I just returned from a two-week, much needed vacation in Uganda to visit some friends. The break was wonderful and I came back to Rwanda feeling very refreshed.
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| Some children I met at the top of a waterfall |
I left on a Thursday and flew from Kigali to Entebbe, Uganda. My best friend, Alissa, and her husband, Jacob, were staying in Entebbe with their church group for about 45 hours before moving on to do some mission work in Southern Sudan. Alissa and Jacob invited me to come visit them and generously payed for my ticket.
I arrived Thursday evening and stayed with them in a hotel. Seeing such old and good friends was just what I needed. The week before my morale was starting to get a bit low. Two more of our boys were sent to prison for stealing and I was pretty upset, but seeing Alissa and Jacob really helped renew my hope.
I arrived late at night, so our real time together started the next morning. We got to eat a lot of good food and sightsee a bit before coming back to the hotel. Alissa, Jacob, and I walked around after everyone went back to the hotel and ended up finding a small village of huts pretty close to where we were staying. We walked around and talked to some of the women who lived there and then began singing and playing games with a few children. Before we knew it, about 30 kids ran up and began playing too. Alissa and I taught them the Hokey Pokey and the Itsy Bitsy Spider and whatever other silly songs or games we could think to teach them. I was amazed watching Alissa interact with the kids. It was her first full day in Africa and she was able to connect so easily and lovingly with them.
In Rwanda, I do this type of thing almost every day, but this time was different. It meant so much to me to be playing with these kids alongside the girl that has been my best friend since I was 14 years old. I guess I realized how isolated life here can be at times.
Due to the amount of e-mails, Facebook messages, and snail mail I receive, it would be impossible to forget how loved I am; still, God blesses me with so many amazing experiences and opportunities during my day-to-day life here and after experiencing one with Alissa and Jacob I realized that I wish I could share these experiences with all of my close friends and family. Why can’t everyone move to Rwanda with me? Wishful thinking…
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| One of the caves I climbed to in Sipi |
I loved my time with Alissa and Jacob and I’m so glad I got to see them. I remember when Alissa and I were 14 and our biggest topic of conversation was about our Latin homework and which boys at school we thought were the cutest (obviously Alissa had a giant crush on that Jacob Flores guy in the grade behind us). It was so funny to be in Africa all together. Life passes so quickly. I still remember the first time Alissa and I met and actually I remember the first time Alissa and Jacob met. It seems like time was on fast forward because now Alissa and I are college graduates, Jacob graduates this year, I was the maid-of-honor in their wedding this summer, and suddenly the three of us are missionaries in Africa. I don’t think that at 14 years old any of us thought we would be standing together in a village in Africa playing with children. Life amazes me.
After Alissa and Jacob left for Sudan, I met up with some friends living in Jinja. Matthew and Damian were at the mission orientation with me and Kyle this summer. They are teachers in Uganda with Holy Cross and are Notre Dame grads. Kyle was already with them when I arrived and I soon got to meet their roommates who are just amazing and hysterically funny. It was so nice to relax and spend time with other English speakers. Actually the best part for me was that two of their roommates were women. Of course I love all my boys and Kyle and the priests, but nothing beats girl talk.
One of the girls, Whitney, and I had some mutual friends and spent a lot of time discussing a wide range of topics. I loved her. She took me to a few of her classes and I got to see how another missionary interacts with her kids. She has been in Uganda for a year and a half and is finishing up her time here, so I was really inspired with her work and knowledge and kept taking mental notes to use with my boys.
Kyle and I decided to visit Sipi Falls, a place known for waterfalls and beautiful landscapes. We rode for a few hours on some very cramped buses but finally arrived. Sipi was absolutely breathtaking. We stayed in a cabin and spent our days hiking and exploring. The mountain trails were really steep and actually more dangerous than I realized. We hired a tour guide, Ronney, to help us hike to all of the waterfalls. Although the scenery was beautiful, I’m not a huge fan of heights and there weren’t really any safety precautions used. I was terrified for most of the climb and Ronney had to help me a lot. I also fell and scraped up my knee and hand (surprise, surprise). However, as soon as we reached the first waterfall, I knew the climb was worth it.
Evidence:
We then climbed further up to some caves and then further (the most terrifying part of the climb) up to the second waterfall. We followed the river a ways and found a pool of water. It was freezing but Kyle and I both swam with some local children. Kyle and the kids somehow convinced me to jump over a ledge into the water. Kyle recorded my attempts. I tried 4 times to jump and chickened out each time before finally forcing myself to do it. I’m glad I conquered a few fears while in Sipi. It’s probably the most beautiful place on earth to conquer a fear.
I also woke up early both mornings and climbed the mountain behind our cabin to watch the sun rise. It was just perfect. The whole place is so beautiful it seems like a honeymoon destination, so I tried to spend quite a bit of time in prayer so I could utilize the beauty to let the Lord romance me. I felt like Sipi was more of a retreat than an adventure, which was just what I needed.
Kyle and I returned to our friends’ house in Jinja just in time for a riot. We were out visiting a priest when it started so we just stayed away until it finished. The people had lost electricity three weeks before and the electricity company was refusing to fix the problem, so the people began to riot. A police officer was sent to the hospital, but fortunately the riot wasn't too bad and the electricity company came to fix the problem that same day.
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| My new little friend Sam helping me climb down part of the mountain |
After that, Kyle and I just enjoyed being with Matt and Damian and their roommates for the rest of our break. I think we probably overstayed our welcome (two weeks in an already full house!), but the time was wonderful for us and by the time we left, I felt ready to go back to work in Rwanda. By the end I was really missing our boys.
We rode a bus for about 13 hours and arrived in Rwanda Wednesday. Our boys were so excited to see us and almost immediately I was told about new problems but I feel so revitalized now I’m ready to tackle anything.
For those interested: the newest problem is quite dramatic and maybe a bit funny (although the boys don’t see it that way). Some of the boys found a puppy and before I left I asked the head priest if they could keep it. He gave permission and the boys were very excited to care for their pet. I never actually got to see the dog before I left, so one of my first orders of business when I got back was to see the puppy my boys had been so excited about just two weeks before. Turns out the boys are all very upset because they believe their dog has been kidnapped and they are worried someone ate it. Oh la la. I’m now in the process of helping them recover their possibly stolen pet or punish anyone who ate it (as per their request). Sometimes the kids just like to eat weird things. The Rwandese people don’t eat dogs or snakes, but some of the boys found out that in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) people do and I caught them killing snakes because they wanted to try it. Have I said before that at 22 years old I often feel like the mother of 150 teenage boys? C’est la vie!
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