Greetings my friends and family! Uganda is still great! We just completed our second week of teaching. The classes are still going well. The students are so well-behaved. I am reminded how I need to slow down when I am talking and try not to use so many "Emily-isms." For instance, the students do not know the word "Cray Cray." They just laugh and say "Emily, you are a silly mzungu (white person)."
Wednesday was another National Holiday... Heroes Day. Similar to our Memorial Day. So we only taught 4 days this week. The primary school has 4 acres of property where they have planted cassava. The primary school has boarding students who live at the school during the school term. These students live too far from school to walk to and from school. Either that or the students are orphans and their guardians send them to stay at the school. So the headmistress of the primary school is also responsible for the boarders too. The headmistress is a Catholic nun, Sister Goretti. She wanted to plant this cassava and harvest it so as to supplement the diet of the boarders. The students helped plant the cassava and help to do the work of weeding and harvesting. Since we did not have school on Wednesday, Sister Goretti was taking the boarding students to the "garden" to work. Remember this is a 4 acre plot of cassava (a small plant with pointy leaves. You eat the roots of the plant). She invited me to come to the garden and work with the students. You do not say no to Sister Goretti so I went to the garden.
We got to the garden at 9:30am and began weeding around the cassava. The cassava is not planted in straight rows. Instead, it is planted in a scatterplot formation. All around the cassava plants have grown grass and other weeds so we needed to dig around the cassava. I took a hoe and began to dig. It was hot. It was hard work. When I got tired, I looked around and saw these students who are younger and smaller than me still working so I kept working. The students showed me how to dig/weed properly. At times I got tired of using the hoe so I would plop down in the dirt and use my hands. The students thought that was really funny. We took a break for lunch. The students picked mangoes from a tree in the field so we supplemented our lunch of rice, sweet potatoes, groundnut sauce, and greens with mangoes. The students got the mangoes out of the tree by throwing sticks and clods of dirt at the mangoes. It was fun to watch. We worked again in the afternoon until about 5pm. In the afternoon, nearby villagers were passing by the field. They stopped and stared because they had never seen a white person (mzungu) doing field work before. I waved at them. I am sure I was quite a spectical.
Now I confess, I did not hoe the entire time. I took a break in the morning and in the afternoon to play with the students who were too young to dig. Still I have not worked that hard in a really long time. We had to wait for the truck to come pick us up. We finally left the field at 6pm and we got back to the parish after 6:30pm. I was exhausted and dirty. I was covered in dirt (think red clay like in Georgia) from my head to my feet and even under my fingernails. I got a little sunburnt ... you cannot work and sweat outside for over 8 hours without getting a little sun. I did not put sunscreen on the back of my neck so I have a red or pink neck. (Insert Polk County comment here). :-)
Still I was glad that I got the experience of hoeing cassava in Uganda alongside my Ugandan friends. This work reminded me that we have it easy for the most part in the USA. We go to the store and buy the food we need. Here in Africa, the majority of the people have to grow, harvest, and gather the food they need for every meal. It has made me appreciate food in a new way. "Give us this day our daily bread" means something totally different when you have to work that hard for enough food to feed your family. I am amazed at the willingness of the students to work so hard for their school. I mean they are working to grow cassava for their own meals, but still, the work all day long without complaining. I have much to learn from these students.
Love to you all. Know that you are in my thoughts and prayers.
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Uganda Week 1!
Friends,
Sorry it has taken me so long to update you. I have been busy, busy, busy. Uganda is great! The weather here is very similar to Florida. Maybe a little cooler than Florida and definitely less humid. The late afternoons/early evenings cool off and are a little breezy. Uganda grows a lot of crops that we have in the US, particularly in Florida. I eat bananas with pretty much every meal. Rice, potatoes, avocadoes, pineapples, watermelon, and corn show up at the table pretty regularly. Everyone I have met has been so welcoming and nice. The people at the parish have welcomed me into their family. Father Joe (our supervisor) is really kind. The parish has 2 other priests (Father Bonny and Father Joseph) as well as a seminarian student in residence (Jude). Father Bonny, Father Joseph, and Jude are young men in their 20s-early 30s. They are my friends and they are helping Tabitha and I to adjust to Uganda. They are teaching us Luganda (the native language) as well as helping us with whatever we need. The parish also has nuns here - the nuns are really great as well. The nuns that teach at the primary school have invited us over for tea every morning. We go visit the nuns to get some time with other women. The rest of our meals we take with the priests at the parish house so it is nice to have variety. In a nutshell, this has been my first week in a nutshell:
Sunday, May 23rd - Left Orlando for London-Gatwick. Flight was great. Plane food was good. Watched 2 movies on the plane and slept 2 hours.
