A numbers update

I was just reading through a past post (FYI) that listed a few numbers.  It's funny how things have changed...

Some current numbers, FYI:

5 - number of times we've run out of water
30 - number of nights we've lost electricity
.25 - number of dollers for two giant avocadoes
.50 - number of dollers for a juicy, delicious pineapple
2 - number of pieces of jewlery I've recieved from the one I affectionatly refer to as my 'Ugandan stalker.'
countless - number of near collisions (this includes hitting a boda, falling off a boda, having my foot tapped by a passing car while on a boda, and being close enough to a traffic cop that she brushed my arm - while on a boda... obviously!)
countless - number of potholes in the roads here
17 - number of spiders I've seen (though they're all nice and small)

2 - number of big, gross cockroaches in my room on any given night
lots - number of beautiful sunsets watched from the porch of our guesthouse
2 - number of days of work remaining
2 - number of weeks left to travel around some more of this gorgeous country.

White water rafting

Jinja has become the 'adrenaline capital' of East Africa.  When Jen & I last went, we went horseback riding - at a trot, no less.  Fun, but worthy of the adrenaline capital?  Nope.
So, this past weekend I went to meet up with Kenn who has been staying here for the past week while he has been learning to kayak the white water.  After much prompting from Kenn and every other person I'd met here, I decided to take the leap and try white water rafting.  The rapids on the Nile are rumoured to be among the best in the world (where best = biggest and most frightening), and they are currently in the process of constructing a new hydroelectric damn which will supply the regoin with much-needed power, but will be the death of these famed rapids.  So, while in Rome... you know.

The morning started off wet.  Very, very wet.  I had unsuspectingly placed Kenn's tent on the only flat place around - which turned out to be in a valley, and we woke in the middle of the night to find that the tent had flooded and we were sleeping on what felt like a waterbed.
When day broke, we got up, dried off, went for a tasty breakfast (with GOOD coffee!), and took off for Speke camp where our rafting adventure would begin.  We were told that there would be 7 others joining us from Kampala - this was quite a relief for me, because more people = more power = more control over where the boat goes = less chance that we'll end up in a grade 6 rapid and die.
Well, wouldn't you know it, those 7 people showed up and they were all scrawny Asian men - straight from China.  ONE spoke English and not one of them had held a paddle before.  Kenn and I couldn't do anything but shake our heads and laugh as they completed the stereotype, posing with the peace sign for every picture.
Let the adventure begin.
We got in the water and our guide, Enoch, went through the basics.  He would command "FORWARD" and at least 2 of them would paddle backwards.  He would command "PADDLE HARD" and at least 4 of them would hit the deck.  He explained that the most likely way to get hurt is from someone else's paddle - so he taught us how to hold it properly when going through the rapids.  After this, we did a practice fall.  As the boat fell, the dude behind me bashed me in the face with his paddle - he clearly didn't understand a word Enoch had said while explaining the safety procedures.
I was ready to back out.  Scared of rapids to begin with, the idea of facing this raging water with a boat full of these guys was enough to make me shake in my boots.  But, Kenn convinced me that it would be okay, and if nothing else we'd have a good story to tell.
It's true.  Good story.  My arms are STILL sore since Kenn and I were the only ones paddling the whole day - but I didn't get bashed in the face again.  I also learned something new about myself: I have a LOT of trouble biting my tongue.  There were definitely a few, "You're paddling like a WOMAN" and "BE STRONG" yelled at my dark-haired boat-mates.... hopefully they didn't understand!

All in all it was a fantastic day.  I only ended up in the water 3 times: once when the boat flipped over a small waterfall (eeek!), once when I got knocked out of the boat - legs in the air - and perforated my left eardrum (on meds, doc says it'll be fine in no time), and once when they let us out to swim in the current for about half an hour.  It was such a great feeling to be swept up in the current like that - dragged along with no effort - particularly after paddling like crazy in the mid-day sun.

