Bright Sunshiny Days!

I can go ahead and reiterate the greatness of flexibility in our homeschooling schedule. I received an e-mail from my boss on Monday night saying the girls could use a 2 day break, so they will see me again on Thursday....OK!! We are entering the hot and dry season in Uganda, and I was dying to get my bikini out and head to the pool. So, I grabbed a book and took off to enjoy my surprise 2 day “staycation.” Usually last minute days off of school in November signify a snow and/or fog day. I'm loving the pool in November! Even more anxious to decorate the palm tree by the pool with Christmas decorations next month :)

On Skype a couple of weeks ago, I was speaking with a friend from home and telling her how the weather here is a daily combination of spring-summer-fall. I wake up to a morning chill, throw on a sweater to sip coffee on the porch, listen to the birds, and watch the blooming flowers. By mid-day I can throw on a bikini and head to the pool. Then, when it comes time for tea and dinner, put the sweaters back on and choose from a wide range of fresh produce to create a yummy meal. Wide range is not an exaggeration. I can go to the market and come with fresh pumpkin and pineapple, cashews and carrots, apples and avocado, eggs and eggplant, beans and bananas...you get the idea. Just about anything at any time is growing in Uganda. Pretty amazing.

Last weekend was the first farmers market of Jinja. Local expats gathered together to sell their baked goods, crafts, herbs, and anything else you would typically find at your local farmers market.

a bit of our farmers market bounty

Our little home garden is coming along quite well. We have planted lettuce, carrots, onions, tomatoes, watermelon, and cabbage. I have also planted zinnias from home that are beginning to bloom! The fruit trees on the compound are also producing crazy amounts of avocados and guavas. There are also fig trees and mango tress that are starting to bud! Hope to have figgy pudding for Christmas. 

guavas

Avocados

Zinnias planted from home

our garden

fig tree

We still have days when we are stricken with homesickness, and we miss our family every day. However, days like this when we have sunny days by the pool, followed by afternoon tea in our tower chairs enjoying our view, and freshly prepared dinner...we feel overly blessed. We don't want these days to pass for granted and constantly remind each other to enjoy the beauty of our simple lives and surroundings in Uganda.

Brad enjoying a beverage and the view

I have started a new part-time job as a personal trainer! Health, fitness, and coaching will always be a part of who I am, and I was beginning to miss this part of what used to be my daily life in Indiana. I was presented with the opportunity about a month ago, and sessions are now in full swing. I am training a wife and husband (who belong the family that own the majority of sugar cane fields in Uganda...very impressive). Three to four times a week I go to their house where they have a massive home gym and weight room. I get to spend and hour with each of them, then often I get an hour to myself, followed by freshly squeezed juice or coconut water prepared by one of their many maids. It's definitely a change of pace from what I am used to, everything from the Bollywood atmosphere to training adults. But I look forward to every session, and think this is something I would like to get into more.

Only 6 more weeks until the Graversons and Cripes are in Uganda!!! Looking forward to sharing this experience with the people I love most!  

  

Ekisa

One of the many advantages of homeschooling is the availability for flexibility. A few months ago, I was discussing the idea of getting our students more involved within the community with the primary teacher. She is very well connected with the missionary scene in Jinja, and found an opportunity for our students to begin helping out at the special needs orphanage. The orphanage is called Ekisa (“Grace”), and it is the home to around 30 children who are either mentally or physically disabled. Every Friday afternoon our little group of homeschool students visit the orphanage, or a group of kids from the orphanage come to our school. We spend our time together learning sign language, getting messy with sensory stations, dancing, telling stories, or cooking snacks. Last Friday was a very special day. Trish set up an outing and we took 3 rafts down the river for a float day. This was a once in a life time opportunity for these kids, and it was so special to see them having such a fun time. Granted, at times it was a bit stressful trying to keep them safe, contain them in the rafts, carry the ones with physical disabilities, all while encouraging them to have as much fun as possible. The river guides from NRE were absolutely amazing. I was more than impressed with their enthusiasm and care taking. These guys normally spend their days rescuing people from grade 5 rapids, but today they floated the river with a bunch of kids. They were very attentive to the children, making sure they were paddling correctly, getting them in and out of the rafts, carrying them up the steps, and even letting them take rides on their kayaks.

One of the 3 boats

   

Craig showing off

Sam and Walter paddling our boat

Me and Rachel

The kids enjoying a swim 

Zeke riding the kayak

Jacob taking a ride

our house from the river! 

