Rumbles in the Earth

On Wednesday night, the very same evening of the Egyptian revolution, Uganda had not one but two earthquakes (the first at 5.7 and the second at 5.4)! There was one on Tuesday too, but we didn’t feel it on our side of the country; the epicentre is in a western district called Hoima. 

Kids on the steps of the “Low Club Boys” dormitory

Visitors from the Ministry of Education

We’ve had four visits from the district assistant inspector of schools, who is a personable man who laughs joyously every time I speak Lusoga. He checks up on whether we have qualified teachers, if there are hand washing facilities outside the latrines, how big the gaps under the doors are (for snakes to fit under; considering the doors are open all day I don’t entirely see the point, but whatever), and so on. On one visit he came with representatives from the Ministry of Education in Kampala, in order to continue the process of getting Kasozi Nursery and Primary School fully licensed. The school is registered, but needs to be licensed to hold national exams onsite. Businesses and organisations are licensed differently in Uganda than in Australia. In Australia you do all the paperwork first; in Uganda you need to prove you’re doing the work, and then you get the go ahead to start the registration process.

Alamo Grace pumping water

Visitors in June

Our director, Duncan, has come and gone again. This time he came along with a guy called Danny, Danny’s 10 year old Taylor, and Duncan’s friend Scott. They spent two and three weeks here, respectively; Duncan extended his stay by a week so that Bryan and I could have a break. The presence of Duncan and Kateh in Kasozi Village transforms the kids – relieving us from the moods and games.

Too cool for school

Oyet is one of our older boys. Like many of the kids, he does not care about participating in home life or obeying rules. I managed to get him and his friend Okema to sit through church by confiscating Okema’s radio, leaving their other friends in hysterics as they slipped away from the discipline.  When God revealed that not only were kids stealing food from the garden, some had private plots on the UOF land (which is obviously for the Home!), Oyet’s moods were particularly sour. After quickly communicating to Duncan, we met with the two employed gardeners and re-explained the purpose of the garden, then stated the same at the Village Fellowship on Friday. (One of the gardeners quit shortly after.)

Having administered a lot of discipline lately, Bryan and I have had opportunity to explain the difference between unforgiveness and discipline; and to emphasise to the kids that they largely determine whether the Home is a positive place to live in or not.  So we might not be the most popular people right now, but we are going to leave when we’ve put in every effort to instil a sense of: responsibility, thinking of the future, contributing to community, and discipline in character development. Many days we are too busy or overwhelmed to have that personal impact, but it remains our desire.  By God’s grace we will fulfil our little piece in the puzzle.

Back to Oyet: his desire is to be a driver. UOF is all about equipping the kids to take the direction for the future that they want. When Oyet finished primary school at the end of the year, we will send him to driving school, and then he will be free to find work and move on with adult life.  Pray for us as we prepare him mentally and practically for the transition. (You may be wondering why we have such old kids, such as Oyet who is 20, still in primary school. It is common among poor families because they can’t afford to send the kids to school, thus they start late, and the child will likely stop and start school along the way, depending on finances. In Oyet’s case, he is also from the previously war-torn region.)

The next Home manager is about to arrive!

This month a lady called Beckie is going to start her six month stay. We’ll have about four months (depending on when my US visa is approved) to guide her in Ugandan culture and the running of the Home.  Duncan will be back for part of that time, in September.  

Bryan continues to put his practical skills to use by cutting down a tree, sorting out electrics, and the unending task of vehicle maintenance.  I’m not sure Beckie will know how to do those things, so hopefully nothing goes wrong until a mechanic comes to UOF or someone who knows how to negotiate the maize of local labour. (Anyone want to come and look after maintenance over Christmas?!)

  We have lots you can be praying for with us:

-      -    The children and staff to contribute to a homey environment

-       -   Our wisdom in transitioning the young adults like Oyet

-        -  Finding the right times for ‘duties’ so that we can enjoy the kids or rest, uninterrupted

-        -  Continued health of the 120 kids

-        -  Opportunity for one-on-one conversations, particularly with the teenagers

Thank God, there has been a bunch of answered prayers too:

-        -  We got more teachers, who seem good. The morale of head teacher Mr Odida has hugely picked up and he is working well with the new teachers

-         -  Duncan came with intentional and likeable visitors (one became a board member and the other was key in finding out key players in the ‘games’)

-          - There have been few medical emergencies, though malaria has been reasonably prevalent

-         - Bryan and I are on a break

-          - And a personal bonus – I got to play with the twin girls of one of the Jinja Pregnancy Care Centre ladies, Harriet, on Sunday evening while she was in hospital with the baby brother, Kiiza Joshua if you remember the bubs, who sadly has sickle cell anemia (horrible!).

Finally, let me leave you with a foundational verse; a truth that puts life in perspective and reminds me of God’s nature, regardless of how well I see His work in my present circumstances. It’s found in 1 Corinthians 1:20-25

“Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know Him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness for Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength.”

