namaste.

as our adventures in uganda continue, i am grateful for the moments of connection i've had thus far on this trip.  my parents, sisters and i rode on tuesday morning to murchison falls national park for our first safari adventure.  after weaving our way out of kampala traffic, we passed lots of little villages on our way to the park.  at one of the villages, our safari van slowed down to pass through a police checkpoint.  as we sat in the van, a little boy wearing a purple shirt that matched the color of my own met my eyes through the car window.  we both just looked at each other for a few seconds, then both smiled, and right before we pulled away, we both raised our hands to wave at each other at precisely the same moment.  now, i will never know this boy's name, but at that moment, i sensed so fully that we are connected, each of us.  it was a moment of namaste, that which is divine in me seeing, acknowledging, greeting the divine in you.  these moments of connection have come so frequently for me at joseph's house, as i sit with someone who is dying, often in silence, sometime without knowing any more than a name.  but when i'm able to really see the other, whether at joseph's house or in the middle of uganda, i realize that we truly are all connected by the same spirit, the same life, and that our destiny, our common life, is intertwined.  

and not just are we as humans connected, but all life is really intertwined.  while riding with my head poking out of the safari van, i stared graceful giraffes in the eye; a family of warthogs and my family beheld each other in the bush; i witnessed two brother lions, one with only three legs, nuzzle each other before the stronger brother went off to hunt to provide for himself and his bro; i watched a mother chimpanzee clean and feed her baby.  how beautiful to witness the love and connection and life in creation, the same love and care and family that we cherish.  

brother lions taking care of each other.

family photo with the giraffes!

a rainbow across the park.

as we left the game park on our first game drive tuesday evening, we saw a rainbow spreading over the whole valley.  with giraffes and cape buffalo in the background, warthogs running past and birds singing, it was such a spectacular sight.  i am grateful for the way this place is constantly reminding me of my, of our connectedness.  may i and we continue to slow down and really notice and honor one another, to greet each other.  namaste.

eating grasshoppers.

after about twenty hours of traveling on three different continents, we arrived in entebbe late on friday night (uganda time).  we were pretty exhausted, but it was lovely to be met by my aunt and cousin, as well as by the smell of burning charcoal that makes me think, "mmmm africa."  my family lives in a beautiful house here, with lovely flowers all around.  we spent yesterday throwing a bug birthday party for my seven year old cousin and twenty of his closest friends, where they played bug games, got bug favors, and yes, even ate some grasshoppers.  my little four year old cousin stood by the bowl, popping grasshoppers in her mouth like candy... i definitely had my fair share as well.  seasoned and fried, they were quite delicious if you could forget that they were grasshoppers going in your mouth.  it was pretty fantastic.  today, we went to my aunt and uncle's church, mostly a community of ex-pats, where my family was asked to give the message... which meant that i got to preach!  it was fun to share with this group of people (i even threw a little tattoos on the heart in there!).  after lunch, my uncle took us on a drive around kampala, where we saw a beautiful old anglican church, visited some of the government buildings, saw the biggest mess of taxis i've ever seen.  here are some of the pics from that trip:  

a shot from the cemetery at the anglican church on one of the many hilltops in kampala. 

the church itself - finally, a sunny day!

part of kampala from up on the hill.

it is interesting being here as a guest in the ex-pat community; it seems like my family has done wonderfully with making relationships with ugandans as well as with americans, but it also reminds me of how easy it is for us as people to keep to those who look like us, who act like us.  and how difficult it can be to cross those bridges, how uncomfortable, how much more effort, how much more vulnerable we are when we try.  i'm also reminded, in being here and in several conversations with my aunt and uncle, how much bad development work happens in the world, especially in the name of faith.  without humility, without a long-term commitment to building relationships and sustainability, without cultural sensitivity, it is easy for us do-gooders to do harm more than good.  i am hopeful that my time here will continue to deepen my understanding of how we can work in solidarity, in "kinship" as gregory boyle calls it, with those who are poor, empowering and being empowered ourselves, being open, being changed.

back to Africa!

well, after exactly five years, i am fortunate enough to be returning to africa this week!  so much has happened and changed in me in the five years since i spent a transformative summer in zambia with the jubilee centre.  looking back, i feel incredibly grateful.  that time in zambia began me on the journey towards community, towards a life devoted to empowering and solidarity with the poor, towards examining and understanding more fully my own privilege as a white, middle-class person, towards a more vast, inclusive view of faith and of the world where there is enough of Love for all.  that journey has brought me to DC, to joseph's house, to grad school for social work, to life in simplicity and in community... and who knows where else it will take me!  but for now, this journey returns me to the motherland.  :-)

i'd like to clarify my journey, the reasons i'm going and what i'll be doing.  my family (parents and two sisters) are going to be traveling to uganda on thursday to spend several weeks with my aunt, uncle, and three little cousins in their home in kampala.  my uncle has worked in kampala for the last two years, and we will be staying with their family.  our plan is to take some safaris, go chimp trekking, hang out with my aunt, uncle, and cousins, and connect with some of the NGOs and individuals with which my aunt's family has connected in their time there.  in the second week of june, the rest of my immediate family will be leaving uganda (and returning to all over the world :-), and i will have the opportunity to stay with my aunt and uncle through june 24th.  i am looking forward to connecting with the children's prison where my aunt volunteers, with an organization that works with survivors of sex trafficking, perhaps with l'arche in kampala or a quick trip to kenya... there are lots of possibilities!

so, as i begin this journey, i hope to hold that same spirit of openness to really seeing the people i meet and learning from them as teachers.  i hope to learn whatever africa has to teach me this time, and to continue to live into the questions.  i hope to write whenever i can and share my thoughts and experiences, as well as some pictures, with you.  thank you all for journeying with me in this new adventure!