What I did on my summer vacation

And it’s time to get back into the swing of blogging.  I’ve had a wonderful time in the US:

Working:  I was able to return to the same project team as last year’s semester break, which was wonderful to be able to reconnect with old friends, make new ones, and (somewhat) have an idea of what was going on when I arrived.

Working part two:  at school, we have Sunday placement (field work) assignments; I am placed with the cathedral that’s right outside one of the campus gates.  On holiday, we have block placement (field work) assignments; I spent my holiday with the wonderful people at Christ Our Lord Anglican church.  What a fabulous experience that was!  I knew the rector and his family from when we were all at All Saints’ lo those many years ago.  That, combined with how warm and welcoming the congregation is, made it a terrific assignment.  And no one threw anything at me when I preached.  Well, they don’t throw anything in Uganda either, but you get the drift. 

Playing:  this is something that I generally don’t do too well, but I did have fun reconnecting with people.  I went to New York City on Dec. 28 to spend the day with a friend from college, and yes, was slightly inconvenienced by the snow.  But God is good, and I got to take the train for my return trip, making it a plane, train, and automobile day.

Reading:  Though I had plenty of reading to do for my dissertation, I did manage to get in some pleasure reading.  I managed to devour the new Jan Karon novel pretty quickly, so if anyone else has finished it, please let me know – I’d love to hear your thoughts!  I’m now obsessed with The Pioneer Woman’s blog.  I know I’m behind that power curve, but hey.  I live in Africa.  I’d love to write like her, cook like her (and no, I really don't cook, but she inspires me!)… that chick is a riot.  Oooh, and I'd love to make my blog look that great.  I know she's got some help, but still.  That's way cool.

And now we’re heading back to the grind.  I’ve heard we’re to have six classes, along with finishing our dissertations, and writing a paper with a theological reflection on our block placement time.  We were told we’d have five classes due to those last two pesky items, so we are not amused.    In the least.  I do know that we have one lecturer for two classes, and I’m looking forward to how he’ll approach them.

I only have a two-hour layover in Amsterdam, so that’s just enough time to confirm my seat on the second leg, take a shower, possibly find some food, and head to the gate.  Sandra, the other American student, will pick me from the airport on Sunday, and presumably I’ll stay with her until Wednesday or so, when registration begins.  I’ll let you know when I land.  We’ll be a fine kettle of fish; Sandra’s been in the US also, and she’ll be arriving in Uganda a day before me.  She’s a brave little toaster for coming to pick me from the airport.  

Results from last semester

I'm amazed that when I'm in the US, I don't think I have much to say here, but when I'm in Uganda, I seem to get awfully chatty.  But my friend Amos sent my grades (some time ago, actually), and I finally realized that I needed to post them before I got back to school and starting talking about stuff there and forgot.

Once again, my grades are further proof of 1. God in general, and 2. His goodness.  Results are as follows, and here is the grading scheme:

Systematic Theology: 83 (to quote Jan Karon, this ranks right up there with the Red Sea incident)
Biblical Interpretation: 81
Christian Communications, Homiletics, and Preaching: 75 (I'm disappointed in this one)
Old Testament Prophets: 74 (I must not have done as well on the exam, because I thought my grade was pretty good going into the test)
Gospels and Acts: 80
Greek: 75 (I didn't do as well on the exam, which I can explain in detail, but had like a 90 or 92 going into the exam.  If I had only thought to memorize the homework we'd done, I could have kept it.)

GPA: 4.70; cumulative GPA 4.6(ish).  

Sighing the happy sigh of one who knows she is carried by grace.

Amsterdam, showers, internet, oh my!

Here I am in Amsterdam again, so grateful for both their showers and internet spots.  I had internet access at Sandra's, but she now has to pay by the amount of data she downloads, so I didn't like to do too much online.  Except when we were testing her Skype connection.  But that was different.

Going to stay with Sandra was a very good thing, after the emotionally violent exit from UCU.  We were actually pretty busy running around doing various things, which helped keep my mind occupied.  We went back to UCU on Friday morning, and I got to see a number of my friends again, which was fabulous.

Otherwise, it's uneventful, sitting here, waiting for my flight.  I really, REALLY wish I could sleep on a plane.  I dozed a little in the airport, but now it's getting busy, so that's gone.  And after being gone for eight months, can you believe that there were only two movies in the entire KLM library I was interested in seeing, and one I've already seen?!  That's probably just as well, as the earphones hurt my ears.  I might have to try using my earbuds.

Passport, visa, new bed

I now have my passport in my hot little hands - praise God!  Edgar called me last night around 8 to tell me to get it in the morning.

I also have a new bed for the remainder of my time in Uganda.  The Church of Uganda Provincial Assembly meets every other year, at UCU.  They are meeting this year, and we learned last night at 11 that we needed to vacate.  Nice.  Thankfully, Sandra (the other American student) offered to host me at her house before I even knew I needed to come, so God has been very gracious.  Now I just need to pack...

Don't know that I'll have internet access until I get to Amsterdam, so until then, God bless!

Finished!

The semester is officially over!  Just finished my last exam, though it was a bit, um, tough.  I asked the lecturer for grace when marking.  She laughed.  I was serious.

But on a lighter note, I saw Professor Byaruhanga yesterday, and he told me that he told my bishop that I'm doing well.  I told him I was grateful, and asked whether that was before or after he marked my paper (exam).  He explained, "After, of course.  If it was before, I would have told him you were doing terrible!"  How nice of him to put things in perspective for me!

Which reminds me, my bishop and his wife are here!  Bp. John Guernsey is here teaching a class with the Doctorate of Ministry students, then they are staying for a bit.  It's been fabulous to spend time with Bp. John and Meg.  During exams, the lecturers lead the chapel services, but since Bp. John was preaching and celebrating Sunday evening, Canon Moses asked me to vest and take the readings.  What a joy to get to vest and serve with my bishop!

Passport update

Edgar, my newest bestest friend, called to see when I'm leaving.  The answer is in a week.  I had hoped he was calling to say that he had my passport.

