This week has been unseasonably COLD and wet for Uganda. I know what you are all thinking… “oh you poor things”, but seriously it has been cold. We are in fact experiencing African winter. Monday was the grand opening of the babies home at Suubi and it was by far the coldest, dampest day we have experienced in our 6 months in Uganda. No one ever knows the actual temperature here, so we look it up on the internet and we read that the low for the day was 16 degrees Celsius. It felt WAY colder. Even as I’m writing this blog I’m wearing socks for the second time in six months. With all that being said, I still managed to get a sun burn this past week on the one day the sun did shine☺
Matt has been busy organizing things down at the production unit to make life run more smoothly. He has been compiling every product that has ever been made in the shop and creating job packets. Each packet will contain an overview of the job, a drawing of the product, a cut list and a list of material. This will hopefully save much time in the future. Matt and Gerry spent last Sunday setting up a new security system for the production unit. This was a new challenge for both Gerry and Matt, but so far so good. This will hopefully save the shop much money. Even with a security guard, many items have going ‘missing’. Another huge accomplishment at the production unit this week has been the purchase and setup of the shop’s new generator (40 KW John Deere). They are now off the main power grid, which was unreliable and charging the shop FAR more than they have been using. The shop can run on the generator for a 9-hour day at 2.3L of diesel/hour. This will save them loads of money as the cost the cost of diesel for 9 hours is less than the cost of electricity and the workers will be provided with constant electricity, which equals greater productivity. Great week for the production unit!
Down at the babies home we are excited that the Grand Opening is done. Now we can really settle in and focus 100% on the babies. The new schedule is going wonderfully and my nannies are being amazing with all the change and crazy things I’m asking them to do. The babies are getting smarter as they are now playing with playdough, being read to and receiving intentional interaction among other things. They are also feeling more settled. I also, am blessed to go to town once a week for meetings and of course to get my preemie fix in☺
An update on Meg for all you faithful blog readers – she rolled over yesterday for the first time!!!!
We have been missing Canada as we are hearing small tidbits of the Olympics – makes us proud to be Canadian, but also miss home a little too☺
Love to you all!
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
All things Suubi
To pick up where we left off last week… Meg’s first outing and first Valentines was a blast. While our original plans to take Meg out for a picnic were washed away by rain, our day was memorable nonetheless. We picked Meg up and Sarah wrapped her snuggly in a baby sling to take her out of the babies home for the very first time. Prior to me meeting Sarah, Meg and Jill for lunch I picked up some flowers for the three of them because what is Valentines without flowers, especially ones first Valentines. From what I could decipher from Meg’s wide eyes, busy eyebrows and head that never sat still, I believe that she LOVED her first afternoon on the town. I hope that she will always remember that her first valentine was a 24-year-old white boy form Canada. Sarah was tremendously generous in sharing me for the afternoon.
Later in the week, while Sarah and I were deeply enjoying some much-needed sleep, as anyone would at 5:00 am, Sarah received a call from the babies home with shocking news; George was having trouble breathing. We quickly made our way down to the babies home to find out what was wrong. When we arrived George was being held tightly by Vicki (the night supervisor) wheezing and hooked up to an oxygen tank to help him breathe. Sarah quickly decided that he had to go into Kampala for some medical attention and called Annie to come pick him up. In record time, Annie made it out to Suubi and Sarah, George, Annie and Jill were off back to town. In the end, George was diagnosed with croup, given some much-needed medication and sent on his way to a speedy recovery. Needless to say, he managed to scare many people in a few short hours. We thank God for his speedy recovery and that he was surrounded by capable and loving individuals when everything happened.
In other babies home news, as of today, the Suubi babies home is officially open. The home was visited by roughly 150 people today to officially open it and dedicate it to the glory of God. The ceremony was complete with African dancing and drumming, speeches, prayers, tours, cake, and volunteers and babies in matchy smatchy t-shirts. A good time was had by all.
