Tomorrow (Sunday 6th) it will be exactly two months since I arrived in Uganda. So, what have I been up to and what's been happening?
The first big news is that Daniel and Solveig Kinda have arrived back from California and are living here at Water World (in the room next door). It's been good to chat to other bazungu and it's so funny how American Solveig sounds after so many months in the USA - rather than Icelandic, that is!
Two weeks ago this weekend I had the pleasure of visiting Pastor Simeon Semenye and his wife Agnes in the village of Maanyi, about 30 minutes south of Mityana. I first visited Maanyi Parent's School which, although less than three years old on its present site, has over 400 pupils. Semion started the school himself and has had virtually no funding from outside. Despite this the school is getting the best results in the local education area.
Maanyi Parents' School
When a Ugandan School receives a visitor they really do it in style and I was greeted by a special school assembly with the singing of their anthems (the Ugandan National Anthem in English and the Buganda Anthem to the katonda - their king - in Luganda), presentation sketches, songs and dance, a welcome speech from the head girl and the presentation of gifts to me - eggs, tomatoes, mangoes and sugar cane - which I was later able to give to the needy of the village.
The children dancing
The head girl's speech
Sugar cane gift
I
then went with Semion to their home which is in the grounds of the
school where I stayed for two nights.
On
the Saturday morning I was taken first of all to visit Semion's
mother and father at their home about 30 minutes south in the next
district of Gomba. They were really emotional as they “never
thought they would see the day when a mzungu would visit their
home”.
Then it was on to the church another 15 minutes away
in the palm plantations, where I led a conference and spoke twice starting with Philippians 4:4-7, there was ministry and healings and I was greeted by Bishop Matthew, the chairman of the churches in Gomba
District.
Agnes is my interpretor
Unfortunately by then my tummy was doing very strange
things and I felt it was wise not to eat the food offered to me at Matthew's home but he was very gracious and accepted that I had a “problem
with my abdomen”.
I
purposely didn't take any photos inside Semion and Agnes's home but
perhaps I need to describe it. It is a plain plastered building of
three rooms. You step up to a simple “front porch” level as in
most Ugandan homes (they tend to be raised so as to reduce the risk
of flooding during the torrents of the rainy season). There you
remove your shoes before entering. This is to avoid soil and mud
being spread through the house. Through the front door and straight
into the living room with a worn three-piece suite, a low table and a
basic shelf unit. To the left and right are doors leading to two
bedrooms, the right being Semion and Agnes's and the left being
allocated to me. I imagine that two or three of the children had been
“evacuated” to the school building so I could have a bed there.
My room had a bed with mattress, sheet, blanket and mosquito net. I
used my fleece as a pillow. Bathing facilities were a bowl of hot
water in the washroom which was off their bedroom – an open alcove.
There's no paint on the plaster inside or out.
Several
times during the weekend I heard Semion state with great pride that,
when he had invited me to stay, he thought I would have declined and
that his wife had been definite that I would have taken one look at
their home and asked to be driven to an hotel in Mityana. However it
brought me credibility with the local people. Semion later told me
that the people in the village had decided among themselves that as
he now had a mzungu friend he
must now be very rich.
Early
on the Sunday morning we set off back to Kampala where Semion pastors
a church of over 40 even though it's only three months old. It was
there that I spoke on Sunday morning and tried to briefly précis the
two sessions of the conference so that they didn't miss out on the
message. I was delighted to meet there an older woman whom I had met
on a previous visit to her home in Makindye and when I had prayed for
her arthritic legs. She was now able to run, jump and dance with the
rest of the congregation.
The lady says thank you with a small gift
I remember Tony's advice about always using "us" and "we" and not "you"
After
a chicken and chips lunch in Mengo (yes, they call them “chips”
in Uganda – not fries) I returned to the Adonai guesthouse in
Lubaga for a couple of days break.
On
returning to the island I was determined to rectify one misconception
that a very good friend had – that the island wasn't beautiful. Of
course, most of the photos I'd put on here, Facebook and email were
of the local people, homes and businesses which although
among amazing scenery are all very basic and often not particularly
clean. So on the following Sunday afternoon after church I visited
some of the resorts and more scenic locations to take photos and, in
doing so, found – ostriches!
Lake Victoria near Lutoboka
The view of the lake from Main Road Kalangala
Mirembe Beach
Keeper Robert with the ostriches at Ssese Habitat
The
next highlight was last
Monday when I was over at the Maranatha Gateway project with Kaben,
Florence and little Enock and
they invited me to join them at a party to welcome home their pastor,
Samson, and his wife, Witness, and their new little baby Gideon. Once
more into the middle of African village celebration!
Witness and Samson with baby Gideon
Then
on Wednesday I travelled to Kampala where my cousin Angie was
overnighting at the Sheraton Hotel. She's senior cabin crew with
British Airways. It was so good to be able to catch up with her and
chat for about three hours. In addition she brought me some
essentials – custard creams, bourbons and
Nescafe – as well as some
children's clothes and lollies! I stayed over in Entebbe on Wednesday night which gave me chance to look round the town on Thursday morning.
It's
now just 10 days before John and Sue arrive here so my next BLOG will doubtless be after that date. I'm really looking forward to meeting them with
the truck at Entebbe Airport on the 16th.
Thanks for reading this - looking forward to catching up with you all. Please make comments!
