This
morning we had chapel with these girls and while we sang worship songs I began
to form tears. “Why am I about to cry?�
“Oh my word if I start to cry, do I leave?� “Man…what are these tears about?�
“Is it because of what their pasts?� “Is it because I’m in Uganda worshipping
Jesus?� “Hmm…�
I
went back to the singing of songs and clapping of hands in rhyme with the
drums. And the tears haven’t resurfaced since.
Sometimes
it’s hard to realize that this is actually happening. I know I refer to the
round MUD HUT as home, but still I have to remind myself that this is really
Africa. That this is really me in Northern Uganda.
Somehow all the bugs, the mud huts, the sweat, the food, the no lights, the
rainy mud, etc… all becomes normal the moment we move in. So yeah. Its really
happening! And I am excited…it was Day 1 for me.
I
spent the entire first day here in Northern Uganda wiped out in my tent.
Between the occasional trips to the squatty-potty & the vomiting moments, I
slept the entire day. It’s in those moments that I want to be home resting on a
soft couch with my mom making sure I’m drinking enough water. It’s days like
those that I question why in the world I am out in THE BUSH doing this trip.
Let’s just be honest, okay? Great! You know I LOVE to camp. I LOVE to be
outdoors. I don’t mind roughing it for a bit. I can do without showers for a
few days. You get the picture. But OH MY WORD…Africa’ bush country is another
story. Maybe I’m more girly than I thought I was…After all wearing a skirt
everyday is mostly convenient. But really sometimes I just think things are
gross. The bugs. The Mud Huts. The Hammocks. The Bathrooms. The way we HAVE to
iron our clothes so that maggots don’t pop out of our skin. (For real…I nearly
cried when I heard this.) The way we have No Lights & walk around in the
dark. (Dark has new meaning for me now…thank YOU Jesus for stars!) Some days
its just too
much
and I want an eject
button to
send me soaring home to safety. Thankfully that’s not an option…so I’m stuck
here. And as long as the sun is up…6am to 7pm…things are happy. The ministry
with the folks here, for sure, makes things worth it all. I mean how can you
not smile when you see like half-naked babies running around? It’s great. And I
get to call this place home…
~Shannon
Hannah…you would HATE the giant moths with glow-in-the-dark red eyes. And
because I know how much you’d hate them & all the bugs that surround me…I
think of you a lot. J Miss you. HUGS!!!
Adorableness…
But then….
She PEED on me…one my freshly CLEANED skirt. That was too much…TOO MUCH. Off she went…off my lap for sure. And her mom came and got her. And then I did the unthinkable…I wore that peed on skirt the next day……………..gross, but it’s all i had to wear. haha.
