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Hello! Just in case there are a few people still checking this site . . . we have a few pictures to post. There are more than 1700 others, and we are sorting through them! If you click on these thumbnails you should get a larger picture.

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Manry Pictures

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We need to begin with the Manrys, who are proudly announcing the arrival of Tessa Marie! Their website (http://www.manryfamily.com/) hasn't been updated, yet, but it will be, quite soon. At left you can see Mark, our constant chauffeur; lower left, you can see Lori, who kept going and going and going and . . . lower right you can see Buzaaniro Village, the backyard playground for Luke, Connnor, and Lydia Jane.

Pictures from London

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Left: the "Tube" platform near our flat; right: the girls pause on the steps of St. Paul's Cathedral.

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Left: we brace ourselves against the wind atop St. Paul's; right: slumming on the Thames.

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Left: the end of the line, near Wimbledon; right: Annika and Caroline at the Wellington Arch.

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Left: we enjoy some British journalism while we ride the Tube; right: Shreds at Windsor Castle.

Pictures from the African safari

Left: we stand on the Equator with Joyce, Drew, and Jessica; right: we saw a lot of elephants in Queen Elizabeth Park!

Left: some of the terrain in QE Park; right: a candelabra tree.

Left: the crested crane, the national bird of Uganda; right: Keith and the girls on safari with Barbara below and Ben in the driver's seat.

Left: QE Park has a unique set of traffic issues; right: a crocodile on the Channel.

Left: two of the elephants who blocked the road on Saturday; right: baboons say "goodbye" at the edge of the park.

Pictures from Jinja

Left: Allyson gets a ride on a boda-boda; right: a scene at the Jinja market.

Left: Allyson makes a friend at the children's home; right: the girls (and Drew) practice with Zipporah's baskets.

Left: the adults get together for Emily's birthday; right: our lunch at Kagoma Church (notice the devious look on Spencer's face).

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Left: Annika has the answer at Harding Academy in Nawangoma; right: Barbara and the girls, listening to a performance at the Rochester Academy in Nawangoma.

Left: Barbara tries sugar cane; right: we pose in Stephen Waiswa's garden.

Left: Richard Bazonoona stands in front of his house; right: the place where Richard and Ida get their water (at the bottom of the hill).

Left: Keith makes a dramatic gesture while preaching at Jinja Church; right: zebra crossing in Jinja.

Left: Maanda Wilson and his son, Silas; right: Allyson and "Busco" wash their shoes in the Nile River.

Left: the girls at The Source Cafe; right: we prepare to leave for home.

Enough for now . . . if you want to see more, just let us know!

What Do Our Missionaries Need?

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At first, I was going to write a post called "What Does Uganda Need?" I changed my mind, though, because it is presumptuous to pretend that I can really answer that kind of question. The Jinja team is constantly talking about it, and they are always struggling for answers..
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For instance, many Ugandans (especially in the cities and towns) will say, "Eh, we are poor . . . that is our problem." Indeed, statistics say that Uganda's per capita income is about $100, a skimpy number by any standard. Such numbers do not tell the actual story, however, because the country isn't tied to a monetary system. In the villages, especially, people live in close-knit communities and they rarely go hungry or homeless. Moreover, they measure their wealth in goats, cows, chickens, and land . . . to say that Ugandans only earn $100/year is like saying that very few Americans will ever own a goat. The information is true, but it is not particularly useful.

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The picture is complicated, especially for visitors like me.

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So . . . I posed a different question for Mark, Ben and Spencer: what do you need from people back home? What can the Rochester congregation be doing, to help your work succeed?

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First of all, I need to pause and commend these guys, along with their families. They are really, really good at the things they do! They are deep thinkers and they are humble servants . . . they are constantly seeking new ways to get things done, and they are always willing to contemplate new directions. The Rochester congregation deserves to be proud of its connection with these people.

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After deeply and humbly contemplating my question, they basically agreed about one central need. You might have expected them to ask for more money, but they did not . . . in fact, they are trying to limit the flow of American dollars, because they ultimately want their ministry to be inspired, directed, and sponsored by Ugandans. On a personal level, there is an obvious need to maintain their monetary support, but that was not their biggest concern. They would also welcome financial assistance with a project that drills water wells . . . but there was something else that topped their list.

