This month, we were in Paidha, Uganda. The Internet is pretty slow there, so that explains why I haven’t been able to write this month. The Internet and I just aren’t really good friends anymore! So, as an update, here are some bulleted points from things we saw and learned this month. And yes, Charles really did sit in my lap for an hour. Yes, it was pretty awkward. The church was neat to see, though I think the idea of a church that can’t seat more than 3 people is a bit against the goal of a church. However, the setting (seemingly endless fields and forest) was absolutely spectacular and breath-taking.
– The age girls begin to marry in Paidha is about 13. These girls are caring for their younger brothers and sisters from such a small age, however, that this age doesn’t seem to cut into “childhood” in many ways. It is so sad to think about, that at 13 I was playing volleyball and worried about what flavor Slushie to choose after a softball game. These young girls are keeping house and cooking for their husbands. This also means that they aren’t attending school, a huge problem in that area. Polygamy is also permissible, and in an area where 70% of the people have HIV, second and third wives don’t stop its propogation.
– Living without electricity and running water isn’t as hard as I thought it would be. Of course, we weren’t allowed to fetch water (nor, honestly, could I have. These women are STRONG.), which means that life for us was much easier physically than it is for them. We are in Jinja right now, and I kind of miss our squatty potty, as we now have regular toilets. Weird!
– A long time ago, in Montenegro, our ex-squad leader, Aaron, told me that he didn’t think I had truly reached the “abandonment” phase AIM talks about. I was a bit mad about that: of course I had abandoned stuff! And then, I showed up in Paidha. And the knowledge that I never had really abandoned anything squeezed me more tightly than any of Anakudi’s hugs. Life without an iPod, a camera, the Internet and most of the amenities I hadn’t even thought of giving up gave me much pause for thought. And luckily, because I had no other distractions, I had time to think about them! Colin, my teammate, made a good point, though: “God made songs and silence. Satan made noise.” I’m okay with songs, but silence is something I’ve been trying to work on.
– One of our favorite little girls at the church is named Gloria. She is a girl who dances with her whole body, the joy in her heart just overflowing in a body blessed with rhythm. We would try to follow her (and the other children’s) dance moves during praise and worship time, but my stilted movements didn’t compare to her gracefulness. So we were all deeply saddened to find out that she is included in the 70% of the village who are HIV-positive. I looked at her, sleeping on a mat because she was sick that day, and I was so sad that her life is beginning with an automatic cap to it.
But maybe that’s the thing. She will know that she has a limited time to live. Maybe, for her, it won’t turn to bitterness or anger, but instead, each sunrise will be a new miracle, each day a precious gift, each person she meets a new person on whom to pour out her love. It seemed so unfair, and it is, I’m not denying that, but this is something I’ve learned and said before: we are all dying. Not one of us is guaranteed to live another 5, 10, or 20 years. We just don’t realize it. Gloria, and her HIV-positive mother, do.
– Lent has begun! I have decided to take up smoking. Just kidding! I will be worshipping God for 30 minutes to start out each day. I’ve realized it’s something I don’t do enough, and I don’t think we can ever a) give God enough praise and glory or b) remind ourselves of God’s goodness and love and mercy. I often have trouble understanding, or believing, just how deeply and intimately He loves us. So, I’ll be doing that up until Easter…and after. What are you doing for Lent?
We leave for Tanzania soon!! Hopefully the Internet will work for us there, but I’ll be adding more posts as I can. Happy Valentine’s day 11 days late!
