You're Not Talking To The Hand....

Just wanted to ya'll know that we are having a ridiculous time with the power and internet lately.  The electricity has been very lazy and has not wanted to stay on for more than 3 consecutive hours at a time.  This has made responding to emails and posting new blogs very difficult - especially since my laptop battery is officially dead and I can't even turn my computer on when the power is off.  Errrrrr - How was it that Paul learned to be content in EVERY situation?

I'm really thankful for your emails - keep them coming - I'm not ignoring you!

By the way the picture above was taken at Messiah Theological Institute (MTI) - the Bible School that our team oversees.  This water pump was installed by our team and provides clean drinking water to anyone who wishes to use it.  So many biblical stories happened around water wells....I can't help but think of a different one each time I pass this water pump.

5 Down...7 To Go

January finishes up my fifth month of living here in Mbale, Uganda.  Five complete months of living in a third world culture.  While it's beginning to feel normal – somethings here continue to baffle me. 

 

-Body Language – For women, be submissive in everyway; Don’t look men in the eye when you talk; Keep your head bowed and even bend at the waist a little; Talk soft.  If I don’t follow these cultural norms – then I am either very offensive or very provocative. Personally, this one has been really hard to get used to.  

-Family – If we’re related, you can’t say no to me – Broke? Need a place to stay? Hungry?  Simple.  Find your mother’s 2^nd cousin’s nephew and they can’t turn you down if you’re related.  Folks here will go broke and make themselves homeless before turning out lazy free-loading relatives. In the States, I think we'd only go to family as a last resort.  And while we are willing to help out our family when they are down and out, there is a line in the sand for how far we are willing to go.  

-Money – Live for today. The majority of folks are focused on survival and if they come into a sum of money – they don’t save it for next season’s seed or future medical bills or next year’s school fees but spend it now.  They might, however, build a portion of a house as they get money.  You see half built homes all over the place here; Completing a house sometimes takes 15-20 years – but, if you put your money in building materials at least your husband’s nephew won’t crash at your place and borrow all your cash. (Cause you couldn’t say no if he asked for it.) 

-Spirits – In the States, there is this movement to become more spiritual…as in zen and peace and meditation.  But here spiritual is very dark.  Witchdoctors are real.  Children are really kidnapped and their body parts sold for sacrifices.  Folks wear charms to ward off evil spirits.  Even in Christian churches, believers turn to witchdoctors for healings.  These witchdoctors in turn sacrifice chickens, goats or even worse… I have never felt so close to spiritual warfare than I do here in Uganda. 

-Mortality – Death visits often.  I meet so many who are either living with HIV or lost a parent to HIV.  This death comes slowly – for others, it comes very fast at a young age.  Many, many mothers will bear 8 – 12 children, but only 2 -3 will live to be adults.  In fact, most children aren’t even named until they are a year old.  It is such a ridiculous waste.  Our school cook lost her 2 month old son who was receiving treatment at the local hospital and will never know the real cause of his death.  And not even a week later, our day guard lost his 8 month old son to sickness.  

Culture Shock

I guess I pictured culture shock like a cartoon.  You know, like a guy who sticks his finger in the light socket ends up getting electrocuted…hair on ends, muscles tense, eyes bugged out, and visible skeleton outline.   ZAP!  You know when a character has been shocked.  So, instead of sticking a finger in a socket…I pictured sticking my finger in “Ugandan culture”.  I figured it would have the same electric shock effect. Immediate.  Visible.  Abrupt.  Noticeable.   But, there was no ZAP!  It was more like a slow boil.  It crept up gradually – I hardly even knew what was happening.

Stage I.  Before even leaving America. I was anxious to start my Ugandan experience.  I couldn’t leave home fast enough.  It was an adventure.   Bring it on!

Stage II.  Somewhere over the Atlantic.  It is my birthday and I’m sitting next to a complete stranger who is snoring!  I’m realizing that it is going to be 12 months before I return home. Deep Breath – Am I sure I don’t want to just make a U-Turn in London?

Stage III.  Further along over the Atlantic.  The Captain of the airplane just came back to wish me a Happy Birthday!  I am so cool!  What an adventure!  Uganda here I come!

