Tis the Season!

While many of you are bustling about with Christmas shopping, and praying earnestly for a white Christmas, we here in Masaka are celebrating a different kind of season – that of the Ensenene (grasshoppers).

With the rainy season come these delightful creatures, much loved by everyone from child to adult (at least everyone local!) Not only delicious and nutritious, they are also an economic boon. Selling at 5,000shillings a cup, some people are able to buy cars off of their ensenene season earnings. I’ve tried my best to document all the steps involved in this much anticipated time of year.

1.) Put up the catchers - all around Masaka and Nyendo, you see these contraptions. At night, they rest huge metallic sheets against the supports, and put on floodlights. Attracted by the lights, the unsuspecting ensenene hit the sheet and tumble down into the barrel, from which they have no hope of escape. Somehow, even if the rest of the neighborhood is without power, they manage to keep the floodlights lit, and the ensenene look like snow falling as they swarm overhead.









2. Pluck off the feathers - The next morning, the catchers bag up the ensenene and sell them off in smaller lots. The buyers usually hire cheap labor (including many of our street kids) to pluck of the legs and wings of the (live!) ensenene. They really rip them off, paying just 200shillings for them to pluck a cupful, but I’ve noticed that all the boys have gained some weight this month as they shell out their earnings for all kinds of snacks and treats. Lots of new kids also come to the streets at this time, which is not good.









3. Go around selling them – Buckets full of raw (and still wiggling) ensenene bodies are carried around the streets and sold by the cupful.










4. Fry em up – Once you buy them, you fry them. No need to add any oil- their own juices do the trick quite nicely!










5. And enjoy – After frying, it’s time to enjoy the crunchy consistency and savory flavor. See how much I’m loving it? ;)








To be honest, I’ve only eaten 1/3 of an ensenene to date (made my colleagues take of the head and bottom.) The flavor is nice, but I can’t get over the mental image of having ensenene exoskeleton stuck in my teeth. I know my friends here might be disappointed by that, but what can I say, I’m still a muzungu at heart, with a taste for a different kind of holiday treat…



Holiday fun: when Jenipher had her bushes trimmed I grabbed a clipping to serve as my official Christmas tree!

Kids, the best entertainment

I just wanted to share some LOL (that's 'laugh out loud', for the uninitiated) moments from the last several weeks, courtesy of the kids in my life here.

Mukiibi
One day while I was coming home from work, I ran into Jenipher and Mukiibi on the road. She was going to visit a friend (an older lady who is like a jia jia to Jenipher), and persuaded me to come along. When we got there, I was offered some soda. When they brought it out, Mukiibi had a little fit because he didn’t get one. He started sobbing and carrying on in a way that was so obviously fake and beneath his advanced age of four years, that I could only look at him, perplexed. The ‘adults’ relented and brought him a soda, but for the rest of the evening he had to endure Jenipher totally mocking him, “wah, I want a soda, wah!
Image: Mukiibi, one cool dude.


On the way home from visiting Jenipher's friend, we stopped off at Fred's place. Although it was late, Fred of course insisted on serving us tea. He put out the hot water and a loaf of bread. While he was out of the room getting the tea and sugar, the loaf of bread fell over, and several pieces landed on the floor. Jenipher and I exchanged glances, and I hurriedly picked them up and put them on back on the plate before Fred came back in. We went on to serve ourselves tea, but Mukiibi was the only one that took bread. After he was served, he made a great show of wiping off each side of bread before dipping it into his tea. Jenipher and I almost died laughing, and Fred of course was just confused.

Joy
For a couple weeks after her house girl quit, Sara (the accountant at Buddukiro) had to bring her three-year-old daughter Joy with her to work. Now, Joy is an assertive person, to say the least. She was ordering me, the other staff, and the street kids around like a little sergeant, and we were all loving it. Here are three giggles courtesy of Joy:

We have a number of educational posters hanging on the walls at Buddukiro, related to things like child labor, health and hygiene, and personal safety. One very graphic poster depicts a traditional healer running off carrying the head of a child, his bloody and headless body visible in the background. (Child sacrifice and witchcraft are still problems here, and we actually warn the street kids to sleep in groups to minimize the danger of being targeted.) Ok, so that’s not such a LOL topic, but it somehow became one when Joy looked up at the poster , pointed at the man, and shouted, “YOU STOP IT!” Out of the mouths of babes…

Joy was playing outside the Center for awhile, and when she came back in we noticed that she kept trying to put her finger up her nose. I scolded her to stop it. When she persisted, a couple of the boys tried to reach up to see if they could find whatever she was trying to fish out. They managed to pull out a few petals. Turns out, Joy had gotten it into her head that it would be a good idea to stick a daisy up her nose. Unfortunately for her, the central yellow part was really wedged up there, and it took a trip to the clinic to get it out! Ooh, that can’t have been pleasant!

Each day, Sara would try to lay Joy down for a nap, which she usually vigorously opposes. On one particular day, she must have been exhausted, because Aunt Cissy was only halfway through feeding her her porridge when she started to nod off, cheeks completely full of porridge! Joy is staying with an Auntie in Kampala these days, and we all miss her (and her antics) terribly!
Image: Joy with her cheeks full of porridge

Neighborhood Kids
Ok, I can only think of one story here, but it was pretty hilarious. There’s a school right behind the Nyendo drop in Center, and I get a lot of attention from the kids there. They often crowd around the door and look in to watch what I’m doing and say ‘bye Muzungu!’ One day, they were particularly eager and exuberant. One little girl of about three really outdid herself waving and craning her neck. Unfortunately for her though, the ground was uneven, and before she could catch herself, she lost her balance and totally face planted in the mud. She of course started to cry, so I came out to pick her up and brush the dirt off her face and out of her mouth (!). She immediately stopped crying, in awe at being touched by the muzungu!


Image: Some of the schoolkids near the drop in center.

HIV/AIDS: One Family's Pain

Last Monday was World AIDS day. There was a lot of activity around here, including marches, speeches, and free testing and counseling. There was also a lot of coverage in the media. The article below is transcribed directly from the local newspaper, and though a bit melodramatic, the story it documents is really not that uncommon. As one of my colleagues said, there is really almost no family here in Uganda that has not been impacted somehow by HIV/AIDS.

Daily Monitor, Monday Dec. 1, 2008, pg 5
By Evelyn Lirri

Fewer families have felt the pain that can be inflicted by HIV/AIDS more than that of 64-year old Rose Odongpiny of Layibi Division of Gulu District. Ms. Odongpiny has seen seven of her eight children, and most of their spouses, succumb to AIDS.

She had to start taking care of the 13 grandchildren whose parents were snatched by the cruel hand of death. She soon learnt that six of the grandchildren were infected with the HIV virus.

One of Ms. Odongpiny’s infected grandchildren, an 18year-old girl, the eldest of the orphans, posed an even bigger challenge. As if the HIV infection were not bad enough, she was also pregnant.

