Today felt like two days in one. Before lunch I ran around accomplishing as much as I should have for the whole day, only to have to set out after lunch on what seemed to be an endless journey around Southern Uganda looking for children with a lady that had given information to Pastor Edward. Unfortunately Edward was not available today so I was at the disposal of a lady that was determined to show me two children that were either miles down dirt roads (almost to Rwandan border by dirt road) or miles into the hills. This of course was unexpected and put me about two hours behind in another appointment with another lady to visit other children.
It was good though to get to see them, though it did not feel good at the time, and on the way home I was driving through a part of Kabale that is occupied by people that have no funds. I said to Kathryn later that this part of town was basically the housing place of hundreds of children whose only hope for getting an education was through an Aid agency of some sort. Even those with both parents struggle to get any children into school, and if they manage to get one or two in, then the others are used to help get by and to keep the ones in school, there.
In Australia there are ‘rough’ areas where poorer people seem to live, but at least they have food to eat and can get education for their children, but not here. I was reminded though of the other day when I went through there with Pastor Edward and we bumped into some of the boys from the drop-in centre who are now sponsored into school. They were having lunch at a local food joint that sponsors money helps pay for also, and they looked so great. To have seen them before in the state when they first came to the drop-in and now to look at them. They are completely different, they now appear as any other school boy would. There was even one boy that I seemed to recognise from somewhere but could not figure where. He too was actually one from the drop-in that I had only seen a handful of times.
I suppose I have to put today down as a day of mixed events and emotions.
Photo of the day goes to one little fellow that Pastor Edward did not want for us to take into Akanyijuka:
Johanan Isban – Edward and Peace’s little boy!