Monday, May 24th - Arrived at London-Gatwick. Took a shuttle from London-Gatwick to London-Heathrow. I put my luggage in storage and then I took the train and the tube (London subway) into London town. I walked around London and saw Trafalgar Square, Buckingham Palace, Parliament, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, some big Methodist building, the Thames River, and the London Eye. I took a lot of pictures and soaked in the sun. Took the tube and train back to Heathrow. My flight to Nairobi was delayed over 2 hours. Waited a while in the airport. Finally left London for Nairobi, Kenya.
Tuesday, May 25th - Arrived in Nairobi, Kenya. The delay caused us to arrive late in Nairobi so I missed my flight to Entebbe, Uganda. The airline got me on the next flight to Entebbe, but I had to wait all day in the Nairobi airport. The airline also gave me a free lunch so that is nice. I was so tired. I finally left late afternoon and arrived in Entebbe at 7pm. I made it through customs alright and picked up my luggage. Everything made it to Uganda! Father Joe picked me up at the airport and we went to eat dinner. We drove to the parish.
Wednesday, May 26th - Father Joe told me that my job today was to rest. I calculated that since I woke up on Sunday morning, I have been awake for around 48 hours and have only slept about 6 hours since Sunday. I woke up to eat breakfast, then went back to sleep. Woke up to eat lunch, went back to sleep. Father Joe and I went back to Entebbe to pick Tabitha up from the airport. She arrived here safe and sound with all of her luggage too.
Thursday, May 27th - I have spent the day touring the parish and the 2 schools. We saw the parish, the cathedral, the bishop's area, the primary school, and the secondary school. The parish is a compound. Everything but the secondary school is all together on one area of land that is fenced in with a big fence/gate. The property is beautiful. When you see the parish you almost forget that it is Uganda. It looks like property in Florida. Outside the parish gates, you see you are in Uganda. The soil is clay so the roads and buildings are coated with a fine layer of red dust. The secondary school is down the road, about a 10 minute walk from the parish. When we walk to the secondary school, we pass shop buildings, fields, and people's homes. You cannot avoid the poverty that exists around us. Despite the poverty, the people are so joyful. The small children shout "Bye Muzungu!" That means "Bye, white person." I stick out a little bit here. We met with the headmistresses at both schools and found out when we will be teaching and what subjects we will be teaching.
Friday, May 28th - We spent the day resting and preparing for our classes next week.
Saturday, May 29th - Went to early morning mass at 7am. Went to the bank to change some money and visited high school students. Rested some more.
Sunday, May 30th - Attended 3 mass services. 7am English service, 9am Luganda service, and 3pm Healing Service in Luganda. By the time the Healing Service was over, it was time for dinner and bed. Had a great dinner with Tabitha and the priests. We all get along really well together and laugh A LOT!
Monday, May 31st - 1st Day of School for the American Teachers. We missed our first PE class because the Bishop wanted to meet us. When the Bishop calls, you answer. Returned to the primary school for my first Religious Education class with the P4 class (think 4th graders, but the students are all different ages). I wanted to see what the students knew so I asked them questions about different biblical characters. I taught them about Pentecost and the birth of the church. The primary teachers were in a meeting so I stayed with my class from 11am-1pm. I was hoarse from all of the talking. Imagine that! In the afternoon, Tabitha and I went to the secondary school. The Headmistress gave us our schedule and her ideas for what we would teach the students. She wants us to teach Religous Education, but she wants us to do so in a way that conveys our faith and love of God to the students. She wants her students to know that God loves them. We will do our best and God will do the rest. She also wants her students to practice their English so we will have the students memorize and recite scripture. We only went to the Senior 1 class today. The students (think High School freshmen) were so well behaved and polite. They are smart, too. I am really looking forward to working with them.
