So I’ve been trying to see a c-section since I got to Masindi. I figured it would be a really great experience to inform me whether or not I could be some kind of nurse in a maternity or surgical ward, etc. Since I’m interning for the district health coordinator, it’s no problem for me to go in and watch different operations and what not. I’d left my number with the nurses several times so they could flash call or text when they knew one was coming up soon and I checked in a couple of times to make sure they still had my number (which they never did). But finally I met Anne, a muzungu that is here as a pharmacy tech, who called me the other day to tell me to get down to the clinic! Now, considering I’ve been known to faint, I was a little nervous about watching this procedure. I almost chickened out but ended up going through with it! I did end up having to walk out of the room about 5 times so I didn’t crash to the ground! But considering it took them almost 2 hours for the operation, I’d say I did pretty well! It took longer than usual and caused the doc to break a sweat because mom had just had a c-section not even a year ago. Therefore, the cutting process wasn’t anything I expected it to be! They cut, pulled, stretched, cut some more. BLEH! I think besides all of that, another reason I got nauseous was because I knew that the baby from her previous operation didn’t make it and the mom from the docs last operation didn’t make it. So with all of this in mind and the fact that I tend to put myself in the patients shoes, I just couldn’t take it. I think that this not only clarified for me that I can’t be a surgical nurse but that I don’t think I can even handle being in the medical field anymore. Just thinking about it makes me want to look the other way. I truly feel like I’m being called in another direction, which is absolutely positively A ok with me!! Oh ya! And
baby boy and momma both made it through surgery ok and I got to present baby to the family who immediately prayed that the Lord touch and bless everyday of his life! That moment was a tear jerker!
Janine left for Kampala for 2 nights so she could get a letter she needed to renew her work permit here in Uganda, which meant I had the house to myself. Although it was peaceful yet lonely, it was quite eventful to say the least. Of course the staff were here during the day to care for the animals and do house work and what not and Tom, our guard, was here both nights. So the first night, I was going out to lock the door in the kitchen and I called for Tom to ask if he needed anything before I did. I called…and called…and called. No reply. Sometimes he sits under my window outside because it’s away from most of the mosquitoes and is a good hiding spot where he isn’t clearly seen by people walking by. So I proceeded to go to my window and call for him. No reply. Oh and did I mention that as I was calling for him several gun shots sounded in the distance? Janine ended up calling soon after to check on things so I let her know that Tom wasn’t anywhere to be found and so she tried calling his cell. You guessed it, no answer! She was right in saying that he usually doesn’t go very far if he had in fact left or that occasionally he naps under the tree, so I really wasn’t too concerned that I was in any danger. About 20 minutes later I heard the squeak of the gate and went to look to see if it was Tom. He informed me that he had been out by the road talking with a friend but was here now! I asked if he knew what the shots were from but he wasn’t so sure either. I locked the doors up tight and headed to bed, where things only got more intense! I was just dozing off when I heard a very large crowd of people outside of my window. Now, here in Uganda it’s not uncommon to find more people walking the streets at night than during the day. But I’d not heard anything like this yet! I should inform you as well that the road is maybe 15 feet from my window so when I say I heard them “outside my window,” it was clear that they were on the road passing by. But again, this was a very large crowd and they weren’t at all trying to be quiet. I knew this was out of the ordinary but knowing Tom was right outside my window and how much they fear our dogs, I was quite at peace and felt safe. They passed on and it wasn’t too long after that when I heard the chanting, yelling and more gun shots. I figured out from this that I was experiencing my first riot. They were pretty close still to where I could hear them but weren’t close enough for me to think they were going to cause any trouble around the house. The gun shots did however get closer and I could swear that one sounded like it was right out front but I could’ve been half asleep by that time. Tom informed me in the morning that the riot was down at one of the schools and that they were protesting because one of the students got kicked out earlier in the day for wearing a military uniform that didn’t belong to him. The kids didn’t like that the teacher kicked him out, so the answer was apparently to protest and cause a riot. No one got shot because they were just shooting up in the air, but then again what goes up must come down, so they were lucky.
