Well God has a sense of humor. We had no water last night, and I prayed we would have water in the morning so I could shower for the first day I would be in the classroom. We did not get water, but instead in poured on the way to school. It is a 15 minute walk along all mud paths, so I tucked my pants into my socks and walked to school. I got many a laugh from the Acholi. Since most students and teachers also take this path, it is common to wait for the rain to let up. so essentially my first class where I would lecture is rained out. I am now in an internet cafe sweating, so I hope the water does not run out before I get back.
Isa is his name not Esau, so today Isa, Amos, and Samuel met me at the IC house and we walked up to the courts. We had a game of about 8 on 6 although I was not sure. The kids all had three shirts on after school, and every time I thought I knew who was on my team, that kid got hot and took off a shirt, resulting in an entirely different color. Good game though. Afterwards, the three of us went to the Corner bar, they did not go in, but I think they can and I ordered five waters, two for the big sweaty moo nu and one for each Acholi. I talked to Isa and found out that he had enough to eat on Sunday. He and his five siblings are living with his aunt while his mother is somewhere up north. So I think things are at least stable for him. but I also talked to Amos and found that he sometimes misses school, because he does not have his school fees and he is sent home. I immediately am looking at 3rd party sponsorship. His school fees for the year at 21,000 shs i think. Which is about $20........yeh, it really might take that little to figure out how to keep this bright, and talented, and well spoken P6 student in school.
I am not sure my Nerinx e-mails are going through, so if anyone in the math dept. reads this, my AP syllabus was approved by the College board.
Sometime soon my dad will post a picture of a little kid in a suit at ST. Jude's orphanage. A lot of the kids had torn shirts on a hot day, but this little executive soldiered on. I am sorry this was quick, but I am really trying to race back to the house and get in the shower.
peace
John
Walk to Atanga SS
Monday, July 2, 2007
Rooster Time
THIS ENTRY IS SLIGHTLY OUT OF ORDER
Rooster Time
It is 6:40 am on an Sunday morning and I am in bed under my mosquito netting listening to a very loud rooster. This rooster sounds like a cartoon animal trying to imitate a rooster and not quite getting it right. I can just here the big chicken say, “I say, I say son that is no way to imitate a rooster.” Seriously something is wrong with the end of this rooster’s call. It rained most of last night, but it did not matter as I was in bed at 9:24 pm on a Saturday night.
Yesterday, we had our conference for over 50 teachers at St. Monica’s up the road. St. Monica’s is a home for child mothers. In case you did not know, a lot of child mothers are that way, is because they were kidnapped and used for sex slaves during the war. This place was a wonderful campus with well manicured lawns and decorative bushes and flowers. I guess they must have a lawn mower. I have only seen one lawn mower here, a push mower in our backyard. Most of the grass cutting I have seen at schools is being done by students (as a punishment?) who wield a piece of 3 ft. metal, slightly sharpened at one end.
Any way the conference included Wamala George the headmaster of Lubiri SS in Kampala, the District Education Officer for Gulu, a child psychologist who deals with PTSD in children affected by the war. And of course, more drama related workshops to get the teachers up and moving. It was a good day, all in all. I have a great picture of Alfred from one of the exercises. I also met Sr. Mary Cara Ajio, who is the head teacher at Sacred Heart a Catholic school for 940 girls just down the road. I have made arrangements to visit the school next week.
When I came home some of the interns, had killed a guinea fowl in their yard. They had brought it over to cook supreme, Doreen to cook it. They said it tasted good, but I backed away with first teaching day coming up, and my system not quite at 100%.
Today I am going to noon mass to hear Jamie, one of the interns, who sings in the choir.
I have also erased a lot of things off of my hard drive to hopefully make uploading pictures easier. I will also find out I guess whether Jack Magee was successfully able to upload the picitures.
john
Rooster Time
It is 6:40 am on an Sunday morning and I am in bed under my mosquito netting listening to a very loud rooster. This rooster sounds like a cartoon animal trying to imitate a rooster and not quite getting it right. I can just here the big chicken say, “I say, I say son that is no way to imitate a rooster.” Seriously something is wrong with the end of this rooster’s call. It rained most of last night, but it did not matter as I was in bed at 9:24 pm on a Saturday night.
