Jane

Jane is the sister of someone I work with at ECM. She is 16 and we found out yesterday that she was in the hospital for the 3rd time in about two weeks, but still with no idea what was wrong.

So all of ECM staff (8 of us) went to the hospital this morning to visit Jane and her family and to bring some rice and sugar (the hospitals don’t provide food here, so someone has to stay with the patient and cook for them).

We got there to find Jane crying, unwilling to make eye contact, unable to talk, having serious headaches, and with her hands almost completely paralyzed (especially the right hand – she tried to squeeze our hands and just could not). The almost immediate reaction of all the women there (Chrissy, Mary, Christine, and myself) was that this was not just a physical sickness.

So Mary, Chrissy, and I sit down with Jane and ask everyone else to leave. We start asking questions, beginning with yes-no questions that don’t require a spoken answer. I was sitting next to Jane and had one arm around her shoulders and the other hand rubbing her arm. She was completely rigid.

As we continued to ask questions, it became very clear that her dad was somehow involved in what she was experiencing. We were all thinking sexual abuse, but Jane kept bringing up that he wouldn’t pay her school fees.

Then she started talking about her father’s third wife. I don’t know motive, but the woman recently did witchcraft on Jane while she was at school. Whatever she did was supposed to make Jane unable to talk. And it has been working. Until today. Jane has literally been experiencing physical symptoms from the witchcraft.

So we shared the Gospel of Jesus with Jane and then we began to pray. We prayed for the evil spirits surrounding her to flee, we prayed for physical healing, and we prayed that Jane would be set free from the feeling of abandonment she was feeling due to her father’s lack of attention and love (thus the reason she kept bringing up the fact that he won’t pay her school fees). We prayed in the name of Jesus.

And as we prayed, I felt Jane relax into my arms, I felt her hand begin to move, and I looked at her face and saw a huge smile!

After we had prayed, she still was unable to stand but was clearly doing substantially better. So I was sitting with Jane and talking (she speaks English!) and I suddenly felt like I should ask her to squeeze my hand again. So I asked and she squeezed so hard that it hurt. Then I asked if she wanted to get up and walk and she said, “Yes! Where do you want to go?” So Jane and I walked around the hospital ward.

She was discharged this afternoon and her brother called tonight to say that she was doing even better than when we left this morning.

There are lots of crazy things I’ve seen here, but I think this one wins the most awesome award. All I can really say is Jesus is so cool, so powerful, so faithful, and so good!

Basketball

Sunday I went to lunch at the only place in Gulu where you can get a steak and watch American news on a big-screen TV. It occurred to me that the UT game would be on at 9:30 PM my time and would be on ESPN International. Chrissy, Kent, and I confirmed with the hotel that they would show the game and decided to return Sunday night.

So we arrived right as the game was beginning to find that Ugandan news was on. We watched it for a while and then they changed to ESPN. Only to find that the San Antonio rodeo was on. So, in hopes that it would change to basketball, we stayed and watched the rodeo with a bunch of Ugandan men who had never seen anything like it.

I wish I had a video of their faces. It was hilarious! Kent had to explain twice (once was to Chrissy) what made the bulls so angry, which was also quite funny.

Finally, we got to watch the last 11.2 seconds of the game. I was sad we lost, but since I haven't seen a single basketball game this season, it wasn't too bad. Plus, I got to watch a rodeo with a bunch of Ugandans. I mean, seriously??

Long Overdue Update

Sorry to have been away for awhile! The power was out for the last six days with the exception of Wednesday, so I was saving my computer battery and not blogging!

It came back on a couple hours ago and my computer and phone are now completely charged.

The extended periods of no power really aren't too bad, with the exception of charging electronics. It's cooler, so I don't NEED the fans, we have some awesome lanterns and flashlights, and we cook on a propane stove. But, life is most definitely simpler and a bit less stressful when power is readily available!

***

Friday and Saturday there was a women's conference in town on emotional healing, put on by a team from Bethel College in California. We took 8 moms from Tegot and it was incredible to watch the transformation occur in their lives. Two moms accepted Christ!!! The teachings on forgiveness were particularly powerful and I know they will help the women heal.

