Pictures

Hey Guys!

Things are been great! I hope everybody is doing well and enjoying their last few weeks of summer. Below me is a post that allows me to share the photos on the web. Enjoy!

Jesse St Clair has invited you to view this album:

RRR002919561981 450 photos

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Jesse St Clair has invited you to view this album:

RRR002919561981 450 photos

Why should you SAVE this album? Save this album now!

Store these images Forever on our web site!

Access your images anywhere, anytime!

Print, share and create with your photos!

Just enter coupon code share3 at checkout.

This offer does not apply to shipping costs should you choose to have your pictures shipped.

Saying our Goodbye

Hey Guys
Sorry the lacks of posts recently, things have been really busy here
for me. Plus on the days we have Internet it stormed so connecting to
the Internet was virtually impossible. Life here for me at least is
coming to a close. I can't believe that today is my last day in
Bundibugyo. It's amazing that time passes so fast. However, I know
that it is time for me to leave. For the past week, I have been
saying my goodbyes to the both the local people I got to know and the
team. Last night, we had a nice goodbye party for the interns and our
leader. It was very touching and I am thankful for the team's support
throughout this time here. They are amazing people and I want to thank
them all for t hat they do here and also for the emotional support.
One of the many things that I learned from my time here is how a
Christian Community should look like. I am honored that I was able to
live a portion of my life with these peoples. It was amazing time and
there is so much to tell everyone when I get back home. I will be able
to post my pictures in about a week. I am going to enclose a link to
all my pictures and key to tell you them.
I spent a few days in the Primary School this week. It was amazing
time because it was one of the few times that we (interns) are doing
our own thing. Most of the time we are going to help a team member in
their area of missions here. However, we had full control of what we
are teaching at the primary school. One intern taught about HIV/AIDS
prevention and about the disease. Another intern taught basic science
about chemical bonds, circulatory systems, and how to determine the
heart rate of a person. I decided that I was going to teach them about
the practice I have mentioned earlier on a post. This did not happen
because none of the kids would talk about it. I asked one of the
long-term missionaries here about that and they said that it might be
because if you talked about a tribal practice then the evil spirits
will come after you. So instead I did basic oral hygiene and taught
them how long are you suppose to brush your teeth and how many times a
day. Hopefully this will leave some impact because right now the only
dentist they have is one that pulls teeth. Also I taught the class
important ways to prevent Malaria. It was so much fun though. I really
enjoyed teaching these kids. It amazing that most of them want to
learn and are ethunastic about learning. Well it's about time for me
to pack and say so more goodbyes. Thanks everybody for your support. I
know many of you have been praying for me. Thanks!
Peace
J
Schedule of return
Monday-Wednesday Kampala
Wednesday night-Thursday London
Thursday-Friday Philly
Friday Night Home

So It's good to be in Bundibugyo again...

Hey Everyone,

So it's been a week since we left for Sudan. I am happy to be back in
Bundibugyo. It was a strange feeling of familiarity when we crossed
over the mountains. I couldn't help but get excited to be back in this
crazy of the place. I am starting to teach this week at a primary
school. I can't wait. I believe that I am going to teach about dental
hygiene and also teach against a strange custom that the local people
have here. When a baby has diarrhea, it is customary for the family
to go to a tribal witch doctor (for lack of a better) word. The witch
doctor then proceeds to use a razor blade to cut the baby's gum and
remove the tooth bud. This is a horrible process because the baby then
doesn't want to drink after their gums have been cut up. Therefore it
is often that a baby then get dehydrated and often faces serious
medical dangers. One of the team doctors told me about this and said I
should teach against it. I think it is a great idea. I wish I knew I
was teaching about oral hygiene because I would have brought more
toothbrushes and toothpaste with me. Perhaps, I can send it when I get
back…there have been a few things that I wished I brought here that
would have come in handy. These things such as extra toothbrushes are
mostly for kids here and not for my own use.
This passed week we got to experience more of the cultural practice
here. Well at least sort of, One of the short-terms here had a
introduction to the team here for his fiancée who came to experience
this place. It was fun celebration and we got to see how some of the
marriage practice would work in this cultural. Of course we did not
take the usually amount of times for this celebration (3 hours) but
nevertheless it was a good insight. It was fun. The very next day we
had the goat distribution. This is part of the nutrition side of World
Harvest Mission. WHM gives goats to HIV/AIDS positive mothers. These
goats have diary blood in them so they will be able to provide
nutrition in a place that is hard to get protein and other nutrients
such as calcium. It was a blast and quite the experience. The
interns and the kids were responsible in wrestling the goats. We had
to put a rope on them and led them to the person who is need of some
goats. These goats can be very stubborn but I had so much fun. It was
quite the day. Yesterday I got to teach a lab to Christ School for
Science Club. I am so glad that my bio teacher blessed me with so many
different labs to choose from. I actually did the lab on how disease
is spread in a given population. It is a great lab especially for this
area that has HIV and Ebola in their past. The kids responded really
well and asked many questions about different disease. I hope that the
students will be more responsible because of this experiment. I
actually have a good amount of hope that they will.
Overall, this experience has been amazing. There are so many things
that I can't possible take the time to explain over this blog entry. I
truly had amazing time and I feel that God has really worked in me. I
am sad to see that this is my last week. However, I know that is
getting near for me to go home because I have duties and
responsibilities at home such as getting a college education. Ha ha
Well it is getting near the time for me to get off the internet. Hope
all is well guys.
Peace
-J

