Sitting in the dark

Sitting in the dark, the electricity off, yet the screen from out laptops persist.  Thank you God for long life batteries and a wifi system that has a usb port.

There's so much to say-- first off, a funny.

We have a guy who has been here during the day as our "day guard" and who acts as a gardener.  Kianna, however, only knew him by his name, not as the "day guard" or "gardener".  We also have a guy who comes in the evening and is our "night guard".  Ki-ki was very excited to meet him the other night and I could not figure out why she was so persistent to go out to see him.  Since she was bathing, and then was nice and clean, I told her not to go back outside where the red dirt gets on everything.  As I was tucking her in bed she asked where the guard keeps his horse.  "What horse?" I asked.  "He walks here like everyone else.  I haven't seen a horse the entire time we've been here"  I added.  "But" she said, "How can he be a KNIGHT if he doesn't have a horse??"  I tried my best not to laugh at how her sweet little mind had interpreted this new custom in this strange land.  How cool would it be if our night guard was a knight? That would be super cool.

The dichotomy here is a bit unsettling, speaking of guards.  We live behind a wall and a gate, with a house larger than our apartment in Virginia was.  As we walk to school we pass several homes made of propped up walls of metal maybe 10 feet square.

Today I noticed, by one of those homes, a woman cooking outside over an open fire.  Shortly after I was passed on the road by a Land Rover.  Its such a strange mix of poor and rich side by side.

Also here, is the dichotomy of the beauty.  If I look down as I walk I see orange dirt and dust everywhere, with trash strewn on the side of the road (they have no regular garbage pick-up system, and the one they have costs, so many just burn their trash outside their house, which leads to stray pieces blowing around.  If I look up, however, I see the beauty of Uganda.  The rolling hills, the beautiful  trees, and the smiling faces of the people.

Tomorrow is the first day of school.  My classroom has just been added onto, and it is not ready, so we will sit outside in the lounge area next to the cafeteria for science class the next two days.  Pray it doesn't rain.  I will post pictures of the kids in their first day of school outfits, all ready to start first grade and kindergarden :)