It’s been a while… sorry about that! (As Ugandans would say, I’ve been “quiet” lately.)
Life here is good! I know there will still be rough patches ahead, but I’ve survived the first six months out on my own since training. I’m finally into a groove and feeling really excited about the work [...]
Punch was clearly too young to be taken from his mother. When I took him home, nobody seemed to know his exact age, but the closest estimate I got was one month. He cried nonstop, except when I was holding him and when he was sleeping (which was never more than one hour [...]
A few of my favorite things!
Starting next week, I’m going to be teaching math at the high school on the next hill! I’m pretty psyched about it. It will take some getting used to the Ugandan school system. No text books at all—not even for the teachers to reference. No calculators. [...]
It’s been a few weeks since I’ve checked in, but everything’s going great!
I was in Kampala the end of August for a Peace Corps Uganda All-Volunteer Conference. Such conferences are a bit rare in our world of budget cuts, so we were all pretty lucky to have this opportunity! It was fantastic to [...]
I keep bumping into a few attitudes that just make me want to hit my head against the wall:
“We can’t do anything until we get more grants.” No way! There are plenty of things small, start-up organizations can do without grants! Gain knowledge. Talk with people. Build a network. Become [...]
The 15-ish mile journey began in a jungle-y area…
…through a few tiny towns and villages…
…up higher to a beautiful view of the horizon…
…past children in their school uniforms…
…and finally home!
Saturday:
After riding two hours in a “small taxi”—a circa-1990 Corolla carrying about 12 passengers (I kid you not! They even squish two people into the driver’s seat)—I arrived in a nearby town to visit my friend Irene in the hospital. Irene’s story is so sad! She was a nurse in our [...]
“It is simply no good trying to keep any thrill: that is the very worst thing you can do. Let the thrill go—let it die away—go on through that period of death into the quieter interest and happiness that follow—and you will find you are living in a world of new thirills all the time. [...]
Host mom and three of the kids at our big farewell program.
“Jaja” (Grandma), one of the cutest old ladies alive.
Host parents and some of the kids.
Ezra, the youngest, and a neighbor. Can you guess which one is the trouble-maker? J
Crystal and me.
Host dad (left) working on the new chicken house.
Writing depresses me a little bit because I can never fully describe what it’s like to be here. The first few months have been rough, but I feel like I’ve finally reached the top of the hill and can see a clear 360-degree view of the beautiful horizon all around. And it’s pretty [...]