Looking after her grandchildren would not have been a problem, had Ms. Odongpiny not discovered three years ago during one of the home-based voluntary testing programs- she too was infected.

According to Ms. Odongpiny, she is likely to have contracted the virus while taking care of her children when they were bedridden. Because she HIV/AIDS can only be spread through sexual intercourse, she did not take any precautionary measures while nursing her children.

With no one else to turn to, Ms Odongpiny- who lost her husband in 1972- must once again fend for her family, except this time she has been weakened by the virus and needs as much help as the very children she was supposed to take care of. Ms. Odongpiny’s ordeal mirrors that of many grandparents who bear the enormous emotional burden of caring for their grandchildren who have been orphaned by the AIDS epidemic.

Statistics from the Demographic and Health Survey 2006 indicates that Uganda has over 2,000,000 orphans, most of whose parents died of HIV/AIDS and about 110,000 children who are less than 15 years are living with HIV/AIDS.

Ms. Odongpiny’s first agony is where to get food. “Food is a constant problem. It has become even harder nowadays because I don’t have anything to feed these children on. I don’t have money.” She said.

If she is lucky, she eats one meal a day, usually a meal of green vegetables and bens. Yet at times she has endured more than two days without food. Milk is out of the question for her, while meat is a luxury she can only afford once a year.

According to the regional HIV/AIDS special for Save the Children in Uganda, Mr. Edmond Kero, access to HIV/AIDS services and increasing awareness among people living with HIV/AIDS, especially children, is a top priority. Kero said over the years, Save the Children Uganda has undertaken a project identifying children with HIV/AIIDS and enrolling them for the various preventative services like access to antiretroviral treatment from the communities like that of Ms. Odongpiny.

Although here are no specific statistics of how many children are living with HIV/AIDS in Gulu District, the Uganda HIV/AIDS report 2007 puts the northern region to have the second highest prevalence rate in the country at 8.2 %, compared to the national average of 6.5 percent.

Ms. Odongpiny and her grandchildren are not yet on the life prolonging ARVs, but have been put on spetrin prophylaxis to prevent opportunistic infections.

Heatlh Alert, an organization that is undertaking preventative programs for HIV/AIDS in Amuru and Gulu District, has been assisting the family to access treatment at the health facilities.

According to the project coordinator for Health Alert, Mr Francis Oubutu, the project, with support from Save the Children in Uganda, has been supporting children with HIV/AIDS and their caretakers by making followup visits to their homes.

Mr Obutu said, for the most vulnerable people like Ms. Odongpiny, Health Alert has come to provide some basic requirements like sugar, soap, and milk for mothers who are on the prevention of mother to child transmission program.

Ms Odongpiny’s granddaughter is one of those HIV positive young mothers enrolled with Health Alert to not only cope with HIV/AIDS pregnancy, but also access information on how to prevent mother to child transmission.

But Ms. Ondonpiny’s despair is not only where she will get her next meal, she also worries about her grandchildren’s education. As she reflects on her life, Ms. Odongpiny says the worst consequence of the epidemic for her is not the death it has come with, but the helpless orphans that are being left behind.

The faces of potential

Last Friday we had a 'Users Meeting.' Once a month, Buddukiro brings the boys from the Masaka and Nyendo centers together to give them information and advice, and have them share about any issues they're having.

When my turn came to give them a little 'soundbite' of advice, I mainly stressed how much potential we see in each of them, and how important it is that they take advantage of, rather than waste, the opportunities Buddukiro presents them with.

Here's a photo of the group, including BCA staff. behind each set of eyes, there is a story- trauma and hardship, but also dreams and oodles of potential. For example, Ronald, in the middle with the red and blue striped shirt, is an orphan. He lives with an aunt who has taken in several other orphans from different members of her family, and they all live together in Nyendo. Though he has a place to stay, his aunt can't afford to pay school fees for all those kids. So, although extremely bright, he's been out of school since last May. We're hoping Buddukiro can sponsor him to go back when the new term begins in February, and in the meantime he's been joining Buddukiro's education sessions each day to try to keep his mind sharp. I killed me to hear from him during a recent group counseling session, when we asked why his week had been a good one. He said that it was a good week because he because his family held the last funeral rites of his mother over the weekend(one year after death), and he had gotten a lot to eat that day.

I know it's a little hard to see, but it would be awesome if you could take a little time to look at each face, and pray for each boy, that he will safely navigate this crucial time in his life, and become all that God created him to be...

Note on pics: I'm having the toughest time getting any photos to upload recently, hence the blank spaces in some of these entries. I'll keep trying though...

Five things I’m thankful for

Happy Turkey Day!

I’m sure many of you have the tradition of going around the table on Thanksgiving and each saying something that you’re thankful for. Here’s several of my somethings this Turkey Day.

This year at Thanksgiving I’m thankful for:
1.) God’s provision and love for me. Through some bumps in the road this past year, His presence has been a really crucial constant.

2.) This opportunity here in Uganda, doing something I really care about and enjoy. Also for the skills and experiences I’m gaining here.

3.) All of you. For what you’ve meant in my life, and for the moral and financial support you have provided to get me here to Masaka.

4.) My family, for their love and support, and for the new niece or nephew on the way!

5.) New friends here, including the other interns and folks at church. It takes an experience to a whole new level when you have great people to share it with.


Image- I was letting some of the boys at Buddukiro play with Microsoft Paint, so I decided to have some retro Thanksgiving fun myself!

Snapshots from daily life: #3

I realize I’ve never formally introduced you to the food here. So here is a pic of a typical lunchtime meal. It is ‘mix’ with sauce. Here the sauce is beans. You can also get gnut (peanut), meat, or fish. The mix usually consists of various starches, including matooke (made from plantain steamed in banana leaves, the staple food here), posho (made from maize flour), and rice.

The other pic you see was taken near Masaka market, and it shows matooke as it looks fresh off the tree. You see people carting it all over the place on heavily-laden bicycles or trucks. People here call matooke ‘food’, and don’t feel as if they’ve really eaten unless the meal includes matooke. They always seem very surprised to hear we don’t have it back home!










In terms of my usual meal schedule, here’s what a typical day might look like:
* Breakfast: A mug of tea, a mug of millet porridge, a butter sandwich, a boiled egg, and if my host mom forces me, a banana or plate of greens or beans.
Morning tea: Tea (as always with whole milk and like 4 teaspoons of sugar!) and a snack (such as samosa, banana pancake, or fried cassava)
* Lunch: Rice and beans. I never choose to take matooke at lunch if I can avoid it. Once per day is enough!
* Afternoon tea: Tea with either another butter sandwich or a chapatti (like a tortilla)
* Just wanted to interject and say that I'm starting to feel like a Hobbit here...must take a break from fighting evil for elevensies...
* Dinner: matooke, rice, or potatoes with greens, fresh avocado, and some kind of sauce, and my favorite- passion juice (made fresh from half orange/half passion fruit, water, and lots of sugar!)