Sadly, that's not the case.  He was just confirming my departure date.  Turns out that there's a committee that meets to review the student visa applications, and they only meet on Wednesdays.  Except that this Wednesday was a public holiday, as a former president had passed away.  The guy who handles these things won't be in the office Monday.  Not sure about Tuesday.

Edgar assures me he's working this "around the clock."  I'll testify to that; he sent me a text at 11 pm one night, asking me to bring my passport fee in the morning.  


Please keep praying!

Pain, anguish, and gnashing of teeth

Naturally, I'm talking about exams.  By God's grace, they're half over, and today I get to read.  And read some more.  Then read.  : )    The BD III class has a marathon exam schedule Tuesday-Saturday.  Ugh.

But yesterday was the Systematic Theology exam (they're called papers here), which was rather tragic.  He had given us ten questions to read, told us he would pose six, and we would answer four.  Fair enough - we usually choose four out of eight.  None of us guessed that ALL TEN would be there.  Two questions stood on their own, and the others were written with parts a. and b. Ai-yi-yi-yi-yi.  Naturally, there were questions that I really didn't focus on that I was forced to answer.  Naturally, there were small things that escaped my head.  For example, I remember the six heresies that contributed to the Chalcedonian Settlement of 451.  I can tell you about two of them really well, and hint at another.  The other three escaped.  I hate when that happens.

Yes, I'm laying the foundation for a potential apology for the GPA/class grade nose dive.  However, there is a glimmer of hope.  Today Professor Byaruhanga told me that he thinks I got 57 out of 60 on the coursework.  Praise God for that - I'll need those points to offset the exam.  

Signs of the times...

I think an indicator that it's about time to return to the US is when you can't remember whether you've taken your malaria medication.  This has been a disturbing trend of late.

I had thought of a couple other indicators, but they've vacated my head.  I wish I could say that I'm using that precious mental space for things like OT Prophets and Systematic Theology and Greek, but as they say here, "we're trying."  I'd volunteer that I'm trying my level best, but honestly, I'm just tired.

And I'll leave Uganda on 20 Aug, returning to the US on 21 Aug.  That is, assuming that the nice people at Immigration finish processing my student visa and return my passport by then.  My newest bestest friend, Edgar, is spearheading the effort on behalf of all the international students.  He keeps saying that "it's no problem."  I told Canon Sunday (from Nigeria; he's leaving the Monday before me) that it's only no problem when we're holding our passports.  Until then, it remains a problem.

Please pray that all goes well on the visa/passport front.  I don't know how to tell KLM that I need to reschedule a flight, but not have another date to request.  Please also pray for those pesky exams.  I know I get worked up about them, but this semester, they seem more ominous.

Exam schedule

The final exam schedule is as follows:
Monday 9 Aug: Old Testament Prophets 2-5
Tuesday 10 Aug: Homiletics, Preaching, and Christian Communication 9-12
Wednesday 11 Aug:  Systematic Theology 9-12
Friday 13 Aug: Biblical Interpretation 2-5
Monday 16 Aug: Gospels and Acts 2-5
Tuesday 17 Aug: Greek 9-12

My major concern is that there is no break prior to Systematic Theology, and that it's the last in the three-day exam bing.  At least the exam the day before is also at 9; I really dislike going from an exam at 2 to an exam at 9.  Like we have to do twice.

Then all my friends will leave on Wednesday, 18 Aug, and I leave on Friday, 20 Aug.  I should probably secure transport to the airport...

More sad news

I've been delayed posting this because the internet has not been my friend, even with my snazzy 3G modem (bunny trail:  one reviewer of mobile phones with 3G capability wrote "who needs 3G in Uganda?"  Ummm... the Americans do).  Nor has time been my friend, and getting the two together has been challenging.

The bishop of Mukono's wife passed away suddenly Monday night (I'm posted to the Mukono cathedral).  He's preparing to retire in September, and his daughter is marrying in August.  There was a vigil at his house last night.  I attended the funeral service today (in Luganda).  The burial service will be tomorrow, and the Archbishop will be attending.  I attended the service today, so I will not attend tomorrow, and instead will try to finish my systematic theology paper.


Please pray for Bishop Kizito and his family.  As they say here, I am because you are, so what affects you affects me.  We are all hurting.

Pretty new money

About a month ago, the Bank of Uganda introduced new currency; it’s so pretty, and I actually had one of each bill, I had to show it off.  The old currency is still floating around; I’ve noticed that some shopkeepers apologize when they give it to me.  In addition to being pretty, it has new security measures, and the bills are a bit smaller, so they fit in my wallet better.

The color schemes for the denominations are still the same – people are surprised when I tell them that our money is 1. all the same size and 2. all the same color.  There are explanations for the designs, but the reverse of each bill (shown on the 1,000 bill; I know it's probably difficult to see) displays the map of Uganda along with a different agricultural image.

Here, 50,000 shillings is indeed a lot of money.  Talking about things in the thousands skews the perspective a bit – the exchange rate floats around 2,000 shillings to the USD, so the 50K is about the equivalent to $25.  I will say that I love seeing my bank balance in shillings.   : )

Musings on the future

Let me start by saying that I've enjoyed my Systematic Theology class.  I'm seriously dreading the exam though, because Professor Byaruhanga is one of those people who has the gift of conveying complicated ideas clearly and easily, which is a great skill for a lecturer to have.  But I know it's anything but easy.  

So I'm dawdling on the paper; I enjoy the topic, but am just dragging my feet.  And since I'm (only) halfway through with this degree, I start thinking about pursuing a doctorate.  Seriously.  In practical theology.  I've never wanted a doctorate before, but then again, I never wanted to come to Africa before, either.  

I spent a few minutes this afternoon trying to see what schools even offer the degree; it's a rather elite group.  And yes, that includes multiple continents.  We shall see where this goes!

Source of the Nile

On Saturday, the international theologians went to Jinja (about 60 kilometers east of Mukono) to visit the Source of the Nile.  Before coming here, I had no idea that the Nile originated all the way down here in Uganda.  It takes, what, three months for the water to flow from the source to the Mediterranean?  We spent a few minutes down at the banks, and would have taken the boat tour except the tour guide saw the two bzungu (plural of mzungu, which I’ve been misspelling), and hiked the price enormously.  It should have cost about 20,000 shillings ($10), but he was asking 60,000 ($30).  So we walked away in protest, as my friend Amos would say.  But not before my friend, Rev. Haron, asked if I knew how to swim.  As we were standing on the dock.  I do, but I also made it clear that there would be no swimming demonstrations.

