KEEPING BUSY THIS FIRST WEEK

Please note… there are 4, YES 4, new posts here. Some will want more detail than others so this is for you! Others will just need to know that we are safe and doing okay. For that, we can confirm that right now! LOL For those that want the detail, start back at “travelling to Uganda” and work your way back to the present. We’ll probably do this each time, posting several days at one time, depending on how access works out.

The photos are of our kitchen and part of our view.  Take quite a while to upload but we'll try more later!

Friday, September 18


So, what have we been busy at? Chad will tell you from his perspective what he has experienced so far and I will try to express what I’ve been doing.

Once again, Gerry and Donna have been very watchful… I really don’t know what we would have done without them! They have smoothed the way for us in so many instances… everything from what is safe to do, what are hazards, how to avoid slipping on muddy hills, what to do when the water shuts off or the power goes out, how to greet others properly, how not to offend (for example, a greeting and asking how are you in Uganda is not a rhetorical question as it sometimes is in Canada. They really want to know how you are and if you had a good night and then they want you to ask about them in the same way. We are enjoying that but of course we are making some missteps. Thankfully Ugandans are forgiving of Mzungu – white person.) They also have been making sure we get enough rest so we recuperate from the flight and don’t overdo it the first few days. Kris has also been a wonderful help. He and the Kimbels have these amazing gardens going and Kris has some things almost ready to eat and has been offering to share some with us. They just planted the plots about 5 weeks ago and already there are tomatoes well formed, carrots that need to be thinned, corn about 2.5 feet, beans past the bud stage. We have lost our water supply a couple of times now … something to do with some work going on nearby and Kris has come to the rescue. We are so thankful for them.

Yesterday Donna took me under her wing and introduced me to the girls up at the tailoring department. Three women are employed by Watoto to make everything from overalls for the maintenance workers, pants and skirts which are part of the uniform of the school children, aprons for other workers to graduation gowns for the Senior 6 students. Then we went to the Vocational tailoring class. Here about 21 female students aged 16 & 17 are learning to sew. They have made some wonderful dresses, learning to sew them both when they have a pattern and when they have none. I’ll try to get some photos of these girls and the clothing they have made to show you. Speaking of photos, that’s one thing about just the two of us being here… there is not so many to take photos so while we are doing things there is no one to catch the moment but I’m sure you’ll get the gist eventually. With the Tailoring Department (the first one mentioned) they would like to have this production carefully accounted for so they know if it is cheaper to purchase the garments or make them themselves. For now, I am getting to know the girls and eventually would like to help them with this accountability and see if there are faster ways to do things. So far I am just amazed at their workmanship and for the most part, their speed. I believe I am ill equipped to do this but God is at work and He will give me the skills and thoughts needed to help in these areas. I am already learning so much from them. They have two electric sewing machines and two treadle machines. Later this afternoon they were teaching me to use the treadle machine… well, we had some laughs together as I tried to get my feet going and my hands moving the fabric at the same time. They were very helpful and patient and by the end of the day I had it working fairly well. The three girls to pray for are Susan, Sylvia and Juliette.


The highlight of my day was with the Vocational tailoring students this morning. Their teacher Noel is an amazing seamstress – you should see the stylish clothes she sews for herself. She is very patient and skilled and is teaching them wonderful things, including modeling a sincere faith-based lifestyle. When she learned that I could teach crocheting and knitting she was very pleased. She has set aside Fridays to teach various crafts to her students. She desires that the girls have as many skills as possible when they graduate. One of the crafts has been needlepoint but today it was crocheting they wanted to learn. Can you imagine me a teacher? There was definitely some Divine inspiration going on but I had a great deal of fun as well. The girls picked the stitches up very quickly… I thought perhaps I would be able to teach one kind of stitch today but instead taught one stitch with a second way to do it, then taught 2 more. Noel was very interested in the patterns I took along. [2010 team: that’s one thing you can put on your list is knitting and crocheting patterns – I have some other requests but more on that later]. It was a great morning!

I mentioned I go up to work. Up it is. From our apartment Chad goes down a short slope (about 30’ or so) to the road way that leads to the Production Centre. He walks this road up a slope of about 20 degrees for maybe 200-300 feet then goes down a major slope, probably about the same slant as the hill out of Long Creek on the way to New Haven… maybe a bit more steep. Of course he has to do this in reverse on the way home! From our apartment I immediately go up and continue up first for the Vocational class and then up further to the Tailoring Department. The slope reminds me of hills in Strathgartney Park except of course they are clay roads here. It was an interesting hike for both of us at the end of a heavy downpour this morning! (We have had several hours of thunderstorms complete with lightning yesterday and the day before, a heavy rain on Wednesday and a deluge this morning.) We should be in a lot better shape when we leave here but we do, after all, live on a mountain!

Before I sign off a couple of things for the 2008 team if you will permit me please:


1. We have been down to see the house we built in 2008 and took some photos! There is no family living there yet because, as you know, with the recession sponsorship has dropped off over the past year. It is not that there are no children but they have to be able to have 8 sponsors for each person in the house before a new family can be formed. The cost of living here in Uganda is quite high despite the low income which is why it takes so many sponsors for each. The roof is on however, the house is completely finished and the plaque is mounted over the back door. Most of the landscaping is done but more will be completed when families begin to move into this circle. Our house is #32 and that tells you that it is house #2 in Circle #3. Circles 1-5 are completely finished and 6 and 7 are underway but only one Circle and part of another are occupied. This part of the development is called Suubi 2 as it is separated for a short distance from the front part of Suubi by land owned by others.


2. Sam is now studying at university in Kampala and is presently not working with Watoto as time does not permit him to do both. We understand from others that he is doing well though we haven’t been able to see him yet.


3. It seems that most of the men who worked with us on the site are no longer here. At each worksite (and there are quite a number of them on the Suubi property) I look around discreetly to see if I can recognize any of them but have not as yet, including James.

That about brings you up to date on us. We are heading to bed with the sun some of these nights, still a little tired I guess, but the days are busy as well and we are up early in the morning. I would say up with the birds but I think some of them are busy all night long. Certainly the crickets are!