As for me and the production unit, life and work is crazy busy. This past week we managed to finish up many of the cabinets, railing and doors for the main floor at the Suubi babies home, build and ship cabinets for 2 units of 6 up to Gulu babies home, continue building furniture for both the schools and the homes at both villages and install a security system. The security system was a first for me, so far so good. Outside the shop this week I was able to spend some quality time with my friend, boss and mentor, Gerry Kimple. One of those times involved attending church on Sunday at a church deep in the rural bush. While I am incapable of spelling the name of the church my time there was memorable. Just to get there we drove down a dirt road full of potholes, goats, sheep and cattle for about 15 minutes until the road ended, from where we then had to proceed on foot another 10 minutes through a random village. The church building was no more than a few poles, some iron sheets, 6 benches, 2 chairs and a table. The congregation, that day, consisted of about 15 adults and 12 children. It was an absolutely interesting and refreshing worship experience. We worshiped through song, prayer and a message on how God is capable and willing to help us in our time of need, if we would simply give our problems to him. The music was not led by a well-outfitted band, but by 3 singers, two drummers, one of which couldn’t have been much older than 10, and our own rhythmic clapping. My time there made me realize that God is everywhere; he is in the mega churches of North America, he is in the house churches of China and he is most certainly in the simple churches of rural Africa.
I will end it there for this week but will ask you all to be in prayer for a few items. First and foremost, that God, and God alone, would be glorified through all of the efforts of Watoto. Secondly, for the health and well being of my Mentor, Gerry. Third, that Sarah and I would continue to see the “big picture” and serve with humble hearts. Fourth, for strength and energy to serve each and every day. And lastly, that those who do not know Jesus, whom we work with on a daily basis, would come to know him.
Later in the week, while Sarah and I were deeply enjoying some much-needed sleep, as anyone would at 5:00 am, Sarah received a call from the babies home with shocking news; George was having trouble breathing. We quickly made our way down to the babies home to find out what was wrong. When we arrived George was being held tightly by Vicki (the night supervisor) wheezing and hooked up to an oxygen tank to help him breathe. Sarah quickly decided that he had to go into Kampala for some medical attention and called Annie to come pick him up. In record time, Annie made it out to Suubi and Sarah, George, Annie and Jill were off back to town. In the end, George was diagnosed with croup, given some much-needed medication and sent on his way to a speedy recovery. Needless to say, he managed to scare many people in a few short hours. We thank God for his speedy recovery and that he was surrounded by capable and loving individuals when everything happened.
In other babies home news, as of today, the Suubi babies home is officially open. The home was visited by roughly 150 people today to officially open it and dedicate it to the glory of God. The ceremony was complete with African dancing and drumming, speeches, prayers, tours, cake, and volunteers and babies in matchy smatchy t-shirts. A good time was had by all.
As for me and the production unit, life and work is crazy busy. This past week we managed to finish up many of the cabinets, railing and doors for the main floor at the Suubi babies home, build and ship cabinets for 2 units of 6 up to Gulu babies home, continue building furniture for both the schools and the homes at both villages and install a security system. The security system was a first for me, so far so good. Outside the shop this week I was able to spend some quality time with my friend, boss and mentor, Gerry Kimple. One of those times involved attending church on Sunday at a church deep in the rural bush. While I am incapable of spelling the name of the church my time there was memorable. Just to get there we drove down a dirt road full of potholes, goats, sheep and cattle for about 15 minutes until the road ended, from where we then had to proceed on foot another 10 minutes through a random village. The church building was no more than a few poles, some iron sheets, 6 benches, 2 chairs and a table. The congregation, that day, consisted of about 15 adults and 12 children. It was an absolutely interesting and refreshing worship experience. We worshiped through song, prayer and a message on how God is capable and willing to help us in our time of need, if we would simply give our problems to him. The music was not led by a well-outfitted band, but by 3 singers, two drummers, one of which couldn’t have been much older than 10, and our own rhythmic clapping. My time there made me realize that God is everywhere; he is in the mega churches of North America, he is in the house churches of China and he is most certainly in the simple churches of rural Africa.