We took a group photo with the marker (memorial?) about Gandhi’s ashes being scattered in the Nile, which surprised me; I’d’ve thought they’d be in the Ganges (need to do research on that one - perhaps it was just some of them?).  We took photos of each other on the banks of the Nile, and standing in the middle of the river.  I’m sure there’s a joke about a bunch of clergy standing in the middle of a river just waiting to be written… but we’re Anglicans.  Would be WAY more funny if we were Baptists, yes?

There’s a memorial obelisk on the west bank of the Nile, marking where Speke first viewed the falls (that were submerged when the dam was built) and “made them known to the world.”  Well, clearly, all Africans knew the Nile was here.  And we know exactly where he stood?

Then we went to Rev. Omona’s wife’s house, about 50 kilometers away.  She teaches at a school there, and it’s rather common for couples/families to work apart, and maintain homes in both places.  In the seven or so years they’ve been married, they’ve never been together consecutively for more than three weeks.  Wow.  They have three kids, and some stay with her, some with him.  Their daughter, Ruth (age 2) decided that she wanted to come stay with Daddy, so we brought her back.  It was a long, though fun, day.  And somehow, my assignments were still waiting on my desk.  Hmph.

Primer for Ugandan English

Yes, I'm procrastinating again.  But yesterday was a long day (see below), and I did finish one small assignment.

I'll try to get back into American English, but this may be helpful.  : )

I saw a link to this explanation of Ugandan English, and though it desperately needs an editor, its explanations are helpful.  I don't necessarily agree with all the phonetic stuff at the top (though some of it is certainly true, but I think it's painting with an overly broad brush), but I learned a bit.  For example, I always thought "to slope" was to go downhill.  Now that I know it can mean to go a particular direction, some directions that I thought were poor (and took me away from my destination) now make sense.  And neither of us thought to clarify "to slope" when discussing the merits of said directions.

Most of these I knew, but seeing the origin of "bouncing" and being "fake" is helpful.  One of my friends told me that the copiers at the library are fake.  They are hideous, and the quality is horrible.  So they're fake.  Some of my classmates saw me coming out of the dining hall, and said, "well done!"  I had to ask them what they meant.  They assume that when they see you, you've done something, so they congratulate you.  That is SO not American.

Goin' to another cathedral

Yesterday, the new bishop of Ankole (in the western part of Uganda) was consecrated and enthroned.  Previously, he had been the dean of education at UCU, while the Ankole folks would have attended anyhow, due to Bp. Sheldon's relationship here, oodles of people went.  We filled the big tour bus, the smaller Guild coaster (reminds me of the little hotel shuttle-type buses, but less comfortable), and then there were the other people who traveled in advance.



I went in the smaller, uncomfortable Guild bus because 1. the big bus was mostly filled with faculty, and 2. I didn't know we were going, and 3. really hadn't planned to attend until I was invited.  My initial reaction was that I didn't have time, but realized that this would be a good thing to do.



I reckon it was a good thing.  Truly.  We left UCU at 4:30 am (we were delayed about 30 minutes), and returned about 10:30 pm.  We arrived at St. James Cathedral, Mbarara (where Bp. John Guernsey was consecrated, I believe) about 10 am; we had a flat tire on the way, and had to stop and change it.  The good news is that the road to Mbarara has been paved (in large chunks; much of it is still in dire need of TLC since I traveled it about 18 months ago), so we were able to travel at good speed.



So, with the tire delay, it took 5.5 hours to get there.  We got stuck in a bad jam returning to Kampala that night, and that journey took about six hours.  We were a mite bit late, but we left the service during speeches to have lunch so we could leave.  We had lunch at 4, and it was over at 4:30.  Yes, the service started at 9 (I think), and ended around 4:30.  The speeches would have gone on longer had it not been late and people starving.  And hot.  



We knew that the president was coming, so I didn't bother taking my camera.  We had to pass through metal detectors again to go sit in the open-air tents.  It was a lovely, though incredibly long, service.  Today I asked someone what took so long.  I mean, I was there, but in my American mind, I'm still struggling to reconcile the time.  But I tend to forget about things like the song presentations, so that helps explain it.  The response I got was that "it would be un-African to have a consecration in two or three hours," and that's about right.  The president spoke for about 30 minutes (in Ankole; I have no idea what he said), and at the end, presented Bp. Sheldon with a car, which from what I gather, is his practice.  Not bad!



(Tiny bit after original posting)  I just realized that this could read somewhat negative.  It really was a lovely service, just lengthy.  And the journey was lengthy.  This was my first consecration, so I have nothing to which to compare, but there was such joy, and yet gravity, in what was happening.  The bishop has such a great responsibility in guarding the faith and caring for the flock, and I appreciate the solemnity with which this is approached.  And you should have heard the crowd when the Bishop Sheldon sat on his bishop's chair!  Wow!  Such excitement!  

Mosquito wars

My mom recently forwarded me an email from my aunt that said that spraying Listerine around an area where you will be is a mosquito deterrent.  I have no idea why - perhaps they don't like the alcohol.  To apply for say, a room, one should apply to the door frame, not the wood door itself (again not sure; perhaps to not damage the door?).  The email claims that praying Listerine on a wood deck prevented mosquitoes from ruining an otherwise fabulous summer evening.

I had no idea that I would find Listerine in Uganda.  I had to go to the 'nicer' supermarket in town, but there it was.  I spent an obscene sum of money for 250 mL of the green stuff, and I don't know how often one should apply this for those of us who live in mosquito-infested places, but I'm game.  I'm also not certain whether it works, though the hall has a nice, minty fresh scent after I apply it to the doorframe.  I will say that I'm now more likely to leave my door open during the twilight hours than I was previously, but once it's dark, I'm still closing up shop.