Thank God the second night wasn’t AS bad but was noisy again like the first. This time it decided to thunder and lightning and pour down rain. Now, if you’ve every heard a thunderstorm, like a really loud one, intensify that by about 5 notches and you’ll be at an African thunderstorm. I could’ve had a strobe light party in my room because of the flashes of lightning back to back. And the huge boom and crash of the thunder along with the pouring rain…just take a drum to your ear and beat it as loud as you can and you’ll be there! Oh, and here in Uganda the thieves like to come out at night of course, but especially when there is a thunderstorm because no one can hear them! Poor Tom had to be out in the rain all night because of how much higher the risk was for thieves. He said that a guard once went in the barn for cover during the storm and the thieves came and locked him in and stole everything. So Tom takes on the rain and protects us; what a servants heart he has in everything he does. I found my old cheer jacket in my suitcase and gave it to him to wear since it’s somewhat of a rain poncho. He was so grateful and didn’t think twice that it was a girl’s. Men wear girls clothes here anyways and some wear santa hats all year round. It’s not as much of a concern in some places because you just wear what you have. I still can’t get over the fact that I saw a man with an Amway shirt on the very first day I arrived in Uganda!
There is only 1 week left for me here and it’s approaching pretty quickly. I really do love how beautiful this place is but I cherish every time I get to skype or call with family and friends. I certainly won’t miss the bumpy, unpaved roads everywhere we go but each new place has brought new smiling children that just jump up and down with excitement to see that you’re coming to visit them! After training 4 health and nutrition teams and one more on Saturday, I’m excited to hear about how the outreaches will go with the PMI team. They’ll be offering free medical exams and meds to each of the 5 villages along with a prayer team and the teams that I taught to go around and educate their fellow community about how to stay healthy and safe. I’m also excited to hear about how my
group of disabled women are coming along with all of the sweets I’ve been teaching them to make. Yes, not the healthiest but I try to sneak fruit or veggies in and besides it makes them money to be able to provide for their families so that they can be healthy and have food from all of the different food groups instead of just posho and beans everyday. So I’ve taught them mango and pineapple muffins and carrot cake with frosting (oh boy were they excited to learn how to make the frosting) and last week was sugar cookies (or biquits as they call them)! This week they talked me into teaching two things (pancakes and doughnut holes lol) since it’s my last week with them. I should share about how much fun an awkward situation turned into during last weeks teaching! So two of the girls showed up early because they hadn’t received the memo that the rest of the group would be arriving late. So not only had I not met them from the first class but they also just happened to be deaf. I needed my bestie Jordan to fly over here and help me out with sign language because my English and French background doesn’t get me very far in this type of situation. But miraculously enough, after I was done setting everything out for the cooking, we ended up having a conversation, understanding each other and laughing hysterically as we took pictures and communicated about our families. They were so sweet and friendly and I’m so glad that the part of me that wanted to just go inside and hide until the rest of the group got there was overtaken by the love and peace God provided me with to go sit with them. Eventually the rest of the group showed up and the girls bragged to the others through their hand motions about us taking pictures and the fun we had. =)
This last week I’ve been going around with Mustafa doing some filming. I’m really hoping to be able to not only show my sponsors some of the things I’ve been doing but to also allow people to have a chance to see what the needs are here so that they can continue to support Masindi even when I’m gone. I’ve gone around to two schools so far and I filmed a little of the church service and auction on Sunday, which by the way lasted 9 hours but was tons of fun with the auction and the precious Lillian that kept me entertained!
We had to boda (motorcycle) back in the rain which was freezing but Mustafa serenaded us to keep our minds occupied. I was surprised that his first song choice was from The Backstreet Boys ha. We’re going to film some of my cooking class on Thursday and then take a day to go into the market and get some shots there and then Sunday will be another type of church service with Janine preaching at Jimmy‘s church. Then, before I know it, it’ll be time to head to Kampala on Monday and meet with my Ugandan friends Sarah, Faith, Nicholas and Chris for dinner. I fly out Tuesday night and then Germany here I come! I’ll be working with a Third Culture Kids conference for 12 days which should be a wonderful experience. Then this girl is homebound! Love and God bless and keep up the prayers!
Well after experiencing the earthquake today and the two mangos falling from the tree and hitting our roof just now, I’d say my poor heart has done enough racing for the day. You’d think after hearing a mango BANG against our tin roof 5 times a day for the past week, I’d be used to it, but nope! It makes me jump every time!…And there goes another!
I’ve definitely had an interesting past couple of days. I went with Janine and the Chaplain of the PMI clinic to do the health evaluation/inspection there. It took 2 days to finish the whole thing and I tell you, I was very impressed with how educated and sanitary (for the most part) the staff was with procedures. Although I’ve heard all about how common malaria is here and how sick people can get from it, I guess it just didn’t hit me as hard as seeing it first hand. First there were the records we had to go through to be sure that the staff were documenting correctly all of the malaria patients that had come through in the past year, just to this clinic. The numbers were pretty astonishing. Then there were several cases in the in-patient ward who were on ivs, but the one that struck me the most was the precious little girl. /she had to have been about 6 years old and I couldn’t tell at first what was wrong with her, that is until she started convulsing. Then I was informed that Cerebral Malaria is a common form that goes into the brain. As her mother calmed her and the nurse checked on her, all I could do was pray that God heal her.