Sudan and Safari!!!

Hey guys!
I am sorry for the late response to the blog but I have been traveling
for the past week. The trip was successful. It was amazing that our
truck made it to Kampala. Due to the roads, it takes 8 hours from
Bundibugyo, to Kampala. We squished in a pickup truck (seven of us).
It was amazing though to see the country side of Uganda. So after a
night in Kamapala we work up early to get to our plane. We flew to
Mundri, Sudan. It was a three hour flight plus a small break on the
boarder to clear customs and refuel. Those MAF flights are so much
fun! I love those pilots and would definitely encourage any pilot who
is reading my blog to consider serving for the MAF pilots. Sudan is so
different from Uganda. For instance, they treat women with more
respect and it's great. Also it is easier for me to relate to the
people. It was terrible to see the hospitals. For instance, the people
here are still feeling the effects of a 20 year Civil War. We saw kids
in the hospital who blew their hand because the picked up a grenade
and played with it. It was sad. One kid only had two fingers left on
one of his hand. Also the health care workers were also there working
for 12 months without pay. I feel that would never happen in
Bundibugyo. Then after Sudan, we went to Queen Elizabeth National
Park. It was amazing to see all the animals. There were elephants,
hippos, and lions. We even saw a leopard. That is incredibly rare and
quite exciting. I have lots of amazing pictures and will put them up
when I am home. I forgot a way to transfer photos. Well I have to go
help with some goats because of nutrition program.

Peace
-J

Sudan Here we come,

So this week has been simply quite the experience, I don't even really
know how to describe it. I got to work and help in the health clinic
two times this week. Also I helped one of the long term guys set up
solar panels on the translation office. This office is responsible
for translating the Bible in the local language (Lubwsi). That was
cool so now I sorta know how to install solar panels on the house.
Maybe I should go green when I get back....Ha ha. The health clinic is
also so interesting. It is amazing how many sick kids come in. We had
three kids who were around 500-1000 count for Malaria. That means it
was a very serious case because 20-30 is usually the beginning number
for Malaria. What is also interesting is that here it is so isolated
from the world that antibiotics such as Oral Penicillin and other
drugs such as Quiann (spelling) still is very effective. Crazy huh?
On thursday it was really intense and definitely stretch my experience
here. We had a patient who came in looking very unresponsive. They got
him to the back round and he started to hemorrhage very badly.
Eventually, he passed away. That is my first experience with death
really up close. I honestly did not know how to react. The mother of
the child started to cry and wail. She was yelling and crying at the
top of her lungs. It was customary for this to happen when a person
dies. Apparently, the people here usually tell the story about of the
how the person dies. The next I got to see the exact opposite. Some
neighbors close to us had twins the night before. I went there to
their house and saw the family dancing to the three or four drums. I
am running out of internet time so more later. I am leaving for Sudan
this week. Please pray for me.

