Week 7

Week 7 19/2/13 - 25/2/13

Tuesday -19/2/13

Today I still have my cold and it is getting worse. This morning we had our first session and it was on boldness; some of the concepts that the woman talked about were interesting but I was kind lost for a good part of it. Then we had ministry prep and I was our team leader today. Today we had to plan for a school in which we would be teaching smaller children. We were given the message plan so all we had to do was plan some games, decide who would do what and write up some memory versus. There were a few people who as usual liked to make things difficult but my strong side came out I think I may have shocked them with my sternness. I did discover about myself however that my leadership skills aren’t in making everyone feel good and the whole team spirit, my  skills are in getting the job done and making good decisions to fulfill the purpose. I am not sure if that is a great thing but I feel like crap this week so I don’t really care and I’m not even sure if I should. Our larger East team then split into two smaller teams and then my team worked really well getting all the planning done. Like most things there are always those people who want to make things difficult and thankfully I didn’t have any. I’m sorry if the last few weeks and this week’s blogs are blunt but I am feeling exhausted and overwhelmed by everything, so I apologize. Jonal wrote up a memory verse boarder and then Gloria wrote the verse and screwed the thing up so I wrote one out and Sherly (one of our leaders) came over and said that it was disgustingly beautiful, so I’m not sure how to take that, but I gather it was a positive comment. We then had lunch and would head straight to the buses after woods.

I was feeling worse buy this stage of the day but kept trudging on and reminding myself I had a week off in only a few days, to recover from my flew, catch up on sleep and digest the six weeks of learning. The driving took quite some time and I realized that buy the time we would actually arrive at the school we might have fifteen minutes according to our time frame. Anyway we had two leaders from south church come and we were told that the plans had been changed and we would be going to another school. We arrived after weaving through the narrow and bumpy roads at a small, neat and crowded school. My team went to teach the grade ones and twos and we had been warned that the kids when excited are absolutely mental. We started off with a hymn, which one of the students lead and I wish I could have recorded it all and taken a bazillion pictures. Then Winnie taught the memory verse which she was excellent at and we had been given a box of biscuits to give to children who answered our questions as apparently a prize motivates the children.  Then it was my turn to teach them the basics of how God loves them. I had higher expectations of the children’s understanding levels so I had to dumb it down on the spot so they could understand it. Thankfully I had written down on a piece of card for show the three points I had teach them; 1) God is good, 2) God loves you & 3)God wants to be your best friend. I think my accent made it that little bit harder for them to understand but they were pretty responsive and I really enjoyed it. I had some lollies to bribe the children’s attention and they were all bursting to give answers which were fantastic. It was funny however how if Winnie said to them sit down they all dropped, but I mustn’t have been as persuasive. I finished off my piece which was about ten minutes and I think I did a pretty good job for my first time. Then it was Gloria’s turn to play a game and this part was pretty crazy and fun.The games we played were...

1) mingle mingle- which is basically our version of that game were you have to dance around and then someone calls out a number and you have to quickly get into a group with that number of people. Gloria chanted out mingle mingle and then the kids would echo her mingle mingle only heaps louder. That was good for getting their attention because they would all just start again when they heard that. However being white and all when she called out a number a good majority of the kids would just flock to me squizzing the living day lights out and also to Winnie, in which they nearly knocked us over when we were engulfed. That was jut brilliant as I felt like I was actually doing something for ounce.

2) Cat &Rat-The second game was simply cat and mouse but with a million kids and more aggressive. Unlike western style where contact is discouraged and the kids would lift their arms up and down to let the two in and out; Ugandan style involves trapping the cat inside or out from the mouse with a hard barrier of children’s arms and the cat has to burst through  barricade of body’s to get the mouse. No health and safety practices in the world of play here and that’s how it should be, it’s more fun with contact.

