Everyday life

(Phil and I on the Nile)

So I think it's time for a post about my everyday life. I was settling in with my team in our village called Buremba for the past three weeks. My time in the village was challenging but wonderful. It's my new home now - for at least 50% of my time here (probably 75%.) I love being with our communities - living with them - experiencing life with them. But communication is challenging. And it's hard not to be a workaholic when you live your job. But I think that as the weeks go by, I'll learn where and how to draw the lines.

I am hoping to start a women's bible study in Buremba on Saturday mornings. I'm thinking about serving tea and making banana bread. I have a couple bibles we can share - even some in the local language. I have a list of bible stories that we can read and discuss. I figure we can give it a shot and see where God takes us. If you have any good ideas, let me know. I'd love to hear them.

So you might notice that my posts are a bit sporadic. I'm sorry. It's because I don't always have electricity or internet access in Buremba. We run off of solar power, so when it rains, we don't have power for a day or two. But I love it when it rains because then we have plenty of water! We have serious water scarcity issues in Buremba. Somedays I don't get my bucket bath because there simply is no water to be found in the village. But after it rains, we have water for days! And it's super clean! So I guess it's a trade-off...water/power...power/water....take your pick. :)

Something else I think we're going to try in Buremba is volleyball. Surprise, surprise! :) We don't have enough space at our teamhouse, but there is a nice grassy spot next to a medical clinic across the road. I'm hoping that the community will let us use it for our volleyball court. It would be fun to get some games going and it's a great way to build relationships. More to follow on this...

Speaking of volleyball, I'm back in Kampala now and I just got to play on an awesome club team tonight. A friend from work, Samantha, took me to a place where she plays and I couldn't believe my eyes. These Ugandan women are GOOD! I mean, I was intimidated. I can't believe they're letting me play with them. One of the coaches asked me to join their team, so I am now officially part of a competitive Ugandan volleyball team. I'm so excited! They have trainings throughout the week and games on the weekends. God is really great to keep giving me chances to play volleyball all over the world...crazy, isn't it!

Another crazy thing is that I've finally begun to drive over here. We're talking left side of the road, right side of the car driving. Honestly, that part isn't too bad. It's the boda bodas (passenger motorbikes) and matatus (minibuses) that scare me. They come out of nowhere. And as just about everywhere outside of the western world, it's a disorganized mess on these roads. But I'm taking it "slowly slowly". And I plan to practice my "manual" driving in Buremba, so soon enough I'll be a bit more comfortable behind the wheel again.

Also, Phil came over to Uganda last weekend. Above is a picture from our time together. :) It was fantastic! He's my perfect R&R partner. We enjoyed Lake Victoria, the Nile River, a great coffee shop with a perfect Hazelnut frappuccino, and the best brownie in the whole world. Seriously. Phil's back in Kenya now, but off to the States tomorrow for some meetings. You can pray for his travel and specifically his weekend. I know he'll appreciate it.

I also appreciate your many prayers. Thank you so much for your love and support. God is good to have given me all of you. I am amazed at His outpouring of love through you.

May you also know, feel, and be amazed by our God's love for you today!

Take care, my friends.