second, thank you so much for all your prayers and interest in my trip. without your prayers i am convinced that the trip would not have gone so smoothly.
third, my trip back was fine and went off without a hitch. it was tiring but not it was not as bad as my trip there. we were in Amsterdam for 6 hours and me and christina went into the city for a while at 5 am. it was awesome. it was so quiet and peaceful. there wasn't a sound or soul on the picturesque streets of europe. it was a bit surreal. i really want to travel europe now.
i would like to summarize my time there with a few principles i learned (from the outset, it was supposed to be a learning experience).
1) missions is a state of being, not a task: you cannot approach missions as a task or a job. it has to flow out who you are and your state of being. this means that i must work on being the person who missions flows out of. another way of saying this, is that i am more convinced in incarnation ministry is the best form of ministry. this requires me to be a person who spreads the gospel through who i am, not just what programs i do.
2) we are all the same: although we are vastly different people with different cultural upbringings, we are all still humans. when going into cross cultural situations we try to emphasize the differences and the how to adapt. but under all that, all people share some fundamental similarities. we all deal with the same problems. uganda isn't that different from america. we both deal with consumerism and the generation gaps created by mass media. although we are on different ends of the spectrum, we both struggle with the role of gender and how money should be used in the church. we are much closer to our brothers and sisters than we think.
3) listen: many people want to move to another country and 'do missions.' that isn't how it works. listening, learning the language, being a humble learner is the first thing you must do. and the most important in the sense that if you don't do it, you will be completely ineffectual and wasting you time. it might seem pointless to just live among people for 2 years do nothing but learning and listening. but it essential. i learned a lot from the missionaries (especially joel and dale), but i learned the most from tony, a farmer who never made it past 10th grade. this is not understood by the donor community in america. i think this goes back to incarnation ministry.
4) multicultural staff is essential: there is a huge amount of perspective and depth that is added to a team by having multiple cultures represented. we cannot see so much in our own culture because it is OUR culture. the need for fresh perspective is essential. this is especially true when you are trying to envision a counter culture of the kingdom. you have to have others involved. that means that americas do have a place in uganda. and likewise, ugandans have a place in america. we need both. it should not just be a team of nationals. this isn't such a big deal, but if you are com dev major you struggle with admitting that americans have anything to offer.
5) poverty (according to the american definition) is not that bad: living simply is good. i enjoy it. enjoy people. they are a lot better at doing that. we don't need stuff. after being in the very heart of consumerism (apple store) for a week, the contrast of stuff is a but shocking. not that ugandans aren't materialistic (they really are), but there is not so much excess.
and while i'm making lists, here's a list of my top 10 things in uganda (although not necessarily ranked)
1) vumiria: my african name
2) boda bodas: the motorcycles that are everywhere and will be bring you anywhere for a dollar. they are fun to ride. we need them in america
3) tony: the guy i worked with most of the time. he's really funny and cool and smart
4) chapatis and rolexs: chapatis are these flat bread made of flower, water, and onions. they are really good. and rolexs are chapatis with an omelet like mixture inside them. kinda like a breakfast burrito... but african
5) the landscape: it was absolutely the most wonderful thing ever. even my walk to work never got old. the rolling hills with red rooftops and roads and lush green filling in all the gaps. incredible.
6) joel and jill: 2 of the missionaries who work with university students. they taught me a ton in just a few conversations. they are also really funny and direct. joel has an incredible balance of humor and discernment. jill is will talk about anything and is always completely frank and yet still an incredibly nice person. they my example of incarnation ministry. they taught me that being culturally sensitive is not as important as be a real, loving image bearer.
7) my ponga: i bought a machete (ponga) for 3000 schillings (USD 1.50). i brought it back it is soooo awesome. i chopped a lot of things.
8) the raw feeling of reality: life seems a lot closer and more tactile and more real than it does in america. it was probably just the difference and the poverty, but it was definitely different.
9) this pineapple soda that i forgot the name of: i only tried it on my last day of uganda! it was tragic because i really liked it. i had never tired it before because it was in a green bottle and had a label on it that looked like beer. but then i found out it was an awesome soda. and i drank it.
10) my team: they are a really really awesome group of people. they were great friends and i am so glad i shared the journey with them.
so thank you all so much for everything. i hope you also learned something from this (if anything, please just take away that you cannot stereotype africa. it is filled with creative, unique, and really cool people). if you have questions or want to talk more about it please contact me. mukama asiimwe!
