Hey friends! I'm assuming this will be my last post here on the Africa blog. Thanks for reading and keeping up with my big adventure. My appreciation for your support and prayers during that time is absolutely without measure!!
First, I want to invite you to think about supporting the children at the Kibuye Primary School by buying some jewelry. Every day after school, the 7th grade children, Deepa, and I would sit and make beads out of recycled magazine paper and posters. The process is tiring, but the results are beautiful. The school sent me back with a lot of jewelry to sell, all of which was handmade and hand-strung by the students at the school, as taught to them by an HIV+ woman named Madam Sara. The jewelry is beautiful and lightweight, and you would never know that the beads are made from paper after they've been rolled and lacquered. Please consider making this investment. I'm selling necklaces for $5-$10, and $10 is enough to buy 10 students' lunches at school who normally wouldn't have anything to eat!
As for concluding thoughts, I'm still just as conflicted as before with the problems of processing this experience. It's like I don't know how to believe that my life here and their life there can coexist. The two lifestyles and resources and cultures are just so different. The problems over there are SO big. There is so much factoring in to the problems that abound in Uganda and all of Africa: poverty, hunger and malnutrition, a history of war and governmental corruption, the presence of diseases that are easily treatable and eradicated with very little money (tuberculosis, cholera, malaria, polio...), and those that are easily treated with money to enhance quality of life and prevention of transmission-- namely HIV. I can see now why people choose to just ignore it. It's easy enough to go on living in our priveledged bubble and to leave "them" to solve "their problems." The problems are too much anyway, right? My 4 weeks or my $100 donation or my prayers...none of that is big enough to even create the smallest dent in the problems there. For every kid we feed there are millions, tens of millions of others who are still hungry. I now know that this kind of thinking is absolutely unacceptable on our part. Every single person is a child of God and turning our backs on one person due to our inability to help them all ridiculous. That one person or child, while part of an overwhelmingly big statistic, is still a human being with needs and wants. They didn't ask to be born into a village in Africa, to an HIV+ mother as the 6th of 8th children any more than I asked to be born to a wonderful family in America with a competent, hard-working father and loving mother. The people of Africa should not have to accept the consequences of the situation that they were born into as "luck of the draw."
My experience has taught me the true meanings of the ideas, "We have been blessed so that we may be a blessing to others," and "To whom much has been given, much is expected." I just cannot believe that God has given me all of these blessings so that I may stockpile them for my own comfort and contentment while others of his beloved children go hungry and without basic health care. That certainly wouldn't be a depiction of the all-loving God I claim to serve. And therefore, something must change: either my definition of who God is and his claim to love every one of us, or my belief about why God has blessed me with so many gifts.
I've realized that I really do not need 95% of what I surround myself with. Is it realistic to live in America with 95% less? Not really. This is the crux of the issue and the heart of my difficulty since returning to the states. I know how to live in Africa the way that I lived (with maybe 20% of the material comforts I experience here), and I know how to live here with 100% present. I don't know how to merge the two in order to live more minimally here so that others may live more fully there. The difference between wants and needs has also been clarified for me.
I hope this isn't coming off as a guilt trip. I'm just sharing the thoughts I've had about the ways this trip has impacted my life and thinking. I'm certain this will be the beginning of a few rolled-eyes and "Oh Mallory"'s and "You can't save the world"'s. But consider this:
A mother brings her baby into the hospital. The mother is HIV+ (most likely due to her husband having an extra-marital affair and bringing the virus into their marriage), and she was lucky to receive ARV drugs so that the virus was not transmitted to the baby during birth. However, breast-feeding the child will give the HIV to the baby, and she does not have enough money to buy infant formula. Does she give the baby HIV or allow the baby to starve?
This is one of the many, many, many situations that happen EVERY SINGLE DAY over there. I can't save the world, but maybe I can save that innocent, guilt-free baby.
And if that's all I can do, saving "just one life" isn't too bad for my life's work in Christ through the blessings he's given me.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Friday, June 5, 2009
Pictures!