Noooooooo...

My laptop's hard drive started making unhappy crunching noises this morning.  We have one more week (one!), and several assignments due.  Please, PLEASE God, keep this thing going!  Most critical information backed up, but I'm still interceding for this piece of hardware like you can't believe.

Continued vigilance

Mom - all is fine. 

I just received another message from the State Department, urging everyone to maintain vigilance in and around Kampala.  Ugandan authorities believe the perpetrators of the bombings on Sunday are still at large.  The African Union Summit going on next week, and they (the collective they, not just the State Department) are urging everyone to avoid large crowds, keep alert, etc.

Obviously, this has repercussions... large crowds gather at churches, for example.  And many churches here are large.  There is a consecration in Ankole on Sunday, about a five hour drive west of here.  The Church of Uganda Provincial Assembly is in August, as is the All Africa Bishop's Conference.  

Please continue to pray for safety.  Both the police and the army have been on campus a bit, and were at graduation.  I just learned that there had been a specific threat made against graduation, which explains why there were so many police there, and why one of them was so nasty to us - he was so incredibly tense.  Uganda is no stranger to war, though the younger generation is learning, but I think the terrorist threat from the outside is something that many are struggling to comprehend.  Amin's days were long ago.

Cleaning vestments

I will be the first to admit that I do not enjoy doing wash (laundry) here.  It’s all done by hand, in a bucket, then dried on the line.  It’s worse in the rainy season when you’re dodging rain, and since the weather changes so quickly here, it’s always a gamble.

My alb (long, white robe) has gotten a bit dirty, especially on the bottom hem.  It’s rather difficult to get it on and off without it touching the ground, and despite frequent cleanings, you can always count on the floor being dusty (dirt dust, not dust dust).  My cincture rope is long enough that it comes about to my ankles, so it has a habit of hitting the ground too.  And I dropped it one day walking back from the cathedral… that was before I had a better carrying methodology.  But it needed a bath too.

So I just soaked the alb and rope, scrubbed the hem with a brush, and got the dirt off.  I’m a bit more leery of the cincture, since I don’t remember where all the dirt patches are.  I’m reluctant to scrub it too much, for fear of fraying the rope a bit.  Both are now soaking in Jik (bleach – the brand name, similar to Clorox).  Then I’ll rinse again, and put out to dry.

How long do you think it will take the rope to dry?  I mean, you can’t really wring out a rope too much.  I’m thinking at least two days.  Sheesh.  I’m going to the consecration in Ankole on Sunday, so I don’t need the vestments, hence the washing on Thursday.  I’ve been meaning to do this for a couple weeks, but I think of it on Thursday, then I fear the rope won’t be dry, so I have to wait, thinking I’ll do it on Monday, but then I forget.

Oh my – then I'll have to iron that puppy.  Gads.  We generally use our beds as an ironing board, though that’s part of the purpose of the counter in the bathroom area – but the counter is concrete, so you have to use a towel as a buffer.  I’m going to hug my washing machine when I get back, just like last year.

Graduation 2010

For some reason, UCU graduations occur on Friday.  This term, it was 10 July.  I think it’s to allow for travel time and parties (I’ve been told that, though in a different order).  There were 984 graduates this term, so this is a preview of how my graduation will be next year.  The October and January graduations are smaller. 

Between the elevation and the circus-like tents, for a minute I felt like I was at Denver International Airport.  I actually would have preferred to take the day to work on assignments, but the social repercussions from that would have been lethal.  Additionally, as one of the girls pointed out, we needed to see what colors the hoods are so we know how to dress next year when it’s our turn to graduate.  The hoods for theology are hot pink – LOVE it!

It’s an ambitious schedule.  Ostensibly, things start at 8:30.  Really, they started at 10, and we were done just before 1.  Not bad, especially considering that the Vice Chancellor spoke, then the Chancellor (the Archbishop) spoke, then the speech from the guest of honor was read – he was ill, and could not travel.  Then all 984 names were read, by faculty, and they came forward to have their diploma or degree conferred as a group. 

So, for being out in the sun for almost four hours, I really didn’t get that much of a sunburn (thank you Neutrogena sunblock!), but did have a vicious headache that persisted most of the day.  Yeah, not the brightest choice (no pun intended, though it works), but it was either sit in the shade and see nothing, or sit in the sun and see our friends. 

Then we had a lunch to celebrate the international graduates in the theology department.  I made a new friend – she’s Joyce, the daughter of someone who is a friend of one of the Kenyan graduates.  The close-up photo is on my desktop.  She’s a doll.  Her mom called me on Saturday, and Joyce said hello, and asked when I’m coming to visit.  As for the picture of the kids playing with the tire on the football pitch [field], no, I don’t know what a tire was doing there.  It was certainly entertaining for them, though.

Sunday, I was invited to a thanksgiving service/party for the now-Rev. Andrew.  So I got explicit instructions for taking the taxis into Kampala.  As an aside, if I have to take a boda down to town, I’m learning how to ensure that I don’t get overcharged… always ask how much it is for the ride BEFORE going.  When they say “one thousand,” (fifty cents), I say, “you people!  Why are you charging me the muzungu price?  I live here!”  75% of the time (I’ve only done this four times) they relent and say “how much,” to which I answer “500” (twenty-five cents), and they’ll say “you sit.”  Victory!  But when you see the picture of Esther sitting on one the way women have to ride, you see why it’s not my favorite mode of transportation.

I still don’t enjoy taking taxis into Kampala, but am adjusting to how the system works.  When I arrived, the sermon was still in full swing.  Naturally, it was in Luganda.  When it was Andrew’s turn to speak, he asked different groups to stand (family, friends from home, UCU, etc.).  Then he made a point of introducing me, and said that I don’t speak Luganda, but would make a speech later.  What?!

So, we moved outside for the party, eventually had lunch, and more speeches (still in Luganda, of course).  Things went on long enough that we left before I had to give my speech.  Drat.  During the service, I had made another little friend; her picture is included.  She was walking around while the UCU group was making our speech, so I was holding her, then later asked her mom to take a picture of us.