***

This week will be short. The Easter holiday is Friday - Monday. Plus, I think I have to go to Kampala for at least a night to take care of some stuff with my Visa. Please pray everything goes quickly and smoothly!

Happy Birthday!

Yesterday was Chrissy's birthday, so we had a bunch of friends over to celebrate. We made spaghetti, which was a hit with the Americans and Canadians, but most of the Ugandans didn't like it. I was sad for them. Becky made some awesome peanut butter cookies (and some other type of cookie I didn't try because it was chocolate)!

It was a lot of fun!



Chrissy is in the chair in front of me.

The far left is Maggie. She works at Cafe Larem; know her pretty well since we go there almost every day. Her daughter is Rita, who's in the red jacket in front of me.

Kent is on the left also and his wife Becky is next to me. I met them and their four daughters in the airport.

ECM Staff: Next to Kent are Eric and Tony. Simon is on the floor with the "guitar." Pato is in the red hat. Christine is in the red shirt next to Chrissy. Mary is on the floor in the blue shirt. She is holding her daughter Sharon and her husband, Patrick, is in the chair next to them.

Amanda and Janessa are sitting on the floor in the blue and purple - they're supposed to be moving in this week.


Now you know most of my friends in Gulu!

No Power, No Water, No Fuel

That was the state of Gulu for most of today. Awesome.

But it’s improving.

Power is back for now, although it’s been off more than on the past three days.

The boys drove south to get fuel for the van and we’re told that trucks should arrive tonight bringing more. It’s rumored that some major price-gouging will occur, but I’m pretty OK with that. And it’s far better than the alternative. Apparently there have been times when fuel is completely gone for up to a month. I honestly can’t comprehend what that would be like. Although biking everywhere could be nice, I guess (if I had a bike, that is).

Water to the city is still gone, but our reserve tank can last over a week, so we’ll be fine in that regard. I am very thankful for that. Because I can barely lift a 20-liter jerry can, much less carry it on my head like the women in children here. And no, I have not attempted.

Life is interesting, that’s for sure.

Nothing Much

It has been an uneventful couple of days here. I spent a good portion of Saturday snuggling with Acan Irene (I posted a picture of her a couple of weeks ago), who's having trouble with mom at home. She's a sweet girl and I thoroughly enjoyed loving on her!

Friday Chrissy and I babysat for our friends' four girls. We watched a movie and it was a lot of fun! I did have to smile at the fact that my career as a babysitter has followed me all the way to Africa!

Power has been in and out this week, which is kind of nice because if forces me into bed early. It's mainly annoying only because there's no ice cream in the city (and I guess having no light or fans is kind of annoying too) - but I am slowly learning to survive that aspect of Gulu power outages! :-)

Our van is back and is WONDERFUL! It's the same vehicle, but it has a new engine, new radiators, a speedometer (we didn't have one before, which added to the tremendous safety of the vehicle), an air conditioning that works, and the list goes on. Plus, we have new shocks and suspension. The difference in the ride is wonderful!

That's about it. This week it's back to normal at Tegot Primary, so back to normal for ECM too. I'm looking forward to it!

Oh, and Chrissy's malaria is gone. Yay!

Naked Baby

Love this picture. And the story behind this sweet baby.



This is baby Steven. I first met him when he was in the hospital, very sick with malaria. This was a couple days later when he was home, completely well and not afraid of me.

The babies mostly don't wear clothes here, but I haven't been peed on yet...a definite plus, I'd say!

**This lovely photo was taken by Becky, who's gotten to be a great friend over the last couple of months!

Spring Break

It’s Spring Break season in the States and I can tell because there are TONS of American college students in Gulu. It’s almost overwhelming to me at times (In a good way, except they've been eating all the ice cream at Cafe Larem. Lame.)!

***

I’ve been to the market almost every day this week and I’m happy to say that I rarely get “mzungu prices” anymore. The reason? Because I know what things should cost, I will not buy from someone who’s trying to overcharge me, I know how to ask for the prices in Acholi (gives the false appearance that I know what I’m doing), and most importantly, I know the women I like to buy from so they don’t try to cheat me.

