Celebration Day at Awere

Celebration Day at Awere

Today there is no school at Awere, there is a whole day planned of speeches, dances, a Mass by the Anglican bishop where confirmation candidates will be confirmed, and more speeches. The dances and the presentations by the students will be great, but I am curious how the speeches of the leaders will be. Not to worry, lunch is scheduled at 3.30 pm.

There are 5 teachers here, and I have been lucky to see two of my colleagues, Wendy and Trisha just have some wonderful interactions with students. Wendy is from Colorado and has a family and friends that are very proud of her. If any of you ever read this your pride has been warranted. Wendy has taken her whole big personality and brought it to Awere school and has done great things. Trisha is a science teacher who is always working at being more curious about the world. She gave us a wonderful Astronomy course the other day at the house. You would not believe the stars you can see on a clear Ugandan night with a new moon. I saw the Milky Way, and Jupiter, and Saturn, and Anteres and many other (stop reading if you are not Frank Hellwig--but no Frank I did not see Uranus). Trisha has a father she talks about fondly and if you saw what your daughter was doing here, you would be so so proud (as the Acholi would say). I took videos of one of her rocket launches so you will be able to see. Watch that video twice, sir, and look how captivated her students are. Amazing.

Tomorrow a whole group of us, are taking a mutatu to the site of the real Awere school. If you remember Awere is a displaced school in Gulu, because of the war in the North. I am really looking forward to seeing this part of Uganda, it is supposed to be a very beautiful place. Whenever you get to the top of a hill or high elevation here, you can just look out and see beautiful green and foliage.

I am unfamiliar with their work, but “Fall Out Boy” is flying over from America this weekend. They are filming a music video in one of the IDP (internally displaced person) camps. It has all of the Invisible Children staff doing a lot of extra work, but the video will do two things. It will be another way to bring the faces and smiles of Northern Ugandans to the world, and also supposedly Fall Out Boy is paying for all of their expenses and also making a contribution to Invisible Children.

So next week will be my final five days with the children of Awere, and sadder still my friend Nyeko Alfred may not be there as he is taking a course at Makere University. I cannot really tell you the story of Alfred playing the headmaster at last Saturday’s presentation or just the ways he reacts to each student with discipline and dignity I wonder how many friendships are still out there in my life to be formed by people across the world. Whether it be Ocen Juma a 12 year old boy who was tending cattle at Prison Primary yesterday, and smiled and talked to me as I took his picture with his cows, or a tall secondary school student I met on the path home the other day who after hearing I was a math teacher told me that he was going for first distinction on his Senior 4 exams (the highest level in the country. But today I will end my thoughts with my friend Nyeko Alfred, just a teacher teaching math to Senior 3 in the Awere secondary school. . I am honored and humbled to call him my friend and my colleague, and he amongst a collage of smiles and greetings of many Acholi people will have a special place in my heart for the rest of my life.

Peace

john