Yesterday, we had our conference for over 50 teachers at St. Monica’s up the road. St. Monica’s is a home for child mothers. In case you did not know, a lot of child mothers are that way, is because they were kidnapped and used for sex slaves during the war. This place was a wonderful campus with well manicured lawns and decorative bushes and flowers. I guess they must have a lawn mower. I have only seen one lawn mower here, a push mower in our backyard. Most of the grass cutting I have seen at schools is being done by students (as a punishment?) who wield a piece of 3 ft. metal, slightly sharpened at one end.
Any way the conference included Wamala George the headmaster of Lubiri SS in Kampala, the District Education Officer for Gulu, a child psychologist who deals with PTSD in children affected by the war. And of course, more drama related workshops to get the teachers up and moving. It was a good day, all in all. I have a great picture of Alfred from one of the exercises. I also met Sr. Mary Cara Ajio, who is the head teacher at Sacred Heart a Catholic school for 940 girls just down the road. I have made arrangements to visit the school next week.
When I came home some of the interns, had killed a guinea fowl in their yard. They had brought it over to cook supreme, Doreen to cook it. They said it tasted good, but I backed away with first teaching day coming up, and my system not quite at 100%.
Today I am going to noon mass to hear Jamie, one of the interns, who sings in the choir.
I have also erased a lot of things off of my hard drive to hopefully make uploading pictures easier. I will also find out I guess whether Jack Magee was successfully able to upload the picitures.
john
Sunday, July 1, 2007
Just when you thought you were taking a risk
I just met someone named Amelia from Oregon, she is really in the bush. She came to the IC house because her area is currently not safe. She is a couple of hours away living with the Otesse tribe teaching them English. For a while she was the only American there. She is a half mile from the latrine, so she was telling us how she never drinks or eat close to bed time. She has no electricity or running water. She had to leave because the Kajimoro tribe believes all cattle belongs to them, so if they see another tribe with cattle they will shoot them and take the cattle. Relax mom, this has nothing to do with me, but it still is one of many interesting stories I have heard. Oh and some of the guys killed a guinea fowl today. These "expert hunters" used a rock, a big stick that looked like a bat, then a larger stone. Oh btw, I spend most nites watching Arrested Development with a couple of the guys. So this really is an interesting place.
john
there is another entry on my computer somewhere that will fit before these two.
john
there is another entry on my computer somewhere that will fit before these two.
Esau
I see Esau almost every day. He seems to want to do something everytime i see him.
I am going to play basketball Monday with those guys again, but I am trying to figure out more about Esau and how I can best help him. Invisible children is big about not giving any handouts at all, and that is because it just perpetuates the practice that Western faces are for money, and delays the progress of Uganda and its people. But still although, I believe in that practice it is hard sometimes. Esau has asked me for a pen, and after asking permission I gave him a pen. I made sure it was one he could have gotten in town.
Today, Trisha and I went to Mass at Holy Rosary. There were people lined up outside of the church when we got there. I did not want to watch Mass from outside, so we went around the side and Jamie explained to us, that one mass had not let out yet. So we were part of a crowd that pushed inside of Church while the last mass crowd pushed out. It was kind of crazy, but nice that both masses were overflowing. Mass was an hour and a half and in English and Lwo, but sometimes even the English was hard to understand.
I set a John Magee record for sweating coming close but not eclipsing the record by John Gilliam in Jeff City.
Anyway, back to Esau. We saw him on the way to Mass, and he asked for 500 shillings because he was hungry. It tears me up that I could not give him anything, but I will figure something out. The enormity of what is hear is overwhelming yet the people are smiling and happy and work hard to make a little bit each day. Esau has told me that he has lost his parents, but I have been unable to find out more about his story. I cannot remember the statistic, but many of these children have lost a parent to a violent death, because of the war.
