Roots of a Tree

Our time in Uganda ran out all too soon, but as it ended we still fit in some of the best moments with people there we'll never forget. 

I met my mother's friend, Dorothy, whom she met when she visited Uganda three years ago and has corresponded with ever since. Dorothy hurried to meet Kevin and I as we pulled up to my aunt's church on Sunday.  She was so easy to talk to right away, and we carried on chatting and I gave her a gift from my mother (the novel Little Women, some candy, and a card).  At one point she paused and said, "It is so strange to be talking to you now, you look just like your mom, it's almost as if she's here." She seemed to have tears in her eyes, and of course then so did I.  I understood why my mom always spoke of her with such tenderness. 

My aunt and Kevin and I had lunch with Kevin's student, Ambrose, and the student that my mom and stepdad sponsor, William.  As soon as we met William I could tell he had a fun and hilarious personality.  Over lunch I had the privilege of getting to give him a new backpack packed with fun presents from my mom and Brad.  I wished that they had gotten to be with William to do this, since they've never met him and I knew they'd love him.  As he opened the backpack he first spotted a card from each of them, and read them thoroughly first without even touching the candy and gifts, and then grabbed a stack of photos my mom included of various family members doing fun things, and had me explain who was in each photo and where it was taken.  William's amiable curiosity and confident caring nature is going to take him wherever he wants to go... it was a such joy to meet him. 

On our last full day we went bowling with my aunt and the Hope Alive staff.  The skill level was wide-ranging but the smiles never stopped, and after every turn, there was always someone cheering you no matter how you did.  There was a dj playing a wide variety of 80s and 90s dance hits, and between turns our Ugandan friends would bust some serious moves.  Kevin and I were so impressed, and Kevin decided then that he needed to one day come back to Africa for a few weeks just to study dance moves... "there was so much to learn from them..." he said in awe.  Totally true. 

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"You have a nice home," I said.

"Not really," he replied, his tone matter-of-fact but laced with a hint of sadness.  We were spending some time visiting the homes of children in the Hope Alive program.  This was the fifth house, and the first time we had encountered a father.  Usually it was a mother or the older sibling heading a household.  His home was nice, relative to so many others; I hadn't been transparently trying to flatter him.  The house looked like many in this poor area of Masaka; the roof was made from tin shingles and the walls from maybe some native bricks and the floor was concrete.  But there were no chickens running around inside or posters taped up on the walls, and the floor was swept clean. It was spacious, there were at least three rooms and the couches were very worn but comfortable, and they even had a tiny TV. 

Ronald spoke of how difficult things had been lately since he was out of work.  His wife occasionally worked as a cook, which brought in some money, but he still was very concerned for their situation.  Several times he said the words, "I just want to provide for my family."  I wanted to do more than listen.  I wanted to say that he was doing so much already just being there for them.  That he was doing a great job for his kids, and that as they grow up they will benefit immensely from having had a dad.  So many kids in Uganda may have a father, but he is often absent, for every reason from not wanting to be involved, to having found another family, or having passed away, or having to live in another place for a job.  Ronald is providing, and I wanted to tell him that.  But for that time, it was best to just let him share. 

His darling daughter, a primary student who wore a pink dress and had greeted us with a hug, waved goodbye as we set off for the next home. She's a lucky girl, and I hope one day she realizes that.  Her name, by the way, is Gift.

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"I think this is when most people give up on their stories. They come out of college wanting to change the world, wanting to get married, wanting to have kids... But they get into the middle and discover it was harder than they thought. They can't see the distant shore anymore, and they wonder if their paddling is moving them forward. None of the trees behind them are getting smaller and none of the trees ahead are getting bigger. They take it out on their family, and they go looking for an easier story."
-Donald Miller

From what we get, we can make a living; what we give, however, makes a life.
-Arthur Ashe

Kevin met the student he sponsors on Thursday. 

We went to Ambrose's secondary school to have Kevin visit him at lunchtime.  The secretary had Ambrose pulled out of class a few minutes early.  He walked into the office and then there they were, student and sponsor, grins a mile wide, giving each other the Ugandan handshake, and then, a hug.  I bit my lip and stood to take a photo of them.  We walked out to the schoolyard where they got to talk for quite awhile. 

I try to put myself in the place of the students who are sponsored, to imagine what it would be like to meet in person the one who is putting you through school. Especially the older teenagers, who are close to graduating and being able to take their qualifying exams for college... they are so aware of how the support is allowing them truly move forward. Ambrose doesn't have parents, he lives with his older brother.  It has to be overwhelming, to meet your sponsor, to know what to say, how exactly to say thank you, and all in your second language.  And I know that sponsors are eager to convey their care, their interest, their desire to see the student thrive...It's true that their lives are separated by obviously so much more than a continent and an ocean.  But you learn that often, that separation doesn't matter at all. 