I enjoy our Friday afternoons with Ekisa, and I know my students do as well. To see the relationships and bonds that are now formed and growing is uplifting and heartwarming. I hope my four teenage students come to realize the joy these days bring to the kids.

Uganda, My New Home

I have decided to use this passage from my first post as a constant. It will be used kind of as disclaimer at the beginning of all my posts to remind you of my objective. If you remember its contents you can skip on down.

How can I put in to words the amount of uncertainty and excitement that was flowing through me as I prepared to take what is unquestionably the boldest move I have ever made in my lifetime? The answer put simply, I can't. I guess the best thing to do is to be as blunt and honest as I can possibly muster. This should provide a specifically difficult task, for I typically don't like to paint myself in a vulnerable light nor do I like to show offense to anyone. However, I ask that it is kept in mind that my view expressed through this blog will be an attempt to allow you to experience my life as I see it. I want to express both my reactionary take on the experiences I encounter as well as my reflection on such events. If you are offended by my commentary or appalled by my actions ( mom/mother-in-law) try not to be too haste to judge. I will try to acknowledge my short comings and attempt to correct any poor behavior. That being said I don't plan on living a dull life and will certainly seek to spur the fears and enjoy the thrills that come with great adventure.

Uganda, My New Home (for now)

So it has been a while since I have posted anything up here. I feel as if I have so much catching up to do that I am not sure where to start. As you all can tell by now Samantha is a much more efficient blogger than I ever will be. She has been on me for the past 3 months to get another post up. She has even gone so far as to mention in her posts for you readers to look for my upcoming post about this or that only to find me procrastinating. Sure honey, I'll get that post up this weekend. I feel like a broken record. After my first couple blogs I must admit I had begun to grow a little frustrated with my situation here. After about 2 ½ months with no work and no real prospect of finding any, questions of purpose were wading hard on my mind. Sure, I know that I made the decision to quit my good job with good benefits and a good working environment to come here seeking something exciting. And I must admit there has been plenty of excitement but there has also been quite a bit of uncertainty. Three months with no work or contribution to my family's financial well being I began to grow pretty restless.

However, with all the uncertainty there were some good times had, some milestones achieved, and new opportunities for personal growth finally broke through.

Kenya

Since our last encounter we had the pleasure of celebrating our 1 year wedding anniversary at the end of July.... and we celebrated in “memorable” fashion. Samantha and I took a trip to the eastern coast of Kenya where we lounged on the white sands of Diani Beach. When I say white sands I mean we are talking “Brad white” …. seriously, lets play Where's Willsey

We stayed in a very “rustic” accommodation joint called “Stilts Backpackers.” They have tree-houses and cottages. Ok not actual tree-houses but more like caged lofts with thatched roofs on stilts (hence the name) surrounded by trees. They were nice but very open and windy which made it difficult sleep. We only stayed in these for two nights and spent our remaining time in their nice cottages with en suite bathrooms (these would come in handy before the end of our trip). This place was located across the street from two of neatest venues I had ever entered. Ali-Barbour's Cave Restaurant and Forty-Thieves Beach Bar.

We spent nearly every night in the Forty-Thieves bar that had its entire back open to the beach. Even though it was a slow time of the year and not much activity in the bar at night, Samantha and I basically used it as our very own private beach lounge as there were rarely more than 10 people in the place. One night we even had the DJ play our “first dance” song from our wedding (I had him play it with out her knowing ;) ) we took the dance floor all to ourselves. Then he started playing some more up beat songs and things just got weird...

Us owning the dance floor 

If I had to recommend one thing out of our time here in East Africa, I think at this point it would have to be the Ali-Barbour's Cave Restaurant. It is a bit expensive (over 100 for a 2 person meal here in borderline insanity) but it was hands down the best service we have had since we left the states and possibly the best ever. Oh and did I mention that the underground coral cave that we were eating in has giant gaping hole that opens up to one of the most beautiful starry skies I have ever seen. Long story short if you ever make it to the east coast of Kenya this place should definitely be on your list. Honestly, see for your self...