Variations of Stages II & III repeat numerous times until I reach Mbale, Uganda.

Stage IV.  First night in new home.  Real tears.  Real regret?  It really feels like I am on my own – Will I sink or swim?  Why does it have to be so dirty over here?  Is that just a mosquito I feel on my leg or worse?  And, how did I ever convince myself that I could be a teacher?  I am going to be a complete failure – the kids won’t learn anything from me.  Can I still get my job back in Atlanta?

Stage V.   A new day.  It isn’t so scary in the daylight.  I can totally do this.  Besides, now it takes just minutes to walk to work and I get to wear flip-flops everyday!  No cares if I don’t take a shower, shave my legs or wear make-up.  Life here is decidedly less complicated and I can handle that – just one day at a time.

Stage VI.  December – After Parents Visit.  First Christmas away from home. Missing home and feelings of guilt for being absent. Haven’t had an email from friends in weeks.  Why does it have to be so hot here?  Why does everything take so long to do?  Why can’t I buy Dr. Pepper here?  When will our local market store get more ice cream bars????  I just feel really, really, really sad. 

Stage VII.  Admitting you have a problem.  Believe it or not – it works.  I asked my teammates for help – I asked friends back home to pray for me.  And God blessed me with encouragement immediately and he hasn’t stopped. From what I hear – Culture Shock isn’t something you are instantly cured of.  And, according to a teammate who has been here 25+ years, you never get over being homesick either.  

So, yeah, living in a third world country presents its challenges and dealing with the emotional stress of culture shock and homesickness is one that is often overlooked and underestimated.  Just one more reason I have learned to greatly respect and admire longterm missionaries. 

In 2019...

2009 marks changes.  The most obvious – living in a third world county.  But 2009 also marks 10 years since I graduated from high school.  Which got me to thinking (always a dangerous and expensive thing…) back to my senior year. 

“Welcome back my dear students.  Hope you all had a joyous and restful holiday.  For your first assignment of the New Year, I would like you to open your minds and dream about where you will be in ten years.  Then, I would like you to transfer these thoughts into an essay describing the 10 Year Reunion for the Class of 1999.”  I tend to take liberties in filling in what I don’t remember – but I think that about how my English teacher Mrs. Edwards would have announced such an assignment. 

Never would I have opened my mind wide enough to imagine that I would actually be missing my 10 reunion.  Out of the 18 in our class, I figured I would be the only one who actually attended! 

Where I was 10 years ago:

17 yrs old

In High School

Living with Mom & Dad in Newnan

Driving the ’88 Taurus w/ No A/C

Listening to music on the radio - 99X

Deciding between Georgia and Auburn

Watching FRIENDS every Thursday on NBC

 

Where I THOUGHT I would be in 10 years:

27 yrs old

Married, with no kids

Living in the city with a place in the county

Driving BMW to work and ’56 T-bird on the weekends

Working some corporate job and running the show

Living my own southern version of FRIENDS

And, obviously, rolling in cash

 

Where I actually am:

27 yrs old

Single, with no kids

Living in third world country (ok, at 17 I thought this might be a possibility but only if I was a secret government agent or US Ambassador to Fiji)

No car

Working as a missionary (and recovering political junkie)

Supporting myself by donations from family and friends

Watching FRIENDS reruns on DVD  and living what feels more like an updated version of Gilligan's Island, but without the island....

Listening to music on my Ipod

In 10 more years I might be….who knows?

Good Morning!

It is 7am and I am bundled up on the front porch with my laptop.  I love being up early inUganda; It is the only time when it feels cold outside.  Hmm….cold….it is all relative.  In Georgia, we might call this just a little chilly, but I wrap the blanket tighter around my legs, hug the warm cup of tea and envision all the brown dusty grass suddenly as pure white snow.  Snow??? I am from GEORGIA for crying out loud, why am I homesick for snow???   Note to self:  No more watching White Christmas.  

The over eager birds who proudly call out to the world bring me back to reality.  Not to be outdone, the neighbor’s rooster, who as-a-matter-of-fact has been crowing since 5am, decides to dominate the morning symphony.  No playlist on my ipod can compete.

A picture from my breakfast spot at Bushara Island.

Ugandan sunrise while on safari with my parents at Murchison Falls.