In reality, the mzungu prices really wouldn’t affect me that much. Everything’s still ridiculously cheap here. It’s the difference of one dollar at most (for produce), but it’s the principle of honesty that makes it matter to me.

***

Since apparently I really like to talk about food in my blog, I will tell you about the dinner Chrissy and I made two nights ago. It was homemade eggplant parmesan, without the parmesan. The best part was the spaghetti sauce made completely from scratch. I think it was the best meal I’ve had in Uganda. Seriously.

On Books & Being a Vegetarian (Almost!)

Since this has been a bit of a slow week, I really don’t have all that much to report. Chrissy got diagnosed with malaria today but so far it is a mild case, thankfully. But still, please pray for her!

I’ve had quite a bit of time to read the past few weeks – all books I loved and feel like I benefitted from.

First, I read Spectacular Sins by John Piper. Whoa! It was sooo good. I would highly recommend it! It’s a short read, but very dense and challenging material.

Next was Pursuit of Holiness by Jerry Bridges. Once again, excellent. The material isn’t challenging, but personal application definitely is. This book was an instrument of great conviction for me in many areas!

Lastly, I finished Death by Love by Mark Driscoll. I started it a long time ago, but finally got around to finishing it. It’s an excellent resource; lots of research and Scripture are in every chapter.

To completely switch gears, food here has been a big adjustment for me. I’ve been forced to almost be a vegetarian…a definite challenge for me, as I usually eat meat multiple times a day! I actually crave meat here. I have meat about once a week and only at restaurants. It would be possible for me to eat chicken at home, but that would involve purchasing a live chicken and, well, I can’t even empty a mouse trap without freaking out. A chicken’s just probably not going to happen.

I eat lots of eggs, avocados, eggplant, pineapple, and other fresh fruits and veggies! The traditional food is not bad, but it’s not very flavorful either. I mostly prefer to prepare food at home, although there are several restaurants in town that I really enjoy (mainly for the ice cream, but it’s hot here!?).

The rest of this week will continue to be a bit slow. All of the local schools have a big athletics competition on Thursday, so they haven’t been having class all week. Instead they are preparing for the competition, so we are unable to carry on our normal programs with the kids. I’m ready to get back to the more normal schedule (I use the term “normal schedule” very loosely – in Uganda there really is no such thing) with the kids even though this week has helped me catch up on a lot!

Stickers and Lollipops

...both are "essentials" that I try to carry in my bag at all times. Because you just never know when you'll run into a kid that might need one. Or both.





This is Rita. Her mom died recently and so Maggie, who works at the coffee shop I frequent, is taking care of her. Rita comes to work with Maggie every day and sits quietly in a little chair behind the counter. Yesterday, though, she sat in my lap and put stickers all over her dress.

The school in Tegot is not having class all week because of athletics, so we will be in the office some days instead of going to camp. I miss the kids, but it has been very nice to be able to catch up on some e-mails and paperwork. I am currently working on improving the sponsorship program to include more communication with the sponsors, and that has taken a lot more time than I expected, so office time this week has been much appreciated. Oh, and usually my "office" is Cafe Larem - guacamole and iced coffee present!

A Day in Pictures (and captions)

Ajok Winnifred. No lack of personality here – when her leg is completely better we’re fully expecting a girl version of Okema. I brought her to the clinic today for her second-to-last treatment. Afterwards, I gave her juice, a banana, and a lollipop. At one point, she was sitting in my lap with banana and lollipop in one hand and juice in the other, singing “Jesus Loves Me” complete with head-bobbing and hand movements. This continued on the boda-boda until she completely passed out for the last 20-30 minutes to camp. And in case you ever need to know, it’s very hard to hold a sleeping child AND hold on to a boda-boda. I would not recommend it.



These kids all have never-ending smiles. Barbara is always up to something funny; so much so that everyone calls her “crazy Barbara.” Paloya Mercy is just awesome and was one of the first to initiate hugging with me, so she has a special place in my heart. Kwo-tek means “life is hard,” but ECM staff (mainly Chrissy) changed his name to Kwo-be, which means “life is good.” He smiles when you call him that!



