Sim for a couple of hours. Rob wanted to see how the children were doing. They took the local taxi system – boda boda!! This is a moped! I have seen one of these with a mum and her two children in front of her and then another child in front of the driver!! 5 people on a moped!! At the orphanage Jack and Sim played football once again with the children…..on concrete in bare feet!
Zoe and I spent a good few hours chatting together, no subject untouched. Precious moments. I ‘interviewed’ her for the blog!! Here goes…..
Me: How’s Africa Zo?
Zoe: Oh no I’m not very good at interviews! Hot
Me: mmmmmmmmm anything else?
Zoe: What are you writing I only said HOT!
Me: Best bit so far?
Zoe: People keep asking me that! I don’t know, some bits have got to me more than others. Best bit? I don’t know – it’s all so different.
Me: Is there one moment you would keep hold of forever?
Zoe: What from Africa?
Me: Yes from Africa!!! I’m putting that down!!
Zoe: When we were at the community school and little Moses fell asleep on my lap and all the other kids were crowding round and poking my white skin or..
Me: hang on!
Zoe: Just after the girls at the orphanage had seen their newly decorated room and the others had left but one girl was left in the room. She was dancing and singing ‘Thank you, Thank you’
Me: Nice food?
Zoe: Sometimes. The red Chilli food is nice. The food the ladies cook isn’t! My chicken yesterday was hair and bone!!
Me: Nice! In 7 words describe your experience so far
Zoe: Very different from how I was expecting.
Me: How?
Zoe: Dunno!
And that was Sunday. Apparently we are to be out by 8am tomorrow in order for some of us to go back to Kiwi to decorate again and put up a fence whilst the others go to the orphanage Jack visited yesterday to do some cleaning. 8am!!!!
xx
And on the seventh day God rested! Great idea God, a day of rest – we’ll take that! Today was a lovely chilled day.
First thing some of us went to church. My two actually got up at 7.30am in order to go to church!! What’s that all about?! Church was great. We queued outside to get in, and when the doors opened hundreds and hundreds of us filed into the auditorium. It must have held 2000 people. I loved the fact that here in the middle of Africa, in the heart of Uganda we were worshiping the same God that my church at home would be worshipping – even with some of the same songs. I missed my home church family a little bit and remembered my small group praying for me before this trip. They prayed we’d stay well – check! They prayed that this group of volunteers would gel well together and be effective during our time together – check! They prayed that I wouldn’t feel lonely in a crowd – check, not once – envious occaisionally maybe, life should be done holding hands with someone….. I’m so grateful to God for so much. As my mind wondered during the 45 minute sermon(!!) my mind went back to the slum school I’d visited yesterday. I think that if Jesus walked on earth today, that’s where he’s be, walking amongst the slums, reaching out to those in need, making a difference to those he came across…… That’s what Possibilities is endeavouring to do.
The rest of the day was lovely, chilled and restful. Jack headed off to another orphanage with Rob & Sim for a couple of hours. Rob wanted to see how the children were doing. They took the local taxi system – boda boda!! This is a moped! I have seen one of these with a mum and her two children in front of her and then another child in front of the driver!! 5 people on a moped!! At the orphanage Jack and Sim played football once again with the children…..on concrete in bare feet!
Zoe and I spent a good few hours chatting together, no subject untouched. Precious moments. I ‘interviewed’ her for the blog!! Here goes…..
Me: How’s Africa Zo?
Zoe: Oh no I’m not very good at interviews! Hot
Me: mmmmmmmmm anything else?
Zoe: What are you writing I only said HOT!
Me: Best bit so far?
Zoe: People keep asking me that! I don’t know, some bits have got to me more than others. Best bit? I don’t know – it’s all so different.
Me: Is there one moment you would keep hold of forever?
Zoe: What from Africa?
Me: Yes from Africa!!! I’m putting that down!!
Zoe: When we were at the community school and little Moses fell asleep on my lap and all the other kids were crowding round and poking my white skin or..
Me: hang on!
Zoe: Just after the girls at the orphanage had seen their newly decorated room and the others had left but one girl was left in the room. She was dancing and singing ‘Thank you, Thank you’
Me: Nice food?
Zoe: Sometimes. The red Chilli food is nice. The food the ladies cook isn’t! My chicken yesterday was hair and bone!!
Me: Nice! In 7 words describe your experience so far
Zoe: Very different from how I was expecting.
Me: How?
Zoe: Dunno!
And that was Sunday. Apparently we are to be out by 8am tomorrow in order for some of us to go back to Kiwi to decorate again and put up a fence whilst the others go to the orphanage Jack visited yesterday to do some cleaning. 8am!!!!
xx
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