And in His wisdom, God gave us choice. The kids have choice, and we have choice. When we all follow the commandments to love God and love one another, life is sweet; in the meantime, let us use our choice to be obedient and love people (because we know God works through people) enough that, at minimum, they have the chance to live life to the full. 

Peace.

Season's Highlights

Dear friends and family

Welcome to 2013. I trust you had a beautiful Christmas and New Year celebration. The past few weeks have been pretty sweet for Bryan and I. We’ve been able to catch up with a few people and (hoorah!) even got guidance on what to do for work for 2013. Our friend Duncan, the founder and director of Uganda Orphans Fund which has the orphanage/school in Kamuli District, needs some help. And here we are – willing and available!

It’s been really nice to have contact with some of you over this time. I’m prone to missing you in such seasons, so it’s a real booster to get a note, a message, or a call. Thanks so much.

So what are the key events of the past month, this glorious Christmas season? Let me tell you...

A birthday mate for Bryan

On the evening of Bryan’s birthday, 10th December, we got a call from our friend Vikash that Shalu had just delivered a baby boy. It’s their first baby – there’s still some debate about the name, but I think they’re settling with Vaishnov as the first name.  A “v” either end for “victory”. The pregnancy and the delivery were scary times for mum and baby (actually, I think Vikash was most scared – but least at risk). I saw them that Thursday at the hospital; and again last Friday once they were home. He’s a cute little thing, and he sure likes to have his eye on his mother. 

Brave young Bill 

I met with Bill and his uncle in the city, although they stay with an uncle in the next district. He is moving well on crutches and looking healthy; it seems his morale has greatly improved. Thank God he enjoys and has a talent for drawing. He has since CARE4Kids days. We had a lovely time chatting, updating one another on each one’s life, seeing if we knew the same cartoons, and so on. Bill’s English is getting really good, so most of the conversation was in lzungu, fortunately for me. I gave Bill a full bag of games, puzzles and drawing books. That should help keep him occupied, entertained, and somewhat mentally stimulated while he waits to go back to school. They plan to put him back in school next year. They’ll continue to stay with the uncle’s uncle until Bill gets the artificial limb (which the doctors gave the go ahead for just yesterday), then return to the uncle’s family in Jinja. Quite a year for a 13 year old!

 Kasozi village Christmas

Christmas itself was spent at Kasozi Village, where Bryan and I are going to work for the next few months. We drove up there Christmas Eve, thanks to the use of Bob’s car while they’re away. Unfortunately, it broke down just half an hour outside of Jinja. We were driving up a series of hills, and the car just stopped. It wouldn’t clutch start and none of the electrics would work. We called a mechanic from Jinja, and in the meantime had at least 10 people come and give their 2 cents worth on what was wrong with the vehicle. Fortunately, where we had rolled back down the hill to happened to be near water and a village mechanic (yay God!). So as we waited we were able to get some basic things checked, which didn’t actually help but it did eliminate some options. I think it must have been the highlight of the day for that little section of village. The men and children gathered around, leaning in to have a look at the inside of the bonnet. A few threw out that it “definitely” needed a new this or that (yeah right!) then finally the Jinja mechanic rocked up with 3 buddies. Fortunately, one of these mechanic buddies was good at the electrics and did get the car going. At first they assured us that the car would only work once, so we had to go back to Jinja driving carefully with them. We insisted that we needed to keep going because it was Christmas (not ignorant to mechanic games) and funnily enough, the car was able to be fixed properly. After just 2 hours of breakdown, we were back on the road again. Up hills, across the plains, through a minor river, and finally to the Kasozi Village property.

We were warmly greeted by the head teacher, Mr Odida Morris, who sat and chatted with us for a while until we went off to hang with the kids. Duncan and Rob got back shortly after, but the kids rushed up to send them out again for Christmas flowers. I’d heard them talking among themselves about who was supposed to have asked for them already, and failed, and seen the blame get shifted around, and now here it was. We needed to get “Christmas flowers”. They made spring motions with their hands to try and explain the necessary Christmas decoration, and finally resorted to directing us as to where we could find them. Bryan did indeed find them –shiny foil decorations that could be thrown around a tree or hung from the ceiling, that did in fact spring apart as the hand motions suggested. Other Christmas necessities included balloons, string, sweets (which we had come with, phew!) and branches. What an interesting day!

 
Christmas day was a delight. The kids got up at 3am, or some ridiculous hour, to continue cooking the food that they had started preparing the day before. A “proper” Christmas lunch includes matooke, rice and chicken. For breakfast the kids’ request was “dry tea” (black tea) and mandazi (fried bread), which they made themselves. It was the first time for some of them to know what baking powder is; I informed them of the purpose when some held out their hand for the special sugar. That would’ve been a taste surprise!
 