Tuesday, June 1st - 2nd Day of Class! Went to morning mass at one of the convents for nuns. The nuns had us stay for breakfast. They are so nice. Taught PE with the P1 and P2 students (think over 100 kindergarten and 1st grade students). It was fun, but a little crazy and overwhelming. Went to the secondary school in the afternoon to teach the Senior 1 and Senior 2 classes. They were good, again. In all, it was a good day.
Wednesday, June 2nd - 3rd Day of Class! Taught PE again. The Headmistress has decided to split up the P1 and P2 instead of combining them for PE. That is good. When they are together it is just too many students to interact with them all. Did some lesson planning and taught at the secondary school in the afternoon. After school and before dinner, the primary school students who board at the parish saw me. They invited me to play with them. So I ended up running and chasing after kids for about an hour. A great way to end the day!
Thursday, June 3rd - Uganda Martyrs Day! No School because it is a national holiday. Father Joe took Tabitha and I to Namagongo, the site of some of the martyrs' deaths back in the 1860s. Every year, the Catholics recognize the deaths of these martyrs with a huge mass. Thousands of people gather together to worship and remember these courageous people. Even the President of Uganda and the First Lady made an appearance. We woke up at 5am to go to Namagongo. I sat on a wooden bench from 8am to 3pm. Now I am tired. So I think I will go to bed. Uganda is 7 hours ahead of EST. So at 10pm here, it is 3pm Florida time. Crazy!
I love you all! And look forward to hearing all about what you have been up to. I think of you all and hold you in my thoughts and prayers.
Love from Uganda,
Emily
Sorry it has taken me so long to update you. I have been busy, busy, busy. Uganda is great! The weather here is very similar to Florida. Maybe a little cooler than Florida and definitely less humid. The late afternoons/early evenings cool off and are a little breezy. Uganda grows a lot of crops that we have in the US, particularly in Florida. I eat bananas with pretty much every meal. Rice, potatoes, avocadoes, pineapples, watermelon, and corn show up at the table pretty regularly. Everyone I have met has been so welcoming and nice. The people at the parish have welcomed me into their family. Father Joe (our supervisor) is really kind. The parish has 2 other priests (Father Bonny and Father Joseph) as well as a seminarian student in residence (Jude). Father Bonny, Father Joseph, and Jude are young men in their 20s-early 30s. They are my friends and they are helping Tabitha and I to adjust to Uganda. They are teaching us Luganda (the native language) as well as helping us with whatever we need. The parish also has nuns here - the nuns are really great as well. The nuns that teach at the primary school have invited us over for tea every morning. We go visit the nuns to get some time with other women. The rest of our meals we take with the priests at the parish house so it is nice to have variety. In a nutshell, this has been my first week in a nutshell:
Sunday, May 23rd - Left Orlando for London-Gatwick. Flight was great. Plane food was good. Watched 2 movies on the plane and slept 2 hours.
Monday, May 24th - Arrived at London-Gatwick. Took a shuttle from London-Gatwick to London-Heathrow. I put my luggage in storage and then I took the train and the tube (London subway) into London town. I walked around London and saw Trafalgar Square, Buckingham Palace, Parliament, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, some big Methodist building, the Thames River, and the London Eye. I took a lot of pictures and soaked in the sun. Took the tube and train back to Heathrow. My flight to Nairobi was delayed over 2 hours. Waited a while in the airport. Finally left London for Nairobi, Kenya.
Tuesday, May 25th - Arrived in Nairobi, Kenya. The delay caused us to arrive late in Nairobi so I missed my flight to Entebbe, Uganda. The airline got me on the next flight to Entebbe, but I had to wait all day in the Nairobi airport. The airline also gave me a free lunch so that is nice. I was so tired. I finally left late afternoon and arrived in Entebbe at 7pm. I made it through customs alright and picked up my luggage. Everything made it to Uganda! Father Joe picked me up at the airport and we went to eat dinner. We drove to the parish.