I will end it there for this week but will ask you all to be in prayer for a few items. First and foremost, that God, and God alone, would be glorified through all of the efforts of Watoto. Secondly, for the health and well being of my Mentor, Gerry. Third, that Sarah and I would continue to see the “big picture” and serve with humble hearts. Fourth, for strength and energy to serve each and every day. And lastly, that those who do not know Jesus, whom we work with on a daily basis, would come to know him.
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Mama Said There Would Be Days Like These...
This past week was not the most fun of our lives. Many frustrations seemed to pile up all at once this week. I have rested in a verse found in Romans 8:28 “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”
Without going into the nitty gritty of our week, I want to share a few of my own “Proverbs”, if you will, that came as a result:
1. Good leadership is crucial to all organizations. Good leaders need to support their followers, be willing to get their hands dirty, have and share their vision, communicate and, finally, care for and encourage their followers.
2. My husband is an AMAZING man!
3. People will not listen to your criticism unless you have first spent time loving them and encouraging them.
4. Culture is a tricky thing! There is immense beauty in cultural differences, as well as immense frustrations.
5. I LOVE and am passionate about premature babies!
6. I believe in doing things to the best of my ability.
7. Learning people’s names makes such a HUGE difference when relating to and leading them.
8. Love people well!
9. Beware of a bitter heart – it will poison your entire being.
10. Lean on Jesus – “He is my strength when I am weak.”
11. My husband is such a blessing to me – I am so thankful for him!
12. Walking home in the dark through rural Africa is so SCARY!
13. I love Canada.
14. Not having water for 15 days over the last month makes the days that you can have a shower seem EPIC!
15. I believe in being a good steward of the things you are blessed with.
16. Doing something right the first time will ensure that you don’t have to repeat the task over and over and over…. this is a foreign concept to some.
17. Being given much without having to earn it or take responsibility for it makes for a bad combo…parents please keep your children accountable, don’t just hand them things on silver platters. They will be better children because of it.
18. Being consistent and following through on your word is so important.
19. Never, ever yell at people.
20. Treat others with respect and dignity.
21. 1 pair of thinning flip flops + 12 hours on a concrete floor x 5 days = 1 VERY sore body.
22. African babies have an innate ability to dance.
23. We need to love our neighbors as ourselves. Take care of people.
24. Good parenting is going to make or break the next generation.
25. Use peoples gifts. Don’t extinguish them.
26. Before expanding/growing one must look at what they have and improve that before they are entrusted with more. Be a good steward of what you have been given.
27. Respect. Encourage. Love.
28. Admit when you are wrong.
29. Read your bible – you will be amazed at how is change your life. Take time to “be still and know.”
30. Choose wisely who you are going to spend the rest of your life with! I am so so happy with my choice!
The babies home is doing well. We are making changes that are EPIC. The nannies are working so hard! I realize that change is a very hard thing and we are very short staffed at the moment. I have been trying to encourage my staff and help out as much as I ca. Yesterday we had a “Hoosiers” moment (only some of you will understand what that means…a Hoosiers moment in the Morgan household means like – the climax of the movie…the point where you want to cry cause it’s so beautiful!). On Friday afternoon, my very tiered nannies and volunteers and I had a spontaneous and random African dance/singing time with the babies. It was beautiful – we bonded, we loved, we were African, and I think it was a good way to end our week.
Matt has been busy this week. He has been doing more drawings and planning than actual hands on building. He is very helpful to his boss. He has been given a long to do list. This past week Matt also had a chance to sit down and very clearly share the gospel with Rashid (the man he has been working closely with for the past 6 months, who is Muslim). While Rashid did not accept Jesus, their conversation was extremely respectful and honest. Matt said that that conversation made the entire trip worthwhile. Matt is currently out playing volleyball with his “team”, In the hot hot African sun.
