days 4, 5, 6 in Gulu

Tuesday:

Woke up in Gulu, Uganda.  Gulu has been the epicenter of the war with the LRA in Northern Uganda for the last 20 years.  In the past year or so the war has left Northern Uganda and moved to the Congo.  Relative peace has returned to the area and rebuilding has started.  There are a lot of NGOs in Gulu helping with the rebuilding.

In the morning we walked around Gulu and to the market.  It was great to people watch.  They sold everything you could imagine.  Some people in the market stare at us and others are apathetic towards us.  Most of them are genuinely friendly.  In the afternoon we went to visit the Restore Academy which is a school that Bob Goff founded.  Education is one of the major thrusts in the rebuilding of N. Uganda.  They realize that eduction is important but also instilling a sense of moral responsibility.  For what good would it be to educate someone that would use their intelligence for evil?   All of the kids are required to attend discipleship classes.  The kids know if they want to attend school there that the classes are a requirement.

The students are amazing.  They have been living with war for years and are very enthusiastic about learning.  They go school from 7am - 5pm everyday and sometimes Saturday and Sunday.  Many have to walk 1-2 hours to get there in the morning and when they leave in the afternoon.  We helped served the kids lunch for a while.  I got to video for most of the afternoon which was great because I really enjoy it.  The highlight of the week was when a group of the kids performed a "poem" for us.  It was a combination of spoken word, singing, and chanting.  It was amazing.  I can't really describe it in words.  I will try to put a video up.  It was very emotional for all of us to view especially Bob because it really honored him.  We also got to watch the Restore soccer team beat another school 5-1.  The soccer field had a tree and a telephone in the middle.  Pretty amusing.  Their best player was actually named after David Beckham. 

During the day Bob and his country directors John and Blake, signed papers to purchase 38 acres to build a new school for the students.  The process has been tedious for them for many reasons but they seemed to be getting a lot accomplished.  John and Blake are in their 20's and are amazing.  They basically work for free and they are tireless workers.  I can't begin to tell you how impressed with them I am.

Wednesday:

In the morning we went back to Restore Academy.  I had the chance to interact with the kids more because I wasn't on the video camera.  The kids are a lot of fun but they all have had it rough.  Most of them have lost at least one of their parents and some have lost both of their parents to the war or AIDS.  All of the kids have hopes and dreams for the future.  They want to be doctors, ministers, pilots, teachers, members of parliment, lawyers, etc.  I get the feeling that some of them are smarter than I am.

In the afternoon I took the most intense 2 hour nap of my life.  Then that evening we went to a group home for orphans.  They sang and danced and prayed like I have never really seen before in my life.  They are so open and authentic.  It makes me feel like I am shallow and a fake.  Their are so vibrant and overflowing with love and thanks.  I have more money, opportunities, better health, living parents etc. but I lack something valuable that they possess: unbendable faith.

Thursday:

We spent most of the day on the road traveling back to Gulu.  The country actually ran out of gas because pirates off of Somalia have been raiding oil tankers.  We were able to get some fuel before it ran out.  The situation is kind of funny because in my mind I see Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom cruising around in the Black Pearl looking for tankers to rob.

I got to see some monkeys, baboons, and the mighty Nile river.  We stopped for some food and I ate some goat. Yes, goat.  The drive went by really fast.  We spend the time by telling our life stories.  Today, one of the two females on the trip, Kristen, told hers.  Her and her friend Kippy are from Chicago and have left a spouse and children back in the states so they feel my pain about missing Heather and Brendan.  One of them is just like my friend Vanessa Winkle and the other is like my friend Pam Foerst which means that they are both crazy but in a good way.  They have provided the entertainment for the trip and both are very, very, compassionate and loving with the kids.  Kristen is using her business back home to help fund and help those affected by sex trafficking.   www.juxtaposie.com/purseofhope/

We got back to Kampala and had an evening hanging out together.  We had amazing thai food.  The food here has been surprising.  I haven't been grossed out by anything and we have been able to find amazing food, even in Gulu.

More in a couple of days.