Sara Muhima said that she’d throw a graduation party for me next year.  I’m going to do my best to keep the speeches to a minimum.  : )  Oh – in the graduation pictures, Jennifer is the one who named me the flower.

Two days after

Today I learned that some UCU alumni were killed in the blasts on Sunday; they were Mass Communication students with my classmate Amos.  Burial should be in the today-tomorrow time frame.  The New Vision (one of the papers) is reporting 74 dead (14 foreigners, which includes 1 American), and at least 57 injured.  Please continue to pray for comfort and healing for the victims and their families.  President Museveni has declared a week of mourning.


Since we're outside Kampala, things feel a bit surreal here, though it's close enough to be real.  A couple students have asked me if the bombings scared me; not really.  September 11 was much worse.  Apparently, the FBI has arrived to help with the investigation.  They must've boarded the plane to Entebbe right after the news broke.


Collateral damage from the blasts is that the internet fiber optic cable was damaged, so internet availability is less than normal.  I don't know which cable and how severe the damage is; I received a text from Orange, since I have their modem.  I'm grateful that communication is still possible, even if it's impaired.

The day after

I’m sure more details will continue to unfold as time goes on, and you’re probably more informed than I am, that this attack was a response to Uganda's involvement in the African Union forces in Somalia (Burundi is the other country, I believe).  

When I went to supper on Monday, they were showing the NTV newscast, this one in Luganda (the 9pm news is in English).  They were displaying lists of people who had been hurt in the bombings and taken to the hospital, and had video of the queue at the mortuary to identify bodies.  It seemed like such a long line – it broke my heart.  The coverage seemed so different from what we would have had in the States.  I've had a general feeling that Africans are much more pragmatic about death than we are, and thus far, that’s being reinforced.  The president visited one of the blast sites, and his televised comments were along the lines of "this is an act of cowardice; if they want to fight, let's fight."  Someone laughed and said that he still sounded like a soldier.

Please continue to pray for the families of those who were killed, and healing for those injured.  My friend Tom lives about two miles from one of the bombing sites as the crow flies, and he heard the blast.  His brother lost a friend in the attack, and I have other friends who either were supposed to be at one of the clubs but wasn’t, or who have friends who were there and escaped uninjured. 

I don’t feel unsafe, nor have I heard anyone say that they do, even from my classmates who are from or stay in Kampala.  For that, and many other things, I’m grateful.

World Cup finale

First:  I'm fine.  I'm pretty sure my friends are fine.

You probably heard about the bombings in Kampala before I did.  The Embassy had sent a "go home if you're out" email about 11 pm last night, but it had no details (and I was asleep).

Please pray for peace and safety and wisdom for the investigators; I have many friends in Kampala, though I don't get there often.

Lessons learned

Right now, I feel like living proof of the adage that the Lord looks after fools and little children.  And since I’m not a little child…

Last week, I received the worship schedule for the cathedral.  It lists the readings, themes for the sermons (Dr. Kalengyo, my Homiletics lecturer, would not be amused at that one, but at least the readings seem to be chosen with that in mind), who is leading each service, and the preacher.  I scanned the preacher column, and not seeing my name, said a prayer of thanks.  We’re in the home stretch of the semester, and with too much to, I’m grateful not to add a sermon to my to-do list. 

Except that I was just looking at the readings for Sunday.  Then I was looking at the column for who is leading the services.  I’m scheduled to lead the English service on 1 August.  I’m so, so, SO glad to have seen this so I can make notes during the next few services.

Yes, we use a prayer book.  Well, sort of; it’s actually a pseudo-prayer book that was written for schools.  I think we use it because the English service is the contemporary service, and actually doesn’t necessarily follow the prayer book.  I know the flow of the service, but since things don’t always have to follow the prayer book, I need to pay more attention.  I follow liturgy very well.  Going free-form?  I need to take notes on how to do that.  Ironic, yes?

18 ways to say "the" in Greek

Why, yes, I am procrastinating again, but this picture/post was a special request.  You know, there's a sufficient amount of work, and insufficient time to complete it, that it makes one want to just crawl under the bed.  I won't, however, because in the process of fixing one of the toilets today, there was a bit of a flood, and water came in my room, and mostly went under the bed.  I saw it while the Estates guy was still here, and he got it out, but my luggage got a bit wet (thank God for hard backs!) and now the floor there is really clean, but it's still a deterrent.

But I digress.  Yes, indeed, there are 18 iterations of the word "the" in Greek.  I know they don't show well in the photo, but I hope you get the idea.  It helps tell all sorts of things like gender and what type of role a noun plays in the sentence.  But goodness.  I successfully crammed them for the test.  Now to really learn it…

Orange and lemons

My throat has been sore for about a week and a half (probably a mixture of allergies and lack of sleep, Mom.  I’m fine!  Yelling during the US v. Ghana game didn't help, either), so my friend Tom got me some oranges and lemons.  This was very sweet of him.  Until I opened the bag, and remembered that I forgot that those fruit stay green here; it doesn’t get cold enough to affect the chlorophyll.  In fact, if you do come across a yellow lemon or an orange orange, it’s called muzungu fruit.

So I asked Violet to help me tell the difference.  Can you tell?  

And actually, the oranges (they’re on the right; the two lemons are on the left, and on further reflection, the lemons are rough, and oranges smooth, mostly like in the US) were a mite sour, though Violet said they don’t get US-sweet here.  So I shall make orange juice from them, and use the lemons in tea as intended.

Ordination and Independence

No, the two aren't related; they just fell on the same day.

Sunday morning was my usual service at the cathedral, and the third service (in Luganda) included the ordination of four new deacons.  Three had attended UCU; I don't know anything about the fourth.  It appeared to be a lovely service; our dean preached the sermon.  Her sermon was 50 minutes, Eucharist was about 20 minutes, the ordination was about 20 minutes.  The bishop spoke for a bit at various times, including at the end when he announced that the dean and her husband (who is the diocesan secretary) would be made canons on 22 Aug.  Otherwise, I'm not quite sure what took three and a half hours, but it was a joyous time.

