My Mukono Homestay

We went to our home stay on Saturday and I was with another Taylor student, Christy Janiszewski (who I didn't know well). They took us to our home, simply dropped us off, and said, "Have a good time." It was crazy. My whole family was around all weekend and will be around for the next two weeks because they are all in education of some sort.

My dad is a principal at a secondary school and stays there during the week and comes home on the weekends. My mom teaches English and literature at a local secondary school. My oldest sister Paula (23) is a student at UCU and she has a 13 month old named Haley. Pauline (21) goes to University in Kampala. My brother Paulton (17) is in secondary school at a boarding school, but we call him Chief. That is the family. Can you guess who their favorite apostle is? They live in a little compound with just their family. They have 300 chickens and 8 roosters. In order to turn the light on in the latrine, you have to reach into the chicken coup (not a fan).

Saturday: When we first got there we just sat and talked with mama for a while, then she left and we just sat there in silence with Paula and Chief. We asked them some questions and they answered some but silence is ok. :) Soap operas in Uganda are a BIG DEAL. This one in particular, Hidden Passions, is the talk of all female Ugandan students. It is a Spanish soap dubbed over in terrible English. Very entertaining. Our sisters love it! So we watched that in he afternoon. I talked to my sisters for a long time about dating in Uganda, their prom type thing, introductions, and weddings. There are some very interesting cultural differences, although many of their traditions are becoming Westernized. We played cards with Chief for a long time. He knows all the fun ones, like speed, Egyptian War, and Uno. We did a lot of playing, which I loved and it passed the time well.

Sunday: We went to church with the family. The church service is very liturgical. Dad said it was similar to Presbyterian. The pastor was difficult to understand, but I love worshipping in other cultures. Constant movement and prayer and they are excited to be there! After church we went home and made chapatis (see picture). Super greasy and super good! I helped mama make passion fruit/orange/carrot juice, and I also helped her mince meat. I had a lot of reading to do in the afternoon, but most of the time I simply sat with the family. They feed us like queens.

Monday: Monday morning we got up at 7, Mama made us eggs and tea for breakfast (SO GOOD), and we left at 7:30. We have a 45 minute walk to and from school everyday. At first I was dreading it, but after eating and sitting all the time, I was thankful for it. More importantly, I realized that that time is so good to prepare for the day, to pray, and to focus humbly on what the Lord has for me. It is so easy to be self-focused and worry and miss home, but that time allows me to surrender on what God has for me.

Mondays are long days of class, but I am getting used to school here. A lot of work. When we got home last night, Mama gave us tea (I love this part of the culture) and for the first time she just sat down and talked to us. We talked to her for over an hour. She told us about politics, education, her story, her experience of Idi Amin, women's struggle for power, and how the US culture is corrupting Uganda. :) It was really cool to hear her thoughts. It finally helped me feel at home. We had tilapia for dinner, and it was amazing!

I am learning so much about truly being present with people. I often do so many things at once. I am really trying to be present mentally as well as physically. I want to be a humble learner in all that I do. So much of that is being able to listen with my complete attention, not thinking of other things or what I am going to say/ask next. And part of that is just sitting with people and being ok with silence, because presence is powerful.