Just the two of us

Hey Everyone!

So I know that it may seem like we’ve been on a vacation or something over here with all of the pictures of exotic animals, pools, and traveling but don’t let that deceive you. It’s easy for me to write about all of the excursions we go on and the fun things we’ve done, and it is a little harder to talk about REAL day in and day out life here. It’s not glamorous or easy, and some days I get into bed and just have a good cry, but when I wake up in the morning, I’m happy that I am waking up here.

Life just got very real for us after we dropped Michael and Amanda off at the airport and said goodbye. It was a sweet moment, and I feel so blessed to have gotten so close to this amazing couple over the past few weeks. It was hard to say goodbye, but I am so excited for what God has in store for them next.

I don’t remember if I have talked much about Wilson in the blogs yet, but he is a Ugandan from Masindi and he has been working for Michael and Amanda for most of the two + years they were here as their day guard/ home help. Just about everyone here has people who work in the house with them. At first this seemed a little awkward to me as I am here to serve, so having someone help me around the house seemed a little strange; however, there are many different reasons why people do this. First, life is hard here and everything takes a LOT longer to do than it does at home. It’s helpful to have someone around that knows how to do life here. Wilson was and is definitely a God send. He is sweet, helpful, knowledgeable, protective, and just fun to be around. He is in his late 20s like us, so it’s kind of like having another friend around. As a female here too, when Newman is up at the clinic and I am doing things in the house, it is nice to have a tall and strong man around. I feel very safe.  He is very friendly with all of the people who come by and all of the neighbors, but he is so good about knowing when it’s ok to have people over and when it is not. He is very sweet with all of the children that are around, but when they won’t stop peering into the windows and asking for things, he is good about telling them it’s time to go home now. Secondly, it’s very helpful to have someone around who speaks the local language and knows the culture. Wilson will go to the market with me and make sure that I am getting fair prices and not jacked up “mazungu” prices. Everyone assumes that if you are white, then you are rich so you can pay the higher prices. This may be true in general, but it is not fair. He does even better when I give him a list and some money and he does the shopping without me. If they don’t see me, then they assume the produce is for Wilson. For example, I sent him to the market with a list of items and 20,000 shillings, which is about $8.50. That doesn’t seem like a lot of money to us, but it’s a pretty good chunk of change here. Anyways, I thought he would spend at least 10,000-12,000 because that’s what it usually costs me to get a few items. He came back with my change and he had only spent 3,000 shillings or about $1.25. Amazing right? Lastly, and maybe most importantly, having someone work in the house is great because it provides a good job for someone in a place where good employment is scarce. It also allows us the opportunity to pour into someone day in and day out. Wilson was definitely a part of Michael and Amanda’s family and he is fast becoming a part of ours as well.  We take care of him like family. He was so sweet and wanted to escort Michael and Amanda to the airport, so he rode with us. He was definitely sad to see them go, and the days leading up to their departure he kept saying he didn’t like seeing them pack and he didn’t want to talk about them leaving. We had a sweet conversation with him in the car on the way back from the airport, just the 3 of us, when I asked him about how he entered Michael and Amanda’s lives. He also opened up to us some about his personal life and story. He, like most Ugandans, has already lived a hard life before they even reach 30. Ugandan’s are very resilient and strong, and he keeps a smile on his face every day.

So, with all of that said, we are now settling into our new home and life and finally fully unpacking after being in transition since March 30^th when we moved out of our house in Charleston. We spent our first night here in the house last night, and I think this it’s a very good sign that I slept through the night for the first time since we arrived. I’ve been having sleep issues for the past 2 months, but I finally feel rested this morning which is a great feeling. God has continued to challenge us and reward us throughout these past 2 months and there is no question that this is where we are supposed to be. Just when I think I will start to look online for flights home, he brings something or someone into my view that reassures me that I am not to go anywhere. Something as simple as having the power come back on yesterday when we were moving in after being out again for a few days, is the most uplifting and comforting thing. I praise God for that, because nothing is better than some cold water bottles from the fridge when you are moving in a house on the equator.  

I know that there will be many many more bumps in the road and tough times ahead, but I can feel us growing from these times, and each experience is causing us to have more faith and become more resilient. I’m so happy to be here with my best friend, Newman, and I am so blessed to have such an amazing man at my side. If it wasn’t for him rubbing my back when I’m in tears and wanting to go home at night, I think I might have bought one of those plane tickets. Thank you so much for your prayers. We can feel God watching over us and holding us up. I keep hearing from him, perseverance. It reminds me of the verse in Hebrews that says “…let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” (Heb 12:1) We have a long road ahead of us, but we also know that the time will fly by. Between now and then, we will persevere.

P.S. I am including some pictures below that I JUST took of some monkeys in the back yard running around the mango trees. They are so funny to watch. They are like little kids tugging on each other and chasing each other. Just another cool gift from God on this first morning in our new house.  The other picture is of the front of our house.