Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Mobis, bodas, babies and friends

August 10, 2011
Jinja, Uganda, Africa; Mandie’s House

A good night’s sleep does wonders (and I mean WONDERS) after a 30 hour day of travel. Last night was chill, filled with babies, singing, dinner which consisted of rice, beans and avocado, and unpacking. I stayed up until 9:30 because I didn’t feel sleepy (running on adrenalin, according to Mandie) but as soon as I laid down, I was out. And when I say out, I mean OUT. O. U. T. I didn’t hear the babies, I didn’t hear Mandie get in bed, I didn’t hear the other girl staying in our room, Sarah, come home from Bible study, nothing. I felt so much better this morning although the only way to describe my brain is that of an intense feeling of fuzziness. Just a leeetle bit off. But either a nap (which I, sadly, am not prone to) or one more good sleep will, I’m sure, get rid of that fuzziness pronto.
We made crepes for breakfast this morning, which were delicious. I usually have yogurt or oatmeal for breakfast so crepes in Uganda was quite the treat. This house is FULL of baby sounds and baby stuff and little fruit flies and laughter and singing and books and our unwelcomed friend Gus, the rat, who we are currently trying to lure out of Sarah’s room and onto a board covered in glue and cheese. We think that will get him the message that he is not wanted here.
After breakfast Courtney, Mandie, Christina, Memae, A.R. and E. and I all took a walk. I got Mobi-ed up for the first time and carried A.R. the entire trip which was a treat for me. This may not be as much of a treat by the conclusion on my trip, but at this point, it is fun. She’s so cuddly. Whoever invented Mobis is a genius. As this is the rainy season, everything is green here, flowers are pouring over sides of walls, and there’s grass and leaves and verdure everywhere. It could almost be called lush except for the fact that all this is set against the backdrop of the red clay and dust that coats the roads and the ground. As we walked along, I kept getting a whiff of something burning, which was like Christmas at first but then under that first scent was a more acrid one which I only identified as burning garbage when we passed a smoldering heap of it. This whole trip is a lesson in the unexpected, even if it’s something as simple as azure-blue flowers falling onto deep red earth, or a scent that reminds you of Christmas that is actually incinerating trash.
We walked for almost an hour, up hills, around corners, past homes and offices that ranged from being built of cardboard to walled-in with some landscaping and greenery around them, and into Jinja. We were all hot, sweaty and tired by the time we got there, so I got to have another first of the trip: my first boda ride. Bodas are motorcycle taxis, and they are everywhere and they weave in and out of everything that may possibly be happening on or next to the streets and they are awesome. They dropped us for lunch at a cool restaurant whose shade and couch-y things were a nice break after our walk. We ordered lunch then Mandie, Courtney and I (each still Mobi-ed up) climbed up the stairwell of the apartment building nextdoor to its roof to take in the view of the Nile. It was beautiful; again, as it’s the rainy season, the places that are green are vividly green and they contrast sharply with the red of the earth and the brown the city. The river, however, glowed a bright, light blue. The colors here seem very intense, maybe because I’m so used the heat-blighted-ness of sunny S.C… Lunch was a delish affair of Cokes, water, onion rings (amazing), fries, beef gyros, veggies, mango smoothies and chatting.
On Mandie’s agenda today was a trip to an orphanage to pick up some of the children being adopted to bring them back here to skype with their families. In interests of safety and convenience, we boda-ed back to Mandie’s house to dropped off the babies, then hailed a new set off bodas and headed out on the 30 minute ride to the orphanage. Mandie and I rode on one together, which was the first time we’d gotten to spend as just the two of us and we got to talk for while which was so nice. We talked about life, and Jesus, and change, and growth, and decisions and Uganda. By that time we had arrived and picked up the kids and set out toward home, 3 passengers on each boda, minus the driver. It’s actually quite comfortable. Only a few hiccups on this ride, a couple neck-jarring brakings, a few closer-than-comfortable passes with other vehicles, and one “you’re-not-listening-to-me-you-have-to-be-in-front-because-they-don’t-know-where-they’re-going-and-look-now-they’ve-missed-the-turn-and-are-going-to-be-lost!” moment between Mandie and our boda driver.
While we waited for it to become a decent skype-able time in America, we played around in the courtyard with a big bucket of water, some water guns and balloons. Well, I didn’t actually play, I’m sitting here and writing, but everyone else played. We got “ice cream” (which is really more like Italian ice) from the ice cream-boda man who’s the-ice cream-man-is-here song is “My Heart Will Go On.” Implying the ice cream is worth following to the ends of the earth? I’m not sure… The kids are skyping now though, and it’s beautiful to see two sets of faces, one here and the other thousands of miles away, wreathed in smiles. Literally. Joy like pours into and out of the computer screen.
I’m not sure what’s happening this evening. Taking the kids back to the orphanage, I know, and also food (of course). But we ARE celebrating a wonderful anniversary tonight: today marks the one-year anniversary of Mandie’s arrival in Uganda! The amazing things that God has done in that time are staggering and unexpected and so unbelievably beautiful. I, who am least of all those involved, am in awe. I’m so lucky to be seeing even a little bit firsthand.

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