Although I sometimes just crave a good slice of pizza, I can’t complain overall. Everything is boiled to within an inch of its life, which kills germs, and it’s about as fresh as you can get (as in, beans just out of the pod and bananas just off the tree!)

Update on what I'm up to

So I thought I’d post a little more about what’s been occupying my week days. Here’s a look at my usual schedule. I’m enjoying it so far!

Typical Day
I usually leave home around 8:00am for the 25-30 minute walk/ride into Buddukiro. The weeks vary a little, but usually on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays I’ll go direct to Masaka, and on Tuesdays and Fridays I’ll start off at the Nyendo Center and head to Masaka after lunch. Before arriving at the center, I often start with outreach, which basically means walking up and down the streets to pass by the corners where the boys gather and encourage them to come to the centers.

The two sites are really different. Whereas the Nyendo boys are younger, very regular attenders, and somehow a little more innocent, the Masaka boys tend to be a little older, and their streets somehow seem a little more rough. In Nyendo, I usually give an English lesson once a week, or come up with some activity for the music/drama time on Fridays. In Masaka, I usually play badminton or soccer, or give a little informal computer lesson to the kids, and do ‘office’ work the rest of the time.

I eat lunch with the other Buddukiro staff at one of the little restaurants that we’ve contracted to also feed the boys once per day- usually at “Mama Eddy’s.” Sometimes I head out mid afternoon to the internet café if I need to do some research online. I usually have some activity or another going on right after work, and then head home to Jennipher’s by 7:00 or 7:30. After that it’s tea, play with Mukiibi, bath, dinner, bed!

Mini Project
I mentioned in a previous post that we had been doing a needs assessment in Ssenyange. Last week I turned in the proposal for the ‘mini project’ we came up with to FSD. I’m calling it the “Ssenyange orphans and other vulnerable children community action network project,” or Ssenyange OVC C.A.N. If this gets funded, it will begin to take up a lot of my time with things like materials development, training, and follow up visits.

I’ve pasted the exec summary in another entry because I’m in the post deadline phase of feeling too sick of the thing to write any more about it, but you’ll get the gist. I’m excited about it because I think if we could get the groups set up and functioning (including the savings and loaning function), they have the potential to make an impact in the lives of the kids in those households, and to help the caregivers sustain and advocate for themselves over the long term. Also, working on the ‘prevention’ side is something Buddukiro’s been wanting to get into as part of their new strategic direction, so this has the potential to move them where they want to go as an organization. We’ll find out later this week if it gets funded or not, so keep your fingers crossed!

Other Possibilities
I’ve been praying about what else I should get involved in during my non Buddukiro time- like how to get involved at church, in my community, after my time at Buddukiro is up at the end of January, etc. One interesting possibility is helping my friend Fred, who has a vision to start a Christian computer/resource complex in Masaka with a pastor friend of his. I’ve been able to use some of my MBA knowledge and materials to help them begin thinking about the business plan. Fun! Another idea I have is that my church would like to get something started working with orphans. Not sure yet what I could help with there, but it caught my attention…

Pics and proposal exec summary

Pic 1: Ssenyange (sprawled along the hillside overlooking Masaka














Pic 2: Me with one of the families we interviewed for the needs assessment- a grandmother living with three orphans- two from two of her own children that died of HIV/AIDS, and one that she is unrelated to but had compassion on and took in off the street.
















Executive Summary

Every child has a right to grow up in a nurturing environment where they can realize their full potential. However, for the approximately 112,000 orphans and other vulnerable children (OVC) in Masaka District of Uganda, this is often not possible due to poverty, domestic violence, and other challenges. Ssenyange Parish in particular is heavily impacted. However, the few existing service providers operate in a limited capacity, and community members are not organized to collaboratively address the challenges they face. BCA has determined that there is a strong linkage between this underserved OVC population and the influx of the children from Ssenyange coming to the streets of Masaka town. Once there, they become even more vulnerable to an array of dangers.

In response to this situation, BCA is proposing the Ssenyange OVC C.A.N. (Community Action Network) Project. The goal of this pilot project is to target OVC households in Ssenyange with interventions that will improve the welfare of OVC and prevent them from coming to the street, while also enhancing the overall capacity of the community to respond to their needs. This project has three main objectives: to establish OVC community action groups; to enhance the ability of group members to meet the basic needs of OVC in their households; and to promote community sensitization and mobilization around OVC issues. BCA is requesting a grant of $900.44 from FSD to carry out the first phase of this project. With this support, two groups will be formed and 3 will be trained, directly impacting 30-45 OVC households. Additionally, two sensitization sessions will be held for a minimum of 50 community members, and groundwork will be laid for additional action on OVC issues.

With 50% of the population below the age of 15, an investment in orphans and other vulnerable children (OVC) through the Ssenyange OVC C.A.N. Project will make a vital contribution to the long-term development of the region. The groups will serve as an enduring structure for promoting welfare of OVC in Ssenyange, and lessons learned can be leveraged to reach out to other needy areas with similar interventions. The project will also fill a major service gap, and position BCA to make significant future contributions to this high priority issue.

Wild Things!

The other interns and I have been feeling antsy to get out of Masaka and see more of Uganda, so this past weekend we packed into a car with three of my Ugandan friends from church and headed to two wildlife parks west of here- one at Lake Mburo near Lyantonde, and the other called Queen Elizabeth park, along the border near DR Congo in the west (separated from DRC by mountains, so no worries there!)

You basically pay an exorbitant (by local standards) entrance fee, and then drive around the trails of the huge park. Ours was the only 'normal-sized' car amidst a sea of jeeps and SUVs, and it sure took a beating! Here are a few pics from this amazing trip! Besides those featured here, we also saw monkeys, baboons, antelopey things, things that looked like fuzzy llamas, and lots of cool birds.

***Hippos! We were lucky to catch a bit of them at the lake- their heads and cute ears, and more of some fighting each other off in the distance. Apparently there are hundreds submerged just below the surface, and apparently they are also very mean. Anyone want to go for a swim?














***Zebras! There were so many at Lake Mburo, and I guess their stripes are as unique as our fingerprints!














***Elephant Crossing! We were so lucky to happen to make a wrong turn (one of many!) and come across these guys.













***Pumbas! Along the way, we also surprised a couple of the warthogs as they were taking mud baths!

















***The Group - overlooking Lake Mburo: me, Hagar, Fred 1 (who drove), Fred 2(mentioned in my previous post), and Nicholas, Fred 2's little brother. Brock is taking the pic.
