I'm glad I got over my fear of the white water, even if it has created a new fear: the fear of being in a boat of Chinese men!

Riots in Kampala

Yesterday there were riots in the city.  They were close enough that I could hear the yelling and chanting of the throbbing mass of people perfectly.  We could see people walking the streets through the few rows of houses that separated us, up on Mengo hill, from them, traveling along the main road just below us.

On Tuesday, two students were killed in a protest at Makarere University.  That same night the Kasubi tombs were burned down.  These are probably one of the most important cultural sites in Uganda, and Kampala certainly.  The tombs mark the resting place of a number of Bugandan kings.  Bear with me here, you’ll need a little context to understand why this is important.

Uganda has many different tribes.  The Bugandan tribe is one of them.  The Bugandans are also the tribe that the British selected as their ‘favourites’ when they colonized Uganda many years ago.  As such, the Bugandan tribe has become one of the most powerful in the country.  The monarchy is still a very relevant part of day-to-day life in Uganda, and is ruled by a Bugandan king.  The president, Museveni, is not Bugandan and it is a widely held belief that the government as a whole is against the Bugandan people.

So, the tombs being burned down is significant because many of the Bugandan people here are saying that the government has done this.  And it’s been suggested that this was done in response to the protests at the university.  These protests were in relation to the University’s guild elections, which are said to be very closely tied to the national political sphere.  Unfortunately, I don’t have any more details about the university protests, the guild elections or their connections to the national government.  It’s hard to get reliable news here.

This set of events is what has led to the riots.  Yesterday the mass of people traveled from the site of the tombs, to the kakaba’s (king’s) residence, and back.  This is why twice yesterday we had heard them so very close to us.  It was surreal.  I’ve never been in a country where there has been an uprising.  Interestingly enough I was living in Korea at the time that the Nomdemun gates were burned down - one of Korea’s last remaining authentic cultural sites (most of theirs were burned down when the Japanese invaded).  The country was aghast, but there was no uprising.  

It makes it even more surreal that I’m here, so close to it, and yet we’re so effectively segregated in the hospital compound that it would be easy enough to go inside, turn on a movie really loudly, and forget that it was happening (probably much to mumsie & dadsie’s relief).

It’s still difficult to get a straight story on what’s going on.  The national news company shut down yesterday when the riots started, and so our only news came through local friends here.  We were told that as long as we stayed within the hospital grounds, we’d be safe.  And we were.  Nothing to worry about.

I am left wondering what the city and it’s people will be like today.  The Bugandan king addressed his people today and told them that they must be calm.  Because of this, Geoffrey, one of the men I work with at the ESC, said that he feels today will be better.  But now I sit here on the front porch of our house, way way up on Mengo hill, and I swear that I can hear a mass of people off to the West.  I’m not sure if this is me straining to hear something, anything, that will give me some information as to what’s happening in the rest of the city?  It could be that I’m hearing the normal sounds of the city, but that they’re sounds that I never picked up on before because I just wasn’t listening to them.  It feels different, though; like there’s suspense hanging in the air.  But maybe this is just what I’m choosing to pick up on.  Truthfully, there’s a little part of me that craves the instability and the adventure of it.  But I think that this is the same naive part of me that doesn’t really understand what riots mean.  Yesterday there were 3 people killed and 25 injured according to CNN’s report.  People here, when asked, just say that it was really bad.  

I guess it just goes to show how quickly things can change.  But don’t worry - I’ll keep both ears to the ground and won’t leave the safety of the hospital grounds until everyone is very sure that it’ll be fine.  Many of our local friends are looking out for us too.  A few stopped by yesterday just to make sure that everyone made it home okay (Lionel travelled home from the other side of the city when he heard gunshots), and to tell us again and again that we shouldn’t leave the hospital. So, here I sit - craving a chapati but settling for scrambled eggs because I’m being a good girl and not leaving the gates - even if there is a little part of me that wants to.