For Independence Day, I went to the American Recreation Association (ARA) of the American Embassy for their barbecue and fireworks with Sandra, the other American student.  It was a nice time; eating overdone hamburgers, potato salad, and cole slaw was definitely American.  Sitting on the lawn watching fireworks was very American.  Sitting with 200 other Americans and being greeted by absolutely no one was also very American.  Sandra and I are used to greeting and being greeted by anyone who's breathing, so being treated like Americans by Americans felt quite odd.  We spoke more with the Ugandans who were working the security detail than we did with any Americans.  Since I'd worked at the Embassy in New Delhi, I didn't take my camera, thinking that security wouldn't allow it in.  Silly me.  Not that there was anything in particular to photograph, though I have to say that seeing the Marine Corps Color Guard was a beautiful sight.

The ARA is nowhere near the Embassy.  We took the long way home (accidentally, but it worked), and we drove by the new Embassy, built and fortified after the Embassy bombings in 1998.  It's a beautiful building, but even at night, the thing looks like a fortress.  And huge.  This is the building where my camera would have been confiscated.  

Sandra stays in Namugongo, and since we got back late, she wouldn't let me take a taxi back to school, so I stayed there.  Since it was unplanned, I was staying outside without permission.  I felt like a college kid sneaking back into the campus/the dorm to shower this morning.  And no, I never did that in college.  Or ever, actually.  :)

Second epiphany

The first epiphany was that it's July (see below).  The second was delivered from one of the international students, Emma, "the draft exam timetable is out."  This is when we can see what the administration is proposing for the week and a half of torture that they call exams.  And my feelings towards this ritual refuse to soften with each semester.  *sigh*

For us, the schedule is actually fairly reasonable.  We will start on Tuesday 10 Aug (rather than Monday) and end on Tuesday 17 Aug (rather than Wednesday). 

The challenge is that we're currently scheduled to have two exams on the 17th:  Greek at 9, and OT Prophets at 2.  We're really not in a position to ask for a change, because eight of the MDivs crashed the BD Greek class, so it's not our class.  I guess if we have to have two exams in one day, these are the two to have.  And it's the last day, so I can sleep on Wednesday.

But that assumes that the schedule maintains, and that's anyone's guess. When the final is published in a couple weeks, I'll let you know.

Seasons come and seasons go

It’s now July.  I arrived in January this year, and it feels like I just got here.  I realized the other day that this is due in part that there are no seasons here.  It’s always summer.  Well, there are seasons:  rainy and dry.  It makes me laugh when people say things like “it always affects me when the weather changes,” because to me, it’s just either raining or not.  But they can tell the difference.

But the lack of measurable season changes really messes with my sense of time.  When I arrived, my desktop picture was of the December snow.  I only changed it when people on Facebook were commenting on the spring weather – it didn’t dawn on me that the seasons changed with the calendar anymore.  Goodness!

Google.co.ug

When I first arrived last year, when I'd try to go to Google, it would take me to the Google.com page.  Then it started redirecting me to the google.co.ug page.  It works just fine, but I missed the different graphics that Google would post for their logo.  I bet they were amazing for the World Cup!

Until today!  Today is the inauguration of the East African Common Market Protocol, which will make trade and commerce easier among the five East African nations (um... Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Burundi, and Rwanda; had to verify the last two) and is the initial step towards the East African Community (to be similar in concept to the European Union, I believe).

I have no idea what the text in the graphic says, or even what language it's in.  I'm just thrilled to see it.

Remember the eight word prayer?

Mike Flynn taught it to us a few years ago:  "Oh God oh God OH GOD oh God!"  That was me yesterday afternoon, when I learned that I was scheduled to preach at the Holy Communion service tonight.  Ai-yi-yi-yi!

Yes, this is my fault. I did look a the chapel rota at the beginning of the semester. I did not see my name. Truly. In my defense though, there were two lists, and much confusion about who's on first. But I should have known that I was up.

So, I sent some frantic text requests for prayer, then did some praying on my own.  We're supposed to have the tutor on duty review our sermons prior to preaching, so that made the schedule more compressed.  Thankfully, we have no classes on Thursdays, but I had planned to tackle the mountain of assignments on my desk.

I pulled together two typed pages of rough thoughts, and took them to Canon George, the tutor.  Canon Moses, one of my lecturers and the practical studies lead, saw me, and said, "oh, you have a framework!  I'm so happy!"  Well, that makes one of us.  Canon Moses reminds me of an African leprechaun anyhow (not tall, always jolly, though mischievous), so his laughter helped lighten my perspective.  Still not comforted, but feeling better.

Speaking of which, I need to get back to said sermon.

Banner night

Killed three mosquitoes in my room last night.  Unfortunately, two were smashed against the laptop screen.  The laptop screen is fine, though I need to clean it.  The good thing about the power being out for a time is that they go to the light, then I can get them.  Later I took cover under the mosquito net, and one was sitting there, minding its business, when I got it.  I know that its business was to get my blood, so I’m really not that repentant about it.  Yes, I’ll explain myself to God on Judgment Day.  Good thing He already knows about it.

I’m told that power has been so poor because UMEME (the power company) is upgrading their transformers and laying new poles and lines.  That’s inherently fine.  UCU has a generator.  Its turnaround time hasn’t been as quick as previous semesters, though.  And the place I go to print isn’t on the generator, so I have to print at the library.  THAT has become exciting.  I miss Ritah and Eva, the ladies who work where I go to print, for a number of reasons.  If it weren’t the end of the semester, I’d get a printer.  Here’s to the semester ending quickly (well, not too quickly, I have to much to do!!) and UMEME getting things set by the time the new semester starts.

Winfred Brown 4

To the right is Winfred Brown 4, the room I had last semester, and this semester.  It’s actually clean at present, so I thought it best to document it while in such pristine condition.  When Joan was here, my bed was in the same place, but the desk was under the window, and her bed parallel to mine.  The desk snugly between the two beds, so it was quite cozy.

