devotion: reflections

summary (plus some) of my self-interview which I shared at morning devotion the morning before the day of my departure...

>>> What I will miss most

• the PEOPLE: housemates, interns, EMI family, teachers & students at Refuge and Hope, locals
• three words at 1pm: 'laanch ees rehhdy!' :)
• enormous avocados and mangos that just fall from above
• bargaining for groceries/transport/anything at the market... haggling is such a joy :)
• glass soda bottles
• 'taking tea'
• boda-bodas: oh so dangerous yet oh so convenient

>>> What I won't miss

• potholes
• burning garbage
• red dust (or, when it rains, red mud); inadequate stormwater drainage
• mosquitoes
• when AutoCAD refuses to cooperate
• crawling out of my mattress-bowl each morning

>>> What I admire

• "In Uganda, the bus is never full!" -cheerful conductor when I peeked my head in to see if there were extra seats on a bus
• you can't greet someone without asking 'how are you?' and expect a reply
• seeing God's creation in places I've visited throughout Uganda: The Pearl of Africa

>>> What upsets me

• people living on the streets
• mob justice
• corruption

>>> What have I learnt?

• what a sigiri is, and how to eat soup without cutlery
• 'soda' AKA bribe
• new application of the word 'stubborn' (the shopkeeper/dog/rain/machine/bicycle is stubborn)
• indirect communication including 'eeeee' 'a-ah' 'mmmm' 'uh-huh' and raising of eyebrows/pointing of lips
• say "it's OK" to mean "yes", say "I'm fine" to mean "no"
• please extend /flash me /keep time /I am footing /start producing /my downer leg is paining /come pick me /I have reached /sorry! /you are lost /I fear snakes /you resemble her /what what /it was disturbing me /just there /give me balance /you come /ok please /reh-kor-gor-niise-de /ovakedo
• not to take things for granted - excluding power or water supply...
  e.g. education: not to assume a child of a certain age is at a certain schooling level 'cos you don't get to start studying until your parents/benefactors have saved up enough dosh to pay for school fees...
  e.g. basic stationery supplies: how can kids practise drawing/writing/release their inner creativity unless they have access to pencils and paper?
• there is no right or wrong ministry; there are many groups focusing on serving different areas of God's Kingdom--- because our Lord Himself is so big and wide and vast

>>> Who am I?

• a daughter, sister, no longer a student, very soon-to-be unemployed
• an Australian citizen of Chinese descent staying with Americans in Kampala while working with an NGO that seeks to serve God's people throughout East Africa
• on the side, I've taught English to IDPs and refugees from Uganda, Sudan, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia, Somaliland, DR Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Mauritania

>>> Do I belong here?

• well... no! 
• I may be welcomed, but I certainly don't belong
• I may be able to say 'I'm going home after work' or greet every third person on Kiwafu Road, but that won't stop people from calling me mzungu
• ultimately, this world (let alone Australia/Uganda) is not my Home