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I have some blogs that I wrote in Uganda and didn’t post. I decided to post them anyway. Enjoy!

If Time Was Money

Today I was in the staff room talking to one of the teachers, and I mentioned that the school administration had changed the program (again) so that the students could practice for the mass they would be leading on Sunday.  I was frustrated because I do not teach on Tuesdays, and come to school especially for music club, which was the time slot now allotted for mass practice.

“So they have wasted your time!” said John, the teacher I was talking to.

“Yes!” I replied.

“And time is money!” He exclaimed with a wide grin.

“Yes!” I said, happy that someone understood my frustrations.

“So by now you would be dying of absolute poverty!”

I laughed, but I was sobered by the analogy.  If time was money, would I suffer because I had two extra 15 minute bike rides in a day?  No.  Change your perspective and life becomes less frustrating.

We are called to give generously and be thankful for the money we have.  Is it not the same with time?  I have a lot of time, and not really anything else to do other than spend time at school.  So if sometimes the schedule changes, or time is spent differently than I expected, it is not the end of the world.  If time was money, I would not be any worse for the wear. Let me remember this as I live out the rest of my time here in Uganda.

Teacher John sings with his students

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Our school road turning into a stream

When the rain comes the sun disappears. Instead of going out to play in the disappearing rays of the evening sun, we head inside and huddle in the dark night.  Instead of warming our toes in the afternoon glory, we grasp our arms and cling tight to our comfortable sweaters. And when the rain continues so incessantly, we pray for the drops to cease pounding on our hearts so that we can only see the sun again.

But sometimes, when we are longing for the sunshine, we forget how much we need the rain.

The road to school becomes tricky to ride on with my bicycle

Rain heals. It turns what was once brown into glorious shades of green. It inspires new growth from within, from the opening flowers petals down to the deepest root. It nurtures, strengthens and changes. When the rain is finished, what it leaves behind is not the same. It turns roads into streams, streams into rivers, and rivers into lakes. It builds up that which was too weak to grow. It strips away the barriers that stood in the way. In the end, all that is left is new life.

In the end, we are different people then we were before the rain.

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In February I got a new-to-me bicycle.  It took forever to get it here from Kampala, but I’m so glad it came! Riding it cuts my commute almost in half, and it not only carries me, but the basket in the front can carry my books and marking and everything, and the seat on the back can carry my sister Lucia on the mornings we leave together. It is so wonderful to be able to get on my bike and careen down the red roads, wind blowing my long skirt, children shrieking with laughter behind me as I go.

Riding my bicycle home from school on the red roads of Uganda

One of the things that I love most about my commute to work is the many children that walk home with me. When I got my bike I was sad that I wouldn’t get to enjoy the time with them anymore. However, it has turned out not to be a problem since they just run behind me and take turns riding on the seat. It makes the once long walk home so much more fun!

The bike has even turned into an ice-breaker between me and the preschoolers that I walk past at lunch time. They are always on the hill, in their little school uniforms, waiting for me to pass by so they can shout “BYE, MUZUNGU!!!” But until my bicycle, that was as close as they would come to familiarity with me. Now, when they see me coming, they all run towards me and help me push the bike to the top of the very steep hill. One child usually stands on the lower peddle, and another walks beside ringing the bell on the handlebars.                                                                                                                              I’m sure we are quite the sight to be seen!

Most days I leave my school before my students, as they say their Catholic prayers at the end of every day. But some days, we all leave at the same time. On these days I walk my bicycle home. The walk is longer and often hotter, but nothing beats the casual conversation I get to have with my students.  Walking at this relaxed pace allows me the time to get to know each of them individually, outside of the confines of English classes and computer terminology. When I slow down, my students give me the gift of trust.  For all the race bikes in the world, I wouldn’t trade this slower pace.

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Living away from North America does not always mean living away from pop-culture. However, when you are in a remote African village with little internet and trips to the big city only once every few months, sometimes the references get lost on you.

This is especially apparent when I log-on to facebook and see multiple statuses about the same thing….and have no IDEA what they are all talking about!!! So here follows ‘Things that people say that make Bethany think “what the heck?”’

What does the fox say?  Why on EARTH does everyone want to know what a fox says? This is more than just mere curiosity. So many people are suddenly interested in the vocalizations of foxes. Have you all gone insane?  I’m pretty sure foxes yelp like puppies and purr like cats, in case anyone actually wants to know.

Miley Cyrus is disgusting / this has been Miley Cyrus’s year / various other Miley Cyrus comments She has done something. Something has been done to her. This one has remained unclear….

Do you want to build a snowman? It doesn’t have to be a snowman…. Ummm…doesn’t that defeat the purpose of building a snowman in the first place? Another common status that leaves me scratching my head.

WHERE IS THE MALAYSIAN PLANE??? I dunno. Did someone lose it?  Taken by aliens? Crashed landed on a mysterious island where the people get lost in a time warp and then 6 people escape and most of them go to a sideways universe that turns out to be purgatory while waiting for the rest of the crash survivors to die so that they can all move on together? Your guess is as good as mine. Why do you want to know?

