"Cause, Baby, You're a Firework!"

6/9/11

Shout out song title to my big sister who among others, has sent me tons of messages to help me through my home sickness and self pity.  I’ve been saying all day that I should have public breakdowns more often.  It was a great day!  I woke up still in a funk, but by lunchtime I had shaken it off, with the help of Candice Young’s photo shop skills and some lovely pictures of Ryan Reynolds.  Lucy and I had a field trip with our third roommate’s organization, Healthy Child Uganda.  I got permission to skip work for it, even though it’s a public holiday anyway.  We crammed into a car with about 8 other people, and drove down more bumpy dirt roads.  We landed in a small village about 30 minutes outside of town.  The women of the village had more wrinkles and fewer teeth than anyone I’ve ever seen, but they were still beautiful as they were all smiles and wearing their finest traditional Uganda wear.  They gave us guavas as a snack, and we practiced some very poor Luganda (the local language) that we had picked up in the car. 

These classes were really amazing.  These teachers are certified to go to the villages and set up village health teams made up of respected members of the community.  The teams are trained to do first aid, or to refer people to find health services for serious health problems.  The teachers also train the villagers about filtering water, washing hands, appropriate places to defecate (crazy, but it makes a huge difference, and people just don’t know), growing food, and all kinds of life skills.  I couldn’t understand a lot of what was going on, but the people were attentive, and the teachers were obviously well respected. 

At one point I looked down at my feet, which are constantly dirty and dry here.  My poor toenails have been ripped to shreds and my feet look like they belong to an 80 year old woman.  I had a moment though as I started looking at everyone’s feet, and realized we all had the same dry dirty wrinkly feet.  It made me feel as if I was actually connected to them through feet, since our language, looks, wealth, and style are all so vastly different.  I’m not someone who’s huge on Biblical references, but Jesus washing the disciples’ feet took on a whole new meaning for me after that.  I feel like that’s part of what these teachers are doing for the villages.  They’re helping them find ways to wash each other’s feet, and take care of each other in ways that their government can’t or won’t.

So after all of that, Joan, a girl from the group of teachers took us to a place that served real ice cream.  I was almost in tears of joy, but then I saw a restaurant that served actual hamburgers.  I about died.  I ate the best hamburger of my life (if they had had cheese, I really might have cried) for only $3.  I can’t tell you how happy a full stomach and junk food has made me.  I told my parents earlier, it’s depressing how much junk food has come to mean to me. 

Anyway, thanks for the prayers and emails and phone calls (Dad).  They all helped a great deal.  I’d still much rather be at home, but today was great, and I just have to keep  taking days as they come, good, bad, and mediocre.  I might still come home early, but today added a little more time to my stay, I think.  Thanks, y’all.  I love you!

I’m thankful...
1.  for random villagers that share their valuable fruit with strangers.  Hospitality here puts the south to shame. :)
2.  for hamburgers.  Again, pure joy.
3.  for family and friends at home who reach out to me in times of self pity, and get me through one more day.  Again, I love you!