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March 10, 2002
Dear Friends,
I've been in Uganda for nearly a month and I've observed several
differences between the U.S. and Uganda in the course of my typical
working day:
Things that wake you up:
- In America—alarm clock
- In Uganda—prayers from the neighborhood mosque (and alarm
clock)
Challenges of the morning commute:
- In America—finding car keys; crazy drivers; slow-downs due
to accidents
- In Uganda—walking a quarter mile up a hill to the taxi (commuter
van); bargaining for your fare; slow-downs due to lady boarding
with a 40-lb bag of yams
Signal for the school day to begin:
- America—computerized bell
- Uganda—boy pounding on a hubcap wit a rock four times
Student school supplies:
- America—pencils; crayons; markers; notebooks; folders; textbooks;
folders; scissors; computers
- Uganda—pencil, razor blade (for sharpening the pencil); notebook
(for copying everything from the chalkboard, serves as textbook)
Teacher supplies:
- America—dry erase markers and board; paper for making copies;
computer; etc.
- Uganda—chalk; eraser; curriculum book (pages 1 through 7,
includes all subjects, one copy shared between 10 teachers)
Physical education:
- America—soccer; square dancing; basketball skills
- Uganda—soccer; 25 laps around the field (optional); not sure
of this, but I think they also do traditional dance
Teachers' lounge:
- America—small room with teacher texts, copier, table chairs,
microwave
- Uganda—veranda looking out over beautiful trees; students
bring you tea and hot peanuts at break time from the school cook
Typical school lunch:
- America—tacos, choice of four vegetables; cinnamon roll;
milk
- Uganda--beans and rice (quite tasty)
School Improvements:
- America—improve access for car riders
- Uganda—replace dirt floor with concrete
What to do during school improvements:
- America—get trailers to use as classrooms
- Uganda—teach on the veranda or under the big tree
Typical student names:
- America—Jessica, Matthew
- Uganda—Godfrey, Gertrude
Just a little taste of what I've seen. Please continue to pray
for the encouragement of the students and the teachers, their health,
and that their families will be able to continue sending the children
to school.
Thank you so much for your prayers. Things seem to hang together
in such a delicate balance sometimes, but God works it out. Your
prayer is part of the glue that make it go!
Love,
Ruth
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