Here are a few favorites. You can see almost all of the rest by going to:
www.kampalamal.shutterfly.com
Hopefully the fact that the address is nearly the same makes things easier and less confusing!
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Final day!!
Hey friends! Mallory again. I'm back at the mall, trying to kill some time. We had to move out of our flat today, but our flight doesn't leave until tomorrow night. We're staying at a very sketchy hotel until then, so I'm not sure what we're going to do to occupy ourselves given our very little money remaining. We're going to see another movie ("I love you, man" which i've already seen once!) and that should be good.
After spending a month here, I am certainly ready to go home. This experience has been one of the most challenging and eye-opening things I have ever done, but I am more physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually tired than I have ever been in my life. I think after awhile you get saturated with everything and you just can't hold any more: the HIV+ patients and orphans, our favorite waitress who works 16 hours, 7 days a week for only $2 a day, the lack of reliable electricity (ours went off twice yesterday and we're in the nicest part of town!), the constant stares and drama of being a white person in this town/country/continent. I'm not looking forward to the crazy flight home (Entebbe to Nairobi to Brussels to Newark to Columbus!), but I AM looking forward to seeing my family, Tyler, sleeping in my own bed, having a hot shower, and eating soooo much good food.
Our last day at the school was absolutely amazing. It was obvious how much of an impact we've been blessed to have on the kids. More than our teaching, the kids were touched by our willingness to come to Uganda and care for them. So many of the kids here are one of many (average household has 7 kids!), many are orphaned, and most are put to work as soon as they can walk to the well to fetch water. Our ability to dole out hugs, bring them balls, and give them time to make story books with colored paper and crayons returned a sense of childhood that most of these kids had given up years ago. I think the simple fact that they know we care about them is really important in this "every man for himself" kind of country. Arafat, the boy we are sponsoring, started crying as we left. He is 12 and hasn't seen his parents in 2 years. It feels good knowing that, more than anything else, our presence has given the kids hope about Americans, and a renewed sense of why it's important to do well in school.
Yesterday we went to a birthday party!! Brian Derek, who is Centurio's son, turned 6 years old. We arrived and he was dressed in a little pin striped suit!! It was PRECIOUS!!! There was eating and drinking and dancing, and it was such a great finale to the trip. Seeing Brian's excitement upon opening his gift was amazing. Most days, Brian runs around the school with the wooden stick to push around a bicycle tire. Deepa, Ally, and I got him a race track from the mall which has a few battery-operated car. I don't think I've ever had the experience of giving a gift to a child to who has never had an actually toy before. His face lit up brighter than anything I've ever seen. At $25 US dollars, his gift was FAR more than anything he would ever recieve otherwise, and his excitement was vibrant. It was a really happy moment.
I had a very interesting meal the other day that the teachers made me at school: 8 or 10 unripe bananas covered in kidney beans! Eek! I ate about a 1/4 of it and had to quit.
On thursday we had a big end-of-project party where we got to invite all of our favorite people we've met. Deepa and I invited Centurio (the project coordinator who works at Kibuye school), our favorite waitress Doreen, another teacher Mzee Zeddy and his wife, and Peter who was our fearless tour guide for the first week. It was SUCH a good time. Being able to sit back and think about the relationships I've formed and how far I've come was awesome. Without a doubt, God has blessed me with courage, strength, and patience for this journey, and I am infinitely thankful for the experience I've had here. You guys have been a great support, and I'm looking forward to seeing you again soon!
Welaba!! (Good bye!)
After spending a month here, I am certainly ready to go home. This experience has been one of the most challenging and eye-opening things I have ever done, but I am more physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually tired than I have ever been in my life. I think after awhile you get saturated with everything and you just can't hold any more: the HIV+ patients and orphans, our favorite waitress who works 16 hours, 7 days a week for only $2 a day, the lack of reliable electricity (ours went off twice yesterday and we're in the nicest part of town!), the constant stares and drama of being a white person in this town/country/continent. I'm not looking forward to the crazy flight home (Entebbe to Nairobi to Brussels to Newark to Columbus!), but I AM looking forward to seeing my family, Tyler, sleeping in my own bed, having a hot shower, and eating soooo much good food.