Ali-Barbour's coral cave restaurant

After all these wonderful memories Samantha and I were making, I was looking for a way round out our anniversary trip with a romantic bang. I had never been to Diani Beach before but of course my wife had. She had told me over and over of the unbelievable lobster beach barbeque that had been thrown by the local fishermen during her first visit here. And I was determined to recreate a similar experience for her on this return trip. The only problem was that I wasn't willing to pay what the local fishermen/beach boy/swindler/crook wanted in order to make us our lobster dinner. However, the price he gave me for fish and octopus with salad and rice was do-able and I jumped at the opportunity. So I set the whole thing up and initially it looked like at hit...

Just enjoying the view on our surf board table.

However, I should have taken one look at the food/who cooked it and ran for it.

Octopus on a stick anyone?

So you know that en suite bathroom I mention earlier.... let just say we became very well acquainted that evening before we left for Uganda the next day. Come to think of it so did the bathroom on the plane and at the airports as well. I guess we'll just chalk it up to a learning experience. All in all Samantha and I had a great time. And we definitely created some memories that will last a life time.

Hunting

For those of you don't know me I grew up on the south-side of Indianapolis. Not quite in the city but close enough to say I'm a “big city boy.” Especially in comparison to my wife who is from Bremen which is your typical small town, Indiana farming community. I have almost no experience when it comes to hunting/fishing. Sure my dad and grandfather took me fishing when I was a kid but most of my fishing was done in two little catch an release bluegill ponds in my neighborhood where I used cut up hotdogs as bait and barely had enough courage to grab hold of the fish after I had hooked it just to throw it back. Not my wife. She guts, scales, and filets her own fish. She has killed and plucked her own chicken. And has even field dressed a recently shot dear (for those of you who don't know what field dressing is look it up, its disgusting). So needless to say my prowess as hunter is almost non-existent and Samantha constantly digs at me for my lack of manliness in these areas (and I'm not gonna lie... it hurts).

So one night while she and I were lounging in our living room watching a movie on one of our computers I got the opportunity to prove my manliness (at least this is how I felt). As we were watching our movie we heard something of a scratching noise behind us and then something on our counter fell over with a crash. As I turned to peak at what had happened Samantha says to me, “Its not a rat is it.” Now my initial thought on this is question was “lie, tell her it was nothing.” But the beady eyed creature lingered too long and she caught her own glimpse of him as he scurried behind our stove.

At this point I had no choice, I new what had to be done. So I ran to my room and grabbed my “hunting gear” and prepared my self for the rumble that was about to ensue....

The Great White Hunter

Now I know by the looks of things in this picture you are undoubtably thinking I have everything under control.... I had no idea what I was going to once got the varmint out from behind the stove. Once I got it to emerge from behind the stove using various advanced scare tactics (like yelling, banging on the oven with my club, and turning the oven on as hot at it would go) I began chasing it around the kitchen and living room swatting at it with my 3 iron and trying to spray it with insect poison to slow it down. I think I had seen something like this before. Finally, it ran into our spare bathroom where I followed and closed the door behind me. Now up to this point I had kind of been hoping that this rodent would have found away out of this hole mess much like Jerry always escapes Tom I wasn't really sure I wanted to do this. However, with my wife standing on the other side of that door screaming “KILL IT” I knew what had to be done. After about 3 minutes of me hopping around like a crazy person and trying to throw a bucket on top of it I finally did it. With what I am assuming sounded like the Tasmanian devil going through our bathroom from the outside, finally I landed the killing stroke.

Pure adrenaline.

I would like to say that I am sorry for posting these grotesque photos but I think you can tell by my face that I was pretty proud of what I had accomplished. Although, I could have sworn that rat was bigger than that. At least in all the stories I have been telling it is. Whether this proves I have that ever so evasive manliness that I had been seeking or not I don't know but I can honestly say that I am the master of my domain.

Birthday

After all the excitement settled with our rat hunt, things around the Willsey house hold quieted down a bit. A few weeks had passed and Samantha and I were a gearing up for an annual event that gets less and less exciting as each year passes. My birthday. Thats right the big 2-9! I certainly don't feel that old and I did receive quite a nice complement from some Ugandan co-workers who thought I was only 19 yrs old. Unfortunately, 29 it is. Being one year away from the 30 and kissing my twenties goodbye I wasn't feeling very celebratory. Lucky for me I have a wonderful wife who pampered me from sun-up to sun-down.

I awoke to the smell of cinnamon rolls in the oven the sound of sizzling bacon frying in a pan. She made this entire spread all for me complete with omelets and mimosas.

