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Saturday, December 25, 2010 - Christmas

By Amanda Wirtz

This morning we were greeted with the warm reality (90+ degrees) that we were sharing this special holiday with our new Ugandan family - the extended community of Immeri. But first - P 90! P90, for the uninformed reader, is a rather intense video workout. Chuck, Joanna, and I hit the pavement; on the concrete patio of our rural home, we punched and crunched with the best of them as village children looked on. Surreal, to say the least. Chuck satiated our thirst with his water pump after discovering our bottled water had run out. After a morning breakfast of cassava and coffee, we departed to the first official service at St. Paul's Anglican Church. Not only were we able to share in the celebration of Christ's birth with over 350 community members (approximately 200 of which were children), but in the joyful inauguration of the church as well. Patrick, our VTT host, has personally invested in its construction and was more than excited to see the pews - and the floor - flowered with visitors. As a physical 'prayer' for blessing, all the visitors were asked to walk around the church three times - for the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost - singing songs of celebration. The adults and older children settled into the pews while the younger visitors enjoyed straw mats on the dirt floor. Although uncompleted, this hearty structure became home to many. Patrick passionately solicited for the support and continued growth of the church - instilling a spirit of joyful responsibility to all attendees. The service continued with prayer, bible readings and several hymns; with the exception of a special greeting and prayer directed toward the VTT team, the service was conducted in the native language of the villagers (Lusoga).

During the service, a villager passed us a publication of "Teacher Talk" - a national publication geared toward educators. Since my predominant interest is in public health, I was incredibly fascinating with several topics discussed in the paper. There was a Q & A section where teachers presented questions and difficult situations which were brought to their attention by students. A few thought provoking examples included:"My friend was raped. What immediate HIV prevention treatment is available to her?" "Do wet dreams suggest that I am infertile?" "I asked a girl to marry me but she told me she is HIV positive - I believe she is just trying to scare me out of the proposal. What should I do?" "Do women with HIV still have a menstrual cycle?" Outside of HIV information, the paper was littered with other pressing topics including: stigma, childhood violence, early forced marriage, and drug and alcohol abuse. I was rather saddened by the issues presented but impressed simultaneously by the publication's ability to succinctly define and address them.

Toward the end of the service, an offering was taken from the congregation. A separate collection was taken from men and women in a psuedo-competition to see 'who gives the best'. Although no tabulations were actually made, much was given from a people who have very little. From shillings to sweet potatoes (which were auctioned for funds during the service), the offering was made and finalized with a prayer to complete the service: "To have life and have it abundantly." The juxtaposition of this prayer and our mission to support sustained development in the community was perfected - what a meaningful way to spend Christmas; I was more than grateful. Back at Patrick's home, we entertained the visiting pastoral staff. After enjoying lunch and a few refreshing beverages, we played a game - one of my favorites! Each person wrote down something about themselves that they imagined the others would not guess about themselves. The 'facts' were confidentially pooled and read out loud. We then voted and at the end, were humorously surprised by our ability - or inability - to match the 'fact' with the person. We learned about each other and had a few laughs... to say the least. The 'loser' of the game (the one most easily pinpointed) was tasked with singing the group a Christmas song. Patrick's nephew (Fred) had the honor and we were all delighted. We presented Patrick and his family with a rather rough Christmas card (composed by colored pens and notebook paper) and a carol sung by Geoff, Joanna, Shelly, and I. Despite the fact our resources were limited in comparison, our joy was made complete by our time together.

After enjoying a spiced cake, we retreated to our respective rooms. In the spirit of Christmas - Geoff, Joanna, Shelly and I gifted each other with feet washing. Cool water and massage never felt so good. We all agreed it was the best thing we could give and receive. We were hoping to hear news of Annslie, our final teammate, but discovered that she was delayed in her travels due to weather in Brussels and was diverted to London and then on to Nairobi... 50+ hours of transit - hardly a gift - but safe, none the same!

The evening ended with a visitor - not a reindeer - but a frog in our toilet who resiliently fought for his position despite unintended flushing efforts. Never a dull moment.

Sunday, December 26, 2010 - Relaxation

Being a Sunday, our start was rather slow. We enjoyed a relaxing day as we reviewed our work plans and intentions for the week ahead. Fred, in response to a peaking malaria fever, visited our 'micro-clinic' where Geoff took his blood pressure, I took his temperature and Joanna reviewed his history and did a physical examination. Although we could do little but encourage him to seek more aggressive care, provide some Naproxen and a little TLC (cool rags and a relaxing environment) - we were able to reduce his fever by two degrees. Victory!