Before the church service we praised God in song and dance. I’ve got the hang of Busoga and Baganda dancing, but the northern dances (many of the kids are from Gulu or Soroti) are a whole new thing. Seriously, it’s a work out! You stamp your leg, jump, thrust your body, and push with your hands. I didn’t last very long before I decided to go and see where Bryan was. The kids are the ones to direct the service, which they do quite well at. They’re not without their problems, but there are some very mature and spiritually attuned kids in Kasozi. Duncan, Rob and Bryan all preached, followed by a time of ministry in which we adults prayed for any who wanted. It’s always a treasured moment for me to see people seeking God, because I know they have and will find more of Him. Lives are getting put back together in a new order, piece by piece.

Bryan and I made good friends with a few of the kids. Hopefully this sets a positive foundation for a productive time being part of their lives 2013.

Christmas presents to care4kids

I once again got to have the joyous position of being the distributor of gifts from you. We split them into 4 groups: big girls, young girls, big boys, young boys. Then they had to answer a  question: why do we give presents at Christmas time? Of course they got it: God gave us the gift of Jesus, we remember that gift in our giving, and likewise we give gifts to show our love and appreciation for one another. So they know that the gifts are a sign of your love for them – what a valuable lesson to grasp.

Let us thank god for:

- A safe and joyful Christmas season
- Guidance of where to work in 2013
- Fausta’s girls, Nangiro and Lapuche, are in the top few in their classes
- Presents and the love they represent for CARE4Kids children
- Clarice’s mum and sister visiting
- Steve got a job. Now he, Kelly and Amulet can find where to live and school from
- Baby Vaishnov’s birth, and his and Shalu’s health
- God’s protection in all our travels and activities

Let us pray for:

- Fausta’s leg, which is getting the cast off in the next 2 weeks
- Loke (Fausta’s husband) was operated on and has not recovered well. He’s back in hospital for the second time since getting discharged after the operation
- Bryan and my orientation and settling into working life at Kasozi Village
- The hearts of matrons, staff and children towards one another in the orphanage homes
- Provision of school needs prior to the start of term at the beginning of next month

L-R: Night’s firstborn, Lapuche, Mary, Night (Fausta’s sister), Muya, Nangiro

Enjoy the rest of the holiday season!
Love Emily

No Movember

Some of you will be sad to hear that there is no “Mo-vember” in Uganda, where the majority of heads are shaved. Most of you will be relieved. Australia is getting warmer, America and England are getting colder, and Uganda has heated uncomfortably, but generally remains the same.
 

Bye-bye Rozmus Family

At the beginning of the month, Steve and Kelly hosted the most beautiful Thanksgiving Celebration for Amuleni’s adoption. They invited all of the people who have been significant in his livelihood since the days he was put on the street 7 years ago. We were able to hear stories from shop owners who would feed and bathe him; long-term workers of Children’s Restoration Outreach (organisation that helps street kids); Deidrah, who runs Answering for the Children, who he stayed with before the adoption process began; school teachers; and non-biological relatives like Fausta, Ashley and ourselves. It was a great way to appreciate these caring people and have us all witness the variety of people that God used in Amu’s wellbeing. Surely that boy has a future to hope for!

We spent our final, bitter-sweet, day with them on Friday 17th. By 6pm the house and all their belongings were cleaned, packed, locked up and ready to move on. It was very sad to say good-bye, of course because we love them and we have offered mutual friendship and support over these past few adventurous years. However, we are joyful because they can now live in the US, and share themselves with beloved family and friends that make up the home community they’d left behind. There is a time for everything.
As Steve and Kelly said, it was hard to pull themselves away from what they thought was a long-term plan on working in Africa, but they realised they got a deeper satisfaction from relationships and community in the US. Dreams are certainly dynamic.

For those of us who trust in the Lord we hold onto the hope that:

“Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed... In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.” Proverbs 16:3,9 

Sorry Fausta

Then on Sunday I got a call during church that Fausta had broken her leg and was in hospital. We went straight from church to the clinic. Poor thing broke both bones in her lower right leg when the boda (motorbike) she was on ran into a car. The doctors at Main Hospital don’t work on Sundays, so she would’ve had to wait overnight to be seen. Fortunately, Bryan had taken care of a girl from ATK who broke her arm so he knew where to go. We called Richard, a taxi driver I’ve been using since 2008, and got her transferred. Her leg is now in a full cast. I was touched by the Karamojong community: Fausta had 17 family and neighbours visit and wait with her; plus Ashley, Bryan and I. I pray Fausta will have quick healing and patience over the coming weeks with her limited mobility. Bryan has continued to take her to the hospital for a follow-up x-ray, wound examination and extra plastering on Saturday, and to examine the wounds under the cast today. What a guy!

