Out of Africa

 

 

We are now in our hometown of Charleston, SC, after having spent 6 wonderful weeks in Uganda. I arrived in Africa on May 28, crying because I was so happy to see our children, and I departed Uganda on July 17, crying as we said our good byes to so many that we had come to love, during our brief time there.

 

Our dear, hardworking neighbor, Constance, and her 7 grandchildren, all came to say farewell. The faces of these little children are forever etched in my mind.

Walter, the 6 year old, became a regular fixture at our house, on many afternoons.

Walter would bring fresh mangoes or passion fruit that he harvested from the trees in his yard, knowing that I always had a few bananas or smiley face stickers for him in return.

 

Many times Walter and I would sit on the front steps of our house, and I would read stories from a children’s bible to him. He is learning English but is still limited in his vocabulary. On days that he would pop by while I was busy in the kitchen, I would give him paper and a package of 4 crayons, to draw pictures for me. This would keep him truly busy for an hour. He drew pictures of the pigs and chickens he helped to tend, and was very pleased when I posted the drawings on my refrigerator.

 

Children in Africa really do ‘make their own fun’.  On one occasion, 9 year old Muga, (Walter’s cousin) came to visit. He was pushing a stick that was about 3 feet in length and had a small plastic lid attached to the bottom of the stick, with a nail. The nail acted as an axle, and as Muga pushed it the lid would roll forward like a wheel. I asked him what he was pushing and he told me,

“It’s my bicycle.”

 

Another time Walter was walking through our yard pulling something behind him that looked like a toy truck with an attached cart. As I looked at it closely, it was a truck and a cart that he had made out of 2 quart size juice cartons with plastic water bottle caps for wheels. It was the cutest thing ever!

 

Three year old, Massias, who lived on the other side of our house, could always be heard in the morning as he ran around the yard making sounds like he was riding a boda boda (motorbike).  He had some imagination as he tore through the yard!

 

The sweet faces of the 30 women who gather to learn English are faces that I will not soon forget. I was invited to visit their class, and then later had them over for tea. They really appreciated being invited into a home where we could sit and visit. They sang praise songs and said lovely prayers for both John and myself. These are women who have a strong faith and are the leaders in their community. As a keepsake reminder of the day, I gave them crosses that I brought with me made by the children from Nashotah House Seminary.

 

And now, as I sit here in my air conditioned living room, in a comfy chair  my mind wanders back to the reality of the basic living conditions of the people in Uganda. (Looking back, even the “close encounters” I had with a cow and chickens at church don’t seem nearly as scary as they once did!) I am touched by how simple the lives of Ugandans are and yet how contented they seem to be.  It is so refreshing to see how joyful they seem,  visiting their neighbors, and how they graciously and sincerely extended hospitality to John and me, (these 2 muzugus), by saying to us again and again, “Thank you for coming. You are most welcome.”

 

They are a people who love the Lord and love to sing songs of praise. They worship with all of their might and are not self-conscious about greeting one another, routinely saying,

“Praise the Lord”.

 

It has been a summer that I shall never forget, and one that I know has made a lasting impression on me.

 

Recently I was talking to Newman, my dear son-in-law, about how I keep picturing, in my mind, the faces of these lovely, kind, soft-spoken people, and about how much I miss them. He summed it up best when he said to me, “You can leave Africa, but Africa will never leave you.” This is so true.

 

To all of our friends and family who have prayed for us and supported us during this amazing opportunity – please know that we have felt the prayers. They sustained us and spurred us on, and to you I sincerely say thank you and God bless you.

 

I am so thankful to the Rev. Francis Kajura, Vicar of St. Matthews Cathedral, and to Bishop George William Kasangaki, bishop of the Masindi-Kitara Diocese, for opening the way for me to be mentored and loved by the Christians whom they shepherd. It will truly make a difference in the way I minister to those God places in my path, in the years to come.

 

God’s Peace,

Patti   

 

From John:

The hope for Uganda’s future is the same as the hope for the future of the world. This hope is life for all,  motivated and empowered by Jesus Christ. This is the only motivation which will cause leaders to think about their people before thinking of themselves. It is the only motivation that will seek justice in a ruling culture that historically has sought its own self interest.

 

The majority of the people in the Masindi-Kitara Diocese are open to and hungry for a deeper understanding of God’s Word. We witnessed a changed attitude marked by new commitment as people gained new insights on truths about how God would have them live. In the 7 Sundays that we worshipped with them, we saw many come to the altar rail to commit their lives to Christ, to give testimony to changed hearts, to make right their marital relationships.

 

We are so very blessed to have been inserted into a place where God has already been blessing the efforts of dedicated servants who have labored sacrificially, for so long, in such loving and unwavering ways. The Teaching Parish Practicum that I went to Masindi to complete has exceeded my hopes and expectation,s and I pray has further formed me in preparation for whatever ministry God calls me to.

 

As Patti said, we are indeed so very grateful for your prayers and support.