I’ll update if anything changes - but we’ve heard no news today, and this is definitely a ‘no news is good news’ situation.  So, if you hear no news from me about this again, assume it’s a good thing! (Luckily, we’ve got access to internet in the pharmacy’s lab - so I can keep y’all up to date even while I’m cooped up in here).

The politics...

I’m not sure how much detail I should go into on this topic.  However, I wouldn’t be doing this trip justice to tell you all the happy stuff and none of the things that happen slightly behind (or directly in front of) the scenes.  There have been many things that have caused really intense frustration, but it’s often those things that cause you to grow the most in an experience like this one.

Let me preface this by saying that there is no doubt in my mind that the people I refer to here have only the best interests of the kids they serve at heart.  However, there is quite the contrast between what we think would best serve those kids, and what they think would best serve them.

I’ve referred to the “OT culture shock” before - the contrast between the OT that I know and the OT that’s practiced here.  I think that it would probably be more appropriate to call it “disability culture shock” as the contrasts go way, way beyond just the OT world.

Example: At home, Steph is super involved in the special olympics.  During one of her swim meets, I bought a special olympics shirt that sports their motto on the back of it: “Let me win, but if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.”

The special olympics is also present in Uganda.  Their motto?  “Give us a chance.”

The following situation I think depicts some of our struggles here really well.  About two weeks in, Jen and I were sitting in chapel (a Christian program, therefore mandatory daily chapel, complete with one of the students pounding out the songs’ rhythms on an African drum).  During this time there is always a mini-lesson where one of the teachers will talk for a few minutes about something like respecting your friends or not walking on the gardens.  Today one of the teachers decided that she would pull her students up in front of the school one-by-one and ridicule them in front of everyone for things they have done badly.  She pointed out each of the autistic children in the school and told the children that the reason they had outbursts (during the drum-infused worship time) was because they had satan in the hearts.  She told the students that god doesn’t love these children and that we have to pray for them.

Hard to swallow.  Very, very hard to swallow.

I have been lucky enough to share our guesthouse with Lionel and Donna, a couple from Victoria.  They are both counsellors and Lionel has been volunteering for two months per year at the school for the past 4 years.  He has lots of experience with the kids and the teachers and, luckily, a lot more insight into the goings on.

Apparently public ridicule is a normal part of the educational system here.  Kids who go to public school will attend their classes along with 119 of their classmates - all in one room.  Public ridicule and beatings are used in order to keep this massive number of kids in line.  This makes it more understandable (though not excusable) as to why the teachers at Mengo school use public ridicule.  However the autism bit is related to a total lack of understanding about autistm.  We have explored the possibility of doing a workshop for the teachers and developing materials for families explaining what autism is and why these children do what they do.  Turns out, both of these have already been done.  It is instead the religious underpinnings that drive these beliefs.  They honestly believe that families who have children like this are cursed.  (They clearly have never met Steph nor do they understand the complete blessing she has been in our family). This makes me absolutely furious.  And I hate that these kids live with a stigma that they have done nothing to deserve.  The kids and their families, actually.

Here’s the dilemma:

The idea of missionaries - of someone coming into another culture and pushing their beliefs on someone - makes me cringe a bit.  I get it, I get that they’re trying to do good and share the hope and peace that they have found, but I don’t agree with the idea that these beliefs should be forced on others (eeek might be getting myself into some deep water here... to those who this makes angry we can hash it out in person some time, k?)  But hear me out.  I think that what missionaries desire to do has a really direct parallel to what my desire would be in the situation described above.  I feel that I have information that is more credible than the information that these teachers have (i.e. what contributes to autism, why the kids jump around and ‘stim out’ in chapel, methods to control their behaviours that don’t involve hitting of any kind), but the people here have their beliefs as to what is going on.  How hard do you try to get someone to share your beliefs?  What ends do you have to go to?  Offending people?  Pushing your beliefs on someone else, knowing full well that the fact that it’s been researched well and published in credible peer-reviewed journals will mean absolutely nothing to them.  I have honestly considered teaching them the song “Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world...” but decided that maybe that would be passive aggressive.  Just maybe.