Peace
J

Mirror Mirror on the Wall What is a reflection of this Culture?

Hey Everyone,
Things are going great. I am feeling a 100% better. On Friday, I had a
really good conversation with one of the teachers at the CSB. It was
great. He gave a wonderful insight on the people here. For instance,
it's an terrible and not surprising that women are considered property
here. Therefore, the more wives you have the higher you are in the
social economic ladder here. Most marriages are not official
licenses…A man pays a dowry to the women's family for the marriage. In
fact, there is a ceremony where the two families will actually haggle
over the price and everything. It's really interesting. It amazes
that there are still places in the world where women are still
consider property. This place is remote but there are cell phones
here. So how remote can it be? I have started to teach my bio labs in
the afternoon. I love it. It is so much fun and I really do enjoy
seeing the young minds work. THANKS so much for your help with the
lab. (You know who you are!) We just finished a lab studying how
diseases spread through a population. It is quite fitting here because
they have experience first hand a deadly disease, Ebola, spreading
through the district here. Also it is a good lab to discuss how
sensitive the issue of being positive can be. For instance, I
corrected a student who said that it was good bad when the test came
back. I told him that he should say positive and negative because the
disease could be a very serious issue like HIV. Saturday, I hiked up
the mountains of Uganda. It was quite the experience. I can't even
begin to talk about it. Some things are better said in person. But
the sites were very beautiful and I enjoyed most of it. I cramped up
and the high attitude was messing with me most of the time but I
still enjoyed the experience. How often can someone say that they hike
through the mountains of Uganda right next to the DRC boarder?
Seriously, I wish I got more pictures but it was raining and the
forest canopy made it difficult light to take photos. The forest was
something from the time of Dinos. I believe the other interns got
some good shots. This place is so beautiful yet full of disease and
poverty. It is so hard to believe that is possible to see God's
beautiful creations and then to see so much dirt and filth.
My interactions with the neighborhood kids have been fairly positive.
Most of them know who I am now and I know most of their names. They
often come by to see if I want to play or burrow a basketball, soccer
ball, or cards. The one thing that is hard for me to deal with is the
fact when I sit down and try to play cards with them they love to
cheat. Countless of times, we have told them to stop or we will quit
the game. Yet they still do it. I don't know why this is. I think it
is a reflection of this cultural and the society here. It pains me to
see that kids are learning how to cheat at such a young age and have
no guilt about it either. Also for the first time (for me), I got two
kids who caught up with me on the way out of the door. They asked me
for some bread. This situation apparently for most people is fairly
common. I have been here for about a month and this is first time it's
happened to me. I told them we don't have any. We actually ran out of
bread this weekend. I don't know how to approach this request but I am
definitely going to pray and talked to long-term missionaries about
dealing with this situation. I hope I will obtain the knowledge to
deal with this problem. We leave for Sudan soon in a week actually. I
am excited. I will definitely give you a better idea what is up about
the trip when I can.
Peace,
-J
The definition of the African soccer player: At Christ School, I play
soccer with many of the students and this one was the definition of
what it means to be a soccer player here. He was epitome of soccer
player. He wore one shoe for his dominant foot and played with no
shoe on his other foot. I thought it was pretty fitting. Random I know
but still great.