Wonderful start to my birthday.

She bought me the new Superman movie and the new Star Trek movie which I watched while she cooked and cleaned.

After laying around the house she took me out one of the better restaurants here in Jinja where we enjoyed wine, cigars, and great food.

Murchison

After all the traveling, hunting, and pampering I had been through over the first three months here in Jinja one thing unfortunately still remained unsolved. Employment. I hadn't gone this long without working since I was hired to bag groceries at Mr. D's when I was 14. So for me to say I was growing a bit restless about our situation here would be an understatement. Some where around mid August I got involved with a company here that crushes up minerals in to powder and sells their product to paint companies and soap companies for the manufacturing of their respective products. Unfortunately, this really didn't pan out as expected. However, it did allow me to get my name out and around the community. I ended up getting referred to the owners of Murchison River Lodge in Murchison Falls National park as they were looking to find someone to cover for them as their reservations manager was due to have a baby in mid-September. After a few brief meetings they decided to bring me on board to fill-in taking their bookings by answering e-mails and phone calls while at the same time handling all their invoicing and payments. As part of my new job, they felt it would be a good idea for me to go up to the lodge to get feel for it in person. Also, to take part in some of the activities there are to offer in Murchison so that I can offer a better perspective to questions I would be receiving. So Samantha and I took full advantage of this opportunity and got to experience Africa in a way that even she had yet to do.

Our first day up there we spent most of our time walking the 22 acre property of the lodge, laying by the pool and enjoying a few adult beverages. The second day was a bit more eventful. Normally when you think of going on safari you think of local drivers guiding you around the park pointing out everything while you just sit back and enjoy the show. Well not us, this time I was our driver and I had no clue were I was going, what to look for, or even what I was doing. But by the end of our drive we had managed to capture quite a few memories.

Samantha getting a better view.

I've got to stop wearing this Purdue shirt in photos.

After our game drive we returned back to the lodge for a quick lunch around 1pm, jumped in the shower for a quick rinse, and were picked up by our boat taxi that took us up to the boat launch for our trip up to the falls. This 3 hour tour didn't land us on an uncharted deserted isle but it provide with few more great photos....

Murchison Falls

As time passes here I continue to feel more comfortable with my surroundings. And now that I have a job that takes up most of my time the days are going by at an alarming rate. Is it really the end of October? Have we really been here for over 4 months? It is pretty wild when I sit back and think about how far I have come in such a short period of time. As we look towards the next four months we are excited about upcoming visits from each of our families and sharing some of these wonderful experiences with them. I just hope they find as much enjoyment about the first trip to Africa as I have and I am sure they will.

Cheer, Cheer for fall

The forgotten blog again. This seems to happen after about 3-4 months of starting something new, it becomes routine. As has life here. After I am in the routine of daily life and work, it's hard to find topics to blog about, or even remember to make a post. I have to remember that normality is relative. Here are some examples of my new normal:

-determining laundry days based on weather

-I can go days without putting shoes on

-Brad's joyous claim that being dirty just makes him look tan

-I give Brad haircuts with little kid scissors (the little rounded tip with colored handles) so he doesn't have to go to one of the hundreds of barber shops with Ludacris's picture as advertisement.

-There are 2 flourishing avocado trees in our backyard

-During a power outage, preparing and cooking a full dinner is possible with the only light coming from my headlamp.

-It's not uncommon to see a baby in a bar

-Kids (and/or Brad) happily ride on the top of a car or bed of a truck

-Traffic being diverged due to goats, cows, or an overturned sugar cane truck. Or simply the road got washed away from the heavy downpour. Or due to moving a house as seen here-->

moving day in Jinja

...and the list goes on

Do I miss Indiana and the good old U.S.A.? You bet. Hourly. Miserably. The parties, the cars, the turning of leaves in fall, the music, the food, grocery stores, barcodes, local sporting events. Practically everything except the monthly phone calls to the cable company, constant discussion of gas prices, and soon to be snow (haha suckers)! Honestly, the homesickness is another reason for lack of a blog post. Some days it's tough to hold back the tears during the school day. A few weeks ago we watched Rudy to kick off the football season, but every time that stupid fight song played it induced automatic tears (not just me either, don't let Brad's manliness fool you). I desperately want to be home to watch Notre Dame games on the back deck at my parents house, help my sister re-decorate her house while her husband watches Nascar, take our brother and soon to be sister-in-law out for a drink to celebrate their engagement, and just be around for the normal happenings in Indiana and family life. But we aren't there, we chose to live in Uganda. We love our simple life here. We can get absolutely anything we need, and the scenery is beautiful! We enjoy “brais” a.k.a. barbecues with friends, our normal weekday 9-5 jobs, hosting big Sunday dinners, buying fresh produce from the market, etcetera. Of course the naked children, the smells, the dust, and the poverty is all around. But that is part of living here. Being understanding of the differences. It's not the U.S.A. (I'll allow Brad to touch on this in his upcoming post before I start a side track rant about NGO's and the like). We have a great life, and are happy with our present circumstances.