Today, I prayed for Esau amidst the sweat. The Head Teacher for Awere directed the choir in the last two songs.
john
I am going to play basketball Monday with those guys again, but I am trying to figure out more about Esau and how I can best help him. Invisible children is big about not giving any handouts at all, and that is because it just perpetuates the practice that Western faces are for money, and delays the progress of Uganda and its people. But still although, I believe in that practice it is hard sometimes. Esau has asked me for a pen, and after asking permission I gave him a pen. I made sure it was one he could have gotten in town.
Today, Trisha and I went to Mass at Holy Rosary. There were people lined up outside of the church when we got there. I did not want to watch Mass from outside, so we went around the side and Jamie explained to us, that one mass had not let out yet. So we were part of a crowd that pushed inside of Church while the last mass crowd pushed out. It was kind of crazy, but nice that both masses were overflowing. Mass was an hour and a half and in English and Lwo, but sometimes even the English was hard to understand.
I set a John Magee record for sweating coming close but not eclipsing the record by John Gilliam in Jeff City.
Anyway, back to Esau. We saw him on the way to Mass, and he asked for 500 shillings because he was hungry. It tears me up that I could not give him anything, but I will figure something out. The enormity of what is hear is overwhelming yet the people are smiling and happy and work hard to make a little bit each day. Esau has told me that he has lost his parents, but I have been unable to find out more about his story. I cannot remember the statistic, but many of these children have lost a parent to a violent death, because of the war.
Today, I prayed for Esau amidst the sweat. The Head Teacher for Awere directed the choir in the last two songs.
john
Friday, June 29, 2007
Jack Magee adding pictures for John
I am not sure the best way to add pictures, the only way I could figue out was to place them along the side.
As an added comment John's mother asked him some questions I'm sure all of you are asking too.
John’s mother asked these questions.
Are you eating ok? What are you eating? What do you drink? Can you wash your clothes? Is the weather hot? Is there any rain?
John answered!
we have a great cook at the house, where I get breakfast and dinner. we have had chili, spaghetti, egg rolls, and noodles, kind of western food with an african flair.for african food I have had dodo and eggs (spinach and eggs), mugasi (deep fried dough), corn, mangos, bananas, pineapples, rice, potio, beans, and I will have to think tilapia, beef, I drink mostly water I have fallen in love with getting to the CalTex station for 1.5 Liter of water (it costs 1000 shs< 1 dollar)....I have also had their sweet tea at school, i have had several cokes 300 ml old style glass bottle....There is a women named Agnes at the house who does all the wash by hand and hangs them on a line.....all rooms have one day to put out their wash, so mine was yesterday...it is sometimes hot, but not really...it is amazing how much of a breeze you get in some of these buildings, including the mud brick hut with the thatch roof I was in.....it rained once, so the roads are very dusty, I have red dirt on everything......but if it rains again, we will be inundated by the white ants.....this is the end of their second rainy season it is hottest in december
As an added comment John's mother asked him some questions I'm sure all of you are asking too.
John’s mother asked these questions.
Are you eating ok? What are you eating? What do you drink? Can you wash your clothes? Is the weather hot? Is there any rain?
John answered!
we have a great cook at the house, where I get breakfast and dinner. we have had chili, spaghetti, egg rolls, and noodles, kind of western food with an african flair.for african food I have had dodo and eggs (spinach and eggs), mugasi (deep fried dough), corn, mangos, bananas, pineapples, rice, potio, beans, and I will have to think tilapia, beef, I drink mostly water I have fallen in love with getting to the CalTex station for 1.5 Liter of water (it costs 1000 shs< 1 dollar)....I have also had their sweet tea at school, i have had several cokes 300 ml old style glass bottle....There is a women named Agnes at the house who does all the wash by hand and hangs them on a line.....all rooms have one day to put out their wash, so mine was yesterday...it is sometimes hot, but not really...it is amazing how much of a breeze you get in some of these buildings, including the mud brick hut with the thatch roof I was in.....it rained once, so the roads are very dusty, I have red dirt on everything......but if it rains again, we will be inundated by the white ants.....this is the end of their second rainy season it is hottest in december
Ojara Geoffrey Ojiri
THERE ARE 3 NEW POSTS TODAY. I would suggest to you that when you read this blog. You page down to where you left off, and then start reading. I think some of the stories will be much better in chronological order.
