It's that time

A political campaign I saw in Jinja last week

The Ugandan presidential elections are Friday Feb. 18^th.  The current president Museveni has been in power for 25 years and will most likely be re-elected.  Whether it’s fair or not will be hard to tell.  Most of the people I’ve talked to will vote for Museveni, despite their desire for change in power, because of the stability and peace he has brought to the country.  Change in their minds is exciting and much needed, but with that brings much fear.  Please pray for peace during this time.  This election people seem to think the rising opposition stand a chance to win.  I’m not concerned with my safety living out of town in sugar cane country.  GSF is stocked on the essentials so we won't have to go into town if it's dangerous for several weeks.  GSF also has a great reputation with the surrounding community and as well as the district officer, so we feel very little threat where we are.  Please though pray for the protection of those living in Kampala and Jinja.  Please pray Uganda will continue to have peace as a nation.

Modern day tax collector converted!

This is a completely normal outfit for Phillip

Phillip is easily spotted at GSF.  Just look for a skinny 10 year old boy with a big belly, bandage on his left ear, shuffling his feet as he runs using one of his hands to hold up his shorts.  He is hysterical.  He can point with his lips and have entire conversations using different facial expressions.  He is fashion forward and loves to accessorize.  Phillip is end stage HIV/AIDS.  His most recent CD4 count was 4 and his viral load over 300,000.  Doctors say he is a ticking time bomb.  A couple months before I arrived at GSF, everyone thought Phillip was on his death bed.  Throughout Phillip’s life, he has had no desire to become a Christian.  During Phillip’s fragile state, many people shared the gospel with him, but he stuck to his guns and wanted nothing to do with Jesus.  Beginning in September, Phillip slowly began gaining strength…enough strength to now cause trouble.  

Phillip is what I like to call a modern day tax collector.  He is a thief.  He steals constantly from his housemates as well as from the missionaries.  Phillip also has the reputation for torturing other kids.  His main target is little Sam who’s paralyzed from the waist down.  He has burned Sam and beat him up on multiple occasions.  Today was like many other days in that one of the missionaries spotted Phillip wearing a Timex watch carrying 10,000 Ugandan shillings (~$5).  It was very apparent that neither one of these things were his.  Phillip fessed up when confronted.  He went to Uncle Mark the director for punishment.  After disciplining Phillip, Mark shared the gospel with him.  This time Phillip said he did want to accept Jesus into his heart.  We pray that this was a sincere decision and that his kleptomaniac and pyro behaviors are of the past and Phillip experiences newness of life in Christ!  We don't know when God will take Phillip, but we can rejoice knowing we will see him in heaven one day!

New kids on the block

Charlie

 Meet the new kids at GSF!

 Charlie to my right is just under two years old weighing 11 lbs.  His mother died and his father is who knows where.  His grandma was unable to continue taking care of him, so she handed him over to the care of GSF.  Charlie came to us very sick and is just now starting to gain strength and weight.  Charlie reaches for any food in sight and will typically only smile for men, though this is starting to change.  Pray for his continued healing.  

Little Gerald in his new clothes   

Gabriel standing outside his house

     
















Above and to my right are Gerald and Gabriel.  They are brothers that came to us several weeks ago.  They're father died and the mother is an alcoholic and was neglecting the boys.  These two have transitioned very well into GSF.  They both have big belly laughs and love to play with each other.  Gerald, though he doesn't look it, is 1 1/2 and Gabriel is 3 1/2 years old. 




 

Oh to be fed

     For those of you who know me well, you probably wouldn’t be surprised if I dedicated an entire blog entry relating what I eat here.  Seeing that my dad would be the only person remotely interested and I’ve given him the 411 on skype, I’ll spare you the details and talk about Rwanda.

      Last week, Sarah and I were able to attend the regional AIM conference in Rwanda.  I was a little anxious about taking the night bus there and back and being told a bomb went off several weeks prior on the same bus line as we were taking killing three people only perpetuated those feelings.  It's also not encouraging when Ugandans tell you it's not safe to ride the night bus.  Anyway, prayer and Nyquil got me through it.

    The conference was just what I needed.  It was good to get away and have a break from the constant demands at GSF.  More than that, it was so good to be fed spiritually.  At the GSF church, I can hardly understand the Ugandan pastor and we sing songs like, “Move to the right in the name of Jesus, move to the left in the name of the Lord and shake that body that the good Lord gave you”.  I love the fellowship with the kids, but it can be very difficult to grow spiritually.  The speaker at the conference was challenging and encouraging talking about the sovereignty of God in difficult situations.  The topic preached on was so appropriate for the tragedy that was to come.  The last day of the conference I got a phone call from one of the missionaries at GSF saying one of our special needs boys Emmanuel (9 years old) fell off his potty a couple days prior, was taken to the hospital, and within a day passed away.  This came as a complete shock.  It was hard to swallow the sad news, especially over the phone and a country away.  This was a harsh reminder that our future is God's hands and nothing can thwart this plans.  Death has its sting, but is comforting to know Emmanuel’s broken body has now been made whole and he rests with the Lord.  What better ending is there than this?

Schools out!

