Part 1: Jinja to Kyengaza

Sleeping was an issue. Father David was diagnosed with Malaria and was very ill. The clinic gave him medicine but he looked and sounded awful. A reminder that every mosquito we see, and we see many, are a potential threat. But he awoke much better and seems to be on the mend. We had breakfast and said farewell to Andrew and Charles. Wayne, Ali, and I are all happy to be leaving Jinja and heading back to the mission in Kyengaza, Jinja was very dangerous and seemed to have an evil spirit.

As soon as we got going Wayne asked Father if going to the clinic was scary due to the need to use needles for blood work and the overwhelming amount of AIDS here. He said not really, I think they used a new needle! Another reminder of this new world we are in that is so so so different. A few moments went by before we were told by Father that the man who was killed at the mission village was murdered by his brother. As this man held a light with his four year old son his brother snuck up behind him with an axe and bludgeoned him to his death as his son watched. When Ali asked what would happen to the murderer Father David said he would go to prison for life or if the police did nothing he would be killed by the village! The last reminder we had today that the people here don’t live in the good ol USA.

We had a really nice drive on a road that actually had asphalt and went through tea fields, sugar cane fields, and the jungle. As we entered Kampala we passed the Mandela Stadium and headed for Garden City, a welcome place. Three story mall with a great food court that looks over the beautiful Kampala Country Club. So we rested, ate some pizza, watched golfers with caddies play the long par four we could see, and did some retail therapy. Things seem better the farther from Jinja we go.

We stopped at a hardware store to get some supplies to fix some piping on some tanks in the village and found an eight inch pipe wrench for 65,000 channel locks for 70,000 schillings, and a small ball valve with and elbow and adapter for 160,000 schillings……that’s about 180 US Dollars. Check out play pokies online free and find the best! To put it in perspective o believe you could get the same items at an Ace for about 30 bucks! Oh yes and the average worker here earns a dollar a day!

So now I lay under my mosquito net at the mission in Kyengaza writing this note (thanks for letting me do so, this electronic gizmo reminds me of you all and makes me remember home and feel safe for the time I spend doing so). I will rest here for a while listening to some 80’s rock and roll on the ipod to recharge and then get my peeps (Ali and Wayne) and head for the borehole. Seeing the children smile and play around that spring of life that you and I have given them makes me smile no matter what happens around here.

I hope you are loving each other and seeing the good around you, you deserve it and you need to live like life is great!

Peace 

Steve