Even though it's not fall in Uganda, it's fall in my mind and body. The weather is chilly in the evening and there are frequent discussions about football. Brad even wakes up at 4am some mornings to catch the end of a game, and we watched the opening season kick-off and first touch down of the Notre Dame game. After the last few busy weekends we have had (which is another of Brad's upcoming posts!), I have planned a hermit weekend and look forward to it. We are getting stocked up with movies, choosing the next book to read, expecting a goodie package from home, I will make a big pot of pumpkin chili, bake apple pies, and officially kick off fall! 

~Samantha

Bless the Rain

 Not so sure what Toto meant by their song, but my tone has been a bit of curse rather than praise. When Brad and I returned home from our Kenya anniversary trip, we had the best of intention to start jogging together every morning. We had just discovered a nice dust free, child free, shaded trail near our house and were excited to give it a go! Mother Nature had other plans, by forcing us to stay in bed and drink coffee instead. I suppose the running can wait, and I will enjoy my freshly ground coffee while listening to the sweet mixture of rain drops and bird songs. (Side note-hooray coffee!!! We had been drinking freeze dried instant coffee until we found a coffee machine in Kenya. It was our one souvenir, along with Brads stupid palm leaf hat, we brought home. As for the freshly ground...the package of coffee we bought a couple days ago in town clearly says ground coffee, but when we opened it we found whole coffee beans. So, Brad ground them up with our mortar and pestle. Quite the unexpected process). Anyway, the rain is laughably relentless. Over the past three weeks there has been more rain and colder temperatures, than sunshine. I'm not talking light rain showers either. All out downpours and storms can last for hours upon hours upon hours and hours. Considering our mode of transportation is a motorbike or our own feet and we hang dry our clothes, this rain is quite a nuisance. While I have absolutely no problem staying home cuddled up in blankets drinking tea and reading books, my husband is going crazy. Any concerns you had about the heat and whether or not Brad will have enough sunscreen, you need not be concerned. We are starting to worry if we brought warm enough clothes and regret not bringing Brads sleeping bag as we share mine for now.

Lele's too cool for school

Teaching has been going well. I am beginning to form a good relationship with my four students as our lunch time conversations have become more personal and meaningful. When taking this job, not only was I drawn to the location but also I was very much interested in becoming familiar with different home school curriculum and this home school center all together. The home Brad and I live in is the school for an average of 12 students. The two oldest girls I teach (8^th grade) use an Australian curriculum, the two 6^th graders use an American curriculum, and the younger primary students use an American/Christian based curriculum. However, whatever the curriculum may be, students at this homeschooling center (possibly any home schooled students) have the freedom to explore their talents and interests on a much deeper level, formulate and discus opinions openly without ridicule, work at their own pace and level within the subject matter alongside a personal tutor, be more actively involved in the community, and take frequent trips which in my opinion can often be more educational than reading from a book in a classroom. As I have witnessed the current state of public education in Indiana (yes, there are great teachers and great public schools as well), I am wondering if this idea of a home school center is marketable and I suppose legal. I would love to gather some additional certified teachers and start a school similar to this one in Indiana. Something to look into before we decide to come home...

Next week my students will be on holiday in Kenya, while the primary students return to start the new school year. Downside to living at the school, while I am on holiday the house I live in will be full of children. Since we can't really afford another vacation at the moment, I am trying to come up with projects to keep myself busy. First item on the list is starting a large vegetable garden! It will be wonderful to grow our own veggies as opposed to long trips into town, haggling prices in the market, then trying to avoid bruising all the produce on the bumpy motorbike ride home. Also on the project list is planting a flower bed full of zinnias from home, building a fire pit, sewing new curtains, baking some new recipes, and painting.