We went to the maternity ward and there was a 2 day old baby that was born 2 months early. She was the tiniest and most beautiful baby girl who I could only pray for as well that she didn’t contract HIV from her mother or potentially get malaria.
On a positive note, I got to see an ultrasound of a lady that was 3-months pregnant! Oh the joy of life! I think I was more excited about it than her though.
I went to an orphanage today called Spirit Fire. There are about 200 students, about 130 of which actually live at the orphanage. One of the staff members gave me a tour of the boys and girls dormitories and the potential play room and bathrooms that were still under construction. An American man names Son paid for the construction of the girls dorms before he went back to America, but it was his birthday today so Trish and her mom (American missionaries that live 2 houses down from me and Janine) made signs for the children to hold up as they shot a video of them singing happy birthday to him. We gave them sugar cane afterwards to celebrate! You wouldn’t believe how these kids use their teeth to peel that stuff and then chew it. We sang songs with them and taught them two Bible stories. I swear their attention spans are far longer than us Americans!
After morning devotions at the church tomorrow morning, I’ll be practicing up on my muffin making for the handicapped women I’ll be teaching on Thursday. Then I’ll be making enchiladas for my birthday dinner!
"You are you are my strong tower, shelter over me, beautiful and mighty, everlasting King."
Ok, so I guess saying that I've been slacking on blog posting would be an understatement considering this is the first time I've done it since I've been here in Uganda. I'll try my best to sum up the past three weeks though and fill you in on what's going on now!
So for the first 3 weeks, the team and I were with an organization called Empower A Child based in Kampala Uganda. While we were there, we worked in several different places. We were mainly at schools doing what they call “program,” which includes sharing a Bible story, singing songs, and playing games with the school kids. We also went to a village called Zirobwe and did program there. We hitched some tents in the village church for two nights one week so that we could do different ministry projects. Chelsea and I got to teach the little ones their ABC’s while others learned their numbers and different English words. Mom, dad and Kara got to go around with some of the rest of the team and evangelize to the people of the village. Some of the time, Wes and Krys played a large role in leading the music and teaching the choir some songs while dad taught about gardening and mom prayed with the women of the village. Chelsea fell in love with sweet little Brenda and decided to sponsor her to help the family with school costs and medical fees. I fell in love with the beautiful Julliette who is a blind little girl in the village. I cannot express how awesome it was to watch the children of the village lead her around and bring her to places so that she could be a part of the activities going on. What a testimony of true grace and humility embraced by love. I’m praying about being able to sponsor her when I get back to the states and have a steady job again. Chelsea and mom and I got to take some of the sponsor kids to the zoo with us and it was so amazing to see their expressions, especially since some of them had never been out of the village or into the city. We rode camels, pet the baby elephant, or in mom’s case got kissed by him, held the huge anaconda, and just roamed around taking pictures and seeing all of the African animals. The house we stayed in was set up so that the main part of the house held the kitchen, living room, dining room, 2 bathrooms, a walk in shower and then three rooms for the girls; two of which held 4 sets of bunk beds that we all slept in. Connected to the house was a separate room where the married couples sleep. It had 2 sets of bunk beds as well and then a queen bed with a bathroom and shower. Chelsea and I moved into there after dad and Kara left. Then the boys and some of the staff stayed in another building that was connected to the office. This house was kind of crazy considering there were like 21 of us girls by the time we left because missionaries just kept coming! It was pretty conveniently located in Ntinda considering we had Tusky’s grocery store right around the corner along with a bank and some other little market shops. There is also a beauty salon where us girls went to get some weave put in. It never hurts to support the neighbors! It’s been really hard to go to the airport to say goodbye twice now, once to Kara and dad and then to mom and the team. Part of me wanted to just go along with them but I know my ministry here isn’t done! In fact, I kind of feel like it’s just getting started. The first 3 weeks of the trip was much different for me because it was kind of a basic “101” even though it was here in Africa. Of course theirs nothing wrong with that and it’s kind of hard to explain what I mean…but I’ll try my best. So Empower A Child, much like any other organization that welcomes teams, is all set up so that everyone kinda goes out and does the ministry that is all set up and you just kind of jump right in with the people that know what their doing. Which is PERFECT for a team, especially one with people that have never been to Uganda. And don’t get me wrong, I loved being able to be on the other side of the spectrum and see the expressions of my team