Resolution-- the shower of flowers!

Whew! Somewhere during the 5 days of flower power, I solved the puzzle. I won't reveal the culprits here, only that it was truly an act of kindness initiated by a number of people.

I had a great birthday, too-- I'm trying hard to resist that typically sentiment about feeling sad about getting older. I actually think it's great that I'm getting older-- life just keeps getting better!

Third day of flower madness...

Okay, people. This is too much!

Tuesday I returned home to another gift of flowers (from the now-not-so-secret giver of the first ones!), and then today I had another bouquet delivered to my door.

This has been one of the best weeks EVER!

Thank you thank you thank you!

Random acts of kindness...

It's always a little strange coming back to the US after time abroad, especially after being in a place like Uganda. But it's been great being back and getting back into my final few weeks here at Haas. At times it's stressful, but I really love it here.

Case in point: Yesterday, after my first day back, which was filled with classes and homework (and a nasty little stomach bug that I brought back as an African souvenir), I came home in a slightly sour mood. I was just feeling really behind on things and that I was letting people in my life down-- friends, professors, myself. However, when I got home, I found these beautiful flowers on my front porch, with a note that read:

"Just because... with love..."

Wow.

I asked around it wasn't any of the people I initially and immediately suspected. It was truly a beautiful act of kindness and it was SO meaningful to me.

So whoever did this-- if you read this blog-- thank you so much for brightening my day! It really meant a lot to me...

Homeward Bound... for now, at least

As this trip to Uganda is winding down, I have some time to reflect on my time here. It's been interesting. It's great to know that I am still connected to this place. As my travel buddy Amanda said, I'm "so lucky to have a home here." And it's true. There are always people I can call, visit, stay with. There are always people who will welcome me into their lives.

But at the same time, I feel frustrated. The disconnect between my life in the states and here is vast. Our project here, Bodas for Life, is a great example of that. The project is very simple in nature: Certain designated Boda-boda (motorcycle taxi) drivers here are trained in emergency first response, and then their cell phone numbers and names are posted on fliers and posters which are located in heath centers and trading centers. When people need emergency transportation, they call or send for one of these boda drivers. Even the health centers can call them if they have a referral case to a bigger health center. The drivers wear bright yellow jackets with "Boda for Life" written on it, and carry first aid kits (see the picture below) so they are easily recognizable.

The drivers carry patients at subsidized rates; in exchange, they get a 10,000 USH fuel voucher for every 10 rides they give. More importantly, it's a huge point of pride for these drivers-- they experience increased self-esteem and they love helping the community. And the program is relatively cheap to operate-- just the helmets, jackets, log books, and voucher payments. Best of all, Amanda and I have spent the last few weeks talking to drivers, patients, and health workers, and all of them seem to love the program. And I know what you all are saying—of course they say they love the program, but do they really mean it? But the way we asked questions and presented ourselves shows me that they really do benefit from it—at least in some ways.

However, even though the idea essentially came from the districts themselves (we presented a menu of items to them last summer and they JUMPED on this one), they are so reluctant to own the program themselves. I can understand this; Uganda is so used to getting money thrown at them from foreign aid, why would they agree to take on a program when someone else might offer to pay for it? But the problem is that the Blum Center has to pull out of this program sometime. Soon.

So our next task, now that we’ve created this interesting, seemingly useful program, is to find a way to sustain it from within.

Um. I’ll let you know when I have a solution. Thoughts?

More pictures...

For your viewing pleasure...

The ups and downs of working in Uganda...

It's only been a few days, but I feel like we've done so much since we've been here. So far, we've met and gotten to know our Mbarara University counterparts (two bright students who are both studying a field of medicine), visited both our pilot and expanded projects in Nakaseke District, and done a LOT of...um, constructive criticizing of the program. It's been frustrating at some times, especially getting honest, thorough, and meaningful information and feedback from our stakeholders. But I think Amanda and I have done some good thinking about the program and its potential future here.

But onto the fun stuff--- KIDS KIDS KIDS! I spent the day with Stella, her sisters, and a very LARGE crew of kids. I decided to treat them to a fun day out on the town. They are always so preoccupied with cooking, cleaning, etc-- I didn't want them to work at all. So we went to Garden City, the most muzungu place in Kampala. A real shopping mall, complete with food court, movie theatre, and overpriced shops. I decided to take them to the food court to let them sample a variety of bazungu fare, and they got SUCH a kick out of it! Afterwards, we took the kids to a little playground that was in the mall, which also had a bounce house there. They had SO much fun! It was great. At the end, they were all passed out. I even took Stella on her FIRST escalator ride! (She was SO scared-- so cute!) After that, we all came back to my hotel where I gave them the gifts that I bought them (see pics for ADORABLE matching outfits!) After a long day, they went home. It was great, but a little bittersweet. I never know how Stella really is, or what I can do to make her life better, short of throwing money at her. And not just her, but her whole family. There are so many of them, and they all have problems. She just told me that her nephew-- a little boy who I met last summer because he was staying with her-- died last week. AIDS is the suspect. And she thinks his mom (her sister) has AIDS, too. It's so hard...

But it was nice to give her a day of laughs. To see her smiling watching her kids traipsing around the playground. Maybe it's not enough. But it's got to be something, right?

Until later...

Back in the Motherland...

Getting off the plane is always a slightly surreal experience... delirious from fatigue, uncertain about how it will be, and excited to see my friends, I stepped into the hot, humid, Uganda air. The trip was long, but not as long as it has seemed in the past-- the world truly is a small place! I couldn't believe that I got onto a large mechanical device, and 24 hours later arrived across the world... crazy...

I'm so happy, albeit dazed, to be here. We decompressed in Kampala today, charging our phone cards, setting up meetings, and even going for a swim at a local hotel (I know, I'm DEFINITELY not a Peace Corps volunteer anymore!). Tomorrow we head to the villages for a few days, and back in Kampala for the weekend. And with the weekend comes... STELLA! She's coming to Kampala with the kids to see me. I can't wait!

More updates later... now back to my ice-cold Tusker beer!