Our last day at the school was absolutely amazing. It was obvious how much of an impact we've been blessed to have on the kids. More than our teaching, the kids were touched by our willingness to come to Uganda and care for them. So many of the kids here are one of many (average household has 7 kids!), many are orphaned, and most are put to work as soon as they can walk to the well to fetch water. Our ability to dole out hugs, bring them balls, and give them time to make story books with colored paper and crayons returned a sense of childhood that most of these kids had given up years ago. I think the simple fact that they know we care about them is really important in this "every man for himself" kind of country. Arafat, the boy we are sponsoring, started crying as we left. He is 12 and hasn't seen his parents in 2 years. It feels good knowing that, more than anything else, our presence has given the kids hope about Americans, and a renewed sense of why it's important to do well in school.
Yesterday we went to a birthday party!! Brian Derek, who is Centurio's son, turned 6 years old. We arrived and he was dressed in a little pin striped suit!! It was PRECIOUS!!! There was eating and drinking and dancing, and it was such a great finale to the trip. Seeing Brian's excitement upon opening his gift was amazing. Most days, Brian runs around the school with the wooden stick to push around a bicycle tire. Deepa, Ally, and I got him a race track from the mall which has a few battery-operated car. I don't think I've ever had the experience of giving a gift to a child to who has never had an actually toy before. His face lit up brighter than anything I've ever seen. At $25 US dollars, his gift was FAR more than anything he would ever recieve otherwise, and his excitement was vibrant. It was a really happy moment.
I had a very interesting meal the other day that the teachers made me at school: 8 or 10 unripe bananas covered in kidney beans! Eek! I ate about a 1/4 of it and had to quit.
On thursday we had a big end-of-project party where we got to invite all of our favorite people we've met. Deepa and I invited Centurio (the project coordinator who works at Kibuye school), our favorite waitress Doreen, another teacher Mzee Zeddy and his wife, and Peter who was our fearless tour guide for the first week. It was SUCH a good time. Being able to sit back and think about the relationships I've formed and how far I've come was awesome. Without a doubt, God has blessed me with courage, strength, and patience for this journey, and I am infinitely thankful for the experience I've had here. You guys have been a great support, and I'm looking forward to seeing you again soon!
Welaba!! (Good bye!)
Monday, May 25, 2009
Week 3 down!
Hey all, it's Monica again.
Mal has been on a safari this weekend, so she hasn't been able to make it to the internet cafe at the mall. She has some very exciting updates, though, so I hope I do them justice!
After a rough couple of days (understandably!) Mallory was very happy to get out of the routine and the city for this weekend's safari! She left first thing Saturday morning for about a 5-hour drive across Uganda, to a state park that had lodging, a "game reserve" (where the safari was), and one of Africa's tallest waterfalls. Upon their arrival, they hiked to the top of the waterfall, and then headed to bed for a good sleep before the big safari! Before Mal left, she said the lodging options were either 1) a hut, or 2) a "permanent tent"... we couldn't figure out what the difference is between the two! I'm not sure which one Mal ended up staying in.
On Sunday morning the whole group wokeup at 6am for the sunrise over the Nile(!!!) and then they began their safari. Mal said that the sunrise was "beautiful!", the Nile was "ridiculous!", and that the only bad part so far was that she had a bad breakfast and puked on the bank of the river shortly after sunrise. We told her that that was okay because one time Aunt Penny puked on a landmark too... she promptly replied with "Hobo's!?!?!" - a "seedy" restaurant that we always pass on the way to Grandma's house. That was the correct answer. haha I guess that's an inside joke.