But I guess the bottom line is that there really isn’t an easy answer.  There are two extremes: push my beliefs firmly and with a vengeance, or ignore the whole thing entirely and chalk it up to a cultural difference.  As with any case of extremes, neither is a good option.  And I am left with very little guidance here as to what would best serve these kids while still respecting the fact that the school has invited us in with open arms (and also taking into account that if I offend people, they definitely will not listen to what I have to say - regardless of how valid it is).  

---

On a bright (and totally unrelated) note: I was at Sanyu today, and while feeding some of the really little babies I got to talking to the woman who was holding little baby Mary (the one who stole my heart the first day I was there), and telling her how beautiful I think Mary is.  She kept saying ‘oh thank you thank you” and I didn’t really get it at first.  She went on to explain that she and her husband had been fighting to adopt Mary since about November and just found out that they now have her!  In a few weeks they’ll be able to take her home with them.  She told me how when they first say Mary she weighed only 500 grams, and everyone told them that they were crazy to try and adopt ‘this one’ because no one believed that she would make it.  But she did, and she really is beautiful.  They’re going to rename her Abigail to mark the start of her new life with them.  I can’t tell you how happy I am to know that she’s going to a loving home - and soon! 

We're going on a lion hunt...

Jen & I have just gotten back from Murchison Falls - a national park about 5 hours West of Kampala.  And it was another in a series of FANTASTIC weekends!

We arrived at our campground in 45 degree heat. Gross.  But then quickly settled in with an ice cold bevvy and got to meeting some people.  The campground was full of awesome folks from all over the world (this is proving to be one of my favourite things about being here - everyone, locals and expats, are so friendly and so ready to meet people and have fun!).  We sat around and soon met Matilda and her three babies, the resident warthogs.  They usually came around when dinner was out (pictured here!)

Then on day 2 we set off on SAFARI!!  Dream come true!  I love wildlife - and big, rare wildlife is much much more fun!

So, here's how the day went:

We set off for the day at 6:30 am - before the sun was up - because the animals are most active in the very early morning, before then sun gets too hot!  It sucked getting up that early (especially after a late night!) but the sunrise was beautiful...

George-the-ranger joined us in our van and proceeded to give us the lowdown on what we could expect to see.  He said that Murchison has most of Africa's big game, but that lions are very rare to see and that giraffes are also hard to find in the park.  I had recently read a book where giraffes were profiled so beautifully as being the most elegant animals - so I was disappointed to hear that I might not have the chance to see these long-lashed beauties.
But, we drove down the road, and the first thing we came across was a big ol' group of... giraffes!!!  They were so much fun to watch - and they really are an elegant animal!  Our friend Mark decided to see how close he could get to them without them running away, and even as it fleed in fear from that frightening blonde creature coming at it, the giraffe was elegant.

We continued on down the road and came along a family of baboons blocking our path.  Inquisitive little guys... but not too bright.  Took them a little while before they realized they should get out of the way!

We kept touring for a while without seeing much, when George called out a huge 'STOP!'.  We couldn't see anything around us, and so we couldn't quite understand the command.  He promptly hopped out of the car - his old body surprisingly nimble - and sauntered to the front.  He called the rest of us out and point out to us the fresh lion print in the dirt.  SWEET!  The hunt was on - we were going to find us a lion!  And wouldn't you know it, about 15 minutes later, we did!  There was a big female lazing about in the little shade that was around, and she let us get about 15 feet away from her before she lumbered away slowly, surprisingly undesturbed by our presence.

At this point, Jen & I decided that it would be much more fun to ride on TOP of the car rather than inside.  So we hopped up onto the luggage rack for the remainder of the ride.  It was definitely a much better view.  

We soon came across a group of 5 elephants hanging out right at the side of the road.  We went up beside them and watched them for a long time - snapping many, many pictures all the while.  The little guy got to playing with a stick, and I honestly think he was trying to show off!

