Popcorn and Prayers

After we took the girls to school, we stayed at our best man's house for two nights in Kampala.  I really wanted popcorn one morning, and couldn't find any while strolling through the neighbourhood.  There are often vendors who pop it and pack it into little bags for 500 shillings.  (2800 UGX = $1 CAN). So, I walked back to the house and found something else to snack on.

Later that afternoon, I received a text from Moses:

"God is just so good and sweet!"

"I'll tell you why."

A little while later, Moses came in the house with a bag of freshly popped corn for me.  He said that he had walked a number of streets and local places looking for popcorn, knowing that it would make me smile, and he didn't find any.  He had even sent up little prayers, asking God to show him where to look.

As he turned on the the little alley that goes back to Patrick's house, he saw a man roasting chicken.  He thought that maybe he would get some to bring home for supper. When he leaned in to pay for the chicken, he smelled popcorn.  He looked about and didn't see any.  Taxi vans were loading passengers at the end of the street, blocking access to the main road.  But chicken and popcorn continued to mingle in his senses, so he looked one more time, to see a man pushing a cart with fresh popcorn.

God answers prayers!!

Back to School ...

 Last week, there was a mad rush all around Uganda to get students back to school after an almost two year break.  Supermarkets and stationary shops could barely keep their shelves stocked fast enough.  Motorcycles were loaded with kids, suitcases, metal boxes, and mattresses as they headed off to boarding schools in various directions.  Buses were overcrowded and taxi parks were overflowing.  The line-ups out the bank were hours long because all of a sudden, every parent across the country had to find and pay school fees.  

I don't know how some families can actually get their children fully prepared for school.  It's a long, tiring, expensive, and yet rewarding experience.  Many families in Uganda send their kids off to boarding school, and our household is no different. The children (and parents) have so many things to factor in:

• school fees
• uniform - black shoes, polish, grey or white socks, Caribbean skirts, ties, shirts, sports wear, black sandals, black belts, etc
• mattresses, labelled bedding, mosquito nets, toilet paper
• personal toiletries, buckets, jerrycans, basins, soap, toothpaste, pads
• snacks - biscuits, peanuts, sugar, milk powder, juice boxes
• backpacks, monkey bags, padlocks, key holders, and labelled boxes
• medical forms and PCR clearance
• a two page shopping list - including pens, pencils, math sets, rules, box files, graph books, 3 quire notebooks, atlas, Bible, art books, colours, sharpener
• flashlight, umbrella, raincoat, aprons, pocket money, and family photos

Parents didn't really know if school was going to start up again, and because the Covid-19 pandemic has affected the economics of families, school fees are a struggle for many.  A very remote local village school can be 60,000 shillings a term, and city schools can be almost 2 million, so there is a wide range of financial planning.  Some parents will even hold their children out of school under they can beg, borrow, or find enough money to put the kids in class.  There are also some parents who don't want to pay school fees, in case the government will again close school in just a few weeks, due to the rise in Covid cases.

Moses and I drove to Soroti to do back-to-school shopping with Sarah and Becky.  We found a hotel on main street so that we could be at the heart of the shopping area and we made numerous trip up and down the stairs with all the goodies to get ready for school.

The view from our room.

This is maybe, just maybe, half of the list for one girl.

The girls were exhausted.  We shopped until they dropped.  :)

Then, the long trip to Kampala was filled with traffic jams, and of course, what's an Odel family excursion without some sort of roadside problem.  I had to pull over with a punctured tire. A piece of metal was shoved in to the tire, that it is now beyond repair.  :( Thankfully, Moses is great with these kinds of things.  He hops on a motorcycle to get the parts that we need to continue on our way.

And the girls are also learning to take things in stride as we awaited the repairs.  We just had a friendly competition of who would see someone we knew first.  Being 23 km north of Kampala, a wonderful voice yelled out the window of a black vehicle - "Hi Karen! We are just returning from dropping Victor off at school!"  I love it.  Such a small world.