Or if Mother Nature decides to clear away this G#(@% blessed rain and allow the sun to shine, I will go to the pool, read books, and drink wine! Ahhh, that sounds good...rain rain go away.....

~Samantha

Searching, Embracing, Learning

I have decided to use this passage from my first post as a constant. It will be used kind of as disclaimer at the beginning of all my posts to remind you of my objective. If you remember it contents you can skip on down.

How can I put in to words the amount of uncertainty and excitement that was flowing through me as I prepared to take what is unquestionably the boldest move I have ever made in my lifetime? The answer put simply, I can't. I guess the best thing to do is to be as blunt and honest I can possibly muster. This should provide a specifically difficult task, for I typically don't like to paint myself in a vulnerable light nor do I like to show offense to anyone. However, I ask that it is kept in mind that my view expressed through this blog will be an attempt to allow you to experience my life as I see it. I want to express both my reactionary take on the experiences I encounter as well as my reflection on such events. If you are offended by my commentary or appalled by my actions ( mom/mother-in-law) try not to be too haste to judge. I will try to acknowledge my short comings and attempt to correct any poor behavior. That being said I don't plan on living a dull life and will certainly seek to spur the fears and enjoy the thrills that come with great adventure.

Searching

It has been about 1 month since we have arrived in Jinja. I have had a pretty good dose of what life will be like for Samantha and I for the foreseeable future here. I have been out of work now for over a month and the retirement party my former co-workers threw for me, in jest, is starting to feel a bit more like reality. I wake up most mornings before the break of dawn for no reason other than I can't sleep. I have a weekly golf game with a group of guys who in majaority are over the age of 60. We only play 9 holes because “we” can't stay out in the heat during the peak of the day or we are in hurry to get to the bar (in actuality we have spent more time at the bar than on the course, talking local politics and weather). I have almost settled into a daily routine in which I get up, have a cup of coffee and do my honey-do chores (dishes,laundry, trips to the market for groceries) before lunch. Then I'll read my book (aka nap) only wake up to Samantha trying to convince me do a work out with her. As the days pass I find myself wanting dinner earlier and earlier and typically wind up in bed by 7:30 or 8:00 (granted it gets pitch black dark by 7:00pm). Boredom definitely creeps up on me from time to time but then I just look out my window and remember that I live in a house overlooking the Nile. With that being said I do have some leads on a couple good positions that are available and I am hoping for some good news shortly. Until then, I'll continue to manage some more days of my early taste of retirement and just keep searching.

Embracing

Ok so it hasn't been all laying around, playing golf with my cronies, and drinking umbrella drinks, although much to Samantha's displeasure I have made my best attempt at times to enact any character sang about in any Jimmy Buffet song (drinking, singing, laying in the sun.... you get the idea). I actually was able to experience something scary, sad, uplifting and joyful all at the same time. Samantha has been wanting to visit a local orphanage since we knew we were heading to Uganda. She has been to orphanages before and experienced the ebbs and flows of emotions that such places can bring. I have to admit, I had never been to an orphanage before and I had really never wanted to go to one. Call it selfish. Call it heartless. Call it ignorance. Really, call it whatever you want. Some, if not all are probably partially true. For me, I think of it as couple things. One, it has always seemed like a scary and sad place to be (and undoubtably it is) and the closer we came to going, the more nervous and anxious I became. Honestly, those emotions never left me the entire time I was there and that isn't necessarily a bad thing. Secondly, I just have never really felt I would make a significant difference for kids in these situations that have had a rough start (to put it very lightly) to their lives. Sure I've heard all the sayings, “Every little bit helps”... “You never know til you try” … “Just lend a helping hand” … and on and on. Certainly all of those sayings apply and are right on. But more importantly for me, maybe I was focusing too much on the big picture. Certainly creating a stable and sustainable environment for these kids is very important. But putting a smile on their face, playing with them and even just listening to them brought me joy (all of these kids were younger than 6, so at times listening to them was actually the best part). Even still I can't act like either of those reservations have changed completely with this one experience. However, I do have a new perspective on embracing the small things to help those working towards the big things. This particular orphanage is called Amani Baby Cottage. It is located here in Jinja, Uganda. If you click on the link above you can read more about their efforts.

This little guy stole my hat (and a piece of my heart) and was all smiles while we were there. His name is Paul.