Then it was time for us to go and I released that this was probably the funnest ministry experience I had had. It felt awesome to be challenging myself in front of the kids and actually interacting with them. We got back to Central and I thought that was the end of the story for today but then Calvin came in with an announcement. The living hope ladies have been moving shop and apparently need help so instead of a week off we will be helping them in some way. Wasn’t my happiest moment and I was very disappointed but then Shelry said that “this will test your availability to serve and integrity” and by God did that punch me in the face because a women before I would have been the first to be in uproar. And also after seeing ‘it’s not about me’ written on Hannah’s hand I changed my mind set and even though I was desperately hanging out for that wondrous week off I will serve with a willing heart and try to cast out my selfishness as I best I can and mostly through God because there is no way I can be cheerful about this on my own; I’m too aggressive as a person. So I will just to somehow manage and look forward to when this whole thing ends. I’m not sure if it’s being sick, overwhelmed, tired and emotionally mute that this whole experience feels like a nightmare on one hand and then heap of fun on the other. Not sure what to think or feel but I guess I am growing in some way. In a way it’s all too much and was nothing like I had expected. The last few days I have been on the negative rating but who knows what the future brings. Defiantly not a serving person, at least I know that much. I almost feel like I am in dispute with God and I don’t know why like my soul is just unsettled and maybe that is just it; there is a giant battle going on inside me that I ‘m not even aware of. So today has been like a cake that has icing on it, for me good and bad. Another day down and who knows how many to go. As much peace as I can give out from Africa.

Wednesday -20/2/13

Today I have the cold really bad, but I think this has been the best day in I don’t know how many. We started off with waking up and then going to Central and I have mixed up my breakfast with having leftovers. Anyway at central we had our morning devotion which was about the seven all rounded Christian points. It was interesting and was nice as some light spiritual food. Then we had our first devotion which was about worship and I can remember thinking wow because I had just been talking to God and saying I need to understand better about worship. It was a really good sermon and because I was looking for answers in this area I was really engaged. It was done by the Watoto pastor of creative arts and I really liked what he had to say. I also can remember having preconceived judgments about him but this one thing that I believe God is teaching me at the moment kept coming into my head “wow. Every Christian has something incredible to offer and an amazing talent regardless if they think so or if I think so because God is with them and uses them’. Well at least something like that. Then we had a another man come in who is an incredible musician and singer and is a really tall solid guy, which is cool; because your preconceived idea of him isn’t a muso at all. Then we just sung that whole session until Jackie whom I was sitting next to pointed out that there was a rat sitting just behind a pot. Now don’t think that Africa is dirty like that or that the room we were in was bodgie because that rat was the most out of place thing. You wouldn’t have even thought there might be something like that in there because the room is so neat and tidy and well designed. So basically I was captivated by that rat until Josh walked up behind it (he didn’t know it was there) and motivated it to make the extra 30cm to the door where it slipped under and vanished. It was so cool and I even took a picture to prove to people that I had seen it because it was a bit awkward screaming out rat at the time. Then we had lunch which was the basics as usual. However I finished my lunch early so Natalie and I went to a craft markets just down the road from the church for a look. I had noticed them last week and have been busting to go so I was overjoyed. Hannah was given a Ugandan bracelet from one of the guys in our group and so even though she doesn’t know it I am competing with her to have the best bracelets and wrist bands. So I was looking out for wrist bands to start my collection. There were so many things and colors and I was happy and over whelmed. All the shop owners are all trying to get you into their shops and trying to sell you stuff, but I was on a mission in the small time we had on our lunch break. I found an awesome woolly armband that has the Ugandan colors and then a leather band which had Africa branded on it. Then we had a look around and high tailed it back to church. For the afternoon session we had ministry prep for tomorrow. My team is going to visit living hope clients which should