I pray that the girls do well in their respective Secondary schools.  They are excited and nervous. And I'm a mix of emotions.  I think they are too young to be sent off for school, but I'm the new kid on the block and I won't mess with culture.  So, I pray for their hearts and minds and encourage from afar.

Home, Music, Ministry and More

Becky loves sewing, and after taking some tailoring lessons in Soroti, she is now sharing her skills with friends in Gulu.

Sarah desires to learn how to play guitar and follow in her father's musical footsteps.

Moses hopes to mentor a few more musicians at church.

As the trip around the world continues for these Roots to Fruits students, they were invited to our house one day to experience life in India.  They watched Intro to India videos while sipping spiced chai and eating samosas and chevda.

Every child gets a country stamp in their passport!

Sarah performed an Indian dance.  :)

The kids learned a lot during their short flight to Asia.

I hope I caught most of the facts from the lesson. :)

On a side note, I can't believe that the kids are afraid to play with this beautiful creation.

God delights in everything He has made!

Our tiny church put together a great Christmas service.  The Sunday school and the choir did a great musical re-enactment.

And their was audience participation too.  University Community Church is our new home church family and we feel at like a part of the family here.

Becky working on some home studies... trying to keep up during the 2 year school lock down.

In December, thankfully, I was able to get my legal visa renewed for another 3 years.

It's always a stress to make it happen, but the Lord works it out every time!!

Moses preached in Soroti

For Worship Sunday

One of Moses' life themes is worship, so it was a blessing seeing him put his gifts and passions to use once again.

Some of you may know Vanessa, in the middle, my sweet neighbour that I lived with for 8 years while in Soroti.  Becky and Sarah love visiting with her too.

We completed another module of Timothy Leadership Training.  This last workshop was on "Biblical Preaching" and now within the next 3 months, we have to preach at least 5 sermons using this awesome tool for sermon preparation and preaching.  Pray for the 28 preachers and church leaders who attended this module, that they will apply all they have learned here.

On December 18th, Moses gave away his sister Norah.  A proud moment!

Here I am with my sister-in-law - Victoria, and my mother-in-law - Toto Oliver.

Sarah sang a solo at the wedding reception.

Moses and I at the end of the celebration.

We went back to Gulu for a quiet Christmas.

The two of us were home alone, and we decided to finish Christmas day with a pork roast in our backyard.

God sent rains, which was a nice respite to a dry season.

As you can tell, we finished the year in style!!

Homeschool, mechanics, and 17 Stories

A few children in the neighbourhood are being homeschooled in the new Roots to Fruits curriculum.  I was invited one day to come as an immigration officer and hand out their passports as they begin an "Around the World" Social studies tour.

Finally, I was once again able to lead a two day Sunday school teacher training.  It was a first for me in Gulu and I was excited to see teachers from 7 different churches take part in the learning experience.

A fun group that we are starting to develop a relationship with in the Gulu area.

Becky is playing with my hair... I love it.  So relaxing.  Being at home with the girls for 5 months has been a blessing to the family. BTW, have you ever tried to do a one colour puzzle? Crazy!!

Moses has decided to continue to educational learning.  I loves being a student!  He has now signed up for a mechanics course, and we ladies are so glad that he did! We always seem to have car trouble whenever we go out on the road.  And Moses is patient to solve our problems.

Moses has class four or five mornings a week, and in the evening he loves to read articles or watch videos on car parts and repairs.

I love it that he is able to build up relationships with the guys in the garage.

And now for more pics from the Sunday school training...

Father Abraham

Joseph in jail

The Angel Gabriel

More 17 Stories curriculum has been dispersed, for 27 teachers.

These teachers hope to go back to their classes and reach over 800 kids with the One Story of Salvation in Christ alone.

The Bible is well used, but not one single group could finish the race to put all the books of the Bible in order. It took 20 minutes and they ended up using the Table of Contents.

 

Fun Photo Shoot