Processing - part 1

This has probably been the most remarkable 2-week trip I’ve ever experienced!

Seems like it was 6 weeks as the days were so full and the new impressions so many!

My heart overflows with gratefulness to God for keeping Rich and me healthy and safe (the angels must have been working very hard - especially in traffic)!

I felt more energetic than at home, but wait ~ ~ ~ Uganda ALSO felt like HOME!

Extremely grateful, too, that things back home in NZ seemed fine.

I could write a book about everything, here are just a few observations, impressions, memories, thoughts:

• · Found the Ugandan people very gentle, sweet, warm respectful

• · They place an incredibly high importance on education – and work very hard to achieve intellectually – most children aspire to do University studies – and those who are able to fund it, do so – with excellent results.

• · When you say “Hello” to anybody, you have to say straight afterward, “How are you?” or it is considered impolite. The answer will always be, “I’m fine, how are you?”

• · I am SOOOOOOOOOO thankful that God allowed both Rich and I to come together this first time (wish it could be every time!) – wouldn’t have been able to manage without his help in many areas, let alone just to BE with my beloved hubby. Great to work with him as a team!!!

• · Soooooooooo grateful for the things we learned by living in Tahiti for 12+ years! It allowed me/us to fit in very easily in terms of culture and flow with people and situations. Otherwise there could possibly have been many frustrating moments… THANK YOU, JESUS – and you precious Tahitians for teaching me/us so much (e.g. about patience)!!!!!!!!!!!

• · Never thought that French would’ve come in so handy here. Rich and I had to use our “secret” language MANY times in the back-seat of a noisy car to talk about how much money we were gonna pay for the driver, how we were going to react to a particular urgent need in terms of financial gifts etc. – it was extremely helpful – and the people didn’t feel left out as they also had their “secret” language (Lugandan) that they spoke to each other whenever they weren’t addressing us directly.

• · We expected it to be hotter – so, positively surprised at how pleasant it was – pretty much same climate as Tahiti – we’re told that it does get hotter other times of the year, though – and YES, we DID have several times where we were dripping …

• · If we were to live here permanently (which we’re not planning on), my hair would probably never get gray - - - thanks to the daily deposit of red dust/dirt in the air – hehe!!!