be fun and challenging. Then we were tested with our team work skills. Each of the five districts had to work together to create a display of the groups talent to present to everyone and we only had 10 minutes to plan. I stood back to see what we everyone else might come up with but there was nothing so using my big imagination I quickly schemed a plan and presented it to my group who hungrily ate it up. What we would do was do a play Australian Aboriginal style in the form if a dream time story. Basically we were basing it about marriage and the plot is basically there was an island of woman and one of men who were missing something so the women went searching in canoes and found the male island. The men happily greeted them and they danced then they all got married and that is how the rainbow serpent made wife and husband in marriage. I was simple but because all the Ugandans love a good romance tale I knew it would be a hit; and it was. The play was for about two minutes, I narrated and the rest of them (thankfully there was an even number of guys and girls without me) acted out the basic play following y cues. Other groups did a quick dance, another did a very interesting abstract play on abuse, another did a cool beat box song (unfortunately short) and the other I am not even sure. Then we were asked what we thought and a big debate broke out between a guy on my team and the rest of the groups because he offended them by saying that groups should have a theme. Wish he could learn to shut his mouth but besides that I love my group and we did a really good job. Basically our motivation was that there might be chocolates involved so that defiantly helped my brain to work; but unfortunately there weren’t, but we would have won I think according to the criteria. Then we had a quick wrap up of the day and departed. Then because Ester was going to be a bit late we went back to the markets with everyone else. As the leather band I had bought was a bit tight I gave it to Callie who brought it off me and I brought another one that was bigger, so everyone was happy. Also Moses (one of my Ugandan friends who is just awesome) was making a bracelet band thing out of shoe laces so I convinced him to give it to me and I would in turn give him one of my small Koloa’s so I now have it and the two I brought and look  pretty darn awesome. After that we came home. Then we decided that ice-cream might be a fun idea, however a storm was rolling in but we went anyway. As we started to walk it started to rain and I had brought my rain jacket which was an awesome idea, because by the time we got to the Narkomart store it was simply pelting down. We got our goods and then departed and the Narkomart guy walked us all the way to the end of the car park with a big umbrella and they couldn’t believe we were walking back in the rain.  It was just the coolest feeling walking in the Ugandan rain and we had a few cars stop and ask us if we needed a ride and when we said no they all had these shocked faces like ‘crazy muzungus’. We got home soaking wet and tried to ring the door bell but the power was off so we had to knock using a small metal flap, which worked in getting their attention. Then we all sat around in the lounge room and told ghost stories, supernatural encounters and other supernatural stories which were just scary and incredible how powerful the name of Jesus is. I hope o have a supernatural encounter here and even meet a possessed person to just have that experience of Jesus’ power casting out a demon. I want to witness that so that the truth in the power of his name will be burned into my heart and head so that I will never doubt it. Then we had dinner, started cell in the dark and as we finished worship the lights came back on so it felt like a God moment and then we had cell on the topic of prayer. Got some juicy stuff out of that to implement in my own prayer life and that finishes off the day. Today even though I feel like death with my cold has been really good and spiritually refreshing and I don’t know why or what thing has happened to inspire this, but I am defiantly not going to complain. I hope that the best days are ahead and that this time has just been a time of settling in my environment and just in me and ounce the water settles then I can have some life changing fun. In cell we were talking about how we want God to break us and refine us and then I had a vision of this analogy; It was that instead of always needing to be broken we are like a wall and a box of ugly plates etc. Then what God does is smashes the plates and puts them on the wall to create a beautiful mosaic. That he fixes us one plate at a time, he fixes one thing at a time and reuses what we are already in a better way. I am so proud of my analogy Gods analogy through me) and just had to share it. Because in reality the whole process of smashing one bad thing at a time in the big picture is totally smashing us and when the last plate is smashed you die.