We turned around to head back the direction we had come, but in the process got pretty close to the elephants.  The big one, who I assume was the mom, turned around, eyed our approaching van, and then started giving warning signals and rushing towards us (with Jen and I ON TOP of the van)!  I started yelping, I'm sure of it, but our driver backed away in time - phew.  Being attacked by an elephant is not how I plan to go!

We had a full morning of game viewing, and thoroughly enjoyed all of it!  Then for the afternoon we took off on a boat ride to find us some hippos and crocs.  And MAN did we find us some hippos and crocs!  The hippos were everywhere.  Huge creatures - and much uglier than I had anticipated.  My favourite sighting was when we got too close (seems to be a theme here) and the head bull swam out a bit towards us, stood up, and started ...ahh... doing a number 2 while his tail wagged, throwing the poo all over the place!  Apparently this is how they show that it's their territory.  Gross.

We ended the ride relaxing on the roof of the boat (This time with no threat of elephant attacks though!), and enjoyed our view of the Nile while sipping on a semi-cold Nile beer.  How quaint! :P

Only one weekend left in Kampala.  Tear.  I'll be sad to leave this place, for sure.  But it also marks the beginning of travels with Kenn - which, at this point, we think will take us to Rwanda, possibly Western Tanzania, and likely back into Uganda.

Uganda really was quite a fluke for me - it was just the first international placement opportunity that worked out.  I wanted to come to Africa, but didn't really care where in Africa I went.  As it turns out, I think that the fates served me well, because this country truely is one of the gems of the continent.  I honestly do plan to return!

Ssese Islands

First off - sorry for the delay!  Internet access has been a bit scarce lately, and we seem to have become very, very busy over the last couple of weeks!  I do have a few posts ready to throw at you though - so forgive me for doing it all at once! 

So amongst all the working and volunteering stuff, there really has been a whole bunch of fun touristy (and otherwise) stuff thrown into the mix too!

Last weekend Jen & I took off to Jinja - the birthplace of the Nile (or so the Ugandans say).  We got a hotel room purely for the view, and had a balcony that overlooked the Nile and the setting sun.  Unfortunately the same hotel also had bats in the lobby and ants crawling all over one of the beds in our room.  Lesson learned - never get a hotel room purely for the view!  But the rest of Jinja was great.  It’s a much quieter town than Kampala and it was nice to be able to cross the street without fearing for your life!  

On Sunday we went on a horseback safari (really a glorified horseback ride) along the banks of the Nile and through neighbouring villages.  It was a great way to spend a morning, though really only reinforced for me the fact that I’m not the best on the back of a horse.  Andrea would have been proud of my attempts at trotting - I tried to post, but failed miserably.  And cantering... well, I won’t get into the cantering.  Suffice to say that I’m not meant to ride horses!  Beautiful views though, and I always love going through villages and seeing what life is like there.  I’m such a sucker for kids - kids everywhere really, but in remote places especially.  I love how excited they are and how they’ll chase you through the village - it’s all really quite thrilling!  But, being on the back of a horse and all, it was hard to really engage.  A nice tour none the less!

Then this past weekend, our original plan was to go to Mount Elgon and Sipi Falls... this was of course until there were massive landslides in the area.  So instead we decided that we deserved a little weekend in the sun - so we headed out to the Ssese Islands, a group of islands, complete with white sand, in the midst of Lake Victoria.  It was such a great weekend!  We met a group of other mzungus (white people) from all over the world who had come to Uganda for all kinds of different reasons - some social work, some teaching, some engineering, some renewable energy - all really interesting though.  We all hit it off right away and spent the rest of the weekend lounging around on the beach, playing a ton of frisbee, hanging out around bonfires.  