During the safari, Mal got up close and personal with a lot of different wild animals. I will try to remember a good portion of them:
-zebras
-lions
-tigers
-giraffes
-gazelles
-wart hogs
-crocodiles
-hippopotomuses... hippopotomi?
-spider monkeys
-elephants
There's probably a lot more... I'm sure Mal will clarify and/or let you see for yourself when she posts pictures when she gets home!
This morning (Monday) Mal was able to do something that truly was like a dream come true for her... Now, I don't know how many of you know this, but part of Mallory's desire to go to Africa was instilled in her by her 5th grade teacher, Mrs. Murphy. In her 5th grade class, Mrs. Murphy taught extensively about chimpanzees and gorillas, and the work of Jane Goodall in preserving the natural habitats of these primates and in saving them from extinction. Well, Mal was hooked then, and has been ever since. Approximately 12 years later, Mal entered the Jane Goodall Institute of Uganda this morning and spent 3 hours "chimp tracking." They followed a trail of partially-eaten fruit and "fresh stool" (gross!) to a clearing where there were a handful of chimps. Mal said she took a ton of pictures, and that the whole thing was kind of an out-of-body-experience. All of a sudden she found herself literally crawling through the African jungle, wishing she had one of those large machetes to cut through the bush. Who would've thought!?
One more cool tidbit: Something that is interesting about Uganda is that 84% of the population self-identifies as Christian. Mal said it's cool because many of the "matatus" (little taxis) have sayings on the back like "God is good!" or "Jesus is Lord!" or simply "John 3:16". So, Mallory has enjoyed being able to talk to the Ugandan children about her faith and their faith, and has also enjoyed seeing (black) Jesus icons all over the place. This weekend, however, she got an opportunity to share her faith with two people who aren't believers in Jesus. On the safari she met a 22 year-old guy who was from Amsterdam, and a woman in her 20s from London, who is Hindi, as she is of Indian descent. They were talking about religion, and Mal felt like she really should jump in and tell them what she believes, especially since the rate of atheism and agnosticism in Western Europe is staggering. (The guy from Amsterdam said he thought it was about 80%). So, she started talking to them, and they eventually asked her what her thoughts and beliefs were. She took the time to tell them all that she could (she said she really wished she had the "knowing God personally" book- for all you campus crusaders! haha), and they were really intrigued. Both mentioned that they had never heard before about why Jesus had to be sacrificed, and thought it was "really cool" and "made a lot of sense" how everything fit together. Nothing radical happened, but Mal was happy that she took a leap and shared with them. She was also shocked and surprised that two people from first world countries had never had the opportunity to hear the GOOD NEWS, since it's easy to assume that those areas have been reached and to concentrate on much of the third world instead. Mal has certainly experienced quite the opposite in her time in Uganda. Interesting.
So, I guess if you've been praying for Mal, you might want to consider adding the Dutch guy and the English girl to the list, along with the orphans, the AIDS women, and the patients at the convent, if you're keeping track! Whew!
Well, that's all for now. Mal comes home a week from tomorrow and none of us could be happier! Thanks for prayers and thanks for checking in!
Mal has been on a safari this weekend, so she hasn't been able to make it to the internet cafe at the mall. She has some very exciting updates, though, so I hope I do them justice!
After a rough couple of days (understandably!) Mallory was very happy to get out of the routine and the city for this weekend's safari! She left first thing Saturday morning for about a 5-hour drive across Uganda, to a state park that had lodging, a "game reserve" (where the safari was), and one of Africa's tallest waterfalls. Upon their arrival, they hiked to the top of the waterfall, and then headed to bed for a good sleep before the big safari! Before Mal left, she said the lodging options were either 1) a hut, or 2) a "permanent tent"... we couldn't figure out what the difference is between the two! I'm not sure which one Mal ended up staying in.