So today has been a really good day and I can’t wait for tomorrows adventure. I hope I get over this cold and ask that you pray for me to be...

1) Filled with the holy spirit, so that I can be high on God.

2) Have a good sleeping pattern as I am having trouble falling asleep early.

That is today and I hope you enjoy it just as much as I did. I think the biggest thing is just be encouraged that God’s got the love to see you through (actually a song by Florence and the Machine) the darkest of seasons, days and feelings. Peace out from Africa with a big sneeze and smile.

Thursday -21/2/13

Today has been a really good day, with lots of adventure. Today started off with waking up, having breakfast and hoping on our bus to central. Then class started and we had the morning devotion about something; I think it was some general topic that was very general and I mustn’t have tasted anything memorable thus my amnesia to what it was about. Then we split into our district teams for our ministry; today my team was visiting two living hope clients. We boarded a bus taxi (the first time for me) so that in itself made my day pretty darn awesome and we were off. We had a previous 360 student to help us navigate for the first time but the next time it will be up to our team to find the way. So we were in the taxi for a while and then we stopped and hoped out and started walking down a road, the taxi had obviously left and then I found out some interesting facts about our journey so far. The taxi’s in Uganda are like white vans decked out with about 12 seats (including the driver) in which the driver and a conductor drive around in a direction, the conductor hanging out the window looking for people waiting on the side of the road in which they will quickly pull over (sometimes stopping traffic) and cram the passenger into the bus next to complete strangers and sometimes over loading the bus illegally. An average trip cost from about 500 ugsh onwards so a taxi ride in one of these is about $00.50 (pretty good). The transportation of Uganda starts at the bottom with walking, then passenger bikes, boda boda’s, the white taxi’s, special taxi’s and then private cars; that is the basic means of transportation and there are way more white taxi’s and boda boda’s than anything else on the already crowded roads. So back to my story, the taxi driver had lied that he knew were we had to go stopped at a random place to get us out of the taxi, told us we were here and then taken off. After walking around a bit and making a few phone calls along with buying airtime to make those calls (airtime is phone credit in Uganda) we found out the place we had to go wasn’t that far from central and we were a lot further out than we needed to be. So we walked and boarded another Taxi and after that it is a lot of Lugandan being said, walking and boarding and getting out of Taxi’s.  And while all this is happening me and Winnie are copying the songs from the movie ‘Tangled’ and as a side note Winnie has the most incredible singing voice. Then we hiked up a hill and killing two birds with one stone (both our clients in one visit) we met both the clients in which we briefly introduced each other and then followed them to the woman’s shop about 500km to 1km down a road sided with small stalls and shops; in my mind I call them market stretches, because basically that’s what they are. We arrived and I they gathered chairs for us and we sat down. Even though the conversation was all in English I still couldn’t understand what was being said so I just smiled and waved and asked what was going throughout the conversation. The main thing I did discover about the women was that she made these knitted couch covers and basically I have helped her out and myself by getting her to make me a set of these things in a flower design were the whole blanket thing is these knitted flowers all stitched together. The one she had was green so I asked her if she could make a rainbow one and she said yes. It is so cool and because it comes in a set of six small ones and a big one I can break them up as presents. Think my mum, Raelene, Leanne and Mamma will like them. Cool thing is it will only cost me 50’000ugsh which is equivalent to maybe $20. After that we sang a song, prayed and then followed the man to his home. Both clients had three children with their spouse having left them. The woman is HIV positive and the man having no work has been kicked out of the place he was renting so is now living with his three children in an unfinished house. That was the jist of their stories and then after seeing his previous home and the one he was now in we followed him to a road that we could then catch a taxi back to central. That taxi rode went well and I had a lady I didn’t even know say I was the most beautiful person she had ever seen.... joking but she said she loved my collection arm bands so if it isn’t something a random Ugandan women (with awesome dreads) saying she liked my collection of Ugandan arm bands I don’t know what is. Then we hoped off and went to a bakery were I brought a meat pie and two chicken somosis, they were really nice and weren’t like an Aussie meat pic but more like a mince apple turnover thingo and then the somosis were really nice unlike ones you buy in a pack that taste like the sun (so hot you can’t bear to eat more than one in the finger food). After that Natalie found me sitting on the steps in central and we then went to a coffee shop just down the road called 1000 cups of coffee (I thought that was a pretty awesome name) and to my delight they had an African shop there. It was the hippest thing with all these different mugs hanging all around and then the shop and a veranda with all these different but really comfy chair. The place reeked chillness. A storm was building up and as you would expect the power went off so Natalie’s dreams of buying an exotic coffee died but I bought a leather arm band which has a sunset on it with a silhouette of a giraffe/zebra/obese horse, basically it is really cool. Then we crossed over to the markets had a look and I found a wooden elephant that looked like a real elephant so I started the bargaining ritual where she was asking 50’000ugsh and I got her down to 35’000ugsh so I thought it was a good deal. We then left and after telling about my purchase I was told that I should have gotten it for about 15’000ugsh. Anyway I was feeling horrible even though I had only spent about $13  on a good looking elephant but I was being told by the experts that I could have gotten it for $4 to $6 dollars. Anyway we got home Esther had a close look and realized that it was actually good wood and I had nabbed it for a reasonable price. So after hearing that I clung to that idea and felt better and after looking at I am really happy with my buy because it looks really cool and fits in with my other animals; in terms of style, shape, colour, texture and the way they all look together. So another animal down and tonight I made a list of the people I need to get something for and have made a budget/list thing to give me some direction and peace. I have also been saving up for a painting from another market by putting away $10 every week from my weekly allowance and have enough. I like to look at the stuff for sale, meditate on it in my mind and decided what I want to get and focus on as souvenirs. Because masks freak me out and a lot of things are tacky or are a bit demonically questing I have decided to go with small wooden animal sculptures a painting or two and my wrist bands because those things will be really cool; well that’s the plan for now. After my elephant purchase we went back, had debrief, had bible study and then we hoped on the bus and went home. Waiting for us was fish and chips which was incredible. I butted heads with some people we came to an understanding and unbutted heads, I got my animals out and played with them as I discussed what things we all were looking out for and then I made a list and started my blog. The end.