Mystery Meat

So this past weekend was quite the experience. It was filled with lots
of fun and lots of stress. On Saturday we went to the river with a
bunch of the long term missionaries. There we had a relaxing time
floating down the river with tubes. It was a good destresser from the
hard week. Last Friday, I spent most of the time with one of the
doctors. We worked in the ultrasound together. It was quite the
experience. We saw many pregnancies and even a man who was quite young
in cardiac failure. It is sad to see a man who is around 31 that is
cardiac failure. We saw about 20 patients and unfortunately did not
have the time to see more. That was an interesting experience. I loved
it. Part of me thought during that time that I should go into the
military and be a doctor for it. I don't know why but that is what I
was thinking. Anyway back to the weekend. After the lovely morning at
the river, it was great because the locals were fascinated at us. Soon
we let them use the tubes and they were having a blast. In fact, I
remember rafting down the river (which boarders the DRC) with some of
local children hanging on. Then we came back and the interns prepared
for our overnight. Overnight is where the person stays with a family
in the village for a night. We were assigned to students at the Christ
School. My was a S2 named "John". John lived very far away. Seriously,
we hiked in the bush for about 3.5 hours to get to his house. It was
crazy far away. By the time we reached the house it was near dark. We
then preceded to talk about the English Premeir League. Dinner was
then served. It was rice and beans with matoake (which is a starch
like potatoes). Then I talked to his mom about my family and such. It
was intereseting to see How God can bless a family after so much
hardship. They lived fairly comfortable by the Ugandan standards here.
They had mosquito nets for every member of the household and they
brothers go to school too. His dad was killed in ADF came to this area
about 10 years ago. He also has mental handicapped older brother. Yet
they still managed to have a nice home and life. His mom was
especially happy to see me play football (soccer) with the kids.
However, the unfortunately thing about the visit is the fact that I
got sick from what was served the next day. (this is speculation but
it prob happened). I was served meat with Irish potatoes (that is what
they call them here). Meat was definitely normal beef and the other
look like muscle tissue. Sure enough, it was most likely cow
intestine. Apparently, it is quite popular here but not with my
stomach. Therefore, I have been sick for the past couple of days but I
have been in great hands here. I am feeling better now and I am
currently eating. One of the guys made a really good eggplant
parmasean. Well I am going to bed it's late (10:00) the inter-culture
dynamics make you incredibly tired…… Hope all is well

Peace
-J

The Sounds Of Bundibugyo

So this is one way that I have decided to describe the area around my
house. There are many sounds that are not familiar to my ears in
Uganda. First of all, the local language here, Lubwisi sounds
completely different from any other language that I have heard. It is
a very strange dialect of some language. Who Knows? There is a
workshop next to our house so I get the sounds from there creeping
into my window especially in the early morning. Some animals here make
noises that are very bizarre but I have yet to hear that many.
Occasionally there is a car, motorcycle, or truck that passes by our
compound. The road (using this term lightly) is very bumping so you
can also hear shouts of the people trying to hold onto there stuff.
Drums and singing can be heard if there is some kind of ceremony going
on. We heard them last Saturday. In fact, it continued all through the
night. We believed it had something to do with a funeral. A child had
died shortly after it was born a few days before. However, there are
some noises that are familiar to me. Farm animals all speak the same
language. Cows, Chickens, Goats etc. Unfortunately, there is often a
child crying in a nearby home. You can people laughing and children
screaming for joy when they are playing games with us. These sounds
are very familiar to me.
Today was the first day in the clinic. It was interesting and I felt
more of reason of why we were here. It was sad to see so many kids who
were on the boarder of starvation. Also because of sickle-cell anemia,
many people don't have a high enough hemoglobin count. According to
the RN on the team, in the US, if the person has a hemoglobin count of
8 then they are put in the ICU and have a blood transfusion. Here in
Bundibugyo the rules are different. The person usually doesn't have a
hemoglobin count of above an eight. When the person has a count of 8
the clinic will send them home. Scary to think huh? I feel like health
here is an uphill battle and I am only beginning to learn that. Well I
hope everything is going well!

Peace
-J

My First Week!

So we barely made it to Bundibugyo. We had to fly in the rainstorm and the pilot had trouble finding the grass airstrip. In fact, the entire 4 passengers had to look for it.   Our plane was so small that we had dump stuff. Most of my luggage with the exception of the essentials is coming on the plane around July 8. That includes the bigger bottle of sunscreen! It was quite the adventure and tons of fun. It's great here because there are fewer distractions in life. I feel like I am adjusting fairly well. It still makes me sad to see so much poverty. Most kids don't have shoes and live in a mud house that is barely 100 sq feet.  Also it's great because most of the local people will stare at you words of the local language, Lulswi (spelling). Olyao Good Morning, Wasylo Good Afternoon, Makulu How are you/ Mirembe I'm fine. That is about it. Of course I know the word for foreigner because most of the kids will shout it at you when you are walking down the dirt street.  I am hoping that I will learn more of the language as I stay here. The team is great. I love them already. One of girls here lived on my sister's hall her freshman year at William and Mary! I think that is quite crazy that I met this person before. Who knew that I had a connection to someone living in Uganda? The house we are living in is pretty nice.  Running water is available which is a plus. We have to filter it to drink it but that is quite easy.  No toilet but we have a cho (outhouse) in the back. We have to cook and fix meals on a gas stove. Our fridge (big plus!) uses propane to chill things. My roomates are great with the exception of the rats that can come in. So far the insects here are not bad. I have a mosquito net I sleep under at night, which is also a great plus.  So far I have just taken most of the week to get adjusted to life here. Our  regular schedule starts next week. I will be teaching the missionary kids, at local primary schools, working in the hospital and health clinic. Also I will have a cell group and help the leader with the bible study. More is to come!  Lastly, for those who want to send me an email. Please use my gmail account! It is my first name.lastname@gmail.com There is a period between each part of my name and my last name is two words. Thanks! Hope everything is going well.