On Sunday morning the whole group wokeup at 6am for the sunrise over the Nile(!!!) and then they began their safari. Mal said that the sunrise was "beautiful!", the Nile was "ridiculous!", and that the only bad part so far was that she had a bad breakfast and puked on the bank of the river shortly after sunrise. We told her that that was okay because one time Aunt Penny puked on a landmark too... she promptly replied with "Hobo's!?!?!" - a "seedy" restaurant that we always pass on the way to Grandma's house. That was the correct answer. haha I guess that's an inside joke.
During the safari, Mal got up close and personal with a lot of different wild animals. I will try to remember a good portion of them:
-zebras
-lions
-tigers
-giraffes
-gazelles
-wart hogs
-crocodiles
-hippopotomuses... hippopotomi?
-spider monkeys
-elephants
There's probably a lot more... I'm sure Mal will clarify and/or let you see for yourself when she posts pictures when she gets home!
This morning (Monday) Mal was able to do something that truly was like a dream come true for her... Now, I don't know how many of you know this, but part of Mallory's desire to go to Africa was instilled in her by her 5th grade teacher, Mrs. Murphy. In her 5th grade class, Mrs. Murphy taught extensively about chimpanzees and gorillas, and the work of Jane Goodall in preserving the natural habitats of these primates and in saving them from extinction. Well, Mal was hooked then, and has been ever since. Approximately 12 years later, Mal entered the Jane Goodall Institute of Uganda this morning and spent 3 hours "chimp tracking." They followed a trail of partially-eaten fruit and "fresh stool" (gross!) to a clearing where there were a handful of chimps. Mal said she took a ton of pictures, and that the whole thing was kind of an out-of-body-experience. All of a sudden she found herself literally crawling through the African jungle, wishing she had one of those large machetes to cut through the bush. Who would've thought!?
One more cool tidbit: Something that is interesting about Uganda is that 84% of the population self-identifies as Christian. Mal said it's cool because many of the "matatus" (little taxis) have sayings on the back like "God is good!" or "Jesus is Lord!" or simply "John 3:16". So, Mallory has enjoyed being able to talk to the Ugandan children about her faith and their faith, and has also enjoyed seeing (black) Jesus icons all over the place. This weekend, however, she got an opportunity to share her faith with two people who aren't believers in Jesus. On the safari she met a 22 year-old guy who was from Amsterdam, and a woman in her 20s from London, who is Hindi, as she is of Indian descent. They were talking about religion, and Mal felt like she really should jump in and tell them what she believes, especially since the rate of atheism and agnosticism in Western Europe is staggering. (The guy from Amsterdam said he thought it was about 80%). So, she started talking to them, and they eventually asked her what her thoughts and beliefs were. She took the time to tell them all that she could (she said she really wished she had the "knowing God personally" book- for all you campus crusaders! haha), and they were really intrigued. Both mentioned that they had never heard before about why Jesus had to be sacrificed, and thought it was "really cool" and "made a lot of sense" how everything fit together. Nothing radical happened, but Mal was happy that she took a leap and shared with them. She was also shocked and surprised that two people from first world countries had never had the opportunity to hear the GOOD NEWS, since it's easy to assume that those areas have been reached and to concentrate on much of the third world instead. Mal has certainly experienced quite the opposite in her time in Uganda. Interesting.
So, I guess if you've been praying for Mal, you might want to consider adding the Dutch guy and the English girl to the list, along with the orphans, the AIDS women, and the patients at the convent, if you're keeping track! Whew!
Well, that's all for now. Mal comes home a week from tomorrow and none of us could be happier! Thanks for prayers and thanks for checking in!
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Mwagalanega: Love One Another
It's Mal again!!!
Today I experienced one of the hardest moments of my life. Instead of going to Kibuye to teach, Deepa and I went to
The first two home visits were ‘typical.’ The first was a woman in the Nsambya slums who was 70 years old. She complained of gastrointestinal pain and general weakness. Her daughter in law was caring for her, and therefore was up to date on her ARV (anti-retroviral) treatment. She was given some vitamin A and magnesium to help with her ailments. Her house was maybe 8’x8’ big.