Tomorrow we are off to town to visit the prems and take Meg out for a little Valentines date, just the three of us. I can’t wait! This will be her first “outing” from the home!
Missing home a little with all things Olympic happening – GO CANADA GO!!!
Without going into the nitty gritty of our week, I want to share a few of my own “Proverbs”, if you will, that came as a result:
1. Good leadership is crucial to all organizations. Good leaders need to support their followers, be willing to get their hands dirty, have and share their vision, communicate and, finally, care for and encourage their followers.
2. My husband is an AMAZING man!
3. People will not listen to your criticism unless you have first spent time loving them and encouraging them.
4. Culture is a tricky thing! There is immense beauty in cultural differences, as well as immense frustrations.
5. I LOVE and am passionate about premature babies!
6. I believe in doing things to the best of my ability.
7. Learning people’s names makes such a HUGE difference when relating to and leading them.
8. Love people well!
9. Beware of a bitter heart – it will poison your entire being.
10. Lean on Jesus – “He is my strength when I am weak.”
11. My husband is such a blessing to me – I am so thankful for him!
12. Walking home in the dark through rural Africa is so SCARY!
13. I love Canada.
14. Not having water for 15 days over the last month makes the days that you can have a shower seem EPIC!
15. I believe in being a good steward of the things you are blessed with.
16. Doing something right the first time will ensure that you don’t have to repeat the task over and over and over…. this is a foreign concept to some.
17. Being given much without having to earn it or take responsibility for it makes for a bad combo…parents please keep your children accountable, don’t just hand them things on silver platters. They will be better children because of it.
18. Being consistent and following through on your word is so important.
19. Never, ever yell at people.
20. Treat others with respect and dignity.
21. 1 pair of thinning flip flops + 12 hours on a concrete floor x 5 days = 1 VERY sore body.
22. African babies have an innate ability to dance.
23. We need to love our neighbors as ourselves. Take care of people.
24. Good parenting is going to make or break the next generation.
25. Use peoples gifts. Don’t extinguish them.
26. Before expanding/growing one must look at what they have and improve that before they are entrusted with more. Be a good steward of what you have been given.
27. Respect. Encourage. Love.
28. Admit when you are wrong.
29. Read your bible – you will be amazed at how is change your life. Take time to “be still and know.”
30. Choose wisely who you are going to spend the rest of your life with! I am so so happy with my choice!
The babies home is doing well. We are making changes that are EPIC. The nannies are working so hard! I realize that change is a very hard thing and we are very short staffed at the moment. I have been trying to encourage my staff and help out as much as I ca. Yesterday we had a “Hoosiers” moment (only some of you will understand what that means…a Hoosiers moment in the Morgan household means like – the climax of the movie…the point where you want to cry cause it’s so beautiful!). On Friday afternoon, my very tiered nannies and volunteers and I had a spontaneous and random African dance/singing time with the babies. It was beautiful – we bonded, we loved, we were African, and I think it was a good way to end our week.
Matt has been busy this week. He has been doing more drawings and planning than actual hands on building. He is very helpful to his boss. He has been given a long to do list. This past week Matt also had a chance to sit down and very clearly share the gospel with Rashid (the man he has been working closely with for the past 6 months, who is Muslim). While Rashid did not accept Jesus, their conversation was extremely respectful and honest. Matt said that that conversation made the entire trip worthwhile. Matt is currently out playing volleyball with his “team”, In the hot hot African sun.
Tomorrow we are off to town to visit the prems and take Meg out for a little Valentines date, just the three of us. I can’t wait! This will be her first “outing” from the home!
Missing home a little with all things Olympic happening – GO CANADA GO!!!
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Zanzibar!
