Over the years, my dear husband has started to think that I am a difficult gift receiver. Moses comes from a traditional background where men often buy their wives a new cloth or outfit and a pair of shoes. The only problem is - I am very particular about shoes. I want them flat and the perfect weight. Then when shopping for clothes - it goes first by texture, then colour, then the fit. I hate being squeezed and sleeves are a high priority! So Moses doesn't know how to shop for me easily.
So, months ago, he asked me for a list, many of which are not easy to do or find here in Uganda, especially Gulu. I love spontaneous gifts. I enjoy experiences - concerts, a walk in the park, fresh flowers, a picnic, a trail, a hot air balloon ride, a show, or a meal out. I appreciate gifts that express my personality - the colours blue or purple, a crafty item, a great card, a poem, a song, and some delicious milk chocolate. Well, Moses went all out and got the whole list.
He planned an over the top surprise birthday party. Great friends travelled from Kampala on a Friday night and arrived at our home after midnight. Then, I thought we were going out for dinner with just those friends, only to be blindfolded and arriving at an over the top birthday celebration. People wrote poems and songs for me. I was flooded with gifts. He invited Acholi dancers to come and give a show. Everything was decorated in purples! We shared a wonderful meal of roasted chicken and pork. I was blown away by all of the love. Videos arrived from a few awesome people outside of Uganda. I was shocked and in awe. I matter.
I want to share with you just a glimpse of the highlights. Enjoy.
.jpeg)
.jpeg)
.jpeg)
.jpeg)
.jpeg)
.jpeg)
Happiest Golden Jubilee, Mommy K
They say fifty is
golden.
But gold does not
become gold because of the number. It becomes gold because it survives the
fire.
Today, we do not
merely celebrate fifty years. We celebrate fifty years of YOU.
Fifty chapters, fifty
harvests, fifty seasons of grace wrapped in ordinary moments that heaven
quietly called extraordinary. Leviticus tells us that the fiftieth year is
Jubilee—a year when chains are broken, debts are forgiven, captives breathe
freedom, and inheritance returns home.
How fitting...
Because you have
spent your life lifting burdens that were never yours, setting hearts free, and
reminding broken people that home is not always a place... Sometimes, it's a
person.
Mommy K...
Fifty years ago,
God penned a love letter and signed it, Karen. Born beneath Canadian skies, in
the quiet little town of Wingham, where snow kissed the earth and maple leaves
danced with the wind.
Long before
Soroti knew your footsteps, Heaven already knew your assignment.
You served, as a
nanny, as a caregiver to children whose bodies were limited yet their worth was
limitless. As a chef, seasoning meals the same way you season lives- with love,
excellence and joy.
Across nations-
from the Netherlands to the Philippines, through airports, oceans, languages,
and cultures- God was never simply taking you places, HE was planting pieces of
His heart wherever your feet would stand.
Then,
At Forty-three-
Love found you. Or perhaps, God simply unveiled what He had been writing all
along. A beautiful union, a new home, a new family, roots stretching from
Canada all the way to the red soils of Soroti. Snow embraced sunshine.
A white woman
opened her heart to beautiful Black children, proving that motherhood has never
been determined by the colour of skin, but by the depth of love.
You love through
acts of service.
You speak life
through words of affirmation.
You treasure
genuine friendships like priceless jewels. And yes... you dislike debt— perhaps
because you've spent your life reminding us that freedom is always better than
bondage.
Your kitchen is
more than a kitchen.
It is an altar, where
recipes are rarely repeated, because creativity dances with every meal.
Where every bite
quietly whispers, "Someone thought of you today."
You love museums,
old buildings, ancient stories, history, because you have learned something
precious- Old things still carry priceless value, just like the old rugged
cross.
You reject
rumours because truth deserves a louder voice.
You pursue
justice because righteousness has always looked beautiful on you.
You long for
unity, knowing that a divided Church cannot fully reflect an undivided Christ.
You disciple
young women,
Not from a stage.
Not beneath a
spotlight.
But through
everyday life,
Walking beside
them,
Holding their
hands when faith feels fragile,
Reminding them
that becoming is often more beautiful than arriving.
And then...
There is your
laughter.
Oh...
That laughter,
It does not
merely echo.
It heals, it
dances through heavy rooms like sunlight breaking through stubborn clouds, it reminds
us that joy still has a voice.
And beneath every
nation you've visited...
Every meal you've
prepared...
Every child
you've embraced...
Every friendship
you've nurtured...
There is one
unmistakable truth.
You love Jesus.
And because you
have reflected Him so faithfully, those of us blessed to know you have seen His
love made tangible.
So today,
We do not simply
say,
"Happy
Birthday."
No.
We declare—
Happy Jubilee.
Happy fifty years
of faithfulness.
Happy fifty years
of saying yes to God.
Happy fifty years
of making strangers feel like family.
Happy fifty years
of choosing love, again... and again... and again.
Mommy K,
May the God you
have served so faithfully surprise you with even greater joy.
May your latter
years overflow beyond your former ones.
May your table
never lack laughter.
May your hands
never grow weary.
May your heart
continue to mother generations.
And may every
seed you have sown in secret return to you as a forest of blessing.
Because the best
chapters are not behind you.
They are waiting
just beyond this page.
Happy 50th
Birthday, Mommy K.
May your Golden
Jubilee shine as brightly as the Christ you have spend your life reflecting.
We love you.
Happy Birthday!