The second woman was in worse shape. She was only 29 years old and has been living with HIV for 5 years. She has a daughter in 5th grade and was moved to HAART (highly active anti-retroviral therapy) shortly after her diagnosis which means a cocktail of three drugs. She was feeling pretty bad so Sister Joy (the nurse) decided to put her on a glucose and saline drip. She got the IV bags out of the car and I watched her carefully string the IV bag through a gate covering a window so that it hung at an appropriate height using a piece of cloth. It was truly surreal the need for proper medical equipment here.
The 3rd visit was sooo intense. We arrived to find that the woman who needed medical care had passed away on Friday from complications from AIDS: only 4 days ago. The grandmother insisted that we see the daughter of the recently passed woman. As a young cousin brought the girl out, she started SHRIEKING. Sister Joy explained that she was scared as she most likely recognized the “ambulance” (the van we were riding in) as the vehicle that took away her mother’s body only 3 days ago. She was only three years old and absolutely inconsolable. Then sister Joy informed us that “you are nurses now” and that we are not allowed to cry because it is not allowed to show sorrow in front of the family. The young cousin, a girl of only 12 years old, is now the caretaker of the 3-year old orphaned girl. Her mother died at age 26, while waiting to start the ARV therapy. It is unknown whether or not the 3 year old, Angel, is positive because they are scared to test her for fear that she will be positive as well. Eek.
After that we went to the Good Samaritan Sisters Convent and home for the destitute. I thought things couldn’t get any more intense…then they did. The home is run by Catholic nuns who care for the orphaned, the disabled, and the elderly. Here is a sampling of the people we saw:
-A man with no lower body. He was covered in a sheet, and Sister Joy thinks he was either malnourished in the womb and didn’t develop properly or was in an accident and had to have his legs amputated
-2 children with (I’d guess) Cerebral Palsy and malnutrition who were so badly contorted that they could barely move their heads. They were laying on mats on the floor, covered in flies as they could not move their bodies to shake the flies off of them. I talked to one girl, Dora, and she was cognitively sound. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to see.
-An old African man who spoke to us in french…yeah, I don’t really know about that either.
-Tons and tons of people in worse shape than you could imagine, living in spaces smaller than dorm rooms, with absolutely no family or support.
Overall, the experience was incomprehensible. I was taken aback by the tremendous need but also by the tremendous love and support given by the sisters in the face of such little resources. I literally wanted to fall to the ground and pray and ask for God’s blessing on these people…I’ve never felt such a strong feeling of helplessness in my life.
So, please count your blessings today. Your life is absolutely full of them—head to toe, inside and out, backwards and forwards full of blessings. And pray for these people: for Mary and Zaituni, the two women with HIV, for Angel the 3-year old recently orphaned toddler, and for the women and patients at Good Samaritans Convent.
Thanks, and know I love you all sooo much.
Saturday, May 16, 2009
hey all!!!
hey!!! It's actually Mallory this time!! I'm sitting in an internet cafe at a place called Garden City, which is a mall that's heavily frequented by foreigners (muzungus aka white people). I had a pretty decent pizza for lunch, got a great new purse made out of gorgeous african fabric and life is good. I really appreciate all of the support I've received through your comments on the blog! Here are some thoughts about my experience so far:
-This is, by far, the craziest thing I've ever done. Deciding to spend a month on the other side of the world, in a developing country, where I don't know the local language and am separated from just about every material comfort I've known has to be the craziest decision I've ever made. That said, I'm growing in unbelievable ways as this trip has challenged me more than anything else in my life.
-The city is NUTS. There is no order to anything. I told Monica that every day is a survival of the fittest challenge. There are no road signs, no real police...just straight natural law and a few soldiers walking around omniously with machine guns. Eek. The idea that pedestrian has the right of way is absolutely foreign. If you are in the street, they will hit you. If you're not paying attention, you will be pick-pocketed. It's been tiring being brave and on alert all the time. Your prayers have certainly been helping1!
