The Past Month or so...

The kids and I are enjoying our holidays from school at this time.  It has been a hectic term, culminating to a busy first-two weeks of August.  All has gone well and because it has been some time since I've posted anything on the blog... here's a snapshot of what's been going on since the beginning of July.

Celebrating the 1st anniversary of the church at Word of Life.

Welli, Gilbert and Steven leading the singing. 

Barbeque...

Food and fellowship

Grade 8 girls leading worship at chapel.
I walked in to find Nadine leading with the guitar!

Teachers from Texas and North Carolina that came to lead
workshops at a Teachers Training Conference mid-July.

The soccer pitch (in a town called Lubowa) that the boys
play soccer at every Saturday.

Word of Life teachers singing at the Bible Institute
Graduation ceremony.

Welli leads the singing.

The first-ever graduating class of the
Word of Life Africa Bible Institute.

Director of Word of Life

It was a joy to have Dave Robertson be a
part of the ceremony.

From left to right: Thomas, Welli, Geremew, Rediet and
baby Tsega (Ethiopian student and his family),
Faith and Dolly; kids in the front

I will miss this sweet friend, Rediet, and her
beautiful daughter, Tsega, as they have
returned back to Ethiopia.

Out for lunch with friends to a favourite places in Entebbe.

The kids are enjoying it too.

Time to get out of the house for a swim. 

Witnessing a fellow teacher's wedding last weekend.

Praying for the couple - notice the traditional
dresses the women are wearing.

And they are married!

Enjoying a cute 3-year-old's
birthday party last Sunday.

A Visit to Uganda Reptile Village

Recently we celebrated Okello's birthday, and for a fun outing, we decided to head to the Uganda Reptile Village.  It's a bit off the beaten path, 3 km off the main highway, on a bumpy dirt road, but we are used to driving like that.

 A pose in front of the facility is always a good thing.  Having the kids pose for you, even better.

First exhibit: the python.  He freaked us out a bit.  He started to climb up the window that we were looking through.  Maybe he was just curious at who was admiring him.  Weird and cool to see him so up close.  We were glad for the glass barrier!

 

  Next we came along some cobras.  Very interesting snakes.  They saw us looking at them but really weren't bothered too much.  Then suddenly our guide went to the back of the exhibit, opened the door, and started to tease them to get them fired up.  They looked like they were ready to strike him! He definitely did not fear snakes! (A prerequisite, I'm sure, to work here.)

The snakes above are Egyptian cobras and the ones below are Forest cobras.

 We then looked at and held some turtles.

 Okello was reluctant at first, but saw how docile and harmless they were, so joined in.

 Then to the chameleon enclosure.  These creatures are always fun... not easy to find though!

 Once again, our guide popped into the back of a snake cage.  This time he pulled one out for us to see up close and touch.  When asked if this was a venomous snake, to which he replied, "Of course."  He was very skilled at handling the snake, and it was interesting to touch.  Meanwhile, the venom was dripping down the guide's hand.... eek!

We were pleasantly surprised at this excursion.  The knowledge and skill of the guide made it very enjoyable too.  I was hoping that this would lessen my fear of snakes, but really, it didn't.  Knowing that these snakes all live in Uganda, and that most of them are quite venomous... I just hope we don't encounter any outside of the Reptile Village!

So, if you ever do come and visit us here in Uganda... we just may take you there!

The Difference We Can Make

Nadine was given an assignment to write how our travel can make an impact or improve on global issues from her own experience.
----------------
Barbarita and Benita, two young Ugandan girls, attending school and church, struggling with their parents and taking care of themselves and each other. Each Sunday, their names listed down in the attendance book until recently. Family problems have caused them to stop going for months now, though they long for encouragement and reassurement in Christ.

