Sightseeing with my parents - March /April 2022

After months of waiting and planning, Mom and Dad finally arrived in Uganda on March 16th to spend a whole month with us.  We were unbelievably blessed by our time with them.  From the company, laughter, encouragement, spiritual guidance and helpful hands... to so much more.  They helped us move to yet another temporary home in Gulu.  Wow, they were troopers.  They mourned with us as we buried Moses' stepmom in Abaango village - a culture shocking experience that took four days.  They watched us and participated by our sides in ministry - whether teaching children, leading discipleship groups, or speaking on the radio.  

Just thought I would share a few picture highlights of some of the side road trips we were also able to take together. We serve an awesome Creator God!

Kidepo National Park

Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary

Lake Bunyonyi

Igongo Cultural Center

Crayfish avocado salad! So yummy!

Kitagata Hot Springs

Horse-back riding near Lake Mburo

Supping at Abyssinia, our favourite Ethiopian restaurant

 

Stories of Hope

Monday through Friday, I head over to Gulu GlobeTrotters to share Bible stories with the students there.  27 energetic, delightful pupils sit on mats under the mango trees to hear God's Word and learn life lessons with Jesus at the Centre.  

I often stay for lunch after class, sharing a plate of cornmeal and beans, or plantains and greens, and have deeper discussions with the kids.  

Yesterday, a young boy came up and said "Thank you Teacher Karen for teaching us the Bible."  A few moments lady, a shy girl came and said, "I thank you too.  My Mom doesn't like the Bible and says I am not allowed to have one, but at least I can hear the stories from you." I gave her a little hug and told her that we will be praying for her Mom and that I'm glad she was in my class.  I told her that God loves her and she can love Him back by asking Jesus into her heart.  She had a deep smile on her face. And someday I pray this little girl will have a Bible of her own.

Today, just before class, another young girl came and whispered in my ear - "Teacher, are demons real?" I told her that we would chat at lunch.  :)  I proceeded to teach the story of Joseph and Potiphar's wife.  I had a few kids do a tug of war games... where God's voice was speaking on one side and temptation was pulling on the other.  Sometimes, we let that rope get into a great battle in our mind, of whether or not we are tempted to sin, but the greatest thing to do is just drop the rope.  Walk away.  Don't even let temptation in to play the game.  Joseph walked away!!

Anyways, after class I sat down with this young girl and we chatted about the fact the angels and demons are real.  But we don't need to fear demons or give them any power, because Christ has defeated them on the cross.  I know they are very real, but I would rather entertain angels than live in fear of demons or give normal things like meowing black cats the authority to be demons.

 

The T-Shirt Man

Two weeks ago today, Arthur passed on in to glory and I'm still in shock.  I don't know why this man had such a special place in my heart, but this young man was there for sure!! And not just me - thousands of people around Uganda. He was in a hit and run accident and friends rallied together to pay for the surgery that he needed.  The surgery was "successful", as in, the pins were put in the right place, and it looked like the bones in his foot/leg would heal properly, but there were other complications in the hospital.  A tetanus shot was never injected, so 24 hours after a great surgery his body started having troubles and as hard as Arthur fought, his body just couldn't handle all the infections.  Moses was at Arthur's bedside when they removed him from life support.  I can't even imagine!!

When you live on the mission field, especially for a long time, it's hard to define family.  Of course I love, miss, cherish my blood family in Canada, but there are some Ugandans who have become an even bigger part of my life and I would definitely say that Arthur was my nephew.  About 15 years ago Arthur also lived with Moses and his family for a few months, so both of us are feeling such a loss.  I think many of you know my dear neighbours in Soroti - Eddie and Rose, Vanessa, Victor, Opio, and Ocen, well, Arthur is Eddie's nephew.  A cousin to the crew I love so much.  I lived with Eddie and Rose for 8 years and Arthur spent so much time with us at home.  Days, weeks, and months at a time.  I have pictures and memories of Christmas and Easter dinners with Arthur, laundry days and deep talks.  I remember card games, deep discussions, loads of laughter, and times of advise giving.

Christmas in the village... dancing the night away!

Here's Arthur in my kitchen, when I gifted him with measuring cups because he wanted to be a chef.  He shortly thereafter went off to culinary school, he worked in a few restaurants in Soroti before shifting to Kampala and buying a rolex stand.  Whenever Moses and I were in Kampala, we would stop by and purchase a chapati with chicken and eggs rolled inside.  He was a great cook!

Arthur Paul Aisu. He loved hanging out with his cousins!  He was famous for his line "Wait for it!!"

There was a time when Arthur used to come over a lot and want to play cards.  In a super funny way, he would roll up his sleeves and say "Who wants to die?!" As in, he was going to win in cards... I will never think of that line the same now.  

Arthur didn't have an easy life growing up. Some would say he was an orphan.  He did spend time going from family member to family member, and sadly, he also spent some of his teenage years on the streets.

But Arthur, AKA Arthur Bliq, was loved!!

He had a creative, passionate spirit!

And he knew how to work a crowd.

Most of his childhood he was raised by his great-grandmother.  She was also my sweet Tata Felicity.

From a young age Arthur must have liked music.  :)  I have some of his old photos because a few years ago he asked me to scan all of his documents and they were stored in my laptop.  These old photos have blessed my heart.  On FB today I say how someone described him "Aisu Paul Arthur - social media influencer, entrepreneur, dancer, chef, and popularly known as Da T-Shirt Guy".

Here is Arthur with Victor, Opio and Ocen in the back of my car, on a school visitation day.

Arthur's latest job in Kampala was printing t-shirts!

Up until he was involved in the hit and run accident, at the age of 31.

It was amazing to see how well loved he was.  The burial was full of t-shirts that were honoring, remembering, and fundraising on his behalf.

Pray for our hearts.

Pray for the crowds of people who don't yet know Christ, but who loved Arthur.  Musicians even wrote a song to honor him at the burial.  He will be greatly missed by so many.

Arthur, I'm glad you gave your life over to the Lord while in the hospital.  Soroti won't be the same without you. But I'm glad to know that you are resting in Peace and dancing with Joy.

Love you Arthur!

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.