To Kenya

Last week I stayed in Nairobi with David (our wedding minister), his wife Lucy, his uncle Michael, Amos and Ruth.  Due to the full house, I slept at the Healing Hearts and Nations guest house two doors down. I followed David around to the school and college he preaches at regularly, and got to see him fired up in ministry mode. Actually, to be fair, I think David’s always in ministry mode. He has energy to talk to anybody and everybody, and it ends up being surprisingly Spirit-led. When we were coming back from Bookshine High School, a lady with her boys that he spoke to turned out to be refugees from Garissa. They fled after her husband got killed and had come to start afresh in Nairobi. Crazy! So David and the Principal were able to get her connected with schooling options for the boys, pastors, as well as help them with transport to where they were going (same direction as us).  Other than that, we just hung out and had fellowship amongst ourselves. David and Lucy took Michael and I to Kazuri for a tour of the hand-made clay bead and pottery factory. They produce quality and stunning clay items, especially the beaded jewellery (of course I would think that), which provide employment for 340 widows and single mothers.

Bryan Preaches in Nakivumbi

Though I was tired from travelling all Saturday by bus, I did manage to get up in time to escort Bryan up to Nakivumbi. Cliff had invited Bryan to preach at the new ATK church plant, which Bryan accepted. Previously, the Nakivumbi residents were transported to Nawansega to pray from the main church every Sunday. It was lovely to see some of the Project Lydia ladies, ATK ministers and children again. We received a very warm welcome, especially Bryan who spent some years there.

Bryan has preaching engagements for the upcoming two weeks also. The first with Kibet in Kenya, the second at Fred Muwanguzi’s church. Then Duncan returns and we plan to spend some time at Kasozi Village (where we took Rebecca) over Christmas.

Jinja Pregnancy Care Centre Update

This week is our last week of the Jinja Pregnancy Care Centre (yes, the name has changed) full program. The next two weeks the ladies will just come for the food bags and checking the babies’ health. Then we will have a break over Christmas. The mums who need formula for their babies will be supplied enough for the weeks we don’t meet – thank you formula donors! The health lessons we give are so vital – nutrition, anemia, safe water, disease, and numerous other topics that educated people take for granted – and the ladies are getting better and better at preventing and responding to health problems in their babies.

Another challenge the ladies face is separation from their families and employment opportunities. I couple those issues together because some of the ladies don’t know where to stay or how to have rent money to live alone. Mary whose 8 months pregnant and was staying with the “husband’s” family, and Lydia who has twins and was staying with the “husband’s” aunt, are the two this week who have been told to move out. Last week Shamim asked us to pray with her for rent money because they need to move too.  Then there’s Harriet who stays with the rather difficult (understatement) non-biological aunt. They didn’t finish school, don’t have business experience, and don’t have business families who they can work for. As they say here: ebizibu! Problems!

This photo on the left is Lydia with Kennedy Waiswa and Kenneth Tenywa. I feel tired just watching her with the twins. They’re lovely, but as 10 month olds have a combined weight of over 18kg. If one is breast feeding, the other demands the other breast. She carries one on her back, tied there with a sarong or shawl fastened above her breasts (that’s how they do it in Uganda, in Kenya they tie it over one shoulder) and again at the waste; the other she carries in her arms.  I look forward to their growing independence on her behalf.

But there are also the positive stories. Magdalene, who has a rent supporter, was always in quarrels where she stayed but Sarah (the social worker) helped find her a place just outside of town. Sharon has moved to stay with her older sister and is able to help sell clothes. Annet was staying with her elderly grandmother, but can stay with her mother again. All of the babies bar one, Eseza, are gaining weight.

This is Magdalene and John Jacobsen, or J.J. (affectionately named after Bob’s father, Carolyn’s father in-law). Magdalene’s legs are disabled, making childcare and work difficult. Just two weeks ago, Magdalene took J.J. for a chest x-ray after a persistent cough. It turns out he had an early stage of pneumonia and tuberculosis. He is now on the standard six months’ treatment. Magdalene has been rejected by her family and J.J.’s father does not offer any support, nor is he around.

The Rest of This Week

Sarah and I will complete the JPCC program in Nyenga tomorrow, but continue to provide food and health checks as with the Jinja groups. Bryan leaves for Kenya with Kibet on Thursday. I will go and get the apartment ready for Clarice’s mum and sister to stay in from that afternoon. It’s Clarice’s mum’s third time in Uganda, but the first for her sister. Clarice is very excited. I will also enjoy time with them. On Friday we’ll take the first of the four groups of CARE4Kids children to the swimming pool (we split the kids into 4 groups based on families), where they shall receive Christmas presents from Nat’s raffle. I’ll send photos – Nat put together the best box of gifts! Thank you ladies! Thank you too to the donors who enable me to take the children swimming to make an event of it.


