So someone very close to me, who happens to be quite wise,
told me I needed to blog. So here we go.
So we are staying with 2 teams in
Mbarara, Uganda at an orphanage/school on a mountain. There is only power when
we buy petrol for the generators or if there is a special event that requires
lights. Also the water doesn’t always flow. It has been off for 2 days now and
they have no idea when it will come back on. So we are pretty happy when rain
comes, because that means we can shower and wash our clothes. There are also
about 400 kids that go to school here. So every morning at 6:45 when I walk
out, I get the same blank stare. I am the same person that came out yesterday
and I do the same boring things like brushing my teeth or putting my shoes on
to go running. I have been running every morning here. I think I average a
little over a mile each morning. Of course there is no way to tell, but I am
going to say a mileish. That has been real surprise that I have done it 5 days
in a row. I know to some who run, that’s child’s play, but to someone who
doesn’t really ever run, I am rather proud. We eat breakfast between 9 and 10
am, lunch between 2-4 and dinner can be anywhere from 7-9. Things are a tad
different as you can imagine. They don’t use power tools. They were digging
holes for better supports in the sanctuary and they used a stick with like a
trowel on the end. And they just dug with that. No shovels. And when they
needed more, they can’t just run to Lowe’s and get what they need. They brought
in a small tree and made 2 more. The chopped it to the length they wanted with
a machete, peeled the bark off and then attached the sharp end. I got to dig
part of one of the holes and it was not the easiest. Even the guys there said
the ground was hard where I was digging at. So I KNOW it wasn’t all me!
Each night, all the kids get
together and worship. On their own. Let me say that one more time. 350+ kids
circle around in the pitch black of night with busted drums and sing and
worship God. On their own. No adults are out there. It is something that they
do because they WANT to. And the boys don’t even live here. They have to walk
about 3km to sleep. And walk back to be here around 530am for school things to
start. Something about that just hits me. This will continue too. Since the
older kids are leading and the younger ones see what they want to be in a few
years. How many of our youth back home do things like that? Or even worship?
Not singing in the choir or that, but worship? I know I don’t do it enough.
We go
into town on the back of motorbikes called piki pikis. We usually get 2 people
on each one and it costs 1500 Ugandan Shillings. The exchange rate here is
about 2800 UGX to 1 USD. So it costs about .50 to get into town. And I wish I
could describe to you the way traffic works here, but I don’t understand it. No
lights. No stop signs. Just vehicles coming and going as they please. It gets
your blood pumping when riding on the back of a bike you can’t control, but
they seem to know what they are doing even when it doesn’t feel like it. The
other day we met a guy that has the only 1080p projector in town and I will
risk saying probably one of very few in Uganda. His name is Bright and he had
been all over including living in CA for about 3 years. Well he came back and
opened a coffee shop and movie theatre here in Mbarara. He shows newer movies
and has a pretty nice setup. He has the projector and a 5.1 surround system in
a room that can seat about 40 or so people. We watched the Dark Knight and
Blood Diamond the other night for $1. One of those things you never imagine
getting on the race. Almost….ALMOST felt like I was home, but then we went
outside and got heckled for rides back to where we live. lol
I have
been learning to play the guitar this week as well. I have learned a handful of
chords and have gotten the calluses on the tips of my fingers on my left hand
from practicing. I have gotten some tabs from the internet and have been
picking away trying to learn some songs. Slowly…..very slowly but surely. So
Uncle John, I will want to borrow your guitar again when I get home!
And
this week I have been asking God what He has been trying to grow me. I got a
few answers. Being a squad leader, your main focus is your team leaders and
then the rest of the squad. So you are focusing on where your people are at.
Making sure they are operating under the 4 pillars that the WR expects. High
courage, high consideration, high safety and high preference. Seeing the things
that they are struggling with and highlighting it and letting them know it’s ok
to be messy and weak. When I am in that place, I tend to not concentrate on
myself as much. I am finding that when people ask me what God is teaching me, I
come up empty. I know he is, but I haven’t been listening or even asking for
that matter. So I am working on that this week and will be as we continue this
race. Another is one that I mentioned a few blogs ago. It’s trusting God in
things that are long term. Like what I am doing after the race or when God is
going to give me that someone to do this thing called life with. I know I am
not old, regardless of what some of you may say, but I am not young anymore
either. So I would like God to let me in on things, but I know that trust in
that is something that I need to work on. So he is going to give me the
opportunity to trust him. And also in all this, I know that I am being refined
to be that Man of God that my future wife will need me to be. So when I see it
like that, where I am not quite where I need to be yet, I am up for that
challenge. So here I go.
I guess
that about sums up this week. We head to Rwanda on Tuesday for our 3rd
month. I can’t believe that we over half way done. Continue to pray for us as
we finish out Africa. Health has been something that has been hard to keep up.
Some getting Malaria. Some Typhoid. And then your everyday stomach things and
colds. But we are all doing fine now. We got meds for those who needed them and
aren’t letting those things keep us down.
I haven’t been 100% for a few days now so that would be a good prayer to
throw my way.
Also I
NEVER would have guessed that Ugandans enjoy Dolly Parton, but they do. Hmph.
Oh and we spent part of the day painting a Ugandan and Israeli flag on the side
of the church. They are having a conference the next few days and they asked us
if anyone could make that happen. Just so happens we could. So I helped sketch
it on the church and we will finish painting it tomorrow. Other random things….let
me share with you the awesomeness of street food. I stayed back the other day
which meant I didn’t get lunch. So when the teams got back, I asked Kevin if he
wanted to go on an adventure into town. He of course was down so we headed into
town with one thing on our minds. Food. Now one that I have to tell you about
Africa is that it comes ALIVE at night. More people out and about, the clubs
are poppin and the street food vendors are up and going. So we tried a place we
have eaten but they were out of food. We hit the strip because I saw some meat
grills that looked ridiculous. So we decide to grab a chicken leg which consists
of a thigh and drumstick which had been sitting over an open grill for just the
perfect amount of time. We each grabbed one for 3500 shillings, just over $1.
The best chicken I have had in a long time. We ventured down around the corner
and come across yet another hidden delight. We see eggs and chapatti, just
think a flour tortilla but slightly thicker and a little more tasty. They take
2 eggs and mix them up with some cabbage, onions, tomatoes and carrots and then
grill them then take a chapatti and roll them both up. If I could describe the
taste in word form I would, but I can’t so you’ll just have to imagine it.
Sorry. And if you could have noticed I got up half way through this to enjoy another
leg of chicken, well then….you….would have ….noticed.
So that
is about it for me in this last week. I hope you all back home or wherever you
are, are having great times! Love you all! Next time you hear from me, I’ll be
in Rwanda.
ps. we finished the flags today, but failed to get a picture for me to post on this blog. #tryhardernexttime