Lamwaka Patricia – my parents are her sponsor. She spent a good part of the day singing “Jesus Loves Me” in English and Acholi. Her outfit today was pajama pants, her little sister’s new shirt (size 3T – WAY too small), and new panties that she showed me multiple times!



Okema – how I love this kid. He’s the one that’s been learning the alphabet. He’s a handful, but so stinkin’ cute!



Let’s just keep it real – this is the common reaction when I approach babies here…sheer terror. This is Procy. I see her every single day and she still screams like this most days. However, I have held her on more than one occasion with no tears…go figure.

Beautiful Girl

Last week, we set up a wound care “clinic” for the kids in Tegot. There were nastier wounds than I’ve certainly ever seen. The crazy thing is, wounds are treated here with no anesthetic. And when I say these wounds are big, I mean that in the States, to clean a wound like this, a person would be put completely under because the pain level would be so intense. The children cry, but rarely scream or try to run. People here are TOUGH!

Ajok Winnifred is six years old, newly sponsored, and stinkin’ cute. She had a particularly nasty wound. It was so deep that it was very near her bone and was definitely infected. We cleaned it out the best we could (actually, I didn’t clean it but held her arms while it was cleaned…a horrible task) and then took her into the clinic in town.

It took a couple days to get her into the clinic because we couldn’t find her in camp multiple days in a row. This caused a lot of worry for me because I knew she needed to be seen by a doctor as soon as possible…septic blood infection kept running through my mind. I spent multiple nights lying awake praying for her.

Side note: Ajok has only been sponsored a couple of weeks and has been very quiet, shy, and timid. Actually, I’m pretty sure last week made her scared of me because every time I saw her she got her leg cleaned which was very, very painful.

This all changed with a trip to the clinic. I went in the room with her and held her while the doctor cleaned her leg. She also has to have five days of IV-antibiotics because she had a slightly septic infection. And when I say she’s having IV antibiotics, I mean they are whacking her little body with some hard-core stuff. She’s asleep before they complete the infusion.

After day one I gave her juice and a banana in an attempt to counteract the massive amounts of medication they were pumping into her (bribery might have played a role too). She smiled at me but still wouldn’t come close. Day two (yesterday) she came by herself on a boda-boda and I met her at the clinic by myself. It’s still strange for me to have such a “mommy role” in the life of a child that is not mine, but I was happy to be there for her. After day two of treatment I gave her two bananas, two juice boxes, two stickers, and a lollipop. I’m pretty sure we’re best friends now. We got in some good snuggle time (and lots of stares from people who were undoubtedly wondering what a mzungu girl was doing with a small African child) and then she took a nap in my lap while we were waiting for a boda-boda to take us back to Tegot.

By the afternoon, she was a completely different child than the one I met a couple weeks ago. Before we left camp yesterday, some of the moms broke into spontaneous praise and dance. Little Ajok jumped up and down for a good five minutes straight and gave me at least 20 hugs. She’s smiley, energetic, and absolutely precious. Not to mention beautiful.



This smile is a result of a lot of prayer and God’s healing. She’s hiding her IV from the camera in this photo.



Little Ajok and her sister, Acan Irene.

The Rest of the Trip

Monday morning we had a fabulous breakfast that included real bacon and coffee then headed to Murchison Falls. Once again, I didn’t really know what to expect, but I was not disappointed. Murchison wasn’t like any waterfall I’ve ever seen, but was more like a vertical rapids. The river narrows substantially and all the water is pressed through a pretty narrow opening in the rocks. A hundred yards before and after the falls is totally calm and serene water. Very impressive. Once again, we all spent a long time just soaking it all in.

We headed back to the park on the hunt for giraffes and lions. We found giraffes pretty quickly and they are undoubtedly my new favorite animal. They are WAY taller in the wild than in the zoo and they are just graceful. How an animal with probably 10-foot long legs can look graceful when walking or running I don’t know, but they are beautiful creatures. At one point we were sitting in the middle of a herd of about 20, which included several babies. They just stared at us and continued eating.