That’s what’s going on in our world. We still haven’t come to a conclusion of what we’re going to do next year. We count ourselves blessed because we have so many options. Furthermore, we rejoice now for the vision that is to come. As David preached when I was in Kenya, God bought us at a great price and He wants to get value out of His purchase, so we can trust God that if we prepare ourselves for productive lives He will deliver. David used a scripture that is close to my heart when thinking about life; It even inspired me for this week’s Bible study with the JPCC women:

"Sing, O barren woman, you who never bore a child; burst into song, shout for joy, you who were never in labor; because more are the children of the desolate woman then of her who has a husband," says the Lord. "Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. For you will spread out to the right and to the left; your descendants will dispossess nations and settle in desolate cities. DO not be afraid; you will not suffer shame..." Isaiah 54:1-4a

Take care this Christmas season. Best regards to all, from Emily

The current flow of life

Zaina with her baby Musa

Bryan 
Bryan’s Mexican cooking has gone well. It requires above average levels of washing up, but on the other hand we make enough for plenty of leftovers, so it balances out. Except for collecting loan repayments on call, Bryan has been spending hours a day reading the Bible, listening to sermons, and researching sticky and bizarre Bible topics. If you need a good debate, he’s your man. I love that my husband has ample time for such activities. As what we do influences what we talk about, our conversation is full of meaningful, interesting and inspirational points.

A cultural stress point
I was feeling so uplifted by being with the young mothers yesterday. Then on the way home, I ended up walking alongside men leading a man they’d chained. One can assume he was a thief. (Thieves here do not go lightly punished and it’s a communal affair.) They stopped with him at a certain point. I kept going, following my instinct not to look back. Although I have my points of disagreement, I understand: that punishment prevents further theft; that neighbours need to help out or else they won’t be helped when they have problems of theft; that shaming them by laughing is off-putting; and that the Ugandan justice system is unreliable. However, I do not get why people who aren’t involved and who won’t be affected need to get involved. Mob justice – what should I do about you? When I reached home I chose to pray and worship rather than dwell on negative thoughts and images. I felt better almost immediately. Then, as a God-timing bonus to the restoration of my inner peace, Bryan passed me the phone to talk to my in-laws.

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God." ~ Matthew 5:9

The Jinja Crisis Pregnancy Centre

Florence with her twin girls

I remain committed to my 3 days helping out at the Jinja Crisis Pregnancy Centre (JCPC).  We’ve added 2 ladies over the past few weeks. These additional ladies actually have 1 year olds, however they’re very underweight so we felt it was the right thing to do. The JCPC ladies are opening up to me more every week. (On average that is, there’s always some who come when they’re too tired or distracted by home issues to properly engage.) Yesterday afternoon I spoke to the group on Luke 4. This chapter recounts the time when Jesus has just been baptised and filled with the Holy Spirit, is led into the wilderness for a 40 day fast, and resists temptations from the devil. It opened up some great discussion on the reality of temptations; that victorious living means that there is a struggle but that in Christ we have the power to overcome. The ladies brought up their own examples of daily triumph, such as refusing to fight because they’re children of God, or rebuking demons that come at night. We can’t choose how the ladies receive or live out such messages, but we sure can pray that it’s all part of the puzzle of transforming their lives into hope and purpose.

I strongly believe that praying for people is the best thing we can do for someone. That’s why I have made prayer cards for each of the 24 ladies. I’m going to send them to some of you. I figured that if each lady has someone specifically praying them every week for a year, say from Christmas 2012 to Christmas 2013, there’s definitely going to be change seen in their lives.

"Therefore confess you sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective." ~ James 5:16

Night and Mary

One of the new ladies, Night, is the younger sister to our friend Fausta. Her daughter, Mary, is 1 year and 4 months old (we think) but only weighed as much as the 5 month old babies. Darling Mary was so fearful of people. She liked me for some reason, which was nice because a few of the children took weeks to be comfortable with me (or even up to now). However, yesterday, after starting off the session with the normal tears when Sarah weighed her, she became very playful. Unfortunately, I thought she would enjoy being lifted up. You know how normally when you lift little kids above your head they giggle? Well, not Mary. Back to mum’s lap she went! My bad – I won’t be pulling out that fun trick again!




Join me in prayer
Praise reports:
- Bryan’s time to seek God and Bible knowledge.
- That Night and Rose could join the program, with their babies Mary and Mukisa.
- For the lady who no longer gets images of her late husband disturbing her.
- For improved weight almost weekly for most of the babies.
- For the ladies’ regular attendance and improved participation.
- Despite the massive gaps in our fence where the poles were stolen, no thief has come (note that the gaps have now been wired shut).

Prayer requests:
- That Bryan and I would hear and be faithful to do what God guides us to in 2013.
- For the women to take away the JCPC lessons and encouragements, and so be uplifted in their daily lives. That those suffering emotional trauma will understand, be counselled and healed.
- For Bob and Carolyn on furlough, to be rested, strengthened in their relationships with friends and family, and to have successful awareness raising and fundraising where they speak.
- That the Jinja police will be faithful in keeping justice and that in turn citizens would entrust that responsibility to them.
- That the prayer cards will reach their destinations.

"But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. Surely, Lord, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favour as with a shield." ~ Psalm 5:11-12

Lives Lost and Saved

There he lay, right arm stretched out above his head and the other tucked unnaturally by his side. Fresh branches blocked off the section of the road where he had been knocked, a few people gathered around as they waited for the police to come. He must have been only 9 years old. I only saw him for a moment as my friend Melissa and I rode past on the boda. Up ahead life continued as normal, people going about their evening activities oblivious to the tragedy that had happened mere metres from them.