As SJ mentioned in the last post, we spent this past week on the island of Zanzibar in the country of Tanzania. It was most certainly an adventurous and relaxing time.
We arrived on the island Monday afternoon and were greeted by 34-degree heat and what seemed like 100% humidity. Waiting for us outside the airport doors were two Tanzanian gentlemen holding a sign that read “Coral Rock Hotel”, which was to be our home for the week. They led us to our transport which was nothing special, an unmarked 4x4 SUV. We loaded our gear, hopped in and were off on our hour drive clear across the island (east to west). We first passed through Stone Town, the capital of Zanzibar. This “city” was busy with people shopping, working and just hanging out and is apparently the birthplace of Queen’s former front man Freddie Mercury. Zanzibar by the way is a very remote and underdeveloped island whose main industry is tourism and fishing. Zanzibar also is an island without power. Lanterns and generators are widely used and therefore, needless to say, the people and businesses go through a heap of petrol (gasoline). So…on our way through Stone Town we stopped a very random, run-down gas station and picked up 8 large jerry cans full of petrol. This made our hour drive across the island less enjoyable.
Our hotel was located on the Southwest coast in the remote village of Jambiani. There was actually very little separating our hotel from the village itself, which made for a neat experience. We had a little beach bungalow overlooking the beach, which unfortunately due to a recent storm was covered in seaweed, and the beautiful Indian Ocean. The ocean was brilliantly blue in color and crystal clear. At around noon everyday the tide would go out about a kilometer creating a very large beachfront full of little pools and coral to explore. These pools were home to many tiny fish, crabs and starfish. At around 4 in the afternoon the tide would make its way back in, until noon the next day, right up to our front door.
During our stay we explored the beach, snorkeled in a little channel, did a lot of relaxing and reading and embarked on a dolphin tour. The dolphin tour was located on the island’s most southern tip, about a half hour drive from our hotel. At 5:30 in the morning one day, before the sun rose, we made our way to Kizimkazi. When we arrived at the beach we experience a scene right out of Jesus’ day. Coming into shore were dozens of large, rustic wooden sailboats, which had been fishing all night and were eager to show off and sell their catches. The beach was lined with tuna, marlin, kingfish, eels, manta rays, barracuda and even the odd shark. It was quite a scene. After each grabbing a pair of flippers, a mask and snorkel, Sarah and I made our way to our very our rustic wooden boat and were off to find some dolphins. Now in comparison to the vastness of the ocean you would think that finding a very specific mammal would be almost impossible, and SJ and I even began to think that this trip was simply going to amount to an expensive boat ride. But after searching for about 30 minutes we had our first dolphin sighting. At that moment our “captain” and his “first mate” were shouting at us (nicely) to get our gear on and get ready to jump in. This chasing and jumping in was abrupt news to us, but I was not going to miss out on jumping into a school of dolphins. Sarah opted out of the first go but was ready and eager on the next one. So…I quickly geared up and before I knew it we were along side the school of dolphins and I was jumping overboard. Once I hit the water I began to swim as hard as I could in the direction of the dolphins. As the whitewater from my not so eloquent dive and the boat passed, I could roughly see about 25 dolphins underneath me. It was an exhilarating sight. Now clearly I could not keep up with the school so I surfaced and was picked up by our boat only to repeat the process 3 more times with SJ by my side. It was quite an experience.
After a wonderful getaway we made our way back “home” to Uganda on Friday. Saturday was the 24th birthday of yours truly and I had an absolutely wonderful day planned by a wonderful wife. I awoke to a pancake breakfast and the gift of a new iPod Touch. I was very surprised. I have a very sneaky wife. In the afternoon we had George, from the babies home, over and had a fantastic time. We played, decorated birthday cookies and had supper. It was fun to have George over, check out the pics on Facebook. The evening ended with Sarah, Susy, Beth and I watching the new “Sherlock Holmes” movie. What a great day!