So this morning, I woke up again and jumped into a nice cold shower. It really is a delight to wake up and take a cold shower. I am thinking of this tonight because we currently do not have water, and I have played basketball and volleyball today. I am really hoping some time in the next 10 hours we get water. If not it will be shower by baby wipes tomorrow morning. So what did I do today. Good things, so keep reading. Started this morning again, with assembly at Awere. Nyeko Alfred and I started working on some problems students have brought us. So we did not make anymore progress on grading their midterms. Grades are different here because they get progress reports, but the entire year is based on the end of year exams. So it was just kind of a regular morning. I was about to leave but then I showed Alfred my Sudoku in an old USA Today, and we worked together to solve it. The afternoon was to be spent shadowing one of the mentors that work with the Gulu students who are on scholarship with IC funds. Being a mentor is a highly competitive, and it is a job where Ugandans want the position. So the quality of mentors is quite strong. I had some extra time, so I walked to the IC office which is about a 22 minute walk. Along the way, the Crested Crane school was letting out for lunch, and so was another school with thousands of young kids. It was amazing, there were so many kids walking and laughing. I had a crew of about 20 kids following me. They were laughing and talking in Lwo the entire time. We all had a blast just walking down the street. Then I met up with Ojara Geoffrey Ojiri (Geoffrey), we hopped on his motorbike, and traveled for a while on the major streets out of town, until we started riding down paths that I thought were too small for a motorbike. This was a village of traditional huts, just like Awere, circular walls made out of mud bricks, and a thatched roof. We found the one where Denis, his student was staying. Denis has been suspended for two weeks for several offenses the most serious one having a small amount of alcohol with him. Denis invited us into his house. I had to duck quite severely to get inside. Once inside, there were handmade chairs he invited us to sit on. They were low to the ground, and I was thinking they might break, considering I was a “man of large mass”. I not only fit, but it was surprised about how solid the chair was. It was made out of what looked like twigs and several small branches, but it looked nice and it was solid. Geoffrey allowed me to listen to him mentor Denis, and I told him about kids that I knew in St. Louis, and East St. Louis who had also overcome obstacles to achieve. As the conversation, progressed it was obvious that Denis was embarrassed about his behavior and was slightly embarrassed that I was there, but I had the feeling that he was a pretty good kid. They both laughed when I told him that because although they use the word kid, it usually refers to the small ones. Btw, while we were inside there were 5 or 6 kids giggling outside of the door. This family had done a pretty good job of making the small circular space home. It looks like they had divided the circular floor plan into three rooms. There is a space underneath the thatch roof and it actually had pretty good air flow. I was able to tell Denis that we both believed in him, and that I would check back with Geoffrey about his progress. He will have to study for his mid-terms(not quite the same) over the next week or so at home. I believe in him and hope he will succeed. It has been a bad week for Denis as his brother went to the hospital and died. I do not think he has other siblings. He has an aged mom and an even more aged grandmother. Geoffrey described Denis as a very bright student when he first went to school, he was a clever learner. He was abducted and spent time as a child soldier, until he was able to find his way back. Then he did not go to school for two years. So this is the struggle for Denis, does he have enough strength and personal resolve to overcome the enormity of these obstacles. You all know that I believe he can do this, but maybe tonight you can include him in your prayers, and also a man named Ojara Geoffrey Ojiri, he is certainly fighting the good fight, and the other 21 students he is mentoring. I know that is what I will be doing, seems like a more worthwhile prayer than praying for the water to come back so I can take a cold shower.
