[Uganda] Day 2: Village of Hope

​I could say all the cliché things about how we woke up and heard the rooster screaming and the birds chirping, but this trip and this day was everything BUT cliché. The day started off with the epic realisation about where we were. I’m not particularly a morning person but this morning felt a little different, you know, being half-way across the world, sleeping on bunk beds, under the mosquito nets and all that. We began the first activity and my personal favourite activity, breakfast. Juliet, the manager of Suubi House, had made us traditional chapatti and rolexes, which yes, I went back for seconds for.
 
Sitting around the table and sharing a meal with everyone was wholesome, in some way like they were your family who you’ve known every day. After breakfast, we went straight into morning devotional. This morning’s chapter in the book of Mark had discussed the topic and meaning of expectations, where Jesus was painted as someone who didn’t need to follow expectations to be valued or respected. The idea of expectations that others place on us as people really presented itself throughout the day, with our visit to both the Village of Hope and Jinja Christian School.
 
The Village of Hope not only defined and justified the meaning of expectations but also defied it. While people expect the women to cook and clean and look after the kids, it’s not expected to see such women, who have been through it all to still want to love and care for children who they don’t know as their own. I spoke to one of the women who cares for house 10, Mama Monica, and as we sat and peeled vegetables, it was easy to feel the radiating love and warmth from her. The way she described the 8 children in her care, were as if she had actually birthed them all herself. No one expects these women to love and care with so much passion, but there it was with a smile on her face and Elizabeth the baby on her lap.
 
Our next stop, after lunch of course, was the primary school. We walked through the tiniest gate into a courtyard where you immediately hear the singing of all the children. The excitement in their voices made you feel so welcomed and eager to get involved. We were greeted and introduced to the headmaster of the school who welcome us and took us around to the classrooms, where the children greeted us with songs and dance. I was taken back by how involved each of the children were to perform and learn our names…you really couldn’t help but smile. The second class however, presented us with a performance on the topic of AIDS. As beautiful and sweet as their performance was, you were conflicted by thoughts of realisation. These children were really singing about a disease that kills every day and suddenly you realise how real it is for them. Overall the experience of the school was moving.
 
The last legs of the day were all but dull. Backyard cricket was definitely a highlight but what really topped it off was the comfort and the enjoyment of being around each other. Back home we forget that there’s life beyond the snapchat and Instagram posts and there’s beauty in just living in the moment. This trip so far is something else. Not just an experience but an insight into a world that is just as beautiful as it is simple. This is Africa.
 

• Jo

Ps.  Janet sightings tallied up to 5.