***Overlooking Queen Elizabeth - lots of variety in the landscape there!













***Changing the flat tire - we it got on the way back in a huge pothole (it was totally trashed!) That journey home was a trip unto itself. Thank goodness the flat tire happened there and not in lion country! (We didn't unfortunately didn't manage to spot any of those :(

Attitudes that kill me

Why are these people poor? This is the question I kept asking myself over and over during my first few weeks here. Compared to other areas in Africa, Uganda has a lot of resources, not the least of which is very fertile land. So what is going on here? The answer is that it’s complicated- there are a bajillion reasons which I will perhaps attempt to tackle at a later time. One reason, which I will elaborate on here, most certainly relates to attitude.

Two families, different outcomes
In preparation for writing a grant proposal to FSD, I’ve been doing a needs assessment over the last couple weeks in Ssenyange subparish, the hill behind Masaka. It's an area Buddukiro has identified as a major source of kids coming to the street. Yesterday, two of the families I interviewed highlighted an interesting theme that keeps repeating itself in the people I meet.

In the first family, there were two able-bodied parents with one child, aged 16, who was out of school due to lack of fees (more on that in my other post). Like many, they were struggling to make ends meet through occasional odd jobs. The second family, a single mother with six kids, all in school, was struggling but managing somehow. She is a ‘fishmonger’ (seller) in town, and also belongs to a savings group.

I’m sure there are many factors involved, but I can’t help but look at the two families and wonder- why is the one with the seemingly harder circumstances somehow making it work while the other cannot? This is another question that I keep asking myself- Why, when faced with similar circumstances, do some people manage to scratch out their food from the soil, and others don’t have enough to eat? Why are some able to cobble together school fees for their children while others cannot? I think the answer is very much rooted in attitudes.

The downside of giving
Every day, people see that I am a muzungu, assume I am rich, and ask me for money- kids, adults, poor people, seemingly well off people, co-workers, total strangers. Even the teacher I talked to at Ssenyange Public school (see previous post), came out and told me that she’s a widow with six kids. She’s having trouble paying their fees, and can’t I help her? I know it sounds harsh, but I was thinking, “Take a number and get in line lady.”

Granted, it may be true that I, even without an income at the moment, am comparatively rich. However, there is an underlying attitude here that is extremely problematic for Uganda’s future. For so many years, Uganda was facing war and calamity, and international aid agencies flooded in to provide help. Good, people in crisis need assistance. However, among too many, this has left a legacy of idle hands, held open to receive help, rather than being set in motion to change the circumstances.

Aid/development work is actually pretty big business here- I think it might be the 2nd or 3rd largest industry in the economy. Most everyone associates NGOs (nongovernamental orgs) with money, and looks to them (rather than the government) for the majority of their services. Among Ugandans there is also a culture where anyone who manages to earn a decent living faces a line of people in their own family expecting a handout. (There are some aspects of this generous, family-oriented culture that I really admire, but there's a down side too in terms of incentive.)

Two types of people, two different outcomes
There seem to be two main types of people that I am meeting, who seem to have very different outcomes in life:

Go-getters
**There are people like my host mother Jenipher (see my previous blog entry about how, when widowed, she went from crying for help to working hard to make a way for her six kids).
**There is also Frank, who was one of the first street kids Buddukiro supported. He just completed university with a degree in development studies. He hopes to start a project to help vulnerable kids, like he once was.
**There is also my friend Fred, who worked his fingers to the bone to earn his school fees after his mom died when he was 12. He is now a doctor who is managing to pay the school fees of his younger siblings, create jobs for his unemployed friends, and build dreams of starting his own hospital one day.

Characteristics Jenipher, Frank, and Fred share: ambition and drive, a willingness to work hard, an eye for the long-term, a tendency to make the most of opportunities, and a feeling of responsibility for their own destiny and that of those they love.

Pic: Frank standing tall at the Buddukiro drop-in center, where he began as a street child and grew into the first college graduate in his family.





Sit-and-give-me-ers
**There are others who are able-bodied, but either unable or unwilling to make the leap to find a way to pull themselves up. Jenipher herself said that for two years after she became a widow, she wasted her time crying and looking for someone to help her, before finally realizing there was no one but herself to look to.
**Some of the boys who were in Buddukiro at the same time as Frank were also supported by BCA to go to school, but decided to drop out. These days those same boys, now men, are often still on the street, or even in prison, and ask him for money when they see him around town.
**One classmate of Fred's was supported by a sponsor for all of his school fees, but somehow lost steam and dropped out in Senior 6 (just before finishing.)
These individuals seem to share: a feeling of entitlement, a short-term focus, a tendency to squander rather than capitalize on opportunities, a feeling that good outcomes are the result of ‘luck,’ rather than hard work.

Pic- Asheraf, a 17 year old that Buddukiro recently placed in a year-long carpentry apprenticeship (his third and final opportunity, as he has dropped out of two other programs already.) This past week, he skipped out three days in a row. (Did anyone else just hear the sound of my compassion being exhausted?)




What makes a ‘go-getter’ versus a ‘sit-and-give-me-er’? Is the go-getter, entrepreneurial attitude innate, or can it be learned? Perhaps both. One thing is for sure- in considering my ‘mini project’ in Ssenyange, I would sooner do nothing at all than contribute to perpetuating the ‘sit-and-give-me’ attitude. The ‘bone’ I’m gnawing on here is how to design a project that encourages the community to work together, using its own resources to address its own problems, rather than looking to me, the muzungu, with open hands.

Stats that kill me

“School fees, school fees!” This is a phrase I have been hearing over and over like a broken record since I arrived here. It seems to be among the top 2-3 challenges people face: “How to pay the school fees for all these children I’ve produced?” That is assuming, of course, that they value education enough to concern themselves about this (which some do not).

What’s in a school fee?
I’ve been asking around, and there are some higher quality boarding schools that are maybe 300,000Ush (about $175) per year. Even for a ‘lower’ quality school like Ssenyange Public (see photo below), fees are about 30,000 per term, times 3 terms, plus another 50,000 for uniform, books, etc, for a total of 140,000 per year (about $80). Multiply that by 6 or 7 children at 12 years each, and you’re looking at what, for many families, is an insurmountable barrier to education. (Hard even if there are parents in the picture, which there often aren’t- the number orphans is another stat that kills me!)

Pic- Ssenyange Public School (not UPE, despite the name). A teacher there told us that half the student body was recently dismissed due to unpaid school fees. Even for those that manage to pay the fees and remain, many sit through the entire school day on an empty stomach because folks at home can’t manage to send them with anything for breakfast or lunch.


Houston, we have a problem!
In Masaka District, 50% of the population of around 770,000 is under the age of 15. There is, in theory, a government policy of Universal Primary Education, meaning that primary school is free and every child should be able to go. (More on UPE vs. private education later). However, in reality, even if there is a UPE school anywhere nearby, which there sometimes is not, there are still fees that become cost prohibitive (books, uniforms, porridge).