Peace,

-J

So I decided to be a co-pilot

Hey Guys,

I have to be brief...We finally made it to Bundbiguyo, Uganda. It was
quite the amazing trip. London was fun (9hour layoff). We laned in
Entebbe and took a taxi to Kamapala. Basically, the streets look like
any movie that has Africa in it. Blood Diamond etc. The plane ride was
amazing. I got to sit up front in a five person plane. The pilot (MAR)
missionary was great. He had lots of insight and such. We took off a
dirt airstrip and landed in a grass one. It was so much fun because I
had to help the pilot see the airstrip. It was raining and cloudy. We
couldn't find it for the longest time. I will try to explain more when
I have time.

Peace
-J

One part of the journey complete

So I had probably one of the shortest flights in my travel history. Today, I left from Norfolk International around 9:24 am and landed in 10:40 am in Philly. It wasn't a bad flight. The guy next time just fell asleep for the whole flight. So instead of chatting with him, I looked at SkyMall Magazine. It amazes how much useless things a person can buy for themselves. I entertained myself for the entire flight and then proceeded to meet up with my teammates at the sending center. It was great to hang out with the missionary team and team going to Ireland. Even though it was about month since I have seen most of the people. it felt like last week we bonded in the mountains of North Carolina. There are such an awesome group. Nick and Katie are great and truly a blast to chill with. It's awesome how that works that God gives you the tools and matches you with people that you can get along with. Tomorrow, we have more team building exercises and cross cultural training. We leave for London tomorrow night around 9. Then we have a 12-hour lay-over in London. Finally, we fly to Uganda 9 (London Time) on Sunday. Thanks again for your prays and support. Stay Tune for updates!

-J

Leaving

Hey Guys,


I am now on my way! It's going to be a blast and I really can't wait. Please check the blog whenever you can. I will try and update as much as possible. Have a great summer!

Peace
J

My New Hair Cut...

BEFORE

AFTER

What Do you Think????

So packing for two months can be a pain.....

Hey Everybody,

So it definitely hit me the last thursday that I was about to leave
the country. In fact, I was lying in bed for about two hours before I
could get some sleep. I am stoked that I am leaving this friday but
things are not easy to pack for. For instance, how many people know
the correct amount of sunscreen to bring? I sure don't..... So it's
kinda crazy that it's almost time for me to leave. I am still not
ready (got to buy more bug spray and a few things). Also for most of
you guys reading this blog, it will be the first time you are going
to see me with short hair. Tomorrow, I am planning on cutting all my
hair off. Don't worry pictures of this will be up shortly afterwards.
Thanks again guys for all your support and prays. I really appreciate
it. Enjoy your summer guys and be safe...Don't do anything that i
wouldn't do.

Peace
J

Almost time to leave

Hey Guys,

I can't believe it is almost time for me to leave. It's been great to hear how everybody is so excited for me. I think that I have almost everything I need. I just need to get the sunscreen and few others things before I leave.

For those who are interested, the two doctors (they are married and have a family) have a blog. So if it might cool for you guys to check their blog out. I have kept up with it and it's great way to learn about Uganda.

Here is the link:
http://www.paradoxuganda.blogspot.com/

Peace Guys
-J

Preparing

Hey Everybody,

Only two weeks left before I leave on my trip. Things are going to be pretty busy until then. I can't wait. Stay Tune for further updates

Peace
-J