A chicken in the classroom

A Chicken in the Classroom

This morning I woke up and it was a cool day in Gulu. I actually slept for a long period of time last night, which is unusual for me in or out of Africa. This morning I had an 8.15 am class with Senior 3C. They are a very alive and energetic class, and they had another great class today. After looking at Senior 3A’s homework, I wanted to make sure I emphasized the points I thought they understood, but it was obvious by their homework that did not happen. The Awere students do not call it homework, it is their exercises, and they put it in an exercise book. Somehow during the day, they get it done, maybe during part of their lunch, because we grade it the same day or it does not seem to get graded.

They are eager for grades and comments and to get their work graded, but the grades are not recorded anywhere and they do not really have grades. Their marks are based really only on their exams and their end of year tests. They have to pass the Senior 3 tests to move on to Senior 4 so the grades also have a wide disparity in age. There is also the fact that some of these students have been abducted or are former child soldiers, so it takes a special kind of courage and dedication to wanting an education to restart school at Senior2 (most equivalent to freshmen level) at the age of 20.

The students are so welcoming and polite in all of their actions, Today I circled the building in a different way because of the mud, and started going to the wrong classroom. Since they can see through the walls, my class was calling for me, “Sir, Sir, over here, Sir!” While the other class was directing me away also. Then another funny thing happened as mid-lesson a chicken wandered into my class, and stood behind a stool. I asked the students to move the stool so I could get a picture, and they answered, “Sir, if we move the stool, the chicken will run under the wall.” So I tried to get a picture of the chicken who wandered into the classroom, but did not. So just like the lizard, you will have to take this on faith. I have a new friend in the village of Oliyo I Long which if you remember either means, “Urine in the trousers” or “Man who pees himself”, he is a small boy with no front teeth who has worn the same blue shirt every time I see him. He runs out of one of the shops always says Hi, and often a How are you and cranes his neck in a weird angle to indicate how tall I am. It will be one thing I miss on a fifteen minute walk how many young children greet you, smile at you, and say goodby. It is my favorite form of entertainment. So students if you are reading this and I ask you “How are you?” with the emphasis on the you, please answer “I am fine!” with a very short clipped way of saying fine. I wll think so kindly of you, I will probably award you an A+ for the entire year.

Last night, I took Aliker David Martin to the Acholi Inn, in turn I filmed him talking about the Acholi concept of “mato oput” which translates to “drink the bitter herb” and is an Acholi custom of forgiveness that some want to use to end the war and bring peace. It is interesting that many, many Acholi do not want revenge or retribution to horrible acts of murder, rape, torture, and dismemberment. They simply want to forgive, have peace, and live their life. Amy Colleen Finnegan, the Boston researcher who is a friend of Cathy Modde from the CSC, told me that she believes it is possible that Northern Uganda might be giving the world something special with this new model for peace.


I will write tomorrow, and Friday, and then I do not know about the other days as wer are traveling to Murchison Falls, a game reserve, rafting on the Nile, and leaving
Africa. I will be home shortly and have many pictures and stories to tell.

Peace,

John