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Above all else, they want people to come and visit them, and they want their supporting congregations to sponsor those kinds of visits. They want us to be partners with them, and they want our insights. They want us to see what they are doing, so we can genuinely understand it. They want the Ugandan churches to spend time with us, and to know that we are more than sources of money. They want to be associated with people who will bring them peanut butter, cheese, and Dr. Pepper.

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Seriously, I think it comes down to tangible things like that.

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And so, we are particularly happy that we could visit with the Jinja team, and with the people whose lives they are touching. And . . . we want you to know how much they appreciate the support that you gave to us. Let's continue to do this kind of thing!

We are Home

We arrived in Detroit at 12:40 this afternoon, just as scheduled, and we are very tired! The last few days have been quite a whirlwind: we drove around Kampala on Friday, tubed London on Saturday, and made the last leg today.

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Our pets are all alive, but our van is not. Perhaps we should be happy, since dead vans are typically easier to fix than dead cats. We shall see.

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We want to give one more rousing "thank-you" to our hosts in Jinja: the Bogles, the Langfords, and especially the Manrys. We will have more to say during the next few days, so stay tuned!

Saying "Goodbye" to Jinja

This will be our last post from Jinja, and it will need to be pretty brief. There is a whole lot more that we could say! We are busily packing our things into suitcases, and we are discovering how many things we acquired while we were here. Barbara has been scrubbing the red dirt from our shoes and sandals . . . but we can't get it all, and it seems appropriate that a trace should remain.
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The Bogles will be taking us to Kampala this morning, and we plan to visit the Baha'i temple and to do some last-minute browsing in the shops. We will stay at Entebbe tonight, and fly to London tomorrow. We hope to return to Detroit on Sunday, just a little bit after noon.
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We look forward to being home . . . the girls are missing Pizza Hut, and Keith is missing Mountain Dew . . . at the same time, though, we are very sorry to leave this place. We have met so many wonderful people, and the Manrys have been such excellent hosts. It will be difficult to drive away.

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We probably won't have Internet access again, until we reach Michigan. We will try to make a few more posts, after we return . . . in particular, we want to give you some final reflections and photos.

Bonding in Kyabirwa

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Today, we (Keith, Barbara, and Allyson) returned from an overnight "bonding" excursion with the family of Maanda and Sarah Wilson.

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Maanda is the assistant principle of the Busoga Bible School, and is a leader in the area churches; he and Sarah have a boy (Simon) who is away at boarding school, and two small boys (Isaac and Silas) at home. A fourth child is scheduled to arrive at any moment! It is amazing that this picture does not include any goats, dogs, or chickens, because they were everywhere . . . some belonged to Maanda and some did not.

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In spite of her condition, we rarely saw Sarah rest. She was continually bending over the washbasin or squatting beside the cooking fire. Her meals were wonderful, and, as we have come to expect in Uganda, the food was served in generous portions. She does not speak English, so our conversations were rather limited. We did, however, have significant discussions with Maanda, who shared his perspectives on the churches in Busoga, and described his hopes for the future.

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The time was enjoyable, but everything happened slowly. A lot of our time was spent sitting, chatting, and doing absolutely nothing in particular. Sarah, of course, was an exception to this, and we spent a great deal of our time watching her work. It was the most difficult aspect of the entire bonding experience: we felt guilty and restless! We have been told, however, that our experience was not exceptional. It is the normal style of village life.

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All through the night, we could hear the distant roar of Kyabirwa Falls. Before we left, we went down to the river to watch rafts and kayaks, as they attempted to maneuver through the rapids. It was pretty muddy, and we washed our shoes in the river. At one point, Barbara said, "can you believe . . . we're sitting here . . . washing our shoes in the Nile River?" It was a beautiful picture, and we took a long look: a dam is being built nearby, and this scene will be flooded within a few years.

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It is difficult to describe the benefits that come from bonding. This kind of experience is essential, though, for anybody who wants to understand the day-to-day life of a Ugandan villager. It is definitely one of the most meaningful things we have done here in Africa!