Finally in Uganda

I am finally here! After months of planning, preparation and fundraising We (becca my travel buddy from texas and I) arrived safely in Uganda Tuesday afternoon. After traveling for about 42 hours I was finally able to relax. We were met at the airport by Michael, Joshua and Coryn (a mazungu – or white person) from ARM. Yes, everyone here calls it “ARM” not “A-R-M” *cough*mom*cough*. Uganda is just as I remembered it. There is a lot of poverty, red dirt and stray animals oh and I do not think that there is a stick of deodorant in the country.

We are currently staying at loving hearts baby home (LHBH). There are 12 abandoned babies that live below us and the upstairs portion is a guest house. The babies are great. I am loving spending time with the littlest babies, mercy and cherish. The older babies 1.5-2 years are also great. However I have found that I do not have much patience for some of the younger toddlers. They are all beautiful through. Today while I was holding Cherish who is just over a month old I learned her story. She was found when she was just a day old. She had just been delivered and her mother must have abandoned her. She was found tied up in a plastic grocery bag in the middle of the street. She had almost been run over several times but some how she was still fine. I truly believe that God was watching over her and must have a plan for her. She is such a beautiful and peaceful little thing.

We also got a tour of the ARM main offices. It was a really intense place. There were tons of people working and we had to meet and greet them all. There were also lots of kids going to school and playing in the streets. The younger kids seem to love us and they will (when they get over their brief shyness) come up and give us hugs and climb all over us. The older ones who are high school aged are much more reserved and do not seem to want much to do with us. It has been interesting to see how the Ugandan culture is when it comes to accepting and greeting strange people like us J.

The first shower that I got to take here was yesterday morning. I turned on the water and instead of the shower running the sink started running. When I turned off the sink the toilet started filling up. Once that was full then the shower finally started. The shower was very cold. I have also learned that in order to get the toilet to flush well I have to first turn on the shower. Coryn has assured me that not all Ugandan plumbing is this finicky.

Coryn is a young missionary woman who is married to a man named Jamesdon. They have been in Uganda for just over a year now and they are an incredible couple. They recently adopted a little boy named Daniel from the Baby home that I am working at. They had only planned to stay in Uganda for a year but since they are adopting Daniel they are going to stay for several more years. Apparently there are some legal issues surrounding adopting in country that are different from just adopting internationally.

I have really appreciated all the help that Coryn has given us. She took us to a good place to get meat, she has helped us to know what to do, she taught us how to ride in the taxis. Most importantly she has made us feel totally welcome and at ease. She just seems to be so comfortable here and that has worn off on Becca and myself. She has told us about the safety precautions that we need to take but she has also told us what we can do and still be safe.

Tomorrow is the first game of the world cup and I believe that Becca and I are going to head into Gaba and watch it at Gaba Community Church. They are using the game as an outreach tool. I should also be able to connect and hangout with my friend Andrew tomorrow which will be cool.

Please pray for continued health for myself and Becca. So far we have not been sick at all and it would be nice if it could stay that way. Also pray that the Lord would make it very clear how we should be spending out time each day. There is a lot of stuff that we can be doing and I want to make sure that we continue to use our time wisely. Also pray for Coryn, Jamesdon and Daniel as they are waiting on Daniel’s paper work to be able to travel back to the US and they could be finding a new ministry to serve with in Uganda. So please be praying for wisdom and guidance for them.

I have really appreciated all of your e-mails and words of encouragement! It really means a lot to me knowing that I have so many people at home who love and support me. I can not wait to share some more stories and pictures with you!

Oh and the food is delicious., I am eating more than enough J