This morning Maureen came over to the guest house as I was finishing my breakfast to say that we were skipping devotions to get a head start in the field. Maureen, William, Robert and I got into a Land Rover and hit the road. (and hit it over and over again as we bounced up and down over the pot holes). We visited almost all of the FH sites in Kitgum over the course of the day. At each site William would come with me to the market to do my survey. We would walk up and down the rows of sellers and ask them how much each product cost, and then I would try out my limited Acholi and say "apwolo matek" (thank you very much), which they all got a kick out of. Unfortunately my data is skewed.. President Museveni came to Kitgum today.. Imagine that! Most people were out in the big field where his plane would land waiting to catch a glimpse of him. The markets were empty. I will have to try again tomorrow. Maureen would stay in the office and do an assessment of the building and supplies. When we were finished we would drive to the next site. I also went with William to check out a few of the dams that need repair. One of the best parts of the day was waiting for him to look at a site for a new marketplace to be cleared. They told me "Madame, the bushes are too high, we fear you should stay behind while we look". An elderly man was seated outside of his hut nearby. He picked up his chair ad a stool ad came over to offer me a chair to sit in. then he sat with me and we tried to talk for a few minutes until it was time to leave. I also loved the children that got so excited when I greeted them in Acholi. they told they parents "this one speaks!". haha
I wish I had brought my camera. we had a few hours of driving and we passed by a gorgeous mountain. In the car, I had a lot of time to think. I thought of a few business ideas that would help with development in the area. I also talked with my team a lot. I love them. I really love working with such splendid people. I fell asleep on the way back to Kitgum for lunch and they were worried that I wouldn't make it the rest of the day... I assured them I was fine. I ate and then gave Concy a few pieces of fabric and my measurements for the dresses she is making me. Then we set out again to finish up.
When we got back i typed up my info and then went out to dance with the ladies. On Sunday night they had taught me how to do the traditional dance and they sure got a kick out of watching me do it. I chased a dozen or so kids around the compound and sat with them for a few minutes before getting the keys to come use the internet. They are so beautiful. It makes me so sad when I see them fight with each other. they all wanted to sit with me so they started hitting each other and crying. Seeing innocent children be nasty towards each other goes against nature in my mind..
Now I am off to eat and wash all this dust off of me. Continued prayers for good nights of sleep would be nice.. I haven't had many lately..
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