Such situations are too common. There are three in particular that stick in my mind. In the first week of this month I was actually having a fantastic time, as my sister-in-law Rebecca treated Bryan and I with a visit. In that same week unfortunately, were the death of baby Gladys from the Jinja Pregnancy Crisis Centre (JCPC), who was new to the program; the loss of 22 year old Joel to AIDS, who we were acquainted with through Jude and her adopted daughter Barbara; and Dassan, the biological father to Ashley’s adopted daughter Diana, who died in an accident taking his niece to the clinic. The loss of Dassan was the saddest for me, because I love Ashley and Diana and I knew Dassan for about 4 years. However, it also made me think on what a blessing his last few years have been. At the time Ashley started fostering Diana, both baby and father were on death’s door. Dassan has since been active in TASO (The AIDS Support Organisation), been a loving father as Ashley kept him very much involved in their lives, and he had fallen in love to a fellow TASO member and was due to be married.

JCPC founder Carolyn and worker Sarah

Death comes so easily. This is a big reason why groups like the JCPC are an invaluable social support. The mothers are given increased health for their pregnancy and early breast feeding months with a weekly bag of food. This small material contribution keeps women out of the dust bins, enables them to produce breast milk, and keeps them connected to their families who otherwise see them as a burden. Overall, I’m against handouts, but there is a place for it in cases like these where a baby’s life will be saved and a mother-child relationship nurtured. Most significantly, the mothers are also set up better for long-term health with weekly trainings on health, lifestyle and parenthood; as well as an applicable Bible message. Remember that Uganda doesn’t have social welfare – NGOs are the social welfare. I’ve been visiting since ending with Water Missions a month ago. Carolyn and Bob left for furlough last week, so now Sarah and I have been running the groups. It’s mostly Sarah; I’m just helping and hopefully will be a good encouragement to her over these couple of months. 

Sarah teaches on TB

There are 4 groups of ladies. Monday mornings are for planning the week, Monday afternoon is the most interactive group, Tuesday morning and afternoon have groups, and Wednesday morning there is a group out in Nyenga which I’m yet to attend. Sarah and I had a great session last Tuesday afternoon, where the topic of husbands came up. I was trying to show how the God of the Bible is the same as the God who wants to be active in every aspect of their lives, and so had asked for testimonies. One girl, 16 year old Shamim, had shared how her baby healed when she prayed. The others kept quiet, so I asked what they would like to see or learn over the coming week. One lady, Sarah with baby Nalite – the cutest Karamajong baby I’ve ever seen – said she wants her husband (which just means he’s the father of the baby; the terms husband, wife and married are used loosely in Uganda) to come back to her. The others laughed, except Aisha who rebuked them, stating that “isn’t that what all of us want”. This opened the door to be able to talk about what to look for in a man, taking ones time, and who to be in order to attract a man in the right way for a long-term relationship. It was such a blessing to have this deeper conversation with them. They’ve shared with Sarah and Carolyn, but I am new to them so I’ve not earned their trust yet. Looks like we’re heading down that path though...

Faith with baby Catherine, pregnant Naiki, Florence

Harriet (Maama Mercy) and Harriet with her twins and baby  Kiiza

Please pray for:
- Ashley, Diana and Agnes (Ashley my Canadian friend and her 2 to-be-adopted girls) as they deal with the loss of Dassan, who was like family to all of them
- The family of the anonymous boy who was hit by a car on Friday night
- Direction for Bryan and I
- The long-term impact of the teachings for the ladies and their children

Thank God for:
- Rebecca’s visit and the great time of relaxation and chats we had
- The healthy mothers and babies at JCPC and the opportunity I have to serve there 
- That Bryan and I have lots of good social opportunities at the moment, with the short-term return of Melissa (Tukula founder and director) and Yvonne
- The life we have

Blessings, Emily

Magdalene's baby JJ and Lydia's twins Kennedy and Kenneth

                                                         
P.S. And a quick update, as I didn’t get online to send this yet. Tuesday afternoon I asked the ladies if anyone had testimonies from our discussion last week. They did! Aisha has not been getting along with baby Comfort’s father, however he did bring soap, sugar and 3,000/=. Then Shamim, who had said she didn’t want to see the man again, did try getting in contact with him. At first she couldn’t get through, but on Monday he picked the call. During group she got a call from her grandma that he had come to visit, but he’ll return another day when she’s around. She was delighted, it was a precious moment to witness.

Handing Over

Dearest friends and family,

"Seek the Lord and His strength: seek His face evermore."

Psalm 105:4

Our last weeks at WMU have gone so well. Thank you immensely for your prayers. It sure makes a difference.  The time has been broken up with some enjoyable moments too. Last Monday we celebrated our one year anniversary. The Saturday before, I joined the CARE4Kids children, staff, Clarice and her father at the swimming pool. Clarice didn’t tell them I was coming, so it was a lovely surprise with a warming welcome for me. Bryan and I are enjoying the church, Victory Family Centre, which we started attending a few months back. The pastor and his wife are lovely, and most importantly it meets are priorities of Biblical teaching and good worship. I still attend our Saturday Bible study and love it (though we miss Rob and Sandy so much!), and am glad to have a complimentary place of corporate worship for my enjoyment and spiritual health.