Out of frame (to my right and left as I was standing in the doorway) are the closets.  Last semester, the bookshelf only fit right in front of my closet, so I had to slide it if I needed to get into the closet.  Obviously, from the books on the desk, when I took the photos, I was in the midst of my paper on community life in Acts.  The paper on the wall to the right are the Greek articles and case endings that I need to cram (memorize, though I should be learning them, not just storing in short-term memory).  I think they’re supposed to encourage me, but at present, they’re only mocking.  I did well on the tests, but they're not stored in long-term memory yet, which is a pity.

All the Africans who come to my room ask where my blanket is.  The sheet, doubled over, is sufficient top cover at night.  If I get cold, I close the curtains, then if desperate, I’ll get out my Polartec jacket, but that’s only happened once this semester.  Without fail, they’re amazed.  It cracks me up.  I mean, they understand that I come from a different climate, but it still shocks them nonetheless.

US v. Ghana

You guessed it... I'm procrastinating again.  :)  Also not feeling the greatest, so I see a trip to the clinic this week (Mom - I'm FINE.  It's just sinuses again.)


Prior to the World Cup, the theologians were instructed to cheer for the US, and stepped up to the task admirably.  Then came the match with Ghana.  Obviously, most of them deserted me.  There were only about 150-200 people maximum watching in the dining hall last night (which I attribute to it being on a weekend, when many go home).  And I think there was ONE other person cheering for the US.  I mean, when we scored our goal, I actually didn't fully realize what happened because there was no reaction from the audience.  There was a guy sitting behind me who patted me on the back when Ghana scored their goals, which I thought was pretty funny.  And thoughtful that he comforted me.  I wonder if he was one of the ones who was saying "God bless America" at the end of the match...


So, if we had to be knocked out, I'm glad it was by an African team, and the last one in the tournament to boot. As I had to explain to the class on why I wasn't cheering for Ghana (I really did have to explain.  Can you imagine?), I may be 52% African, but I still hold an American passport.

Other duties as assigned

I’m amazed that anyone here has time to study.  I’m not involved in all that much (comparatively), and I feel like I’m struggling to keep my head above water, fighting with time management, which is something that usually isn’t a problem for me.

In addition to the six classes I’m taking (eight of us are taking Greek; the others only have five) and the research proposal I need to finish soon (yikes!  I forget about that one, but am grateful that I can’t finish the literature review until I get to the US), I’m involved with:

-          Ggaba Mukono Ecumenical Contact (with the Catholic seminary in Ggaba) Executive Committee.  Fortunately, there’s quite little to do.  So little, in fact, that when filling our Sunday placement form, I forgot to list it.

-          International Students’ Fellowship Publicity Secretary.  Man, create a Facebook group, and you get to be a Secretary.  Fortunately, this also takes little time.

-          Theological International Students’ Fellowship Secretary.  This is our little fellowship of about 15 in our faculty, mostly just for fun, but it’s nice that the school recognizes that we’re from different lands, and gives us an opportunity to hang out.

-          Women in Ministry Fellowship.  No responsibilities, but little time to attend when the semester gets going.  This is just a gathering of the women in the theology department.

-          Evaluation Committee.  Our first meeting is tomorrow, but this is a group convened to evaluate different aspects of our common life in the department; discipleship, worship, etc.  I think I’ll be working on the discipleship piece.  I’m very excited to be a part of this, as we can do a lot of good, though this will take time.

And now, Sandra (the other American student) and I are putting together a workshop on how to lay read (though here, a lay reader actually leads the service in lieu of a priest).  I’m really excited about this one.  So is the faculty; attendance is now mandatory.  And Dr. Kalengyo, my lecturer for Homelitics, will be attending.  No pressure…  However, I’m also grateful to be able to contribute something back to the school, on a larger scale.

All this just reinforces to me that Africans don’t sleep.  This is rather unfortunate for me, as I actually need sleep.  This just reminds me of a line that Jan Karon uses in her books:  “No rest for the wicked, and the righteous don’t need none.”  That was funny until it resonated with me.

Flower power

After greeting exiting parishioners on Sunday, we go into the vestry (vesting room) for me to change out of my vestments, and for all to have a drink and a cake (small spice cupcake).  When I walked in on Sunday, a little girl about 18-24 months was crying, and working herself up for quite the show.  

She took one look at me, and stopped cold.  It was absolutely hysterical.  I waved, and she was so dumbstruck that she didn't wave back (though she's young.  I'll give her some slack.).  But who knew that my presence could stop an oncoming tantrum?!  A little guy in a suit and sneakers, about 3, gave me a big smile and wave - priceless!


Back to Malachi, then Greek before bed...

Orange to the rescue!

As I’ve griped below, power, and therefore the internet, has been dicey this semester.  The internet at the Honours College has always had issues (and we’re the only dorm to HAVE internet in our rooms, so perhaps I shouldn’t be whining), but this has been laughably unreliable.  Addendum:  it may be that they're trying to fix the electricity by stringing new lines.  Who knows?  This is Africa.  Anything's possible.

So I broke down and bought a broadband modem for my laptop, and pay for the internet time by the month.  It’s really not heinously expensive, just sad that I had to do it.  Orange is one of the wireless carriers here (and along with Mango, they have my favorite name.  If you’re watching the World Cup, you’ve probably seen MTN, the largest carrier here, and my cell phone carrier).  As a total aside, oranges, lemons, and limes are all green here.  Apparently they call the yellow lemons muzungu lemons.  J  I think it has something to do with the fact that it doesn’t get cold enough for the orange and yellow to show in the fruit.  Wild!

And I just realized the semester is half over.  Wow.  No wonder I’m overwhelmed with work.  But where did the time go?

World Cup madness

I’m no soccer fan, but I can muster when the US is playing.  Our first match was Saturday night at 9:30 (South Africa is an hour behind us).  The match went until 11:30 or so.  If they keep up this schedule, those boys will kill me.  There were a couple hundred people in the Dining Hall watching the match, and most were cheering for the US.  J  When our anthem was played at the beginning of the match, I can’t tell you how proud I was.  I’ve had it in my head ever since.

Clearly, if they play a match during the day when I have class, I can’t miss class… it’s too easy to see that the flower isn’t around.  Friday, when the World Cup started, there were maybe 25 people in Greek.  There are usually about 65.  It’s going to be one long month of soccer (football here – enough of my friends call it soccer that I forget).