members. That was definitely an awesome feeling knowing that they were realizing why God put them on Team Kugusa Dunia, if they didn’t already know! However, I just felt like there was more that I was supposed to be doing and that God wasn’t done yet. So although I was sad my team was leaving and I wanted to go with them, I knew that God called me to this second part of my trip for a reason. It’s a blessing to realize that the first part of the trip wasn’t exactly for my ministry but for the other 6 members of the team. And although He used me to set the trip up and get them here, He also made this second part possible so that I could truly focus on what he’s calling ME to do for His kingdom. More so than just joining an organization but possibly starting my own one day when He says the time is right and hopefully when I am financially free and have someone to walk alongside me. I couldn’t believe how beautiful it is here in Masindi. Janine (the American I’m living with for the next 6 weeks) met the team and I for dinner last Tuesday night before we dropped them off at the airport. She and I stayed at a guest house in Entebbe before taking a huge link bus for our 4 hour drive on Wednesday. We walked from the town market to her house (about 20 mins) and I just couldn’t believe how much it reminded me of Karamoja last summer. The view of the mountains and the colors everywhere are absolutely breath taking. When arriving at her house I immediately met her guard dog JoJo and 3 month old puppy, Simba. She has a beautiful home that she has lived in the past 5 years with mango trees right in the front yard. Around back are goats, sheep, BUNNIES!!, a white cow that we get fresh milk from everyday, a big black pig and two piglets that we bought today, turkey and some ducks. Inside, there is a living room, kitchen, bathroom, 2 bedrooms and a storage room. The school kids walk by each day and throw things up in the mango trees to try to get some of them to fall. It’s quite entertaining, especially when the monkeys are letting more fall just from swinging from branch to branch. I’ve met a few people so far from the church and then today at the hospital which is right down the road. I also met a disabled lady at the market that has been asking Janine to show her and the rest of her friends how to make small cakes. Since Janine is so busy and I enjoy cooking, we’ve decided that this will be one of my ministries. We plan on meeting next Thursday so I can show them our mango recipe and explain how to cook it over a fire! It’s funny because I thought that it was crazy when Chelsea and I ate grasshoppers in Kampala but what’s really amazed me is the way that Janine has shown me in these past three days how you can use the ingredients they have here to make such delicious food. I can’t wait to share these things with the ladies here so that they can have more variety in their foods and also know how to make healthy and affordable meals for their families. For example, just with the milk that we’ve gotten from the cow, we’ve made vanilla pudding (with real vanilla bean…amazing), cheese, and a sweet dip for cookies. Okay so that was a bad example for something healthy…but it’s all soooooo yummy! I made pineapple muffins yesterday and I think I may try mango tomorrow. Janine and I are going to switch off every night in making dinner so we’ll see what I come up with! Oh! And I got a bicylce yesterday so that I can use it as transportation to get around town! I really could see how someone could live in a place like this. It’s so peaceful and just goes to show that when you don’t have material things to focus on, you really start to focus on God’s creations and the joy that He provides in any situation. I’m so excited to see what He has in store for me here in the gorgeous Masindi, Uganda.
Feb. 11, 2013
As most people know, I've been given this grand calling by God to not only go back to Uganda, but to bring a team of both Christians and non Christians back with me this summer. Through all of the trusting and growing I've gone through in planning this trip, I still get discouraged sometimes and just worry about the "what ifs. " This morning was another one of those panic moments as I woke up at 6 a.m. and had the team on my mind as it raced over what all still needs to be done and how much money we need to raise. There was NO WAY I was going to calm my mind until I got up and worked on some things for the trip.
So I rolled over and grabbed my phone and was going through it, deleting the new junk emails that had popped up over night and I scrolled down to see the emails that my dad had forwarded to me a couple days ago. In procrastination, I hadn't read them, and sometimes I just delete them because I don't want to take the time to stop and read through them (most are pretty long and are just emails that he's gotten from someone else with pretty pictures from around the world or a devotion that someone got from a book). But this morning, one of them caught my eye and I decided to go ahead and open it before deleting it to see what it had to say. To my surprise, it was exactly the encouragement I'd need!
Here it is, enjoy:
Isaiah 65:24
This is a story written by a doctor who worked in Africa .
One night I had worked hard to help a mother in the labor ward; but in
spite of all we could do, she died, leaving us with a tiny, premature baby
and a crying two-year-old daughter. We would have difficulty keeping the
baby alive; as we had no incubator (we had no electricity to run an incubator).
We also had no special feeding facilities.