Brad and Paul

This little girl got Samantha's attention most of the morning ( I sent this photo to our parents, but quickly let them know we are not planning on taking any of them home, sorry no grandkids yet).

Samantha and Jane

Samantha said this was one of the nicest orphanages she had ever been to. It was very nice (and clean) and there were a good number of local Ugandan men and women there as well as expat volunteers looking after and playing with the kids, (currently 59 of them) all of which seemed to be in good spirits. Samantha and I spent the morning there and left around lunch time. Today we shared our experience with kids at Samantha's school. The students seem very intrigued with our trip and would like to visit ABC themselves. Samantha is encouraging her students to create some activities and programs that they can contribute to the orphanage's efforts.

inside play area

playground dedicated to Sandy Hook

Kids Cottage and volunteer housing

Learning

For every experience that makes me feel enlightened and enriched here there is another that make you feel lost and alone. You may think that I am referring to things like being homesick, not having my own mode of transport, or a large change in my normal cuisine choices as the reasons for my feelings of despair. While I do miss my friends and family, would love to have my own car (even if it was a 2002 Accord), and could go on Taco Bell binge at any given moment I am afraid none of those have affected me in this instance. For those of you who don't know me I love sports. Even though I am not much of an athlete, I enjoy being an athletic supporter (yes that was a joke). Over much of my life, I have spent far to many hours scouring the internet for sports news, watching sports TV for highlights, and listening to all the local and national sports radio “wise guys” debating on whether the color of an athletes chewing gum has an underlying meaning. For years (in my wife's eyes far too many years) I worked behind bar serving food and drink while I discussed any story, strategy, theory, and even conspiracy that related to any relevant sport followed by the greater American public, including soccer (or futbol as I now know it, if I'm referring to football I have to say “American Football” other wise I'm the idiot... I know right). I have always taken great pride in my knowledge of the games and athletes that dominate the American sports world. Unfortunately, relatively none of those sports are a topic of discussion here. Its all about Rugby and Cricket. Where talks of “Overs” have got me feeling under and mentions of “Scrums” have me looking to avoid flying fist. I don't know anything about either sport or their athletes and the more I look into either one the more I long for “American Football” and Baseball. I am not giving up yet but man do I have I lot of learning ahead.

Everything considered, I adjusting to this life the best I can. I can pretend it has been easy because at times it has been maddening. I am lucky to have Samantha here to help me along the way and I am trying not to cause her to pull all of her hair out in the mean time. So, whether I'm embracing something new, making myself learn something that I don't have any particular interest in, or searching for something but having no idea what that something looks, feels, sounds, or tastes like, I have to continue to rely on those around me for help and the knowledge I have acquired through life experience. Even if it hasn't been easy up to this point, it has been fun. For me, that will do for now.

Brad  

Brian and Sum

It seems that the Luganda language lacks the whiny short A sound and both of our names in their vocabulary. 99% of the time when we introduce ourselves, people repeat back Brian and Sum. We don't make corrections anymore, and now even answer to these names when being greeted.

A few weeks back we were discussing the good and bad of our new lives, and I was slightly discouraged by the lack of Ugandan people/children we interact with. God must have tuned in to our conversation because the very next day the children appeared in our yard...now we are cursed. There are about 15 children that live close. We pass their houses and families when walk out to the main road, and are slowly learning their names. One boy, Emanuel or Emma for short, is about 13 years old and speaks fairly decent English. He really likes “Brian” and will always ask for him if he sees me. I think Brad is really enjoying getting know the kids and play with them as well. I imagine this new relationship with Emanuel could turn into something very special. 

We have really been enjoying all of the tropical/exotic birds we have in our backyard. This morning we watched 2 African gray parrots playing and talking to each other. They all have interesting noises, and birds are always entertaining to watch. Please enjoy the short video I recorded (today's moment in nature). If you listen carefully you can hear the parrots and a horn bill (the "laughing" bird).   

African gray parrot

horn bill

 

 

As we are quickly approaching our one year anniversary, we have made plans to go to Diani beach in Kenya! I can't wait to relax on the beach and celebrate how wonderful the past year has been.

We are still anxiously awaiting an employment opportunity for Brad. We remain confident that our patience will be rewarded. 

I have had requests for our mailing address. Debbie has offered to let us use her PO Box. 

Brad and Samantha Willsey

PO Box 1600

Jinja, Uganda

Please send a little love and we are happy to write back!

~Samantha