The past week

I guess it has been a full week since I have blogged! Sorry, the internet hasn't been very good this week.

Wednesday Blessed and I went to check on the twins that we did not get. They live in a slum in Kampala that smells like a barnyard. There are chickens and geese running around and children yelling "Hi Muzungu. How are you?" We got there by taking a boda boda and two public taxis. However, the mother and the twins were not home. So we trekked back to the spot where the vaco would pick us up and take us back to the taxi park in Kampala. When I say taxi park I mean public bus park.

Public transportation works differently. A van that holds 14 passengers is called public transport, vaco, or taxi. A taxi like in America is called a special hire and is expensive, about 12,000 ush from Kampala to Entebbe, or to the airport.

So Blessed and I shopped for souveniers and ate some local food at a nearby restaurant. I ate the pillao, which was delicious, but I gave my piece of goat to Blessed. I am not partial to goat. The aunt of the mother called to say that the twins were back home and we could come. So we bussed it back to the slums and met with the mother.

The place where they reside is no bigger than 10ft x 10ft. It consists of boards nailed to two by fours with cracks for ventilation. She lays her head directly under a tree that drops its leaves on the tin roof. When it rains water flows over the dirt flood and creates a muddy mess. She lets the twins sleep on the mattress and she stands all night. The purpose of the trip was to bring clothes and a few blankets to her. She was very grateful and appreciative and was thanking me instead of Blessed for the gifts. I had no part in it, but to accompany Blessed and see how Acacia Tree can help families and when they can stay with families instead of coming to the rehabilitation center.

On the way back Blessed talked to me about helping her get better housing and a bed. I think that is a dangerous raod to head down. Many children grow up in those slums healthy and many of them are happy. Not only does that go outside the scope of Acacia Tree at this time it also makes the families dependent on aid from us. Obtaining better living conditions for someone that has a very limited income means that the Organization would have to keep up the monthly rent.

There is a book I have been told to read and will look for it next time I am in Kampala, When helping hurts.



Friday, Sarah Bella, Rayah and I made chocolate chip cookies! School here starts Monday. I made two spreadsheets and I am working on Robin's filing system. We are on African time so things get done slower and are not expected to be expedited in any fashion. All though I feel that I should have gotten more done over the last three weeks; Robin feels that I have been doing more than expected.

It is almost the end of the month and Blessed and I will be checking on babies in the community again. This is actually my favorite part! I am pleased to see that all of the babies that we visited last time were healthy and with their families. I was especially excited to hear that the grandmother of Anesha is teaching other mothers in her community what Acacia Tree has taught her about feeding and keeping her child at a healthy weight. She isn't receiving any incentive from Acacia Tree, other than the monthly pooridge and sugar that all families on the program get, but is teaching to educate others and share her knowledge. She is a prime example of how we envisioned ATECOP (Acacia Tree Education and Community Outreach Program).


Today, was my day off again. So I decided to hit the pool! It costs 10,000 USH but I have a very uneven burn and wanted to at least be burnt and tan instead of burnt and white. It was a very nice and hot day. The temperature now feels like Africa. Before it felt as if it was a Portland Spring.