More than just a little overdue...

Well, on this lovely Sunday afternoon I am currently sipping an extra sweet cup of hot black tea, enjoying the breeze as I am sitting in the dining hall, listening to Barlow Girl and looking at the sun gradually setting. As usual I have a pile of papers that I should be doing but I am oddly content and peaceful simply sitting here instead, despite those circumstances. The breeze is especially nice after walking back from my host family’s home in Mukono. I definitely worked up a sweat after walking a good part of the afternoon in the heat. Now I am cooling down but still able to enjoy the warm cup of tea so I don’t get too chilly. It was interesting to able to accompany one of my brother’s to his visitation day for secondary school today while I visited the family. It’s like a parent teacher conference essentially. Except that Denis, my eldest brother, acted as Allan’s, my other brother, father and I acted as his mother. I commented on the family resemblanceJ. As I walked back to campus from the meeting with Allan’s teachers, I was reflecting on my time here in Uganda. I was finding it hard to not take an evaluative mindset as I go about my time. I feel like I could not fit anything else into my semester and at the same time I feel as though I need to see, taste, hear, and experience the things that I have not yet, which feels like everything. I know I need to stop grading my time and just feel free to experience the moments as they come, but I fear how little time I have left. It makes my heart sag so much and so often. I am actually sitting here with a friend named Peterson who has been commenting on how sad he will be when the group of American students leave, but I cannot imagine my life without the Ugandans students I have met either. I do not know what I will do when I go back to America. I am ready to see my loved ones again, so in that respect, as well as my complete lack on energy, indicates how ready I am to go back home. But with how I have been changed by my time here with the people and things that I have experienced, I cannot imagine leaving either. *45 minutes later* I just finished a discussion with Peterson. Although I do not think he understood some of what I was trying to communicate, I still appreciated his attentiveness and genuine desire to engage in what I had to offer as much as I wanted to hear what he had to say. It’s ironic that I just had an insightful talk with a student while typing about my time here and its lack of meaningful experiences. Another quirk of fate would have it that right now sitting four tables away from me is the newly appointed president of the student body and on the TV is a piece about the also newly appointed president of our nation, Barack Obama, whom everyone here in Uganda has been raving about with much enthusiasm. Everywhere I go it’s either, “Did you vote for Obama?” or “Hey Obama’s people!” or “Yes we can!” The timing is unfortunate for coming here to Uganda considering I avoid political discussions or debates generally, when everyone is most passionate about having those discussions…*Monday 30th* Yay! We have internet again J Lots of work to do this week, but wanted to finally submit a post since my first one. A thousand apologies for not updating for the majority of this semester! Hope this at least satisfies some people’s interests!

Think Big, But Start Small

Sorry that this is coming to you so late since my arrival here in Uganda! I hope you all are doing well! I saw that quote on the back of a bus on our way into Kampala, so once I got beyond the tail pipe smoke I thought I found an appropriate encouragement for how to start blogging about my experiences thus far. I know I’m not the best at staying in touch, but hopefully this will be a good jumping point for the rest of the semester. I love it here in Uganda J After my first week of class we embarked on a new journey with our home stay families, which has been interesting to say the least. So, for these past two weeks I have been learning different aspects of Ugandan family life. I live with my “jajas”, which are my grandparents. They have been so gracious with me as I have stumbled my way through their language and customs, but not without some laughter on both sides as well. I have several brothers, who are actually all cousins, but we call each other brothers and sisters. The eldest, Denis, is 20 years old and very bright. He has such an appetite for knowledge, always asking questions (especially about the United States). I had a sister, Liz, too (also a cousin), but she left just a few days ago to return to her mom, who actually is her aunt. I have learned that most of my siblings’ parents have died, which is why ‘jaja’ has taken them all in. They are such a loving family, I love them so much! The second oldest brother, Joel, is 18 years old, and quite the class clown. He loves to tell me all sorts of mythical stories and take advantage of my gullible nature, which has provided ample amusement for both of us. I also have many younger brothers, who I can’t always keep track of, but a few are Rino, Jason, Paul, Ramon, Andrew, and Allen. They love to follow me around and have me repeat phrases in the local language, Luganda, which is usually also followed by laughter because of my awesome pronunciation. One thing I wasn’t expecting was the kneeling. I have to kneel to my grandparents and anyone who is elder to me, which males do not do at all. Surprisingly enough I don’t mind it all that much. They see it as a sign of respect and I kind of like the different approach to interacting with others.
Food has been another interesting experience. On campus each day there is usually rice and beans for lunch and dinner (or supper as they call it). Some days they have mtoke, which is their staple food. It’s this form of banana which is peeled and cooked and mashed up like mashed potatoes. It doesn’t have much taste to it, so they usually drench it in the sauce from the beans. Another food they have is posho, which basically is flour and water cooked together and served as large chunks of white stuff, which is also tasteless and usually drizzled with the bean sauce. Some days though they have meat or sweet potatoes. I always get excited when they have fruit because the fresh pineapple and bananas are to die for J you can literally peel the banana and smell the scent within seconds, it’s so ripe. Chapati is one of my favorite foods, but it’s pretty heavy too. It’s flour cooked in cooking oil. It’s kind of like flat bread or tortilla bread. I’m not too sure what else to write just yet, I’ve had so many experiences already that my mind is on overload. Hopefully I’ll be able to write more later, maybe next week when I am living on campus again instead of with my family, which has dominated my time thus far. Well , I love you all and pray you are doing superb!!

P.S. Snail mail if you get the chance is:

Carolyn Stoeckle, Uganda Studies Program
Uganda Christian University
PO Box 4
Mukono, Uganda

( FYI: They recommend padded envelopes instead of packages because of processing)