 

Mukama Siimwe! Mukama akuhe Omugisa.  Praise the Lord! May God Bless you.

 

 

Walter's Train

 

 

 

English Class in the Guest House for tea

Cooking in Uganda

Hello Everyone!

Because a large portion of the day is spent preparing dinner, I thought I’d write a little bit about how it is done and what foods are readily available.

 

Each week Trish and I make a trip to the market to shop for the week. The market is located in the middle of town and all of the booths are outside. Some of the vendors have a covering overhead of tin or an umbrella, and some are spread out on the ground on a large tarp.

Everything imaginable is found there such as transistor radios, shoes, recycled clothing, plastic dishes, mugs, towels and hats.

As you proceed toward the rear of the market (and follow your nose), you will find fresh fish, sides of beef or goat hanging from hooks, live chickens, fresh eggs, dried beans, rice, loaves of bread, tomatoes, eggplant, carrots, onions, cabbage, potatoes, bananas, plantains (matoke), mangoes, papayas, pineapples, sugar cane, lemons, avocados, and cucumbers. It truly is a sensory overload!

 

Trish has a few favorite vendors that she has been buying from and has introduced me to them. One of the vendors is an elderly gentleman that always greets us with a bright smile. After making our usual purchase of carrots, bananas or lemons - he usually gives us a complimentary mango.

Our next stop is from a tall soft-spoken man who always has nice tomatoes, onions and potatoes. We tell him if we want a ½  or a full kilo, which he weighs on a scale that is counter balanced by weights.

Our next stop is usually for fresh eggs.  Sometimes when we approach the vendor we find him napping, but he lifts his head as soon as he hears us say the word “eggs”. They are sold individually and put very carefully into small clear plastic bags which we hold delicately for the trip home.

When you reach home, you can’t just put the produce away in the fridge like you would if you just returned from the Piggly Wiggly. There is a process for each item to ensure that it is properly cleaned. If you want to be able to eat a vegetable raw, like a sliced tomato or cucumber, it needs to soak in a large bowl of bleach water for a few minutes to clean the skin. If you are going to cook the vegetable, a good rinse and a spray of bleach water is sufficient. The eggs too have to be rinsed because they often come with feathers and other unidentified matter stuck to the outside….you know they’re fresh. So after the process, we are ready to cook for the week and have only spent about $12 total. Unless we buy meat from Kampala after a trip down for work, or if we go to a restaurant in town, most of our meals our vegetarian. Soup, stir fry, beans and rice, avocado and tomato salad, and pasta are typical meals. Dairy products are a treat. We will bring cheese and yogurt sometimes from Kampala and ration it out as long as we can. Another key element to a successful meal in Masindi is making sure you have most of your prep work done before the sun goes down at 7pm in case you don’t have power that evening. It’s easy to cut your fingers if you are chopping vegetables by headlamp or candlelight. Also, you want to make sure you don’t overbuy for the week or have too many leftovers because you can’t rely on your fridge to preserve food for long.

            Should you decide to go out for supper and take a night off from cooking, there are 3 places which we frequent. One is Masindi Hotel, which is a quaint colonial hotel which offers a nice atmosphere, delicious Indian and Chinese dishes, as well as local food options. The second is another hotel owned by a British ex-pat and it has a farily extensive menu with Indian, local, and American dishes. You can have goat, lentils, hamburgers, club sandwiches, fish and chips, chicken curry, etc… The third is owned by the same ex-pat and it’s more of a local place, although it’s called Travelers. They have really good fajitas.

            If you want something on the run, you can pick up street food. There is always a slight risk in doing this, but if all goes well, you can enjoy a delicious snack. Typical street food options are Chapatis (fried flat bread), Rolex (flat omelet rolled up into a Chapati), grilled ear of maize (enjoyed if you have strong teeth), and meat on a stick (usually goat???).

            We have enjoyed many local meals when invited to dine with friends. You can always count on a very similar menu each time. These items consist of, matoke (steamed plantains cooked in banana leaves), cassava (boiled root with little to no flavor), millet “bread” (sticky dough made from millet flour), dodo (dark leafy greens), meat stew (goat, beef, or chicken), rice, beans, G-nut sauce (thin purple peanut sauce), cabbage, and sometimes whole fish. Most enjoy this meal without using any utensils. They use the sticky matoke or millet bread to soak up the rest. If you are invited to breakfast, you will most likely be served thick slices of bread with a thin smear of butter, boiled eggs, fresh bananas or mangos, and large mugs of tea that are 80% hot fresh milk a few large scoops of sugar, and a little tea. All of these meals are prepared with a lot of love and hard work. They have to hand gather fire wood or buy charcoal to heat their pots to cook everything. They cook out in the yard, under a tin shed, or in a separate cooking room. It takes hours of preparation and they find a lot of joy in hosting guests. It is said that a family is blessed if they host visitors, so we try to always accept their invitations.

            Needless to say, we are not going hungry here. Everything we eat is extremely fresh and almost nothing is processed. Below are some pictures of the market and a local “grocery store”. Chow!