On our only full day we decided that the 9 of us would charter a fishing boat to take us out and about amongst the islands for the day.  So off we went, 9 white people and the boat’s owner, in a group of islands that doesn’t see an awful lot of tourism (especially considering how great the islands were!).  We found an isolated island that we called home for the afternoon and designated “Mzungu island” - it was great to spend the day touring around, swimming, eating fresh pineapple and drinking nice cold beers.  Definitely my kind of weekend!

This weekend?

SAFARI!

Hippos, here I come! :)

The tortoise and the... trumpet?

Yesterday was such a cool day that I needed to throw up a quick post to tell you about it.

Down in the ESC the day started more or less like any other.  Then an American woman dropped by as she was taking her tortoise out for a walk.  Odd?  She came in and started chatting, and Samson and I crouched down to check the tortoise out.  It was all hidden in it’s shell for the first few minutes.  Then it’s head emerged, and Samson FLIPPED!  I’m not sure what he thought was happening - maybe he thought it was a rock that suddenly sprouted a head and legs?  Maybe he’s never seen a tortoise before?  Either way, Samson was not impressed!  So I wasn’t sure what to expect when Tatiana and David wandered over - but they loved it.  David kept trying to hold it, and Tatiana wandered around, crouched down with her thumb in her mouth, following the tortoise wherever it went for the better part of 20 minutes.  Tatiana - the girl who has trouble focusing on anything for more than 5 minutes.  It was really neat to watch!  One of those things that you would never anticipate happening (how often does someone wander into your workplace with a tortoise?) but was such a cool addition to the day.

Then, that evening, I went with my friend Robert to the Miracle Centre - the house where the Bakouli Boys live and practice.  The Bakouli Boys I mentioned briefly a while back - but just to refresh your memory, it’s a group run by a man named Abey.  He takes kids off the street, teaches them to play instruments, and they as a group perform all over the country.  I talked with Abey for a while last night, and it was so awesome to see the passion that he has for these boys.  He says that he essentially runs an orphanage but he refuses to call it that because he wants these boys to grow up as part of a family, and to empower them with skills that will allow them to earn what they need to pay for their education (Primary & Secondary school both cost money here - a big reason that many of the children aren’t educated).  He wants to teach them that they have value, and that they don’t need to be dependent on other people, or on handouts.

After chatting with Abey, I went and sat on the stoop with Robert while we watched the boys practice.  It was a circle of kids all with brass instruments playing these awesome tunes, all with the backdrop of a setting sun and a marsh full of birds in the background.  It was one of those moments that I tried to really set in my mind - one of those moments where I just feel so blessed to be able to be there and share it with these kids.

Following this, Robert & I went back to his family’s house.  His mom made me African tea and casava, and we sat around with the whole family in this itty bitty little living room while Dolly Parton & Kenny Rogers played in the background (I had heard that Ugandans love these two, but didn’t believe it until last night), and Robert tried to teach me to play the trumpet while everyone cheered me on... and laughed.  

SO COOL.

                                

Now off to the islands!!  Talk soon :)

xoxo

When it rains...

(First off, we’re safe and sound in Kampala - a long way from the landslides in the East.  Though that was where we had intended to go this weekend.... we’ve since changed our plans)

It’s March, and rainy season isn’t supposed to start until April - a shame for the touring Kenn & I will be doing at the beginning of April, but I didn’t think that it would be an issue for the rest of the trip.  Turns out I’m wrong.  Lucky us, rainy season has come early this year.

In Africa when it rains, it pours!  Storms like the storms in Ontario that I miss so much while in B.C. - however here they happen almost every other day.  Usually it’s a gross, rainy morning and then there’s some afternoon sun, but it’s amazing the effect that a few hours of rain has here!

