Steve Nash

So I was sitting in Western Uganda with my friend Joseph having a riveting conversation about life when a group of about 50 school children happens upon us. They decide they want to take a picture with me, the white girl. I oblige cheerfully until I realize they want to EACH take a picture with me. After many, many pictures, my patience is gone and I lament to my teammates later "I just don't get it. Why do they each want a picture with me? They don't even know me?" And one of my teammates chimes in "Well, if you just happened upon someone unexpected, like Angelina Jolie, wouldn't you want a picture to remember that moment?" I responded that I honestly wouldn't. I would give her privacy and really couldn't care less about having my photo with her. There. I was totally justified in my right to be annoyed and in my insistence that given the same situation, I would NOT respond the same way as my Ugandan friends. Then came his name to my mind. Yep. Steve. Steve Nash. If I happened upon Steve Nash I would not only get a photo, but I would also remind him of the time he waved at me in the crowd in Phoenix or the time he yelled my name in the nosebleeds at the Timberwolves game and that we should probably get a video of us dribbling basketballs together simultaneously. And I would tell him that despite being called the most unattractive man in the entire NBA, I still love the way he plays the game. So, I stood corrected and allowed all the photos anyone wanted the rest of the trip.
I've been back in the states now for a week and wanted to update you all on the second half of my trip and all I could think about was my Nash moment. Hopefully something more meaningful than that comes out of me as I sit down to write. I got some flack from a friend the other day for the lack of updates on my blog and I reminded her that it was a LABOR OF LOVE just to do the one while I was in Uganda. So, here is the update on the second half of the trip!
The team and I headed to Mbarara for the last week of their time there so we could visit a couple who reaches out to street children. This area of the country is known for growing Matoke, the food the women are carrying on their heads. For some reason this picture has become one of my favorites from the trip. I think it is just the collision of traditional with modern life.
David and Esther were the couple we went to visit (showing off her homemade wedding dress that she made for her wedding recently...with matching attire for David.) They have 20 plus boys/girls living in their home to escape life on the streets. Here's their website for more info: http://joyofachild.net/
One of the most memorable moments from this trip was watching them do what they call Family Court. Family court involves each child bringing any grievances to the attention of the entire family that have happened in the previous week. It was amazing to see how this couple openly communicated with their children. Several of the siblings expressed the way one of the older boys was ganging up on them and I loved the way David talked to that child about what his strength IS to be used for, to protect and guard his siblings.
Here is the team (plus my college roommate's sister Amanda from the Peace Corps...can't believe I saw her twice in one year halfway around the world) at the post office where Esther works and where she also sells the crafts that the girls in her home make. Amanda was just there to visit me but ended up teaching the girls how to make cloth pads that they can sell. Yep, tis true. Can't wait to get my teammates pictures to show you the process. It's actually pretty genius as many girls miss going to school due to inability to buy disposable pads.


After the team left, I went to visit my good friend Sarah's (top right) home village. Sarah and I taught on the islands together when I lived there and her friendship has really changed me. I had been reading a book at the time called When Helping Hurts (I will probably devote an entire post to this book at a later time :)...it was that good) and I asked her "What is someone told you that the money it takes to bring me here would be better spent just sending you a check?" Now, I know that she probably is not going to feel the full freedom to give me an honest answer as I'm the one asking the question, but her response told me so much. She sincerely thought I was kidding, that's how ridiculous the question was for her. She went on to explain that you seriously can't put a price on relationship and that our interactions over the years have seriously changed the way she lives her life (and I can say the same). It really just solidified for me the importance of relationship and how much God can use honest, deep, meaningful relationships to really alter our lives.
Visiting Sarah's sister Tina's school where the children gave up a meal to buy me a jar of sim sim seeds and gnuts. I cried. They got uncomfortable. It was great. What a crew this was. They even learned how to say my last name before I arrived so they could greet me in unison. I can hardly handle the kid in the bottom right corner of this picture. Hilarious.
The first time I have seen a child with special needs at a school there. Here is Tina with this adorable child who has Down's Syndrome. He was so engaged in what was happening while I was there but Tina said it has not been an easy road to provide for his needs.
My friend Peter comes to pick me up from Sarah's and I come out wearing this hat and say "Peter, I'll give you one guess as to what I got for a gift from Sarah's family" and Peter says "A basket?" One of the funniest Ugandans I know. He kept telling me I couldn't speak English because it wasn't "British English". To him, it's not a car trunk, it's a boot. You don't honk the horn, you hoot the horn.
I also went to visit the Mabonger family in Namalunga (they also used to live on the islands with me). Their son Andy has decided that the goat is his pet so he has named it and began treating it like a dog. Last I heard mom and dad decided to cave and get him a dog. The goat looks THRILLED in this picture. :)
Mama O and Papa O! I got to visit with these two at my first Ugandan wedding. They do family ministry on the islands and also lived there when I did. This couple is seriously amazing as they long to learn the best way to do marriage and family life. Papa O's adult son Joseph told me "I want to be 100 % like my dad." Joseph said that when he was little, his dad was the only man he knew that didn't physically abuse his wife. And his dad was mocked for doing tasks that others deemed to be a woman's job. These two truly value family.


Chief and Gloria's wedding! First Ugandan wedding and as you can see, it was an EVENT. I swear no one is too shy to dance in the entire country of Uganda.
And now my usual tribute to the animals of Uganda. This dog is sleeping. For real. I love the jaw drop showing the teeth.
I've always wanted a picture of one of these and finally got it. They are all over in the city picking at trash. They're just so huge and weird looking with their fuzzy necks.
A snail we found on the door to the house. The thing just slid its slimy self down when it was ready to descend.

Well, it appears I've made up for lost time with the length of this post! Thanks again to those who supported this trip in so many ways. I will post again when I receive my teammates pictures for those who want to continue to hear about all that happened on this latest journey!