The stats say that 94% of school aged kids in Masaka do in fact enter primary school. However, the retention rate is dismal, and only 14% (!) of those who enter primary school make the transition to secondary school. Now, I was never any good at statistics, but if only 14% of 93% of 50% of your population is getting beyond primary school, I’d say, “Houston, we have a problem!”

Without even looking closely, I see school-aged kids out of school- everywhere, every day. This is in the relatively privileged town area (as opposed to the much worse off rural villages.) It’s like watching precious water being poured out and wasted in the middle of a desert. Right now, at this very moment, as I watch, almost 50% of the population is losing the chance for a better future not only themselves, but also for Uganda. How is the country going to move forward if the majority have either never been to school, or never made it beyond grade 3 or 4? It kills me!

I’ve been mulling this over like a dog gnawing on a bone- what to do? No answers yet- I’ll keep you posted ;)

Rock the vote!

I already did! People here were pretty impressed that our country is organized enough to have gotten this to me! I am too!

Snapshots from daily life: #2

This is the view off to my right as I walk each morning from my host family in Kayarikiti village to Nyendo town. Most of the land around here is pretty densely populated and cultivated, but if I understand correctly, this ‘swamp’, or wetland area is a protected environmental area. I think it’s pretty!

Snapshots from daily life: #1)

In this picture, taken looking out from the Buddukiro drop in center (located in Nyendo’s slum area), you can see some of some of the most common household items used here in Masaka. There are the ubiquitous basins, used for anything from washing clothes or dishes, bathing, and carrying away clippings from the garden. You have your little wooden stool- the perfect height for sitting next to one of those basins as you wash! (This is the rectangular model- I prefer the circular one myself.)

Next to the basin, you have the yellow ‘jerry can’, used for toting water from the neighborhood faucet back home. You can see even very little kids carrying full cans on their heads. You also have some black dress shoes. You may notice that they are very ‘smart’ (think British meaning) and perfectly polished. Ugandans put a high priority on looking smart, and most press their clothes and polish their shoes before each wearing. (I’ll try to get a snapshot of the charcoal-powered iron next time…)

Bonus- in the background you can see a chicken. They, like the goats, tend to roam freely during the day, foraging for themselves, and then somehow remembering where to return home come evening.

Hooray for my fellow FSDers

Have I mentioned how much I appreciate the staff and my fellow interns at FSD? It’s been so great to share the highs and lows of this experience so far with them, and the FSD office has served as a little oasis amidst all the cultural adjustment. Here are a couple pics:

Hagar, Brock, me and Karen, the four interns this term, help ourselves to a typical meal of starch, starch, and starch.


Ned (outgoing international coordinator), Amy (former intern and incoming coordinator- more on her later-she’s awesome!), and Anita, the program director. I'll have to post another pic of Sarah, the in-country coordinator.

MPC - church home away from home

I’m very happy to report that I think I’ve found a church to attend in Masaka. The first week I had attended a catholic church with my host family. There was lovely African style music and smartly dressed people. There was also a baptism ceremony for like 30(!) babies all in one pop. It was nice, but it’s just not my style, especially in a language I don’t understand.

The next week, both Sarah, who works for FSD, and Aida, the social worker at Buddukiro, recommended that I try the English service at their church- Masaka Pentecostal. It’s where the ‘Born Agains’ go (I’ll write more on my impressions of religion in Uganda in a later blog entry.)

It was pouring rain the following Sunday morning, but I was so ‘thirsty’ that I was determined to get to church even if I had to build an ark to do it! I was glad I did- there was something very powerful about the worship, out in the open air of the half completed church building (thankfully the roof was in place at least!) Some of the songs were familiar, and it made my spirit sing to be instantly part of a family, even among strangers in a strange land.

The teaching was good, and later in the service, they of course welcomed the first-time visitors from up front. The pastor said, “Ah, on my way here this morning, I saw someone walking with an colorful umbrella, but when I saw that it was a muzungu I thought, ‘no, she wouldn’t be going to church!’, but here you are! That’s the thing about you muzungus, you’re easy to spot!”

The following Thursday, I was also been able to check out the church ‘cell group’ (or small group) that meets in my neighborhood. It seems that will be a great way to get to know people better and learn what’s on their hearts and minds. I also got to have a great chat with Pastor Sam about potential ministry opportunities, and the church’s vision for working with orphans and others in need. There are some parts of the ‘Christian culture’ here that will take some adjustment, but praise God for providing a place to call home!

Pic- the front of the church (which is actually located a two minute walk from Buddukiro.)

The two faces of Mukiibi

In one of my early blog entries, I mentioned that Mukiibi, the four year old grandson of my host mom, and I have an interesting relationship. You might chalk it up to a clash between two ‘strong-willed’ people. Here’s the story of how things have developed so far.

The first day I arrived, Friday, Mukiibi was very shy, so I approached him. He subsequently started to cry (freaked out by his first Muzungu sighting.) The next morning, he had warmed up a bit, and knocked on my door. I was in the middle of unpacking, but eager to win him over, I let him in. He was extremely curious, and before long had commandeered my headlamp, glasses, and digital camera. It was the beginning of a good day together as he and the other kids enjoyed the toys I had brought them, including Hot Wheels, crayons, balls, and some small dollar store flashlights. (By the way, all these toys, except the Hot Wheels, were decimated into little pieces within hours.)

Pic- Mukiibi wearing my glasses and head lamp.


Unfortunately, I soon found that I may have sent the wrong message by my Saturday open door policy. The next morning, Sunday, the mosque ‘went off’ at 5:00am. I managed to fall back asleep, but at 6:12am, I heard another knock at my door. Mukiibi. He was up and ready to play with ‘his’ muzungu. I groaned and ignored him for a few minutes, but when he kept knocking, I finally let him in.

I humored him for about 15 minutes, showing him pictures in my Lonely Planet Africa book. Finally, I motioned that he should leave because I wanted to get a little more sleep. He wouldn’t leave. So, I physically picked him up and set him outside my door. In order to close the door, you have to lock it, so that’s what I did. I figured that would be the end of that, at least for another 45 minutes while I finished my last REM cycle. I was mistaken, and about to learn that if you frustrate this child on one front, he just ups the ante.

He started by knocking on my door, and this quickly switched to pounding, as if to break it down. When I told him to stop, he ran outside and started shouting at me. He screamed, “Something something something MUZUNGU!” as he tried to climb up the bars on my window. When he came back inside, and I could hear that he had my umbrella. He started threatening to do something to it if I didn’t let him in. Meanwhile, I’m lying huddled in my bed thinking, “Where is the grandmother, why doesn’t she stop this kid, and what am I doing in this country??” (She had already left for church- there seems to be an unusually high correlation between Mukiibi’s misdeeds and her absences. ;)

Finally, after about 20 minutes of tantrums and general mayhem, I came out, locking my door behind me. I tried to remember everything I ever learned on Supernanny- get down to his level, use a low firm tone to communicate that the behavior is unacceptable. I gave up on getting any more sleep, and went to sit out in the living room, staying in his line of sight so he would calm down. Hmm, this wasn’t working out like it does on for Jo on T.V….