-The kids here are so joyful. Over 70% of the population here lives on less than $1 a day, and you see these kids with no shoes, no lunch, no school books and yet they are excited, joyful, and full of life. It's been a great lesson in contentment.
-For $80 you can sponsor a child for a YEAR's worth of primary school, including lunch, school fees, and school materials. Please consider making this investment. I'll have information when I get back.
There is a lifetime's worth of stuff I could write about my experience here but my time is running short (50 cents for 20 minutes of time!!) so here's a list of things I'm looking forward to upon returning to America:
-Dependable and easily accessible indoor plumbing everywhere
-Having hair that's under control
-Food that is not made from plantains, corn meal, or sweet potatoes
-Seeing your beautiful faces!!!! HUGS!!!
-CROSSWALKS
-Having a car
-Not sleeping under a mosquito (or mos-kweee-toe, as they say here!) net
Things I will miss about Africa:
-Buying a week's worth of grocerys for 15 dollars
-the kids!!
-The mystery rash I currently have going on my right arm...jk.
-Passionfruit juice
-Handmaded beaded necklaces for $1.50
-Centurio, Brian-Derek, Brenda, Isaac, and Peter
-Dancing!!
And a bunch of other things. Hopefully I can update again next weekend. Miss you all SOOOOOOO much and love you all MORE. Keep the prayers coming! Webale and welaba (thank you and goodbye)!!!
-This is, by far, the craziest thing I've ever done. Deciding to spend a month on the other side of the world, in a developing country, where I don't know the local language and am separated from just about every material comfort I've known has to be the craziest decision I've ever made. That said, I'm growing in unbelievable ways as this trip has challenged me more than anything else in my life.
-The city is NUTS. There is no order to anything. I told Monica that every day is a survival of the fittest challenge. There are no road signs, no real police...just straight natural law and a few soldiers walking around omniously with machine guns. Eek. The idea that pedestrian has the right of way is absolutely foreign. If you are in the street, they will hit you. If you're not paying attention, you will be pick-pocketed. It's been tiring being brave and on alert all the time. Your prayers have certainly been helping1!
-The kids here are so joyful. Over 70% of the population here lives on less than $1 a day, and you see these kids with no shoes, no lunch, no school books and yet they are excited, joyful, and full of life. It's been a great lesson in contentment.
-For $80 you can sponsor a child for a YEAR's worth of primary school, including lunch, school fees, and school materials. Please consider making this investment. I'll have information when I get back.
There is a lifetime's worth of stuff I could write about my experience here but my time is running short (50 cents for 20 minutes of time!!) so here's a list of things I'm looking forward to upon returning to America:
-Dependable and easily accessible indoor plumbing everywhere
-Having hair that's under control
-Food that is not made from plantains, corn meal, or sweet potatoes
-Seeing your beautiful faces!!!! HUGS!!!
-CROSSWALKS
-Having a car
-Not sleeping under a mosquito (or mos-kweee-toe, as they say here!) net
Things I will miss about Africa:
-Buying a week's worth of grocerys for 15 dollars
-the kids!!
-The mystery rash I currently have going on my right arm...jk.
-Passionfruit juice
-Handmaded beaded necklaces for $1.50
-Centurio, Brian-Derek, Brenda, Isaac, and Peter
-Dancing!!
And a bunch of other things. Hopefully I can update again next weekend. Miss you all SOOOOOOO much and love you all MORE. Keep the prayers coming! Webale and welaba (thank you and goodbye)!!!
Friday, May 15, 2009
Week 2
I hope you all enjoyed the pictures in the last post! I wish I had more to share; Mal said she's been taking a lot of pictures, but just hasn't had the computer or internet access to upload them. So, prepare for many picture updates when Mal returns in a little over two weeks!
