Money, Shoes and Power!

We woke up to no Power and spent the day powerless. Phil had left with Sylivia so once again we were on our own and totally wiped out. I spent the morning editing pictures and found that my own power supply had drained as well so decided to take a nap. The power finally returned at about 8:30 tonight after we spent several hours tonight sitting in the dark!!!

The bank transfer finally came through!! It's been almost three weeks since Jen and I started the process of wiring funds to Iganga and today they finally showed up! I just love modern technology! And so the only logical thing to do was to take it all out and continue buying shoes - not one pair but 35 pairs! We loaded the SUV (two bucket seats in the front and a bench seat in the back) and made four, yes, only four trips to the market. Now imagine this included Susan, Liz and I as well as many children as we could fit at one time. Some of the children were small kids and so the ride was not quite as uncomfortable for little Lizzy who was in the backseat (she now claims she has no hip bones) but a few trips included the big kids and we still piled them in. For those of you who have been to the circus we looked a lot like the clowns getting out of the very small car. There was always at least one child on her lap at all times. By the way once we deducted what we owed Scovia (Susan's mom) for shoes that had already been purchased, and money owed me for personal expenses I had contributed to shoes we still had 7,500,010 shillings. Sounds like a lot of money and for just one minute I was feeling very wealthy! Unfortunately the moment didn't last. The kids were funny - the boys mostly went for tennis shoes or soccer shoes and the girls all went for school shoes or heels! Some things never change regardless of the culture! And surprisingly, a few of the kids (all boys) asked if they could go back when there was a different selection; they couldn't find anything they liked!!

Every time we got to the shoe vendor a group of small children would appear and just stare at us. I think Mzungus are still a rare find in Iganga and they are all in shock when we appear. We tend to attract them in groups. At first they stare from a distance and then they approach slowly and carefully. Once the camera comes out though, I've made friends for life. Each trip back to the market a new little face would appear! The kids were all thankful for the shoes and upon return to the children's house they couldn't wait to show them off to their friends. With that there would be a little pushing and shoving to see who would be the next group to enter the car. I had the kids write their names on tags so I would know who was who. Sounds simple enough but trying to write while driving down these roads is a near impossible task. Even harder was when I had to write them, trying to decipher who was who with their language and accents. The interesting thing is there are no legal documents on any of these children. The country of Uganda for the most part doesn't even know they exist. There are certainly no birth certificates. Therefore, if they want a new name they just change it. I know several of ours have done that in the past year. So not only was I trying to figure out who they were I was trying to match it up with our records. The two were not the same. But by the end of the day we got it all figured out. We had 35 happy children, one very happy vendor, and two worn out Mzungus. Tomorrow is another day and we will back to the market for another adventure. I'd like to think the puddles we have to hurdle to get to the shop will be dry by then but with all the rain tonight that will probably not happen.

Sylivia who has been sick since Tuesday night has finally been diagnosed with Typhoid. The poor thing is now getting IV treatment by night and still having to get up for exams by day. Both Angela Kitasala and Rehema Natgaga are staying here with her. The doctor (Ivan) has come by each day to reconnect the IV but Sylivia has spent the time doing little else but sleeping. Fortunately tomorrow they only have exams until noon as opposed to the 4 pm deadline they've had all week. Just watching her go through this misery has been so hard. I have enjoyed watching Phil interact with the other two and I have to say he has been really good with Sylivia. He takes her to school each morning and sits outside her door in case she needs him during the exams. At the end of the day he brings her back to his house and gets her all settled in. Tonight he was teaching the the other two the story of Adam using paper to diagram his lifetime and all his descendants. He spent the good part of an hour interacting with them and patiently teaching.

Susan then showed up with Julius Isabirye. He is the story I will tell tonight. He has been accused of getting a girl pregnant from the village. He denies doing so and Phil and Susan both believe his story. However, because he has been accused if he is caught he will be taken to jail. As a result he has had to leave the kid's house and is now living with an uncle about an hour and a half away. He is continuing his education but for now is not at New Grace. We bought him a pair of shoes tonight and Susan asked the Uncle to come to Scovia's so she could deliver the shoes. She then brought Julius over here so we could see him. I have to say he looks great. We did not talk about the situation which will not be resolved until the young lady gives birth and they can do a paternity test. Until then he will remain in hiding. He was excited to see Angela, Sylivia and Rehema and connect with some of his friends from here.

While he was here Susan and Angela played a wild game of Uno. I've never seen two more competitive girls (myself and Laura Turk included). They were having a blast and it was good to see the girls having fun and smiling. Tomorrow we are going to try and finish up the shoe shopping. Though Rehema and Julius were just watching they were not shy about throwing in their two sense!

Today was a good day. I got an encouraging letter from my daughter talking about God's timing and it couldn't have come at a better time. Liz and I had talked a little about that last night and it was confirmation that all things will work for those who trust in the Lord. I know He has great things planned and I have to sit back and be patient (not often my strong suit) but something that I see him working on in me. Again, it still comes back at the end of each day to the little things. The kids were so gracious today looking at and buying the shoes. There was no pushing or shoving. They all were excited for themselves and each other. And yes, the shoes we purchased were used! So when you go to bed tonight hug your kids, be thankful for your spouses, and your families! Remember to say a prayer for these children who are in so many ways so much less fortunate than you and in so many ways so blessed!

I love you all!