My Trainee

For my last week and a half in the office, my time and focus is on my trainee, Felix Masasa. He is already familiar with WMU work, as he was an employee a couple of years ago. He remembers a fair amount of his computer skills, so it is quite easy to refresh his memory, renew his habits, and hopefully he’ll remember the new things added to his knowledge and skills.

A New CPD and a Handover Party

On Monday, Will announced that the current Community Development Coordinator, Michael Bazira (photo above, far right), is the upcoming Country Program Director. Bryan will hold the position until next Tuesday, Michael will take over from Wednesday 22nd August. We and the staff are delighted with the choice; it will maintain some positive stability for the staff and Michael has really stepped up in his leadership over the past year. He has integrity and skill. In the evening we had our handover/farewell party. We went to a nearby hotel, Hotel Paradise, which is the same place Bryan and I held our wedding reception. After fun playing volleyball and soccer, we gathered in the banda (as you can see in the photos above). We sang a couple of hymns, the staff shared words and gave us gifts. The most amusing gift, delivered to us with much laughter by Henrik, was a figurine of Ugandan Bryan riding a bicycle with Ugandan Emily on the back – heavily pregnant. They wish!  We were given a chance to speak in return. Instead of a speech I gave each staff a Certificate of Achievement, to commend or tease them for noteworthy habits or moments. That went down well. Bryan is a great public speaker, so giving a speech on the spot comes easily for him. Then they laid hands on us to pray, and we shared in a buffet meal.

Coming Up

From October we will have three (3) months helping out with our friends’, Bob and Carolyn’s, ministries while they are on furlough. They are our dear friends and we are happy to be able to help them, as well as get a better taste of the good work they do. Bob provides career guidance and counselling for youths who have graduated from the children’s home he and Carolyn managed for 5-6 years, Good Shepherd’s Fold (GSF). He’s the same one I have been meeting with for my parents’ sponsor child, Opio. Carolyn has a pregnancy crisis centre, where she and two (2) Ugandan ladies aid the neediest of women with prayer and counselling, Bible studies, health training, career advice, food provision, and child minding while they are at the centre.
But before that worthy assistance, my sister-in-law Rebecca is visiting us! Just two (2) weeks and a day and we’ll be on the way to the airport to pick her.  We are very much looking forward to sharing this quality time with her. We’re going to have fun!

Praise Reports and Prayer Requests

•  Thank God for helping us host so many visitors over the past months. Danish volunteer Dan went back on August 9th and seemed to have had a good time. Josue and Andrew said they arrived safely and I’ve had a little contact with them for work.
•  Thank God for the WMI Engineer, Tyler, who is here for six (6) months. He’s half way through. Bryan and I get along very well with him; it’s a blessing to have a smart, positive, godly young man working alongside the staff and for us to befriend. Pray the rest of his time goes well.
•  Will leaves Uganda again next week. Thank God for a productive stay, in Uganda and the many other countries he visited this trip, and pray for a safe journey back on Tuesday. 
•  Thank God for providing good replacements for Bryan and myself. Especially for the time we’ve had to smoothly and positively phase ourselves out – this is no small achievement so we are grateful.  Please pray for Michael and Felix as they take up our roles and make them their own.
•  Thank God for the time we’ve had at WMU and that we are now moving onto new things. Stand with us in prayer as God guides our steps. 
•  Thank God for our friends from other ministries around and for the work they are doing to uplift peoples’ lives. 
•  Please keep Steve, Kelly and Amulet in prayer. Their court case is on Tuesday next week, at which point they should get approval for the adoption from the judge. After that they can apply for Amulet’s passport and visa, and plan their trip back to life in the US. They plan to leave by mid-November (sad for us!). 

It is a blessing to be able to share with you. Thanks for staying connected to our lives, and I hope we can return the favour for whenever you want share, be prayed for, or just keep in touch. 

I wish you a wonderful remainder of the week.

Love your friend, Emily

To the Islands

Bryan and I have been back for three and a half weeks now. We had a bit of excitement coming into Uganda, as our bags hadn’t arrived with us that fine Sunday afternoon. Fortunately, we kept on calling Entebbe Handling services, and we got our bags back on Thursday. A bit of a tea coating on the toy cars my brother bought for the kids, but otherwise everything was fine. Thank you God!
I must admit it took a little while to settle back in after the joyous time we spent in Australia. But I rediscovered my groove, and I do appreciate being here. My groove became that much better when I was allowed back out in the field at the end of last week. Three days straight!

