Goodbye Uganda
My last week in Uganda has been a
good one. The pastors little girls, Debrah and Rachel, have been so fun and
even the little toddler, Gloria, has been coming out of her shell to get to
know me. It is such a blessing to be with such an amazing family, and it is
definitely bittersweet leaving this place. As I leave Uganda, I leave relationships
that I have made with families, brothers, sisters, and little ones. I have
given my email out countless times, but it is still tough to leave these
people.
Yesterday the men of our group took a walk up
this mountain where we had to climb to get to the top. At the top we found a
group of people smoking strange substances from pipes and worshipping a tree
while enjoying a beautiful view of the city of Kampala as well as the
surrounding area of Uganda. When we approached a man was very cautious of us
but let us know that we could come closer. As we got closer, the man started to
get very adamant about our feet. We had to take our shoes/sandals off to enter
the “sacred” place near the tree. Bundles of straw had been laid around the
tree to set the area apart from other ground, and offerings were being placed
around the tree. There were gourds that appeared to be full of wine under the
tree. The people invited us to worship the tree with them but we politely
refused. We continued to speak to some people about Jesus, and I specifically
got to talk to two men sitting in some shade near the tree. The men were very
worried about their future because they were very poor and didn’t have jobs.
They thought that there was no way that they could be saved or a part of Jesus’
family because of their status and their financial need. I prayed with them and
they became very interested in Jesus and committed to come to church on Sunday.
That experience was beautiful because of the amazing views from on top of the mountain,
and because I gained new perspective on people.
often the children get hit by teachers. I learned this when I was trying to get
the students to quiet down while teaching a lesson and their normal teacher
walked in. Immediately the room was silent and students sat at attention. After
that point I have seen students get disciplined by beating or hitting on a
number of occasions. I wonder what I can do about it. I am reminded that this
is not my culture and this is not my home, but it seems so wrong to me to bend
a child over and beat on their back right below the shoulder blade. School is
hard for students here. If you fail an exam you are subject to a beating. The
school that I was at yesterday had a man walking around the campus with a rod
and if children were too loud or running around he would fiercely threaten them
with it. I have the feeling that love is extremely hard to find for young
people here. At the schools that I teach, I am treated like royalty by the teachers
and students. The teachers force the students to bring me porridge and pancakes
and other little treats. I have a good relationship with both teachers and
students, but it makes me sad that the children are neglected like they are.
The students serve the teachers and if they don’t, they are punished. Not yet
have a heard a “good job” or any other compliment from a teacher to a student. It will be hard leaving the students who seem to have such high respect for us and longing to be in our situation.
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