If you recall, I mentioned a story about Alfred the rat in the last post. Well, I am pleased to inform you that Alfred met his maker soon after my last posting. Unfortunately, Alfred breathed his last breath in Mallory's UNDERWEAR DRAWER!!! Mal sent me a text message to my phone and it said (direct quote) "I found Alfred dead in my drawer and all of my clothes REEK now. Sick nasty doesn't even begin to describe my feelings. I am so skeeved out. Upside is that he is dead!" Apparently Alfred bit his way through the back of the drawer and then probably suffocated in the African heat... then layed there for hours until Mal discovered him late that night. GROSS! Someone kindly removed Alfred from his resting place and Mal has since washed all of her clothes, and refrained from opening the drawer again.
As it is Friday today, Mal has finished her second week of school... she is halfway done! Most of her days are kind of the same, but she wanted me to tell you of some new "friends" she has made.
Apparently there are a couple of teachers at the school who live in the school's compound, and as a result, their kids (who are too young to be in class yet) just kind of run free while school is in session. Well, the kids discovered Mallory and Deepa a couple of days ago, and they are FASCINATED. They haven't seen anyone who's white (or Indian, for that matter) before and they just LOVE them. Mal has started referring to the kids (who range in age from 1-4 years old) as "the ducklings" because the kids just follow Mal wherever she goes. Today a couple of Mal's friends from the program at Vandy were able to come to the school, and they played with the "ducklings" while Mal and Deepa were teaching. She said it was SO cute because Mal's friends were running around and about 30 seconds after they would pass, all the ducklings would come toddling behind them. Adorable!
This weekend Mal is kind of laying low... she's going to the mall again, and I think her group is going to see a performance at Uganda's National Theatre tomorrow evening. She's really excited! On Tuesday she's also going back to the mall to see Angels and Demons. Who knew that they have first-run movies in Uganda!? That's weird because it often takes months for movies to come to continental Europe... Mal's excited for a little taste of home, though, being able to see Tom Hanks on the big screen!
That's all for now! Thanks for checking up on Mal!
If you recall, I mentioned a story about Alfred the rat in the last post. Well, I am pleased to inform you that Alfred met his maker soon after my last posting. Unfortunately, Alfred breathed his last breath in Mallory's UNDERWEAR DRAWER!!! Mal sent me a text message to my phone and it said (direct quote) "I found Alfred dead in my drawer and all of my clothes REEK now. Sick nasty doesn't even begin to describe my feelings. I am so skeeved out. Upside is that he is dead!" Apparently Alfred bit his way through the back of the drawer and then probably suffocated in the African heat... then layed there for hours until Mal discovered him late that night. GROSS! Someone kindly removed Alfred from his resting place and Mal has since washed all of her clothes, and refrained from opening the drawer again.
As it is Friday today, Mal has finished her second week of school... she is halfway done! Most of her days are kind of the same, but she wanted me to tell you of some new "friends" she has made.
Apparently there are a couple of teachers at the school who live in the school's compound, and as a result, their kids (who are too young to be in class yet) just kind of run free while school is in session. Well, the kids discovered Mallory and Deepa a couple of days ago, and they are FASCINATED. They haven't seen anyone who's white (or Indian, for that matter) before and they just LOVE them. Mal has started referring to the kids (who range in age from 1-4 years old) as "the ducklings" because the kids just follow Mal wherever she goes. Today a couple of Mal's friends from the program at Vandy were able to come to the school, and they played with the "ducklings" while Mal and Deepa were teaching. She said it was SO cute because Mal's friends were running around and about 30 seconds after they would pass, all the ducklings would come toddling behind them. Adorable!
This weekend Mal is kind of laying low... she's going to the mall again, and I think her group is going to see a performance at Uganda's National Theatre tomorrow evening. She's really excited! On Tuesday she's also going back to the mall to see Angels and Demons. Who knew that they have first-run movies in Uganda!? That's weird because it often takes months for movies to come to continental Europe... Mal's excited for a little taste of home, though, being able to see Tom Hanks on the big screen!
That's all for now! Thanks for checking up on Mal!
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