We never found lions, but did not leave disappointed. We did see footprints, which was at least proof that they were somewhere near!

On the way home, we got to admire the brilliant African stars and watch a lightning storm roll across the land.

Overall it was a wonderful weekend spent soaking in God’s creation.



Murchison Falls. This doesn't do it justice, but I couldn't get an angle that captured the entire thing.



Once again, Murchison. Can I just say that it is incredibly difficult to hike in a skirt? Many times on our trek I wished for shorts and a t-shirt!






Giraffes are WAY cool. This was when we were sitting in the middle of a herd.



The sunset. It didnt' have a lot of color, but was no less brilliant. The DR Congo is once again behind the mountains.

“The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” – Psalm 19:1-2

“O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom have you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures…May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in his works, who looks on the earth and it trembles, who touches the mountains and they smoke! I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will song praises to my god while I have being.” – Psalm 104:24, 31-33

Weekend Safari Adventure (Day 1)

Monday was a Ugandan national holiday, so we took advantage of the long weekend and took a trip out to Murchison Falls and the game park. In a word? Incredible.

In total, there were 14 people who went. All in one van. That was the beginning of the adventure. The drive was about two hours with surprisingly good roads for Uganda. Day 1 we drove around the park and saw elephants, water buffalo, tons of birds, deer, Pumbas (aka warthogs), and just soaked in the stunning beauty of the African bush. And really, it was stunning. Breathtakingly beautiful. To the west were mountains (on the other side is the Democratic Republic of Congo); the Nile and Lake Albert were visible almost the entire time. Much of the drive was spent in silence, as everyone was just in awe of the beauty of God’s creation.

To be quite honest, I was excited about going, but not ecstatic or anything. In my mind it was going to be a sort of drive-thru zoo. I could not have been more wrong. The animals we saw were majestic, graceful, and WAY bigger than the ones at the zoo. It was an incredible experience to be yards (and even feet) from these wild creatures. Plus, it was just super fun. We sang Lion King songs, Veggie Tales songs, and just enjoyed the fellowship.

At dusk, we took a ferry across the Nile (which it really never gets old to see the NILE River – I think of Moses in a basket every time) to the Red Chili Rest Camp where some planned to rent small huts (I was most definitely in this group), others planned to camp, and still others planned to sleep in the camper-van. While on the ferry, we talked to a man who worked at the Red Chili who informed us there was probably no vacancy. We weren’t convinced, but we prayed for vacancy before getting out of the van.

Turns out he was right. No vacancy. Not even room on the ground for two tents and a place to park the camper-van. To make things worse, they have food based on reservations and could not feed such a large group on such short notice. Keep in mind that it is dark, we are in the middle of the African bush, the nearest town is at least two hours away, and we are in lion country…not exactly ideal conditions.

BUT, as we stood there, a group of 30 called and canceled, opening up room for us to set-up our tents and rent their tents! So, I quickly moved from there’s-no-way-I’m-sleeping-in-a-tent-when-there-are-elephants-and-hippos-outside to this-should-be-interesting. And it was interesting. Actually, it was totally awesome. The tents had real beds and mosquito nets AND I got to spend the night listening to the sounds of Africa (which included a HUGE thunderstorm). In the morning, we discovered hippo footprints within a few yards of our tent. So, so cool!

Everything about the experience was wonderful. If you’re ever in western Uganda, visit Murchison and stay in the Red Chili Rest Camp. Just call ahead.



The DR Congo is right beyond the mountains in the distance. It was a stunning view!



Hippos are huge. They are said to be one of the most dangerous creatures on earth. I know it looks kind of like this is at a zoo, but it's actually at a gas station. He was just hanging out.



Baby warthogs. Not the prettiest creatures once they're full grown, but definitely unique. I enjoyed seeing them just because The Lion King is one of my favorite Disney movies...



Sightings of these guys caused the car to break out in song..."Everybody's got a waterbuffalo..."



A MASSIVE elephant we spotted as we were heading into the park. He's probably 20 yards away from the road.

