So Much!

So much is going on here in Jinja. The quick version is: I now live by myself at the Light Gives Heat Volunteer House, which is nice sometimes and then not so nice at others. It’s been fun! I’ve been learning how to spread myself very thin; being in charge of everything is not always easy. The Suubi building is finally finished. It has taken what seems like forever, but we will start to meet there next week. All the Ladies are very excited. I love just spending time with them on Sundays and Tuesdays. They love to show me around all the places they call home. They have been working extra hard to make enough necklaces to fill up a whole suitcase to send home with Lindsay. It is difficult and costly to send anything that bulky from Africa and there’s always the possibility that it may never even leave the continent (!) so it is a blessing to have a personal courier!

All the Amani(orphanage) kids are doing great! We are down to a low number of about 43 (when I came there was 60). It feels so empty without them. Ten of them went to their adoptive parents last month – the largest number that have ever been adopted in a years time here. My little buddy, Eddie, went home with his mother who walked to the orphanage to pick him up the day that she was released from prison. I almost didn’t get to say goodbye, but the Lord sent me there just in time to meet his mother and give them a ride home. It was hard watching him leave but I am grateful that he has a mother who loves him and wants to try to raise him. Some of my favorite times are spent at Amani playing, putting the kids to bed or just holding a baby or two. Under the dirt, grime and snot these are some of the most beautiful children in the whole world, inside and out! Sometimes I forget that on a day-to-day basis. On those frustrating days, when 43 kids are all whining or your piki (motor bikes with a driver for hire that are the Ugandan version of a taxi) breaks down at 11:30 at night in the village, it’s then that I just have to remind myself that I am living my dream. Uganda is where God wants me right now and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

My sister, Lindsay, came to visit me for 2 weeks. It was wonderful to have someone to tag along with me; it was also like a little vacation, which was also great. We had a lot of fun together. She got to meet the Amani kids, Suubi ladies and see all the places where I spend my time. It was really fun to have her here!! We took some video while she was here to send home. I hope that many of you will be able to see what the people are like here and get a glimpse of what my life has been like here in Africa.

More in a few days, thanks all!

Hope Amidst Sorrow

The past two post were from my first two days here in Uganda, after being here 4 months now, I am beginning to learn more than I had thought possible. Here are a couple thoughts over the past week....

I have been in Africa for almost four months now. I've seen lots of really sad things since I got here, but I have to tell you, one of the worst is visiting the government hospitals. Last week I went to visit one of the Suubi ladies’ sons who had been badly burned over ¼ of his body, he was in so much pain, and the treatment for burns here is next to nothing. However, I wish each one of you could have seen the look in that Mother’s eyes; she had such a peace about her and just this sense of calmness. I was expecting something more like fear and worry but was so amazed! I just love to watch the people here and the way they react. When things happen (good or bad) they just go with it, they know they can’t change the past or look into the future and decide how they want things to end up. I think that we could learn a lot from the people of Uganda. We as a nation like to be in control, and when bad things happen we tend to put the blame on someone else. Sometimes I think that what the people of Africa understand better than us is this; those bad things do happen in life. It’s a matter of being able to move past those things and still keep waking up everyday having hope for the next. These people have nothing, yet they are some of the most joyous people I’ve ever met. They have shown me that God uses our circumstances, no matter where we are to change us. Why is it that when things go wrong in our lives we lose hope and blame God, but the trials that people face every day here are just seen as a way to grow stronger?