Problems with power

Power in Uganda is never a given.  UCU has a generator, that for two semesters has switched on quickly and reliably.  This semester, however, is exceptional.  For example, it’s 11:10 pm Sunday, and the power just went out.  I can work on the laptop for a while, but reading from the book I’m using as a reference?  Not really.  I’ll probably try to use a flashlight for a minute, but holding it and typing should be a challenge.  Additionally, it’s hard for me to potentially exhaust my laptop battery, not knowing when it can charge again (especially on the weekend, but yeah, that’s mostly a rationalization for not working, though a serious one in the middle of the weekend.  Not as bad on a Sunday night, since the engineers will be back Monday morning, and usually return power when my shower is completed). 

And obviously, the internet needs electricity to run.  Big, big sigh. 

The one good thing about the power going out is that the kids in the hall usually get pretty quiet.  This old girl really, really appreciates that.  J

First pulpit sermon

I preached my first pulpit sermon last Sunday.  And what a pulpit it is… donated by the good Christians in Southwell Diocese, England, the thing has got to be about four feet off the floor, with a really long staircase leading up to it.  'twas a bit imposing on first walk.

Unless the service includes Holy Communion, the sermon is the last item in the service.  So we start with music, have the confession, the readings, the Apostle’s Creed (Nicene if there’s Communion), announcements, and more music.  During the announcements, the preacher is introduced.  This Sunday, I finally met Canon Titus Baraka, who is the mission coordinator at the cathedral.  It took some time to convince him that I am doing my whole program at UCU.  But he was sufficiently impressed that when he introduced  me, he explained that I’m doing my whole program here (vice the USPs who are only here for a semester, I guess), and said that I’m “amazing Jessica.”  Whoa.  No pressure for a great sermon there…

And God certainly redeemed that sermon.  When I practiced it Saturday night, it clocked in at 10 minutes 34 seconds.  Not fabulous for an American sermon; disastrous for an African sermon (though they teach us to aim for 15-20 minutes; I’ve not yet heard a church sermon for less than 25 minutes).  The service started late, so I was relieved that my sermon was short.  I had warned the vicar ahead of time that it was short, so I think  he must have been at least as surprised as I was when I talked for 20 minutes.  And we still ended on time.  Alleluia!  Canon Titus said after the service I had power.  Praise God; I certainly was a bit nervous to feel powerful, especially when standing above the congregation.  But I’m encouraged nonetheless.  My supervisor (the department Dean) was there; it’s a good thing I couldn’t see her.  Her husband is the diocesan secretary; he said he was home with the baby, and was sorry to have missed me.  One of my lecturers was there, as was one of the lecturers I’ll have next semester, and some of my classmates (which was a surprise – they didn’t know I was preaching)… I feel like I’m being evaluated by the entire faculty.  J

Guess who was on TV?

Apparently I was... NTV, one of the major channels here, covered the service at Namugongo, and one of my classmates told me that last night's newscast included a shot of me.  Obviously, it would be easy to see me there; I only saw one other muzungu.  When we moved into the tent, we were in prime view of the cameras that kept panning (a lot of clergy were placed there).  Here I thought it was just for the monitors at the service.  Nope.

In other news, my American alb was quite the hit in chapel this morning.  I'm told I look rather smart in it, and Amos wants to know how I tie the cincture.  I don't think it's wildly different from what they wear here, but clearly, I'm wrong.  Who knew?   

The African flower

I can't remember whether I've mentioned this before, but I'm the flower.  :)   One of the MDiv girls told me my first semester that I was a flower, so now some of my friends call me "our only flower."  I mean, it's pretty easy to spot me in a crowd; the flower stands out.  

Uganda Martyr's Day

June 3 is Martyr's Day, a day set aside to remember the 31 Christians who were martyred in 1886 in Namugongo (which is about 20 minutes away from Mukono, if there's no traffic).  This is a national holiday, and there are services in Namugongo at both the Anglican and Catholic shrines.

I didn't go to Namugongo last year, primarily because I didn't know about it, and I had an insane amount of work to do.  This year, I still have an insane amount of work to do, but I had promised Alison Barfoot last year that I would attend this year.  According to her, it's like the Fourth of July on the Mall; everyone should do it once in their lifetime.  Each year, the school takes the school bus (think Greyhound-sized) and pays admission for anyone who can fit on the bus.  This year, they announced that priority would be given to international students when registering.  Clearly, I had to go.

It was less crowded than I thought it would be; there were only about 3-4,000 people at the Anglican shrine, and actually felt a bit like Wolftrap, with people sitting on a hill across from the church.  President Musevini was there, so security was tight; we had to go through a metal detector (in the middle of a field.  Seriously.), and I had to return my camera to the bus.  I wish I had pictures!

What we saw of the service was very nice; lots of speeches, of course.  The Diocese of West Ankole was in charge this year, so the service was in Ankole, Luganda (the major language), and English.  Originally, I was sitting with two of my friends along the road that the procession passed.  Onesimus, the Archbishop's chaplain, waved at me.  Archbishop Orombi was waving at everyone, but smiled at me.  I'm fairly confident he saw me; how could he miss the African flower?!  Whether he remembers meeting me at All Saints' is another matter, but my story is that he smiled and waved at me, and I'm sticking to it.  :)  We were later directed to a tent (one of my friends is clergy, and I'm a muzungu, a valued guest), which was nice.  Fortunately, it was overcast, and therefore not too hot.  But the retaining wall we had been sitting on was awfully uncomfortable for the 30 minutes or so we were there, so I was incredibly grateful to be asked to move.

We were there officially for three hours, and left after the president's speech and before communion.  We saw the place where the martyrs were burned alive, the hut in which the executioner pronounced death sentences, and the tree to which the martyrs were tied and tortured.  Docents were at each site, telling the story of that particular place.  Naturally, there were people selling calendars, posters, hats, water, etc.  

What struck me the most, though, was that this holiday is faithfully observed every year.  And sincerely.  Perhaps I'm becoming cynical in my older age, but do we really do things like this in the US?  And with this devotion?  I'm going to be thinking on that one for a bit.