Over the next week, we had more of the same- both delightful moments and tense run ins. Now granted, he is only four years old, but he really added to my already high cultural stress, making my host family situation less than comfortable. Other examples of the two “faces” he presented:

Face 1 – Jenipher sends us out together to get milk from the woman down the street who owns a cow. As we head down the path, Mukiibi slips his hand into mine and looks up at me lovingly. Awww!!
Face 2 – Mukiibi gets mad because I won’t let him draw on the table with his crayon. He looks at me defiantly, holds up the crayon, and very deliberately breaks it in half. Argh!!

Face 1 – Mukiibi and I sit together and go through the story book I brought him. He points to the three bears and Goldilocks and says the words I taught him, “Daddy, mommy, baby, porridge,” and tries to teach me those words in Luganda. Awww!
Face 2 – Mad that I won’t let him throw his Hot Wheels into the coal cookstove, Mukiibi picks up a pan of matooke as if to throw it. I in turn pick him up, put him out of the kitchen, and lock the door. He proceeds to run down the path and almost into the busy and hazardous street. I run after him, and carry him back to the house as he kicks me and pulls my glasses off my face. Argh!

Face 1 – Mukiibi turns up his collar and dances like a little hip hop star to the music on the radio, too cute for words, and totally rivaling Joshua on SYTYCD (if you don’t know that show, you need to watch!) Awww!
Face 2 - There is only a shower curtain covering the bathroom door, and after a near miss, I ask Jenipher to tell Mukiibi to please stay away while I am in the bathroom. That evening, just as I finish my bath and slip a towel around myself, I spy a little Peeping Tom at the curtain. Argh!
Pic- Mukiibi dancing with his Uncle Bonnie (my host brother)


That last run in with the shower curtain was both the low point, and the turning point for us. Afterwards, I very calmly told Jenipher, “I really don’t want Mukiibi near the bathroom while I’m bathing.” In response, she pretty much went ballistic on him, spanking him like crazy and sending him to bed without supper. Oooh, not quite the response I wanted. It made me cry, actually, to have been part of that conflict- as much as he was being a brat, it broke my heart to hear him sobbing “Jia jia sonyiwa!” (Grandma, I’m sorry!) She saw my distress, but said, “Let me do this so he learns.”

I have to say, as much as child rearing in Uganda involves more corporal punishment than I am generally comfortable with, Mukiibi hasn’t given me any other problems since that evening. In fact, he’s been very polite, sweet and helpful. Maybe it’s because he now knows that I’ll tattle…or maybe it’s because we’ve both somehow learned how to best ‘handle’ each other.

The road home for F, F, and M

Note – whenever talking about a specific child, I will not give the full name, just to protect their identity as a vulnerable child.

Last week, three boys walked into the drop in center. Although they said they were 11 and 12 they looked about 8 or 9. One was M, who had been to Buddukiro before. When he was on the streets before, he was hit in the head by one of the townspeople, and almost died. The other street kids got him to the police, and Buddukiro was able to help with him to get medical treatment and to prosecute the person who injured him. After recovering, he was resettled back in his home village. Unfortunately, he decided that he liked town better than his home situation, so he returned, bringing two friends with him.

F and F were friends of M’s from his home village. They each had a very dramatic story about why they left home, neither of which was true, as we found out later. (In her database, Aida actually has special pages to record each new version of the child’s story as they tell it, and as she observes it during home tracing.) Buddukiro places a large emphasis on resettling the children back in their home communities as soon as they are willing to go. After a counseling session with Aida, all three boys indicated that they did indeed want to go home, so we arranged to resettle them the next day.

The next morning, when they didn’t show up, one of the staff was able to find them in town. They had been waiting for reimbursement for some small work they did for a shopkeeper, who was now refusing to pay. They finally came along to the center, and the journey home began, and as it turned out, it certainly was a trip.

Pic- The boys taking part in the music lesson with Robert just before their departure. It was amazing to see them light up and express themselves. F, F and M are the small boys.


Taxi I
Me, Aida, and the three boys left the center, walked down the road, and piled into one of the white taxi cars that is constantly running on the main road between Masaka and Nyendo. This was the first of several stages of the trip. We had been driving for a few minutes when the driver realized that there was a police check point set up ahead. He apparently didn’t have his license in order, because he proceeded to throw the car into reverse at full speed, in search of an alternative route.

Unfortunately, he didn’t realize that the brush on the side of the road was concealing a huge ditch, and suddenly we were sliding backwards straight down the hill! At the bottom we were all fine, but the car was pretty well stuck. We got out and headed up the hill in search of another. From the distance, I saw about 10 of the workers who were around that area lifting the car straight up out of the ditch, and sending the driver careening off again on his way.

Boda I
No other car wanted to take on as many people as we were, given that there was the police checkpoint ahead. We walked for a little while, and then finally found some boda boda drivers willing to take us. Boda bodas are motorcycle taxis that can comfortably fit the driver and one other person on the back seat, though I’ve seen a family of four squeezed on there. We put me and one boy on one, and Aida and the other two boys on the other (we ladies of course very properly seated side-saddle.)

Taxi II
The boda bodas drove about 10 minutes down the road to the place where the next set of white taxis depart for the town we were going to in the west. As we dismounted, there were about 15 ‘handlers’ who swarmed around us trying to arrange our transport. We followed one, and piled in for the 2 hour drive to the main town near the boys’ village. Now, when I say piled in, I mean piled in. In that normal-sized car, we were seven people in the back (4 adults, 3 kids), and four in the front (including the driver). One of the Ugandan men sitting next to me commented that he had rarely ridden so comfortably- usually there are 8 adults in the back!

As we started down the road, we noticed how grey and heavy the sky looked. “Uh oh”, I thought. Sure enough, it soon started to POUR down rain, just as we left the paved part of the road. As we started slip-sliding up and down the hilly and rutted roads, I started to pray. Aida later told me that she did also! While we prayed, the Ugandan guy next to me started to doze off, obviously completely comfortable and at ease! The windows had been closed and were soon fogged up on the inside and mud-coated on the outside. I won’t even mention how uncommon deodorant is in Uganda, because mine failed even me at that point. About halfway through the drive, the boy on my lap started to look mighty green around the gills, and I got him a plastic bag just in time to catch his breakfast.

BodaII
We pulled into the town and extricated ourselves from the taxi. One of the shopkeepers was kind enough to offer us a place to wait out the worst of the rain before boarding our next set of bodas up into the boys’ village. After about 30 minutes, we got on headed a ways up the path to the first boy’s home. Now, I’ve been told that Ugandan women have even been seen breast feeding on boda bodas, but I’m not quite so adept yet, and so I held on for dear life as we bumped up and down the dirt path.