I love the Frozen soundtrack / I can’t stop listening to Frozen! / Can someone please get these Frozen songs out of my head? I know you guys have had a long, very snowy, very cold winter…but I don’t think it has frozen all of your music. Just joking, I know this one is about a new Disney movie that has taken the world by storm (or…snowstorm….) I can’t wait to watch it when I get back!

BRUNO MARS ROCKED THAT! Okay, I believe you. What exactly did he rock, with who, and where? Sounds like a great concert, anyway!

And so it continues!  Most of these have already been explained to me, but it is so interesting to observe people’s reactions to pop-culture references when you have not understood the reference. Usually I will ask my sister Hannah or my good friend Christy and they will clear things up for me. Sometimes I feel excluded or in the dark, but mostly it has been a relief to be away from the dizzying buzz that pop-culture can sometimes leave you feeling!

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I have found myself the leader of a bunch of new after-school clubs.  Each of the clubs has their joys, but this particular joy is about the Debate Club we hold on Wednesday afternoons.

Every week we give the students a different motion to debate.  Our first motion was about leadership: “Should leadership in Uganda be based on spiritual or economic guidance?”

Eric leads his side of the debate with many embellished hand movements

I was worried the students would not respond.  The debate club is the only club that is mandatory, and I thought we might just end up sitting in silence for 40 minutes.  But I was very wrong.

The students took hold of the motion like they were debating for the right to live. They cheered when someone made a good point, gasped when the other side made an accusation, and their teacher reveled in the amount of English that was being spoken.  They were so into it! 

Josephine gets serious about defending her side of the debate

Both sides made some very good points, but my favourite moment was when the ‘spiritual leadership’ side was drowning in accusations and points of contradiction from the economic side. I could feel their energy leaving the debate and they needed a boost.

The ‘economic leadership’ side had surrounded their arguments with the fact that a leader’s responsibility is to help their country develop, and a country cannot develop without good economics. They solidified their argument by saying that their own school, the building we were currently sitting in, would still have a leaking roof if the president had not come and given us the money to develop it.  The ‘economic’ side of the room erupted in cheers and shouts of support.  It was at this moment I chose to boost the ‘spiritual leadership’ side. 

Samson is itching to give his comments after his classmate, Margaret, makes a particularly controversial point

“Yes it is true that the president has given us money to develop the school,” I said with all eyes on me. “But is it not true, that before we received the money, we prayed to God for Him to help us develop our school?”  The room echoed with shouts of approval and support from the spiritual leadership side. “And did He not answer our prayers?”  I said over the cheers and laughter, feeling like a gospel preacher. “Did He not provide for us?” 

I’m pretty sure all of the children were talking at once at this point.  The economic side raving because it was still money that helped us develop, the spiritual side confirming that their parish priest, Father Peter Paul Ssemakula (a spiritual leader in our community), was the one who invited the president to come here in the first place. And the English teacher sat back and listened to them all arguing in English.  They didn’t even realize they were learning.

The Senior Four students all aching to get their two cents in!

The debate club is a great way for my students to think about issues that matter to them. Other topics we have covered include whether or not boy’s parents should pay dowries for girls before marriage, and if automatic promotion should be given to students who fail a grade. The English teacher inside me rejoices every time I hear them expressing themselves so wonderfully in English. Their critical thinking skills are being increased every time we debate. It has easily become one of my highlights for every week.

(p.s. This is not a blog about my personal beliefs on leadership style in Uganda.  Yes I supported the spiritual leadership debaters, but that was only to help boost their failing confidence.  I was very proud of both sides who presented their arguments clearly and were able to stand up with defense points after contradictions.  For the record, the Economic Leadership side won the debate.)

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The World is a unit, though it is made up of many countries; and though all its countries are many, they form one global unit. The World is not made up of one country, but of many. If China should say, “Because I am not Russia, I do not belong to The World,” it would not for that reason cease to be part of The World. And if Uganda should say, “Because I am not America, I do not belong to The World,” it would not for that reason cease to be part of The World. 

If the whole World were one Nation, where would the sense of culture be? If the whole World were one Nation, where would the sense of individuality be? But in fact God has arranged the countries in the World, every one of them, just as He wanted them to be. If they were all one country, where would the World be? 

As it is, there are many countries, but one World. The equator cannot say to the poles “I don’t need you!”, and the Global North cannot say to the Global South, “I don’t need you!” On the contrary, those parts of the World that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the nations that are ‘unpresentable’ are treated with special modesty, while our ‘presentable’ nations need no special treatment.

But God has combined the countries of the World and has given greater honor to the nations that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the World, but that its nations should have equal concern for each other.

If one nation suffers, every nation suffers with it; if one country is honored, every country rejoices with it. We are the Nations of the World, and each country is a part of it. 

There are so many roles to fill. There are leaders, helpers, teachers, workers, suppliers, worshipers, exporters, importers, and many more. But are all countries leaders? Are all helpers? Are all teachers? Do all supply? Do all have excess resources to export? Do all speak the same language? Do all worship? No! We are all part of the same world, and no one nation is dispensable.

Let us always remember this.