It was awesome to see Kevin and Ambrose dive right in to exchanging stories and discussing sports and video games and school.  We'd heard Ambrose is quite smart and driven, and that was evident.  I know they each got to express the depth of their appreciation for the other.  And past that, I watched them become friends, the seventeen year old and twenty seven year old, laughing and posing for photos in matching aviator shades, as girls looking on giggled. 

Attached are photos of them.  Also, one of the lovely sunset from that night at our compound.  Kampala city in view.

~Corinne

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"Buffalo."

Oh.

About ten feet from the path that led to all the huts stood about six massive dark buffalo.  We'd actually been told to expect this, and that it wasn't too dangerous but you should just be cautious.  Hearing about it is of course quite different from encountering it.  I walked slowly, reverently, past.  And obviously, made it safely back to my place.

The next day we viewed dozens and dozens of them from the safe and assuring enclosure of a hardy safari van.  Along with giraffes, bucks, a lion and her cubs, and a lot of other things.  The feeling of standing in a vehicle, your upper body out through a hole in the top, racing past the landscape, wind on your face... doing that every day would most certainly be incredibly good for the soul. 

Other highlights of the last two days out on the game reserve by the Nile...

* Our safari guide setting fire to the tall golden grass and then having us drive away.  Um, aren't you about to burn up thousands of acres of African landscape? No, it's not dry enough here? Okay. Santa Barbara would light up like a Christmas tree in January, but we'll take your word for it. 

* Watching the World Cup games with Ugandan locals and international lodge guests on a sweet flatscreen by the bar.  Geckos crawling on the wall, bats flying by the ceiling, Ronaldo drilling the ball into the net after it bounces off his back.  Epic.

* Scrambling around on the wet rocks surrounding Murchison Falls on the Nile.  Hot air, cool water spray, rainbow over the gap... can't wait to share all the photos. 

* Food from the street vendors while on the road... its official: Meat on a stick is fantastic no matter what corner of the world you're in. Thailand, Greece, Uganda, Sharkeez in Santa Barbara... All delicious. 

Miss you all.

~Corinne

The sky here is enormous.  It goes on forever in every direction, clouds billowing high and low.  You could lay in the long grass and watch them forever. 
Gulu is fantastic. 

We drove for five hours to get here from Kampala, and the highlight of the trip for both Kevin and me was the same.  We rounded a bend and there it was...massive, raging, scary and beautiful. The Nile.  Pictures will absolutely not do it justice.  We could have sat on that bridge and stared at the river for days.  We get to ride a ferry over it tomorrow, but apparently that will be at a calm spot.  The place we saw on our roadtrip had rapids rated something higher than Class V, as in, perilously unnavigable.  There's a small part of me that wants to take it on anyway. 

Today we visited the Gulu Hope Alive site, which was amazing.  We played with the kids, they made up songs and skits, Kevin taught them how to make paper airplanes, I put countless fake tattoos (my specialty;) on eager arms, and enjoyed a meal of casava (a sort of potato) and sweet tea.  The site is in an area which used to house internally displaced persons, and so there are dozens of huts left over from that in the surrounding areas.  I took a walk through grass about twice as tall as me, wandering as I'm prone to do, until my little friend Mark, he's about six, came and found me, taking me by the hand back to our building for tea. 

You should know, if you haven't been here before, how amazing the childrens' smiles are. It's not just the smile itself, it's how it happens.  The kids are observant, watching you as you move past, not afraid to look right into your eyes, but their gaze is serious, curious and respectful.  Then if you give them a smile, and if you hold it for at least a second, and they break into a smile as well.  A shy and delighted smile that lights up their entire face.  Also difficult to capture on film.  No worries, because I know we won't ever forget it. 

~Corinne

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* Driving on the left side of the road, with, as Kevin put it, more almost head-on collisions than he's had in the past few years combined.  Just a standard cross town trip in Kampala. 

* A sudden thunderstorm around noon, that came down hard and fast, and left as soon as it arrived. I stood on the porch and overlooked the city from the Hope Alive office and soaked it up, since rain in warm air is a novelty and a delight for me. 

* Ugandan food... varieties of potatoes and rice and banana dishes and chicken and beans...delicious. 

* You must speak slow here to be understood by Ugandans.  But more importantly, you must listen hard to understand their English.  To get every word, it's best to lean in and silence your own thoughts and focus on every word.  Think about the context and wait before asking them to repeat themselves, since if you pause and review, you probably got it the first time.  This is a great lesson. 

*Fatigue.  I know we have jet lag, but I started this trip sleep deprived, and maybe a couple months of too much too fast are catching up with me.  There's nowhere like here to be able to slow down and rest.  Even when the night sends through my open window the loud sounds of people cheering the World Cup game at a party in the distance.  It didn't keep me up, but I fell asleep with a smile.