Wednesday, May 26th - Father Joe told me that my job today was to rest. I calculated that since I woke up on Sunday morning, I have been awake for around 48 hours and have only slept about 6 hours since Sunday. I woke up to eat breakfast, then went back to sleep. Woke up to eat lunch, went back to sleep. Father Joe and I went back to Entebbe to pick Tabitha up from the airport. She arrived here safe and sound with all of her luggage too.
Thursday, May 27th - I have spent the day touring the parish and the 2 schools. We saw the parish, the cathedral, the bishop's area, the primary school, and the secondary school. The parish is a compound. Everything but the secondary school is all together on one area of land that is fenced in with a big fence/gate. The property is beautiful. When you see the parish you almost forget that it is Uganda. It looks like property in Florida. Outside the parish gates, you see you are in Uganda. The soil is clay so the roads and buildings are coated with a fine layer of red dust. The secondary school is down the road, about a 10 minute walk from the parish. When we walk to the secondary school, we pass shop buildings, fields, and people's homes. You cannot avoid the poverty that exists around us. Despite the poverty, the people are so joyful. The small children shout "Bye Muzungu!" That means "Bye, white person." I stick out a little bit here. We met with the headmistresses at both schools and found out when we will be teaching and what subjects we will be teaching.
Friday, May 28th - We spent the day resting and preparing for our classes next week.
Saturday, May 29th - Went to early morning mass at 7am. Went to the bank to change some money and visited high school students. Rested some more.
Sunday, May 30th - Attended 3 mass services. 7am English service, 9am Luganda service, and 3pm Healing Service in Luganda. By the time the Healing Service was over, it was time for dinner and bed. Had a great dinner with Tabitha and the priests. We all get along really well together and laugh A LOT!
Monday, May 31st - 1st Day of School for the American Teachers. We missed our first PE class because the Bishop wanted to meet us. When the Bishop calls, you answer. Returned to the primary school for my first Religious Education class with the P4 class (think 4th graders, but the students are all different ages). I wanted to see what the students knew so I asked them questions about different biblical characters. I taught them about Pentecost and the birth of the church. The primary teachers were in a meeting so I stayed with my class from 11am-1pm. I was hoarse from all of the talking. Imagine that! In the afternoon, Tabitha and I went to the secondary school. The Headmistress gave us our schedule and her ideas for what we would teach the students. She wants us to teach Religous Education, but she wants us to do so in a way that conveys our faith and love of God to the students. She wants her students to know that God loves them. We will do our best and God will do the rest. She also wants her students to practice their English so we will have the students memorize and recite scripture. We only went to the Senior 1 class today. The students (think High School freshmen) were so well behaved and polite. They are smart, too. I am really looking forward to working with them.
Tuesday, June 1st - 2nd Day of Class! Went to morning mass at one of the convents for nuns. The nuns had us stay for breakfast. They are so nice. Taught PE with the P1 and P2 students (think over 100 kindergarten and 1st grade students). It was fun, but a little crazy and overwhelming. Went to the secondary school in the afternoon to teach the Senior 1 and Senior 2 classes. They were good, again. In all, it was a good day.
Wednesday, June 2nd - 3rd Day of Class! Taught PE again. The Headmistress has decided to split up the P1 and P2 instead of combining them for PE. That is good. When they are together it is just too many students to interact with them all. Did some lesson planning and taught at the secondary school in the afternoon. After school and before dinner, the primary school students who board at the parish saw me. They invited me to play with them. So I ended up running and chasing after kids for about an hour. A great way to end the day!
Thursday, June 3rd - Uganda Martyrs Day! No School because it is a national holiday. Father Joe took Tabitha and I to Namagongo, the site of some of the martyrs' deaths back in the 1860s. Every year, the Catholics recognize the deaths of these martyrs with a huge mass. Thousands of people gather together to worship and remember these courageous people. Even the President of Uganda and the First Lady made an appearance. We woke up at 5am to go to Namagongo. I sat on a wooden bench from 8am to 3pm. Now I am tired. So I think I will go to bed. Uganda is 7 hours ahead of EST. So at 10pm here, it is 3pm Florida time. Crazy!
I love you all! And look forward to hearing all about what you have been up to. I think of you all and hold you in my thoughts and prayers.
Love from Uganda,
Emily
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