Funny sight on the way to the internet cafe...

OK, this cafe is a half a block from the Mirmebe House so I don't have to travel far to see something interesting. So a little background; it poured this morning, just solid rain for hours so it is pretty wet outside. I'm passing this pile of dirt that is about 2 or 3 feet high which isn't unusual and I almost pass it without a thought then I realize that at the top of this pile was a dog sleeping. The dog was the same color of the dirt and it was just conked out along with two other not so luck dogs on the pavement. I couldn't help think 'what a smart dog, getting to the high ground' I wish that I carried a little camera in my pocket so I could post a picture but I gave that camera to my sister before I left. Oh well.....

This weeks Highs & Lows

I met a boy names Opio on the bus up to Lira on Monday (May 22nd). He was obviously a street kid with his filthy clothes and bare feet. He didn't speak Lugandan (local language) nor did he speak english. He spoke Lango, the language of the people from Lira so we had to speak to him through a third guy who was sitting next to Paul and I.

Opio said that he was 7 years old although I think he was closer to 10, his mother lives in an IDP camp not far from the town of Lira. He left Lira two months ago and probably either talked his way onto a bus to Kampala or stowed away. Why did he come over 100 Km to Kampala? Because he heard that there is money here, so his goal was to get 5000 shillings (approx. $2.75 USD). Two months later, he is happy because he has his money and is heading home. He was very vague in how he got his money but when the money runs out he will just go back to Kampala to get more!

I struggled with the desire to give him more money or to buy him some groceries but then I thought I wondered maybe that would just encourage him to come back to Kampala quicker and reaffirm this idea of money in Kampala. But I still wanted to do this. Unfortunately, he disappeared quickly after getting off the bus. Now, everytime I see a street kid begging I don't think I can pass them up. I will just remember Opio and hopefully I will have some extra schillings available.

My High for the week happened on Friday. The G21 team were practicing all day and at the end of the day they were just playing some music. I saw two of the pregnant girls in the doorway, doing hand movements to the music. I went through my office door to get a look at what they were doing. After a few moments the girl saw me looking at her and she got embarrased, laughed and ran down the hall way. I followed her and asked if she liked the music, of coarse she did. I invited her to come down and listen to the music. All of a sudden I have six pregnant girls in the Outreach room dancing to the music! It was a regualar dance party, the only difference is that these girls are 7-9 months pregnant! It did remind me that these girls are just that, young girls who find themselves in some scarry circumstances. It was so good to see them let lose and just dance!

After two years of planning, I arrived in Uganda on March 28th. I was lucky and was able to spend the first two weeks in country with Teresa Spurlock and Emelie Bauerle. What great fun women of God, I admire them both greatly. Their main purpose wasn't to make my transition to Uganda easier although that was a benifit! We spent those two weeks planning the big mission trip that will be coming from our church in Colorado in June. We have almost 40 people planning to come on that trip so there were a lot of details to cover!

It was sad to see Teresa and Emelie go but I was excited to move into my new place and get to know my new roommate (Kristine). I was lucky and found a great place in Ggaba, the only drawback is that it is pretty far from town, it takes me atleast 45 minutes to get to the office and that is without a traffic jab, which is rare!

At Youth for Christ I do all sorts of things, mainly for right now I am helping to plan for our visitors in June. It takes a lot of organization to host 40 people. Things do tend to slip through the cracks but due to Gods Grace he reminds us when that happens.

I am trying to strike a balance between the Outreach department and the Couseling department since I am part of both departments. It is so much easier to hang out with the Outreach volunteers, they know english are fun and I love to listen to them sing and watch them dance. But with the pregnant teens not many of them know english so it is hard to get to know them. So I try to go back there and sit with them during tea time and then sometimes in the afternoon. They are getting more comfortable with me and I start to see them act more like teens everyday.