john
ps and today I remember that after the enormity of suffering I saw in the Awer camp, that the world will be saved by thousands of little tasks and great people helping one person one at a time. Thanks Geoffrey
So this morning, I woke up again and jumped into a nice cold shower. It really is a delight to wake up and take a cold shower. I am thinking of this tonight because we currently do not have water, and I have played basketball and volleyball today. I am really hoping some time in the next 10 hours we get water. If not it will be shower by baby wipes tomorrow morning. So what did I do today. Good things, so keep reading. Started this morning again, with assembly at Awere. Nyeko Alfred and I started working on some problems students have brought us. So we did not make anymore progress on grading their midterms. Grades are different here because they get progress reports, but the entire year is based on the end of year exams. So it was just kind of a regular morning. I was about to leave but then I showed Alfred my Sudoku in an old USA Today, and we worked together to solve it. The afternoon was to be spent shadowing one of the mentors that work with the Gulu students who are on scholarship with IC funds. Being a mentor is a highly competitive, and it is a job where Ugandans want the position. So the quality of mentors is quite strong. I had some extra time, so I walked to the IC office which is about a 22 minute walk. Along the way, the Crested Crane school was letting out for lunch, and so was another school with thousands of young kids. It was amazing, there were so many kids walking and laughing. I had a crew of about 20 kids following me. They were laughing and talking in Lwo the entire time. We all had a blast just walking down the street. Then I met up with Ojara Geoffrey Ojiri (Geoffrey), we hopped on his motorbike, and traveled for a while on the major streets out of town, until we started riding down paths that I thought were too small for a motorbike. This was a village of traditional huts, just like Awere, circular walls made out of mud bricks, and a thatched roof. We found the one where Denis, his student was staying. Denis has been suspended for two weeks for several offenses the most serious one having a small amount of alcohol with him. Denis invited us into his house. I had to duck quite severely to get inside. Once inside, there were handmade chairs he invited us to sit on. They were low to the ground, and I was thinking they might break, considering I was a “man of large mass”. I not only fit, but it was surprised about how solid the chair was. It was made out of what looked like twigs and several small branches, but it looked nice and it was solid. Geoffrey allowed me to listen to him mentor Denis, and I told him about kids that I knew in St. Louis, and East St. Louis who had also overcome obstacles to achieve. As the conversation, progressed it was obvious that Denis was embarrassed about his behavior and was slightly embarrassed that I was there, but I had the feeling that he was a pretty good kid. They both laughed when I told him that because although they use the word kid, it usually refers to the small ones. Btw, while we were inside there were 5 or 6 kids giggling outside of the door. This family had done a pretty good job of making the small circular space home. It looks like they had divided the circular floor plan into three rooms. There is a space underneath the thatch roof and it actually had pretty good air flow. I was able to tell Denis that we both believed in him, and that I would check back with Geoffrey about his progress. He will have to study for his mid-terms(not quite the same) over the next week or so at home. I believe in him and hope he will succeed. It has been a bad week for Denis as his brother went to the hospital and died. I do not think he has other siblings. He has an aged mom and an even more aged grandmother. Geoffrey described Denis as a very bright student when he first went to school, he was a clever learner. He was abducted and spent time as a child soldier, until he was able to find his way back. Then he did not go to school for two years. So this is the struggle for Denis, does he have enough strength and personal resolve to overcome the enormity of these obstacles. You all know that I believe he can do this, but maybe tonight you can include him in your prayers, and also a man named Ojara Geoffrey Ojiri, he is certainly fighting the good fight, and the other 21 students he is mentoring. I know that is what I will be doing, seems like a more worthwhile prayer than praying for the water to come back so I can take a cold shower.
john
ps and today I remember that after the enormity of suffering I saw in the Awer camp, that the world will be saved by thousands of little tasks and great people helping one person one at a time. Thanks Geoffrey
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)