The great escape
We came to M’s house first. Aida went inside with him and his father, leaving me outside with F,F, and the two boda drivers. At one point, I saw F start to go up the hill to the brush. I thought to myself, “oh, he must have to go to the bathroom after such a long ride, I’d better avert my eyes.” Silly, gullible Tammie. Aida came out and said, “where’s F.” Oh dear, he ran away! I felt awful, and then of course it started to pour down rain again, and I’m thinking “this kid is going to get pneumonia and die, and it’s all my fault!”(Thankfully it turned out he ran home, so we found him there when he went to visit his family. Chalk it up as a lesson learned I guess!)

As we visited each boy’s home, Aida did a lot of counseling to them and their families in Luganda. She was warning them of the dangers of the street, reminding them of the their responsibilities as parents, and strategizing with them about ways to prevent the child from returning. It was pretty emotional and challenging.

Pic - F, the "runaway", standing in front of his home with his brothers and sisters.


Main reflections/realizations from the day:

Wow, I can see why follow up is a challenge. One of the areas where Buddukiro came out weak in their recent program evaluation was in the area of follow up services. Now I can see why this would be a challenge. Five hours, three homes, and many layers of mud later, as well as several thousand shillings lighter, I came home pretty exhausted. With Aida as the only social worker on staff at the moment, giving the kids the follow up needed to make it a successful resettlement is a huge task.

Wow am I gullible. I tend to wear rose-colored glasses, but those need to come off. This is a tough population, and the kids are very traumatized and tend to pick up bad habits on the street. In her database, Aida actually has several different pages to record the different versions they give of their stories. It takes a knowledge of the way they operate to find the balance between being approachable and kind, but tough enough not to be bamboozled (like that word, eh?)

Wow, this is for real. Seeing the homes the boys returned to broke my heart. I could see why they would find some appeal on the streets, where at least they can earn a little money to eat well. I was struck by how these are real lives being affected, right now, and into their future. Providing a quality intervention is really important to helping the kids find their way through their present difficulties so they can conceive of greater possibilities for the future.

Introducing “You know you’re not in Kansas anymore!” Moments

Moment 1
You know you’re not in Kansas anymore when:

You have just waved hello to the cow who provided you with the milk for your morning tea (and it’s still body temperature warm…)

Wait a minute, maybe some people in Kansas do do that?!?

Getting to know Buddukiro Children's Agency

Since coming to Masaka, I have been working with the Buddukiro Children’s Agency (BCA), which is dedicated to helping street kids, child laborers, and other vulnerable children in Masaka District. “Buddukiro” means “refuge” in Luganda, and is a name that was chosen by the street children themselves when the agency was first founded.

I’ll write up a separate entry about the children we serve themselves, some of the reasons they have for coming to the street, and the challenges they face. In the meantime, I’ll introduce you to the services and staff of BCA.

Buddukiro works in the following areas:
- Rehabilitation, which involves: withdrawal from the street or child labor situation; provision of access to services at the drop in center (counseling, cleaning facilities, food, ‘catch up’education class); home tracing, family counseling, and resettlement back home.
- Resettlement, which involves: after the return home- assistance with entry into the formal school system or a vocational training program, and follow up counseling and advising.
- BCA would like to do more advocacy/networking with other child protection agencies, and would also like to start doing some prevention activities to address the root causes of kids coming on the streets.This is an area I may be able to work on while I’m here…

So far, I really enjoy the environment at Buddukiro, and the people I’m working with.Introducing some of my new colleagues:


Pic - Aida and Cissy in the Nyendo classroom

Mr. Cassim Wamono, project manager Mr. Wamono is originally from a different tribe in eastern Uganda, so Luganda is his second language.He has been with Buddukirofor several years.So far, he strikes me as a very logical thinker, and it feels like we’re somehow on the same wave length as we discuss issues.I really appreciate this, because it helps things to flow smoothly.

Aunt Aida, primary social worker.(We are all called ‘Aunt’ or ‘Uncle’ by the kids.)Aida has been with BCA for about a year.She is responsible for all aspects of outreach, intake, assessment, counseling, hometracing, vocational training placement, etc (a big job!).She is also 29 and also a believer (anyone else sense a really cool friendship potential here??) She is from the same tribe as Mr. Wamono, and she is the first woman from her village or any of the surrounding ones to complete a university degree (having studied social work/social administration).

Aunt Cissy, education coordinator.Cissy has been with Buddukiro since the very beginning over ten years ago.She is involved with all aspects of education, including conducting ‘catch up’ basic education classes at each of the two drop in centers, and with working with the teachers of kids who have been placed back in school.

Uncle Robert ,the music/drama teacher. He teaches the kids to play local instruments, has them recite poetry, and teaches them songs that he himself has composed about issues like HIV/AIDS, respecting the environment, and faith. During these kids of activities, it's so great from seeing the kids go from looking quiet or traumatized to laughing and enjoying themselves like kids should.

Other folks I’m still getting to know better are the nurse, the sports teacher, Sarah the accountant, and Jarrod the ‘everything’ person!

For my first week, I mostly read up on organizational literature, and shadowed staff as they delivered services at the two drop in centers in Masaka and Nyendo town.It's important that I try to learn Luganda ASAP, because the boys (the kids are all boys so far) mostly do not speak much English, not having had much formal schooling.
It's a little awkward, but sports and games have been a great way to communicate even without words.



Pic- me giving the boys the sports equipment I brought along- they really love the soccer ball, and had never seen badminton before!

I also discussed my potential role with the project manager, and have been developing a work plan to guide how I spend my time. As of right now I’m thinking that maybe I will spend about 20% of my time on direct service (sports or English lessons with the kids, participating in home tracing, outreach, and resettlement trips); another 30% on organizational development for BCA (trying to identify new funding sources, grant writing, maybe giving some in house training).

I’m thinking that I will spend the remaining 50% of my time on my ‘mini’ project I am supposed to develop for FSD.I could really use prayer for wisdom and creativity as I move through the ‘needs assessment’ phase of the project during these next few weeks.In talking with all the folks at Buddukiro, it looks likely we will try to design and implement some kind of pilot prevention project (to work with the communities where the kids largely come from, to avoid having them come to the streets in the first place.)It feels like just a small spit in a big ocean though, so prayer for an idea that leads to effective use of time and resources, for maximum impact, would be greatly appreciated!

Top Five Special Moments So Far

Lest I give the impression after that last post that I am anything less than thoroughly thankful and excited to be here, here are a few of the moments I’ve experienced so far that I will likely remember fondly for years to come:

1. Waking to the sound of torrential rains as I lay cozy in bed underneath my mosquito net. The rainy season makes everything lush and green.

