Reflecting on an AMAZING journey

Wow, just WOW! I am aware of how much I overuse the word amazing but I really am struggling to find any other word that fits our experience in Uganda better. It was AMAZING! We met some great people, saw some things that will change us forever and left a bit of our hearts in Uganda.

Making friends at Rukungiri Modern Primary school

We were incredibly blessed to be joining an awesome team 3 for our trip. As we were going with just 2 of us I worried how well we would fit into a large team made up of families and friends. Well that was a silly thing to worry about, Chipman was off sitting next to his mate for the trip after only knowing him for the previous 7 hour flight! Team 3 in my opinion was the best team. It really made the whole experience even more special to share it with them all. As well as making friends with the team we also met lots of people in Uganda. Wherever we went we always greeted with smiles, sometimes even song. We went out there to help but what we did was small in comparision to what the people we met are doing everyday. Meeting people with hearts equipped and prepared to serve the Ugandan people and the Lord was a great experience. What we did in 2 weeks is but a drop in the ocean compared to what these people are doing everyday!



Seeing how different people live is always an eye opening experience, whether it be looking at rich and famous people's houses on MTV's Cribs (showing my age now) to driving through towns and villages in Rukungiri. You can tell a lot from where people live. In Uganda there were big houses (although not very many) you would expect to see at home next to run down homes without running water and electricity. Shops are painted in bright advertising colours, paid for by the companies themselves, and because taxation is only due once a building is completed many unfinished homes. It was not like anything you would see here in the UK or on Cribs! Even in these sorts of living conditions where poverty screams from the streets they still had time and patience to welcome us in to share in their lives.

Rukungiri town

I knew that I always wanted to go to Africa, I knew I would enjoy my time there, I thought I would travel round many African nations before I fell in love. All it took was to land on Ugandan soil to realise that Africa is all I hoped it would be. It took 2 days to realise I would love my time there and only 2 weeks to fall head over heels in love. Uganda is a beautifully green landscaped country. It boasts people who are welcoming and greet you with a hug and a smile the first time they meet you. It has a spirit of survival and people willing to help as much as they can. Uganda has stolen my heart and I will return!

The view from our walk to prayer mountain

The final countdown

Well we are nearly there. Tomorrow evening we will be at Heathrow airport waiting to board our first flight on our way to Uganda! We have 2 days of traveling to get to Rukungiri. I'm so excited I wish I could just click my fingers and be there now! Yesterday we received an update on all that team 2 had been doing and what team 3 (that's our team) would be doing. It sure is going to be a busy 2 weeks as we refurbish a dormitory and build the internal walls of a new dorm. These dormitories will make a huge difference to the children that will be using the latest addition to the school. I have to be truthful and admit that I am lazy, I love nothing more than to spend the weekend in my onesie watching trashy T.V so this is probably going to be the hardest I've ever worked! If you're the praying type please pray for energy and a hardworking spirit for the trip!

Before I go and leave the other half and my youngest daughter we're spending some quality time today. Chipman is off at work with Dad so they can spend father son time and Beebie is at home with me watching movies in our pj's before heading out for lunch  with Grandma. The most exciting bit is date night tonight. My husband and I rarely get the chance to go out together without children so we are both looking forward to an evening out tonight. The plan is to have a lovely dinner together in town and I have to say I can't wait. We have never been away from each other or the children for this long before so that brings challenges all of it's own. Please pray for strength as we prepare to spend this time apart and that we can find comfort in God when we feel lonely.

While I'm in Uganda I am really looking forward to sharing God's love with those we meet. I have been thinking, as Mission Direct recommend in their handbook, about my testimony and have really been struck by Paul's words in Ephesians chapter 2 verses 7-10. We all try and change things in our lives for the better but ultimately it is God's grace given to us through Christ Jesus that will change everything! I am really holding these verses close to my heart as I prepare for our trip, without God I would not be embarking on this great journey. If you get a chance please pray that as a team we can show those we meet in Rukungiri why God is so great and to share His grace.

Our first stop......

A little background of who I am and what myself and my 12 year old son Chipman are doing would probably be helpful right about now, so here's the low down on all you need to know. I am Helen, I am a mum of 2, my daughter Beebie is 6 and as I mentioned before Chipman is 12. My husband Mark is a motorcycle mechanic and loves his bikes almost as much as us! We are not a perfect family, we fight, we forgive, we fall out and we love just like everyone else. Our family does have added pressures in that Chipman has Aspergers and ADHD and Beebie has speech and language problems. There is never a dull moment in our house!

So now you have a picture of who we are, what on earth are we doing? Well Chipman and I are heading off to Uganda in July, not on an exotic 2 week relax by the pool type of thing but a getting our hands dirty, building, visiting and helping type of trip. All of this has been made possible by a fantastic charity called Mission Direct. They work in 11 different countries building with bricks and mortar and with God in people's hearts. The trip we are going on is to a town called Rukungiri, Mission Direct have done lots of work there already building schools, boring water holes, and now they have a new project. The mainstream primary school is amazing, it has a class especially for deaf children and it is giving the children a future but there are a group of children missing out. Disabled children. They have no opportunity to learn, that is until now. A and I will be going with a team of 18 others to help build an extension onto the existing school just for disabled children. They too will soon have the chance to learn and a better future too.

As you may have guessed with the list of diagnosis our children have, helping others with disabilities is something very close to our hearts. We have been so amazingly blessed by God with this opportunity to not only build buildings with physical materials but also help build his kingdom too. If you are reading this and would like to know how you could support Chipman and I as we embark on our adventure then I would love to ask that if you are the praying kind that you pray for our family, the team going and also the staff team who will be in Uganda organising everything for 4 months (they are all volunteers which I think is amazing).

For our family in particular I would love Chipman to be surrounded by prayer for the change, having Aspergers means that he likes structure and routine to be the same, Uganda will be very different. Please pray that he can enjoy the time in Rukungiri and grow and give to the best of his ability. For me I would love prayer for patience, dealing with Chipman on my own without my husband especially on a long flight will be demanding. Please pray for all of our team that vaccination plans, fundraising and practical preparations go smoothly. Please also pray that we are quick at learning how to lay bricks and are given opportunities to share God's love with those we meet.

 

Keep checking back to see what is happening on our journey to Rukungiri!