To the Koome Islands

A large group of us left Jinja on Wednesday afternoon. Myself, micro-enterprise officer Fred Muwanguzi, WaSH trainer Ritah, WMI work Andrew, WM Haiti worker Josue, new visitor Danish Dan, and fellow Aussie working with Allan (Living Water Development) Adam.  We stopped in Mabira Forest for a community meeting in Najjembe for a few hours, but the main reason we were all there was the island endeavour. This involved a night in Entebbe so we could catch the boat at 7:30am on Thursday.

We are working on two projects in the Koome Islands, which are a two hour boat ride from Entebbe, using both project models. We are doing a Safe Water Project (community owned model) at Myende landing site, which is where I spent Thursday and Friday; and a TradeWater project (WMI owned) on Kimmi Island. Myende is a peaceful place, with a good number of people showing smiles and greeting. Kimmi is not. The greetings I got were from the prostitutes who were getting high. I say no more.

At Myende, I joined in the Safe Water Committee (SWC) training. My main purpose was to get lots of photos and interviews to give feedback to WMI and the donor. There were a couple of hindrances, as some people didn’t know the difference between safe and unsafe water. As my acquaintance Veronica said when I asked her what was bad about the lake water, “it’s not bad; water is good”. Then on Friday we spent the morning waiting for the rains to pass. They did, and then I had enough time to interview most of the SWC members.

Veronica is an 18 year old who had only been in Myende for a week. She had come looking for her sister, all the way from Soroti (north-eastern Uganda). Veronica is a single mother of a seven month old boy. The father of the boy ran away when Veronica became pregnant to avoid having charges pressed, as Veronica was underage and still in primary school. Veronica finished school in year 4. Unfortunately, her sister was nowhere to be found. A kind fellow tribes-lady, Mama Asia, has taken her in.

It’s good for me to be out in the field. One, because I just like it; I like the people interaction, and I like the hands on work. Additionally, I was grateful to have field time with the community development staff again. A couple of us argue pretty regularly in meetings, because of our differing views on development mechanisms and implementation. Differences can be constructive but also wearing in their challenge. Being in the field makes us interact in a broader way. It also puts us on the same team, because field time is about helping and training and differences are left behind in the meeting room. I really appreciate God for that time we had. May I continue to grow in kindness as I interact with my colleagues!

 An excellent bonus of our time in the islands was that WMU’s contact into that area is the Chimpanzee Sanctuary and Wildlife Conservation Trust. So I slept on an island with chimpanzees! 

                    

Our Resignation

Just before Bryan and I went to Australia, we resigned from Water Missions. Our last day will be August 21st. Five weeks to go. We’ve known for a while that WMU is not the right fit for us, or at least not how our roles have turned out, although we agree with water development whole-heartedly. The truth is, we were waiting for the next thing to do before resigning, but then reversed the order so that we are open for whatever is to come next. I still love development work, but we are both craving the relational side of working in Uganda. Life’s too short to do something half-heartedly. WMU was right for its time, and we’ve learned a lot and contributed to the work. We appreciate WMI for their professionalism and the heart behind the work. Furthermore, the aim is to have a local director for each country program. This was announced to the staff last year, so it made Bryan’s position unofficially temporary anyway (from our perspective). Apparently WMI has received a lot of good applications, so we look forward to transitioning in the next CPD. Maybe an existing staff member will decide to take it up?! I know Bryan would quite like to see my manager given that opportunity, if he applies. Please keep the change in your prayers.


On the social front, we’ve caught up with most of our friends here since returning. We’ve seen Clarice, including sharing in her 21st birthday lunch, and I went to CARE4Kids on our first Sunday back. Steve, Kelly and Amulet invited us to Salt and Light Academy (Amulet’s primary school) sports day, where Amulet competed in the brick passing game. The teachers were impressively enthusiastic, and every triumph was celebrated with cheers, hugs and dance. I want my kids to go to a school that dances whether you win or lose! So cool! We brought our visitor Dan, and Ashley came with her girls Diana and Agnes too. Jude had pneumonia when we returned, but is recovered and back to work – back to work and then recovered to be precise. She’s one strong lady. Adrien, who runs his own Omuana organisation, and whom I have known since my first trip to Uganda in 2004, is back for a couple of months before starting his Masters in Development in Geneva this September. Then he’ll leave, and Steve and Kelly will leave with Amulet as soon as the court cases are over (the next and potentially final one being next month)... but we won’t think about that just yet.

Thank God for:

- A fantastic time in Australia, though short and many friends were missed
- The return of our luggage
- My booster field trip last week
- A good court outcome from Steve and Kelly’s first court case, although there were some major frustrations (like a translator who didn’t know the language)
- Jude’s healing
- Esther is doing really well, although I don’t have the full update it seems she’s okay

Please pray for:

- That Bryan and I will be a blessing to WMU and the staff over the next few weeks
- WMU to find the right CPD, and that Bryan will be able to pass over the roles efficiently
- Steve and Kelly’s court case next month
- Bill as he gets used to functioning without his foot. He’s been doing the physiotherapy exercises with his dad/uncle, but gets pretty demoralised. We had a nice chat on the phone the other day

Good to be back in contact with you!

Emily