First off, half the roads here aren’t paved.  Instead they’re dirt roads - red, red dirt.  And, unexpectedly, dirt that is very slippery!  Much different than the mud in Ontario or B.C.  It sticks to your shoes and coats them with a layer that just gets thicker and thicker until you kick it off.  Turns out that it also sticks to tires.  However, the fact that it sticks to tires  (making the treads on tires totally useless) doesn’t stop people from driving down these roads.  A couple weeks ago, Jen & I were on a matatu (taxi-bus) one night after it had rained the whole day.  This was the second scariest drive in Uganda to date.  (the scariest drive happened last night, and I won’t even try to describe it because without a video it wouldn’t do it justice).  Anyway, back to the mud.  So here we were driving down a back road, in the dark, and Bam! We hit a boda-boda (motorcycle) - the dude was okay, luckily.  We continue driving, engine revving as the tires spin, and the tail of the matatu swinging all over the place.  We ended up getting stuck - really, really stuck.  They ushered us all out and into another matatu that had to reverse out of this muddy mess - this driver thought he’d be a hero and take us the wrong way down a one-way mud road.  Not a good idea.  We almost hit people 3 times, almost ran into a brick wall at least twice.  It was awful!

We thought we’d learned our lesson, but this past weekend while in Jinja, Jen & I took a boda-boda out of town to get to a ranch.  Turns out that about 1 km of this journey was down a dirt road, during a rain storm.  Disaster.  We ended up falling off the boda because it spun out underneath us.  Some bruises, but otherwise all was fine.

So, rainy season here means a few things:

Rain = sore tailbones.  The potholes become full of water, so no one can judge their depth.  This doesn’t mean that people slow down and take it easy on the roads... if anything they seem to go faster.

Rain = flooding on the streets.  A good chunk of the main roads in Kampala get shut down on a regular basis because they're totally flooded and there's not really any drainage system here.

Rain = lots and lots of noise on the tin roof that covers the OT department.  Turns out that whoever decided to use tin as a roofing material didn't think about the autistic kids who are in there all day!  Coming here I wouldn't have anticipated this, but these rainy days mean that we often have our hands full!

On the bright side, rain = luscious green landscapes.  

This weekend we’re hoping to get further out of town so we can appreciate all the scenery, even if we get wet while we do it!  So we're off to the Ssesse islands down in Lake Victoria.  Updates to follow (about that and last weekend's trip to Jinja - the birthplace of the Nile!)

(above is Jen after the boda fall - note the red mud all over her pants.  I still haven't gotten the mud out of my jeans... the only pair of long pants I brought to Uganda... crap).

Introducing...

I’ve been gently informed that perhaps the last few entries were slight... downers! (eeeek!)  And I don’t want to give you the wrong impression - while things here have definitely caused me to reconsider some things, and played on my emotions a bit, my experience in Uganda has been just amazing so far!

So, I thought that maybe I should introduce you to the kids that I spend most of my time with - the ones that make my mornings so much fun (and the ones that do a great job of keeping me on my toes!)

Gideon

Gideon was the first kid that I connected with in the OT department.  How can you resist that big old smile?  He’s now the boy that I work with 1:1 for two hours every day.  I have SO enjoyed getting to know him.  He always has a huge grin on his face, and is so quick to help with anything.  I think one of my favourite things about him is how quick he is to laugh.  He’s non-verbal, but this boy definitely has a sense of humour! And also a wonderfully helpful spirit - he’s quick to give a hand with anything (today one of the kids knocked me right off my feet, so my pants had a nice layer of red dirt all over them.  Samson hopped up and ran over to help clean me off - resulting in a nice swat to the butt!).

Julia

Julia's a little girl who Jen & I are both working with.  She’s a super playful little girl who loves to laugh and horse around.  She’s also the one who will run up to me at the beginning of the day with a big hug - a nice way to start the morning.  She has a reputation for being stubborn and rambunctious, but we’re discovering that it’s likely because she’s been totally underestimated and is much brighter than people have made her out to be.  She loves a challenge just as much as she loves goofing around on the slide.

Josiah

Josiah is Jen’s 1:1 kid.  He’s a stoic young guy, but when he smiles it lights up a room.  He is extremely bright and has an incredible knack for puzzles.  He & Jen have also developed a great connection over the last three weeks.

There are more gems that we work with in the day school, but I’ll save that for another day! 

xoxox