2. Sharing evening meals and listening to the radio with my host family by the light of Jenipher’s little ‘Firefly’ solar lamp.

3. Joining Jenipher and her ‘Good Life’ team to give a session on family planning in a local village, and seeing them take pride in and ownership of the well-being of their community. I didn’t say much myself, but they got a real kick out of it when I introduced myself as ‘Nabatanzi” from the Lugave clan. (pic - Jenipher and I in our gear)

4. Taking time out of the busy chore schedule to sit down with Jenipher, Justine, and Mikiibi over a lively game of Uno, and taking turns slamming each other with the dreaded ‘Draw 4.’

5. Bonding with the street kids at the Buddukiro Children’s Agency drop in centers over Uno, badminton, soccer, and ‘zoomie zoomie.’ More to follow next week on my work so far with BCA.

Top Five Triggers of Culture Shock

If you’ve ever left your home country, chances are that you may have experienced the confusion, fatigue and overall irritability that can accompany your encounter with a new culture. This ailment, commonly known as culture shock, has already afflicted me here in Uganda. In these moments, I stand there, having chosen to come here of my own free will, full of noble aspirations about loving the people here, and all I can think is, “What on earth is wrong with these people?!?”

In my travels across the years, I’ve noticed some common ‘triggers’ of these feelings of culture shock, at least for me:

1. Feeling like a child. In a new place, because there are so many things that are done differently, and because you don’t speak the language, you can feel like you’ve reverted to nursery school. This is actually what my host mom told me after I finished my first mat weaving lesson the other day. I felt pretty good about my first strip of woven material, but I noticed that hers was much wider. This was because she started me with a much simpler version, which involved fewer strands. Starting me at ‘nursery level’ mat weaving was probably wise of her, but it sure took some of the air out of my pride! Or the other morning, I wanted to help out with some chores, and not be a lazybones, so she let me stir the millet porridge for breakfast. I stirred like a champ, but when she came in to check on me, instead of noticing the lack of lumps, she said, “This has become too thick, why didn’t you add water to it!” Um, maybe because I’ve never made millet porridge over a charcoal fire before?? Everyone likes to feel competent, but the fact is that in a new place, sometimes you just aren’t! (Pic - me weaving)

2. Lack of control over food. There are so many cultures, including this one, where it seems to me that anything less than a superhuman feat of consumption is a source of major disappointment to your host. Case in point, I consume a plateful of matooke (steamed, veeery dense plantain), half my weight in beans, and a heaping pile of rice, and still my host mother wonders what’s wrong that I didn’t take more. Being overweight is desirable here, and she’s determined to send me home twice my original size! Fully recognizing the good intentions behind this kind of hospitality, for me personally, this pressure, and the related pressure of not having much say over when, where, and what you can/have to eat tend to make me feel out of control and a little irritable.

3. Conflict within the host family. Sometimes when you don’t understand the language, all you have to go on is the tone of voice. Here in my host family, there are four small kids. I’ve noticed a lot of differences in the philosophy toward child-rearing. I hear both Jenipher and Justine using such a harsh tone with them at times, or hear the kids screaming and crying without really understanding what’s wrong with them. If this catches me at the wrong moment, it just makes me want to hide away in my room with my pillow over my head!

4. Subtle (or not so subtle) negative comments about my home country. I don’t mind a little cultural comparison, or even debate. Where I come from, and where I now live are very different places, each with their positives and negatives. However, there are certain people that always seem to insert a little dig into every comment. For example, the college-aged grandson of one of Jenipher’s friends was comparing family size in the U.S. and Uganda (the average number of kids here has got to be at least 6-7…). His take on it: “People have fewer children in the U.S. because they are greedy and want to keep all their money for themselves.” Even if these types of comments may have some grain of truth in them, they rub me the wrong way and put me on the defensive.

5. A language/culture lesson when I’m already sooo done for the day. I have a lot to learn, I get it. But there’s a proper time and place for every lesson. Today, after a long day already filled with many new experiences and lessons, I was walking home through the “gauntlet” that is Villa Road (it’s just lined with kids and boda boda drivers, the two main sources of ‘bye Muzungu’ comments). A young Ugandan man fell in step next to me and greeted me in complicated Luganda fashion (more on greetings later). That was fine, but he continued on walking with me for awhile, trying a little patronizingly to correct me and teach me new intricacies of the language. I’m thinking, “Okay buddy, I’m sooo not in the mood right now, my brain is done!” I just kept saying, “Uh huh”, with a polite smile plastered on my face until he went away.

A few bonus triggers:

• Too much down time.


• Not enough down time.


• Not being completely understood for who I am, due to language/cultural barriers.


• Being viewed as if I had a big $ on my forehead.

The bottom line on culture shock
I’m still working through it, but I think the key word is: Patience! I just have to be patient with others, understanding that they are behaving in a logical way given where they’re coming from, and understanding also that their intent is almost always to help me learn. I also have to be patient with myself, and be willing to heed the harbingers of culture shock by grabbing ten minutes of down time alone in my room, or by eating a Snickers bar!

Jenipher - An Amazing Lady

My host mom Jenipher is basically an amazing woman, with an amazing life story. My first evening at her place, we sat on the porch and she told me some of her story. She left secondary school part way through to get married, and very soon found herself with five small childen, and another on the way. Her husband was an insurance salesman, and from the photos she’s showed me, it seems they were doing fairly well for themselves in those days.

Unfortunately though, when the Tanzanian forces swept in to rid Uganda of Amin’s regime in 1979, this took a heavy toll on Masaka and the surrounding area, which was one of the first places they hit. Jennifer’s husband was shot and killed, and the house (where I stay) was almost completely destroyed. Like many of the residents, she gathered up her children and fled to the bush until it was safe to return.

In reflecting on that time, Jenipher told me, “After becoming a widow, I wasted two years crying and looking for someone to help me. Finally, I woke up one day and realized that no one was going to help, and that I had two hands and a brain in my head, and I would have to use them and work hard for my kids.” She did work hard, farming and doing handicrafts and other small businesses to rebuild her home and raise money for school fees to put all of her children through school.

These days, Jenipher is a jia jia (grandmother), and well-respected member of the community. She is the member/chairperson of a number of voluntary groups, including a women’s savings and credit group through FINCA, and a “Good Life Team” that volunteers to go out and provide training to nearby villages on health and hygiene, family planning, and HIV/AIDS prevention (see photo of Jenipher in her uniform). She takes a lot of pride in her income generating and voluntary work. I’m very lucky, because she likes to bring me along to her group meetings, which is an amazing “in” for a muzungu like me.

One other thing about Jenipher is that she loves to laugh, and to shout ‘hallelulah’ to the Jesus she credits with bringing her through some very tough times. That’s one thing the other interns and I have noticed about many of the people here- that both laughter and faith have helped them to persevere and keep smiling through some very tough times.