So I will now start a new paragraph and might take out all the full stops so you can live the day as fast and out of breath as I did. I like it when I have an interesting day full of lots of interesting things because I feel happy, can concentrate better, have a better day and feel closer to God and more sober minded. So I think I will try and go for walks at lunch to look at things and just chuck something interesting into the day. So the days have been better this week and I am enjoying my time here once again plus my cold is going away so I am very happy about that. Thankyou everyone for everything and have fun in Australia with a week full of meat because you don’t know what steak will be your last; also I am coping better with the meat cravings with more meat being introduced into our daily diet along with ice cream. If there is anything you don’t understand, want to know more about or want to ask you shoot me an email, face book me something or on my wix website you can send me a message in the contact section. It has been a cheese winkle day. Peace out from Africa.

Thinking of my Petrofski cousins the past few days and all the crazy fun we have had and will have in the future, thanks you chegtastic creatures.

Friday -22/2/13

Today has been basically a dead day. We had two really good lessons in the morning which I got a lot out of (I am being dead serious).  We had lunch. We watched a movie called ‘gifted hands’. Then at night we went to the first Rev Bar which is an event for Youth. The best part about the night was Marilyn’s sermon which was about the struggle of making a change in the world. Amongst that I beat Emma in a game of chess in which he bailed in the end. We greeted people at the door by cheering and clapping and in Winnie’s fashion screaming at them like a nutter; she made me laugh so much. We went home late so I wasn’t the happiest and the day ended like that. It was a pretty good day and I learnt alot of new things and wrote all over my arm taking notes in the sermon by Marilyn.

Saturday -23/2/13

Today we visited the villages and I was in cluster 10. I went with Jonal to the house we were staying at and on the way we met a boy called Josh whom Jonal new and picking him and handing to me said lets kidnap him and take him to my house. I’m pretty sure he was joking. Any way this little boy was so cute and funny. I carried him around pretty much the whole morning as he pulled my hair touched my skin and laughed hysterically as he chattered in Ugandan as I spun him around and threw him up in the air. I wish I could go back he is so precious. Also at that particular home was a girl who I can’t remembers name, but she was really cool. We talked about her school and I showed her on a map where I lived and she had also been to Australia in one of the choirs. I then watched Laurence and Moses make Japady and I even rolled out one. I will learn how to make heaps of African food and then me and Jess can throw an African themed party. I was then summoned to play in a light soccer game. I was standing there watching the guys do flips and like doing the tango with the soccer ball. Then the soccer ball came my way and this was the defining point of how white I felt and really am. Instead of doing so quick step with the ball I instead stick my leg out without moving in a serious attempt to stop the ball which I didn’t even touch. After that I walked back inside and picked up Josh as an excuse as to why I couldn’t play. Then at around 11:30am I had to go to for lunch as the Simpson’s had invited us over. I met Sherly and Daniel on the way taking a picture with Sherly’s sponsor kid which was really nice. I then found out that our lunch wasn’t properly approved so I felt really bad. We then walked to the others were the situation made me really mad because I felt like I was betraying my Ugandan friends; like I was better than them. I can’t tell you how close I was to just saying I can’t do this and going back to my house, but it would have been rude on my behalf, but at the same time I had abruptly left the house I was with. Anyway I am trying to keep things as real as they were and that is how it was. We then went to the Simpson’s hose were we did end up having a really good time. We talked about lots of things, played with heir children and had American food. My long confusion of what ‘chillie’ is was silenced when I found out it was just mince and beans. So the meal was chips in which you put the ‘chillie’ on top and then this cheese that is melted; it is like plastic cheese but more orange. There were also beans which I had o try and appear healthy that turned out to be really nice and the whole meal was fantastic as well. That is probably because it wasn’t healthy and that was just a fabulous experience in contrast to our very organic and healthy diet of rice and bananas. We then changed for church and high tailed it back to the buses to go to church.