In Uganda, the school year ends in December and the kids are on holiday till February.  I miss seeing the village kids that come to GSF for school, but it has been a nice break having 200 less kids to look after.  Now that the GSF kids main source of structure is gone, they run free around the campus and somehow always end up in our living room.  I love having the time to cuddle with the kids, read them stories, try to learn how to Ugandan dance, and cook with them.  Unfortunately, this means our home is a disaster all the time.    It's amazing how fast the kids can make a fort with the couch cushions, open every game, get out crafts, and get into anything in sight.  Before long, our place has turned into a zoo.  This has been a lot of fun, but a lot of work as well.  It is quite an endeavor cleaning things up.  My housemates and I are so thankful the kids feel comfortable in our home, but are realizing how important it is for them to learn good manners and be respectful in a home.  It is so exhausting staying on top of behavior and being consistent with rules, especially when the kids and are so cute and creative with their excuses.

One thing I've learned is that kids are kids no matter where they live, they're genuine one minute and manipulative the next.  They want attention and love and need discipline and structure.  Knowing how to do this well for 91 kids is such challenge, especially because I've never been a parent and the kids tell me I look 15 years old.  I've been so encouraged by God's word as He desires us to come to him for wisdom (James 1:5).  I love that this verse is not specific about what the wisdom needs to be about.  It can be as small as how to discipline a child after they've disobeyed or as big as deciding whether a child should be resettled into the village.  I've been amazed at how God really is faithful to his promises and does grant wisdom to a situation.  That is a God worth putting my trust into.

Let's catch up!

      I can’t believe I’ve been at GSF for almost four weeks.  Caring for the kids here has been a lot of fun, but exhausting.  My day begins at 6:30am and ends around 7pm.  I do morning rounds where I administer medications and check all the kids to see if they’re sick.  Having 91 kids in close quarters, it seems nearly impossible for all of them to be healthy.  The kids will also come up with all sorts of ailments in order to get medicine or a bandage, so I’ve been doing a lot of teaching regarding that.  During the day, my teammate Sarah and I will also care for the students at the primary school at GSF (around 300 kids).  We will also take kids to doctor’s appointments or take them to the hospital when needed.  Sarah and I are also doing a lot of teaching with the Ugandan house moms regarding hygiene, feeding, positioning, and medication administration and so forth.  As you can tell, there’s a lot of work to do here. 

     The first week I was here, this all was new and exciting and I loved it.  As the weeks went on, I became frustrated as I felt all of my time here was consumed with nursing duties.  I was called to be a disciple of Christ, not just a humanitarian.  I really desired to live life with the kids and build relationships with them.  Thankfully, as time has gone on here, Sarah and I have become more efficient in how we do things and have been able to create time to hang out with the kids.  I of course love playing with the little ones, but really feel like my heart is with the teenage girls.  Realizing a lot of the teen girls are not walking closely with the Lord and will be leaving GSF soon has pushed me to get to know them more.  This all seemed very intimidating as the girls are standoffish and hard.  Last week though, a lot of walls started to come down.  Since the girls finished their school year and are on break, they have a lot of time on their hands and are always looking for something to do.  I've taking this opportunity to have them work with me.  The girls will hang out with me at the clinic and do small tasks.  They will also be my translator when a patient does not speak English.   This has allowed me to spend quality time with them while doing my job here.  In the evenings, I've also been able to eat dinner at their house or have them over to mine.  I've been encouraged as the girls have started to open up.  Behind their hard faces and “I don’t need you attitude” are scared, fearful women who want some form of security in their lives.  Through these conversations, I now know how I can be praying for these women and encouraging them.  I really look forward to what God will do in these relationships.  

My new home, GSF

Hello friends! I've now been at GSF a week and I love it here.  There are 93 kids and they are all so sweet.  I'm in the process of learning their names, but seeing they all have shaved heads it can be difficult to tell them apart. As I'm trying to learn their names, they are trying to learn mine.  My parents almost named me Rachel and this is the time I wish they had.  The kids have the hardest time pronouncing my name.  I gave up introducing myself as "Meredith" and resorted to "Mer", even that is difficult for them to pronounce and remember.  Thankfully I'll be here plenty of time for them to nail my name down and I theirs.

Here are some highlights of the past week:
*Sarah and I were able to jump into doing morning and evening rounds giving meds, doing dressing changes, and LOTS of teaching.

*I turned 23!  The kids decorated my home with toilet paper and pictures they drew.  That evening all the missionaries got together and had a Mexican potluck.  Later my housemates and I carved green pumpkins.  Overall, it was a great day.  Thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday! 
*Having dinner with my housemates.  I live with three other girls and they are all wonderful.  We all mesh really well together. 
*Whenever I go into the toddler house, the kids run to me smiling yelling "visitor visitor"
*Eating fresh pineapple almost every day.  Pineapple here is 50-75 cents.
*Hearing the kids sing in church.  I sometimes don't know if they're singing in English or Luganda, regardless it's beautiful.
*Being able to skype with family and some friends!  Skype rarely works out here, so this was quite a treat.
*Everyone at the orphanage can drink the water straight out of the tap!  This is pretty unheard of in Uganda and for most of Africa. 

Prayer request: ENERGY.  Since  I live at GSF, I'm never really off duty.  This gets very draining. 

Anyway, there will be more to follow.  I just wanted to give a quick update on life thus far. 

mer