This simple struggle story of these two sisters proves to me how small this problem may seem in a world of over 7 billion people, but how great an impact it has on a greater scale. Traveling to Uganda made me realize just how many millions of different problems there are in this world and that not everyone is as lucky as me to have a loving blood and extended family and to not be going through any serious situations. Even though I am lucky, I begin to wonder if I can really make a difference. I wonder if I can help Barbarita and Benita, and all the other children going through the same problem. Surprisingly, the answer is a simple yes. Because you and I are so fortunate as we are, we are the people that can make a difference. I have quite a number of friends who've seen what I've seen. They've traveled, seeing other people's pain and struggle from a whole different view.  Even the simplest of stories about two sisters continue to inspire them to help and make a change. They are now leaders in society, mayors in cities, and even just pastors in churches, working to help the helpless and encourage them with the word of God. Literally just going to share the word with a friend is helping to make a huge difference, even if it is one baby step at a time.

You can make a difference too. Think about it.  how many people do you know that are going through some very serious struggles? How many of them know Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour? Right there is one small way to make a difference; share the gospel. In difficult times, knowing that God is on your side and is always with you is very encouraging, especially when you think you're on your own. Philippians 4:1 says to stand firm in the Lord always. Paul was saying this to the Philippian people who were struggling, especially in the church.  We need to give everyone that same message just like Paul; that they aren't alone, and even when it seems like it, they must trust in God.

So Barbarita and Benita's problem may not seem so big to you, but it is a situation that we can impact. Traveling can help you see people, places and things in a different light and make you care for even the smallest of details. Choose today what you will do, because YOU can make the change.

~ Nadine

An Amazing Safari

My trip to Western Uganda was a beautiful experience. One I will never forget. It was very good and we went to a game reserve. We enjoyed having fun with the Bagumas and Gilbert. I could write it all down but I will let pictures explain...   : )

We started the journey at 10:00am and it took 6 hours. This is the area where we were staying near Fort Portal, a bigger town in Western Uganda.

The house in which we all stayed in. (I was the only one with my own bed.)

We played soccer and other games. We also ate chicken and took a much needed sleep.


The next morning we took the two-hour drive to QENP. (QENP is Queen Elizabeth National Park.)

This was a beautiful crater lake by the road to the visitor centre. You can't see it but there were many flamingos and buffalos.

 I have two pictures of hippopotamuses and this one is to show you the size of its body. (Big, eh?)

To your left, the national bird of Uganda, the Uganda Crane. On your right, Uganda's national animal, the Ugandan Kob.

Here is a heard of female Kobs dominated by one male. Can you tell which one is the male?

This is a male water buck. He is alone because he was either too old or was defeated in a fight and kicked out.

This is the second hippo. Look at the head. If he opens his mouth...

This is a crocodile. It was a mother coming from guarding her eggs. Wonder where she's going...

This is where you can find a wide variety of birds.

This was the last elephant we saw. It is a huge young male and was one of the coolest things we saw the entire day.

 This is a herd of elephants walking and grazing in the fields.

After all this we went home and took a long sleep. We left for home at 2:00 and arrived at 8:00. It finished a great weekend of maybe 24 hours of driving (in the game park, we drove a lot to see the animals) but it is all worth it.

Juma

The heavens declare the glory of God...

Not sure what it is about these African skies, but we have seen beautiful handiwork of God in the skies.  I have posted these all at one point on Instagram... but I know most of you may not have seen these.  All of these have been taken with a camera phone!  Imagine if I had a fancy camera with a decent lens! 

The colourful morning sunrises...

The incredible cloud formations...

The glorious sunsets...

Sunbeams through the clouds...

The heavens declare the glory of God;

the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

Day after day they pour forth speech;

night after night they display knowledge.

There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard.

Their voice goes out into all the earth,

their words to the ends of the world.

In the heavens he has pitched a tent for the sun,

which is like a bridegroom coming forth from his pavilion,

like a champion rejoicing to run his course.

It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other;

nothing is hidden from its heat.

Psalm 19:1-6