I have written far too much and if you have read this far your eyes probably hurt…so until next week.
We arrived on the island Monday afternoon and were greeted by 34-degree heat and what seemed like 100% humidity. Waiting for us outside the airport doors were two Tanzanian gentlemen holding a sign that read “Coral Rock Hotel”, which was to be our home for the week. They led us to our transport which was nothing special, an unmarked 4x4 SUV. We loaded our gear, hopped in and were off on our hour drive clear across the island (east to west). We first passed through Stone Town, the capital of Zanzibar. This “city” was busy with people shopping, working and just hanging out and is apparently the birthplace of Queen’s former front man Freddie Mercury. Zanzibar by the way is a very remote and underdeveloped island whose main industry is tourism and fishing. Zanzibar also is an island without power. Lanterns and generators are widely used and therefore, needless to say, the people and businesses go through a heap of petrol (gasoline). So…on our way through Stone Town we stopped a very random, run-down gas station and picked up 8 large jerry cans full of petrol. This made our hour drive across the island less enjoyable.
Our hotel was located on the Southwest coast in the remote village of Jambiani. There was actually very little separating our hotel from the village itself, which made for a neat experience. We had a little beach bungalow overlooking the beach, which unfortunately due to a recent storm was covered in seaweed, and the beautiful Indian Ocean. The ocean was brilliantly blue in color and crystal clear. At around noon everyday the tide would go out about a kilometer creating a very large beachfront full of little pools and coral to explore. These pools were home to many tiny fish, crabs and starfish. At around 4 in the afternoon the tide would make its way back in, until noon the next day, right up to our front door.
During our stay we explored the beach, snorkeled in a little channel, did a lot of relaxing and reading and embarked on a dolphin tour. The dolphin tour was located on the island’s most southern tip, about a half hour drive from our hotel. At 5:30 in the morning one day, before the sun rose, we made our way to Kizimkazi. When we arrived at the beach we experience a scene right out of Jesus’ day. Coming into shore were dozens of large, rustic wooden sailboats, which had been fishing all night and were eager to show off and sell their catches. The beach was lined with tuna, marlin, kingfish, eels, manta rays, barracuda and even the odd shark. It was quite a scene. After each grabbing a pair of flippers, a mask and snorkel, Sarah and I made our way to our very our rustic wooden boat and were off to find some dolphins. Now in comparison to the vastness of the ocean you would think that finding a very specific mammal would be almost impossible, and SJ and I even began to think that this trip was simply going to amount to an expensive boat ride. But after searching for about 30 minutes we had our first dolphin sighting. At that moment our “captain” and his “first mate” were shouting at us (nicely) to get our gear on and get ready to jump in. This chasing and jumping in was abrupt news to us, but I was not going to miss out on jumping into a school of dolphins. Sarah opted out of the first go but was ready and eager on the next one. So…I quickly geared up and before I knew it we were along side the school of dolphins and I was jumping overboard. Once I hit the water I began to swim as hard as I could in the direction of the dolphins. As the whitewater from my not so eloquent dive and the boat passed, I could roughly see about 25 dolphins underneath me. It was an exhilarating sight. Now clearly I could not keep up with the school so I surfaced and was picked up by our boat only to repeat the process 3 more times with SJ by my side. It was quite an experience.
After a wonderful getaway we made our way back “home” to Uganda on Friday. Saturday was the 24th birthday of yours truly and I had an absolutely wonderful day planned by a wonderful wife. I awoke to a pancake breakfast and the gift of a new iPod Touch. I was very surprised. I have a very sneaky wife. In the afternoon we had George, from the babies home, over and had a fantastic time. We played, decorated birthday cookies and had supper. It was fun to have George over, check out the pics on Facebook. The evening ended with Sarah, Susy, Beth and I watching the new “Sherlock Holmes” movie. What a great day!
I have written far too much and if you have read this far your eyes probably hurt…so until next week.
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