hippos, elephants, lions O MY!!

Being in Uganda thus far has been amazing and transformative to my heart.  Its also has consisted of rice and beans everyday, bucket bathing, and sometimes just so exhausting.  This week was unlike any other week we have had here.  Before I get carried away here are some of the highlights:

1.     Being at prison ministry sitting next to Laney.  She squeezed my hand so tight that it was almost numb.  She conquered a huge fear and I am so proud to be her friend.

2.     Dancing at a Ugandan wedding.  They claimed the wedding cake was “ a weapon of mass satisfaction,” and the Holy Ghost fire made the frosting.  My opinion… not so much. 

3.     I killed a spider with my foot while using the squatty potty.

4.     I acted as Satan this week for the “armor of God” lesson while Alyie killed me with her “sword of the spirit.”  I waved my hands in the air like a goblin and she made a “shink, shink” sound with each jab. 

5.     We gave our money management presentation to the staff, I even wore my business lady outfit! There was about 20 staff members there for the one hour power point presentation.  The staff loved it!  They had so many questions in hopes to gain a better understanding of the system.  We are naming the currency “Lirallings” and they even talked about expanding this to other COTN locations (Haiti, Sierra Leone, Malawi)… for now we will just work on perfecting Uganda.  The money got printed and it looks amazing!!

6.     A bug that looks like a worm with wings came into our room at night… and brought 20 of its friends.  We called the strange insect “wormy bug.”  Wormy bugs are incredibly gross looking and impossible to kill.  It caused chaos among 10 girls for about an hour before bed Monday night. 

7.     Worshiping with 60 Ugandan orphans in the center house during a rainstorm.  Beatrice (3 yrs old) feel asleep in my arms and I had to run her back to her room in the rain.  After getting her dry, I tucked her in, kissed her on the forehead and she feel asleep. Priceless.

This week was our mid trip retreat.  With less than 3 weeks left we finally got to go on the safari we had been waiting for.  The original hotel got filled up quick and which meant we got upgraded.  This hotel was immaculate I literally fell to my knees when I saw the bathroom.  We ate like kings and took advantage of the free coffee.  After a ride on the Nile River where we were greeted by hippos, elephants, and a gorgeous waterfall, we topped off the day with a swim at sunset.  The next day I was on top of a safari car within 30 feet of a lion and in arms distance reach of an elephant.  Gorgeous giraffes surrounded us while the sun poked through the morning air.  I could not have asked for a better experience.  After just one night it was back to the children’s village.  They were so happy to have us back and it felt good to be home.  Our time is flying by.  I am so excited to embrace the next couple of weeks here, but also very excited to take what I have learned here into my life at home.  Thanks for all of your love and support!