This is an adaptation of scripture found in The Bible. The original text can be found in 1 Corinthians 12:12-31

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I was taking pictures of my students today.  The sun was setting and it gave a golden glow to the already stunning complexion of my beautiful girls (and boys!).  As I was looking through my pictures and seeing not only the beauty of the children, but the amazing backdrop that is our school grounds, I heard a quiet voice asking me, “Do you know how lucky you are?”

And I do.

Which of these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this? In His hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.” (Job 12:7-10)

Everything was created through him; nothing—not one thing!— came into being without him. What came into existence was Life, and the Life was Light to live by. The Life-Light blazed out of the darkness; the darkness couldn’t put it out. (John 1:3-5)

“You make everything glorious, and I am Yours. What does that make me?” (David Crowder)

 

The Lord reigns! Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it; let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them.
(Psalm 96:10)

 

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An excerpt from Jody Picoult’s Book ‘Plain Truth’

When Katie and Jacob had been small, they’d played together in the fields, zigzagging through the summer cornfields as if they were a maze.  Incredible, how thick and green those walls could grow, so that she could be a foot away from her brother just on the other side, and never know it.

Once, when she was about eight, she got lost.  She’d been playing follow-the-leader, but Jacob got ahead of her and disappeared.  Katie had called out for him, but he was teasing her that day and wouldn’t come.  She walked in circles, she grew tired and thirsty, and finally she lay down on her back on the ground.  She squinted up between the slats of stalks and took comfort from the fact that this was the same old sun, the same old sky, the same familiar world she’d awakened in that morning.  And eventually, feeling guilty, Jacob came and found her.

This orange African sun is the same one that shone over you today. Does the world feel a little smaller now?

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Yesterday I received some news.  My flight home has been booked for July.  This brings so many mixed feelings!  Too many to count, indeed.  I am so happy at the prospect of going home, but so sad to even begin to think about leaving this place.  But the one thing that makes me happy about my scheduled flight home is that I am going to have a nine hour stop-over in London.

Most people groan at the thought of long stop-overs within a 24+ hour trip home.  I never sleep on planes and I will likely be so exhausted, yet not wanting to sleep in the airport because I will be afraid of someone stealing my luggage or any other travel inconvenience.  But this time I am rejoicing at the news. Why?  My sister is living in London.

When I left we didn’t realize that her departure to London and my return to Canada would overlap, and that it would be much longer than a year before we saw each other again. We were both sad when we realized this, but we took refuge in the fact that our time-difference was a lot shorter.  And then before we could even pray for a miracle connection that would bring us together, God provided.

When I told my host mother, Rose, about all this she simply smiled and says “God plans.”  Which He does!  Before I can even think it, He knows.  And He provided.  And He planned a special visit, just for the two of us.  Can’t wait to see you, sister.

Hannah is one of my favourite subjects to photograph…as a result there are like, zero pictures of us together!

 

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Our newest addition, Mr. Victor

After the excitement of Christmas holidays I was so happy to hear that Rose’s six year old grandson would be staying with us in the village.  Victor is the elder brother to Kynan, and he is a wonderful addition to our growing family!

The other day, Victor came to me and said “Bethann, I wish I was your real brother”.  My heart instantly melted.  That night when I was talking to my brother Joel in Canada I told him about Victor’s wish.  The next day I received this email in my inbox, which I then read to Victor. Please enjoy Joel’s letter to Victor on how to be a good brother to Bethany!

Hi Victor!

This is Joel! How are you? Are you happy to be staying in Masaka? I hope school is going well and that you are learning lots.

I wanted to send you a message to say that I am loaning my sister to you. You may now call her your sister, I don’t mind.

Let me give you some pointers on how to be a good brother. I have 3 sisters myself so listen closely, I know what I am doing.

1. Give her lot’s of hugs.  This is most important. It makes you feel good, but makes the sister feel even better.

2. Be a pest. Although sisters would disagree, bugging is a job that brothers need to take seriously. Occasionally you will need to give her a poke or a tickle, hit her with a pillow, or give her a light shove to show her who is boss. She may fight back but the brother always wins.

Victor taking his role seriously and making me tea with jam and bread

3. Nickname your sister. Give your sister a nickname. I have a great one for Bethany that you will have to ask for permission to use. If not, try one out and see how it feels. If it is not the right nickname, then keep trying out different ones until you find one that works.

4. Be a pest.  Again, this is an actual job for brothers. One way to be a pest is, listen close…When you are tired and your eyes are watery, tell her you need a shoulder to cry on. Proceed to wipe your tear on her shoulder.

5. Make her tea.  This is not something you always have to do. But sometimes sisters may want tea but may not want to make it.

6. Let her win at UNO.  Brothers usually win the games. So if you play any games with her make sure you let her win sometimes or she might not want to play anymore.

7. Tell her you love her.  She knows anyway, but it is good to hear.

I am happy to loan my sister to you for now. Make sure you return her to me in one piece!

I am glad that my sister has a brother in Masaka now!

Talk to you later!

Joel

Joel and Victor met during the holidays when Joel came to visit. This was before we knew that Victor would be with us permanently once school started again.