Laker Lady

I'm out of town for the night visiting a game park (the closest to a safari in Uganda), but here's one of my favorite pictures I've taken here so far. This is Laker (pronounced la-KAY) Lady. She always has an awesome smile!



Not sure why it's flipped, but it's still cute! :-)

Lake Victoria

This is from a couple of weeks ago when I was in Kampala. We had to go to the airport in Entebbe and took a little detour to eat at an Italian restaurant on Lake Victoria. It was absolutely gorgeous and the best pizza I've had in Uganda!

Lake Victoria is the largest lake in Africa and is the source of the Nile, so it was neat to be able to see it.

Here's a couple pictures:





P.S. I found a place in Gulu where I can get steak and fries for under $5! It's tough meat, but it's cooked enough to be safe. When I'm only getting meat maybe a couple times a week, it is delicious! There was also CNN playing on a flat-screen TV. That felt really weird.

"I Was Hungry, and You Gave Me Food"

I thought I was coming to Uganda solely to share the Gospel with orphans. After being here a little over a month, I am beginning to see that is only a small part of what I am called to do here. While that’s still my main focus, there are so many other opportunities that just can’t be passed up.

The adults here are aching for something worth living for. You see it in their faces. It often manifests itself in extreme depression, alcoholism, and mental illness.

While I have extreme sympathy and compassion toward their hurting (which is almost always a result of pain inflicted by the LRA), that feeling is not shared by the Ugandans I work with. It has been so perplexing to me, sometimes even making me angry. There have been multiple times when intoxicated people have come up to talk to us and the Ugandans do nothing but laugh. They respond this way because they feel that since everyone here has experienced pain the alcoholics should just learn to deal with their problems better. It is often shocking because I know the staff loves Jesus, but alcoholics are a specific group of people that they don’t want to tolerate.

Because I have absolutely no pain that could even compare with years of war, I view this issue totally differently. I don’t see people making stupid decisions, but rather people who are hurting and needing healing. I long to share with them the hope of Jesus and the truth of the Gospel – give them something worth living for!

---

Yesterday we were driving home from Tegot and we passed a woman lying in the ditch on the side of the road. Wanting to make sure she was OK, we stopped. Simon and Pato (two of the Ugandans I work with) got out to check on her and after a couple minutes, Chrissy joined them.

It turns out the woman (Angela) was passed out drunk, but still able to be aroused. Simon and Pato weren’t very happy about taking care of a drunk woman (remember the culture!), but at Chrissy’s insistence, they helped her sit up. Then, once again at Chrissy’s leading, they shared the Gospel with her. They told her that being filled with the Spirit was far better than being filled with alcohol. They told her that Christ would make her path straight.

And you know what happened? She smiled. And she prayed to accept Jesus. And she got up and walked. Stumbling at first, but eventually on a straight path. We walked with her a short part of the way home (I joined at some point in all of this) as she sang, clapped her hands, and began down a path of new life.

When we got back in the car, both Simon and Pato thanked Chrissy for her insistence that Angela needed to hear the Gospel. And this morning, they shared the story with our friend Kent, thrilled to have a new sister in Christ. Kent said, “Isn’t it awesome that, just like Angela, Christ saved us when we were drunk and lying in a ditch?” I watched the faces of everyone in the room when he said that and I seriously believe I saw heart-change happen before my eyes. I think that they realized for the first time that yes, we were all just as bad off as someone dunk and lying in a ditch before Christ came in and changed our hearts. I’m pretty sure there are now at least a group of Ugandans who believe that alcoholics are just as valuable as other people. And that makes me smile (and cry, but mostly smile).

So I know we didn’t actually give Angela food or water or clothes, but we shared with her something much, much more valuable. And that Scripture (Matthew 25: 35-36) is just what came to mind during the whole thing.

“For our sake he made him who knew no sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God.” -2 Corinthians 5:21

A Welcome Home Visitor

When we arrived back at our house from Kampala, this little guy was waiting to greet us in our living room.



I'm no arachnid expert, but I'm pretty sure that is a tarantula. And he was in my house. Ew!