Update October 13, 2011

I'm not on a 'Missions trip'. Im studying abroad. But I'm not living your typical study abroad/college life at all. I don't live on campus, I live with a family in the community. I mean, I definitely eat way too much nutella and procrastinate like there's no tomorrow and I think facebook is man's best creation next to the Oreo, but there's nothing normal about this life I'm living. In response to Maddy's question about how my life in Africa is and wanting the details I'll try to fill you in better. :)

Ok. I wake up cranky every morning just like in America. I sit through hours of classes ( each class is 2 hours with no break) that either bore the living daylights out of me or depress me so much! Two classes are taught by the people who run this program( Americans) so it is just like classes at home. One class Is specifically for our practicum (my orphanage site internship). Hor that class we have been given a book called 'when helping hurts you and others'. I know you are thinking, 'uh Hil helping can't hurt.' Uh yep. Yep it can actually! Just like in America sometimes when you give hand outs, people take advantage of it, start to rely on it , don't fend for themselves and pretty soon BAM! It hurts them because they no longer depend on themselves for things but they depend on you, then you are hurt because you realize they only want you for your money.

Take me for example. My family asked for my clothes, camera, naphtha, money, shoes, and hair elastics. Why? Because for some reason the girl who lived with them last semester took them up to the school office at the end of the semester and let them take anything they wanted from the pile of things kids were not bringing home! This pile of things was left there (not at the peoples houses) to prevent people from expecting other students to leave their nice stuff. isn't that awesome! They got tons of nice gap jeans, skirts, blouses and water bottles. So NATURALLY, ya, that was really nice, girl, for you to let them have all this stuff they weren't supposed to have, but what are they going to expect from me? Her 'giving' hurt my relationship with my family because after they asked me for my things I just felt depressed like they didn't want me, they only wanted my things!

The reason we went to Luwero this weekend was to meet with Bishops and go to a Compassion site and witness the differen ways people are trying to 'help' Africa. Half of our families in the U.S. probably sponsor a child over seas somewhere. Why? Cause they are cute or cause it makes us feel good about ourselves and we are tryin to do our part in the world. Are either of those reasons bad? No, definitely not. But they are easy. This continent isn't easy. Feeding millions of starving Children isn't easy. Finding someone to help feed them isn't easy. Finding someone to come everyday and play and teach and love on these kids in the RIGHT way everyday isnt easy. Can you imagine...day in day out..teachig school to 100 kids in a classroom then every Saturday making porridge over a hot fire and then running around playing soccer with 270 kids for 12 hours? Of course your thinking, 'that would be amazing!!!' Of course it would! For $10 a week? Amazing?! How about when they get in fights and you have to discipline them are you still loving it? For $10.00 a week? Uh huh. That's what happened at the Compassion site and man it was amazing! The teachers were so happy and so blessed just to be able to play with those kids all day! You would have no idea they were stuck in class with them for the whole week before as well.

My idea of a Compassion site was a little different than what we saw. Each kid there was NOT sponsored. Most were, but if unsponsored kids wanted to go hang out on Saturday and talk about Jesus and eat porridge and play soccer they could join in with the other sponsored kids! There are over 270 kids at this particular site and the management there has been budgeting so every kid in the program could get a new mattress! 270 mattresses were FILLED from floor to ceiling in someones office! Filled! Because of the money sponsors have been able to send here! Even though we aren't directly able to see the difference we make in these kids lives, it's wicked cool to see what 30 bucks a month can do for a community of struggling children. A lot of the children there are orphans, but they still live in their relatives house; because if Compassion was to build an orphanage, they would just be taking the kids away from the community. Community is lethal for survival here. No one is independent. If someone does not do their part everyone suffers. Orphanage or not?

One of the Bishops we talked to was the coolest fellow ever. He talked more on the beauty of community and the importance if keeping people involved so they have a place to belong. As much as I love my intern site (Noah's Ark Orphanage), I'm not sure how it is for the children in the long run. The whole facility is incredibly fancy, clean, trampolines, toys, bikes, books, they even have the Disney channel!!! I mean I've seen a few kids in the community, with paint rollers and bike tires to play with but definitely never a toy. And the Disney channel? The kids in the community have jugs of water on their heads, occasionally shoes and a shirt.... With a few holes in it. How are my little buddies at Noah's Ark going to survive in the real Africa when they are too old to live at the orphanage? I mean, dang! Culture shock! We don even have a tv at my house here. We use a computer monitor! What now Noah's Ark? Do I think they are doing anything wrong by taking kids in who would other wise be dumped in latrines and left for dead? Heck, no! So what do you do? Call Noahs Ark and ask if they have an extra bed? Or call a relative who can't afford to feed their own family? I have no idea.

Ok I'm done ranting. Hopefully, you get a litle better understanding of my life in Africa now. :)

Oh, and I'm good. :) Laundry was done this morning. I'm gaining weight consistently due to mass intake of bananas, coconutees, nutella, anddddddd um..beans and rice! :)