Although we lived on the equator, nights were often chilly with treacherous drafts.
One student midwife went for the box we had for such babies and the cotton wool
that the baby would be wrapped in.
Another went to stoke up the fire and fill a hot water bottle. She came back shortly
in distress to tell me that in filling the bottle, it had burst (rubber perishes easily in tropical climates)..
'And it is our last hot water bottle!' she exclaimed. As in the West, it is no good crying over spilled milk, so in Central Africa it might be considered no good crying over burst water bottles.
They do not grow on trees, and there are no drugstores down forest pathways.
'All right,' I said, 'put the baby as near the fire as you safely can, and sleep between the baby and the door to keep it free from drafts Your job is to keep the baby warm.'
The following noon, as I did most days, I went to have prayers with any of the orphanage
children who chose to gather with me. I gave the youngsters various suggestions of things to pray about and told them about the tiny baby. I explained our problem about keeping
the baby warm enough, mentioning the hot water bottle, and that the baby could so easily die if it got chills. I also told them of the two-year-old sister, crying because her mother had died.
During prayer time, one ten -year-old girl, Ruth, prayed with the usual blunt conciseness of our African children. 'Please, God' she prayed, 'Send us a hot water bottle today It'll be no good tomorrow, God, as the baby will be dead, so please send it this afternoon.'
While I gasped inwardly at the audacity of the prayer, she added, 'And while You are about it, would You please send a dolly for the little girl so she'll know You really love her?'
As often with children's prayers, I was put on the spot. Could I honestly say 'Amen?' I just did not believe that God could do this.
Oh, yes, I know that He can do everything; the Bible says so. But there are limits, aren't there?
The only way God could answer this particular prayer would be by sending me a parcel from the homeland. I had been in Africa for almost four years at that time, and I had never, ever, received a parcel from home.
Anyway, if anyone did send me a parcel, who would put in a hot water bottle? I lived on the equator!
Halfway through the afternoon, while I was teaching in the nurses' training school, a message was sent that there was a car at my front door. By the time I reached home, the car had gone,
but there on the verandah was a large 22-pound parcel. I felt tears pricking my eyes. I could not open the parcel alone, so I sent for the orphanage children.. Together we pulled off the string,
carefully undoing each knot. We folded the paper, taking care not to tear it unduly Excitement was mounting. Some thirty or forty pairs of eyes were focused on the large cardboard box. From the top,
I lifted out brightly-colored, knitted jerseys. Eyes sparkled as I gave them out. Then there were the knitted bandages for the leprosy patients, and the children looked a little bored. Then came a box
of mixed raisins and sultanas - that would make a batch of buns for the weekend.
Then, as I put my hand in again, I felt the.....could it really be?
I grasped it and pulled it out. Yes, a brand new, rubber hot water bottle. I cried.
I had not asked God to send it; I had not truly believed that He could.
Ruth was in the front row of the children. She rushed forward, crying out, 'If God has sent the bottle, He must have sent the dolly, too!'
Rummaging down to the bottom of the box, she pulled out the small, beautifully-dressed dolly. Her eyes shone! She had never doubted!
Looking up at me, she asked, 'Can I go over with you and give this dolly to that little girl, so she'll
know that Jesus really loves her?'
'Of course,' I replied!
That parcel had been on the way for five whole months, packed up by my former Sunday school class,
whose leader had heard and obeyed God's prompting to send a hot water bottle, even to the equator.
And one of the girls had put in a dolly for an African child - five months before, in answer to the believing prayer of a ten-year-old to bring it 'that afternoon.'
'Before they call, I will answer.' (Isaiah 65:24)
When you receive this, say the prayer. That's all I ask. No strings attached. Just send it on to whomever you want �but do send it on.
Prayer is one of the best free gifts we receive. There is no cost, but a lot of rewards. Let's continue praying for one another.
This awesome prayer takes less than a minute. Heavenly Father, I ask you to bless my friends reading this. I ask You to minister to their spirit.
Where there is pain, give them Your peace and mercy. Where there is self doubting, release a
renewed confidence to work through them Where there is tiredness or exhaustion, I ask You
to give them understanding, guidance, and strength. Where there is fear, reveal Your love and
release to them Your courage.. Bless their finances, give them greater vision, and raise up leaders
and friends to support and encourage them. I ask You to do these things in Jesus' name. Amen P. S. Passing this on to anyone you consider a friend will bless you both. Passing this on to one not considered a friend is something Christ would do.
After reading this, tears came to my eyes. How could I doubt? I feel like there's just no further explanation needed! God is so good =)
Kam