I then talked to Sherly about some things in her office; the offices are like secret underground bases hidden away in the building. After that I went to the service in which I loved the sermon as usual. I love Saturdays because I have such a good time at the villages and the service is always really good. The sermons are really challenging and are engaging. I have been so moved I went to Marilyn Skinner after woods and thanked her for her sermons; she is really nice and just fabulous. We then talked in the car park and went home. Today was really full on but fun at the same time, just how I like it.

Sunday -24/2/13

Today was like every Sunday...pretty boring. I was in the children’s ministry with the youngest kids and I had one girl whom I was helping take her shoes off look at me and just cry probably because I am white. She then flopped on the ground and threw a tantrum were she would look to see if anyone was looking and proceed. I just left her decided that I wouldn’t be coming there again for a while. We went and brought Japady from a side store close buy and it was by far the best I have had so far. My favorite part of the day came when it was time to go. I know it sounds like I am a brat and maybe I am but that is how Sunday serving makes me feel. I did however have a good day because I had fun with the people in my team and had a good chat with Jonal and Gloria. Then at lunch I felt like I had made a milestone with a lot of people and have made some real strong connections and now I can stop worrying so much about getting that awkward initial friend trust I am in, in a funny way if you know what I mean. So that was awesome.

We then went to Garden city where the girls did some shopping and we then went to a cafe which had a range of good and bad food in my opinion of tasting everyone’s stuff because I ‘m a scab like that. Actually because I spent the remainder of my weekly allowance on an awesome elephant and had no money I was willing to spend. We then went home in which I got everyone hooked on Modern Family. We had this incredible potato and meat thing which was just incredible, amazing and fantastic. Thomas went for a walk and it got late so we worried about him for something to do, met a guy who I didn’t even know lived here and then Thomas came home with some DVD’s he brought from the (illegal) DVD store around the corner and we then watched this really interesting movie called ‘The Life of Pi’. I then had a very interesting night were as I was falling asleep I would feel like I was falling and wake up and had a pretty strange dream. The end.

Monday -25/2/13

Today started off with much anticipation to read my bible, meditate and achieve a lot of things, but has ended with me relaxed and having accomplished near to nothing. I slept in till about 9:30am. Woke up and had two pancakes in which I discussed politics with Callie. We all then watched modern family. I Skyped my mum which was so awesome. I am so happy to have seen them all even though a 40 minute session chews threw internet like a guy in a food eating contest. I then had lunch of toasted sandwiches, soup and pineapple (our usual Monday meal). Jess and I then walked to the (illegal) DVD shop and bought some things. I purchased New Girl and Pillars of the earth; New Girl for Emily as I am her angel this week and then Pillars of the Earth for me which I am severely disappointed with as it doesn’t follow the book. Jess purchased some chick flick, Sky fall and The Guardians. In Uganda the copyright laws are pretty much non existent so what would seem illegal to me is actual the norm and somewhat legal in Uganda. So that is the mindset I am taking on it like how in the bible it talks about obeying the laws on your rulers and the rulers here don’t seem to mind so I guess neither do I; very thin lined but it is awesome having cheap access to DVD’s we would otherwise miss out on whilst being over here.  So we pretty much spent the afternoon watching our purchases and I painted at the same time. I am planning to paint a book like my favorite artist Shaun Tan. We had tea of Spaghetti Bolognese.  Danielle had her ears pierced, Callie cut of my ducks tail and gave Jess’s bangs a cut an d then Thomas gave the rest a trim. I then continued to write my blogs and will in the next ten minutes after I see what everyone is up post my blogs, read my bible and go to sleep. Another eventful week which I have experienced a lot of fun, boredom and learnt lots of new, useful and useless things. Peace out from Africa for another week.