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TRAVEL BLOG ENTRY
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I have successfully complete week one here in Uganda. And it has definitely been an experience! On Wednesday we did home visits with HIV+ patients that the Meeting Point support. I am still having difficulty explaining/expressing the things I saw. They live in little shacks, smaller than the average family restroom. Inside the clay walls an dirt floors often house widowed HIV+ women and their MANY children. WE met one woman named Robina. She had a beautiful smile and a wonderful sense of humor. She is currently battling TB on top of her HIV, she is also completely paralyzed from the wast down. She sat on the floor drinking her poscho (sorta like watered down grits) that her eldest daughter had prepared. This is the face of AIDS and her story and the stories and ANY other persons have been flooding my mind over the past week. Thursday our site organizer took us on a "fieldtrip" to Makiso, another Meeting Point site location. There we also did home visits, however this time the homes where in a very LARGE and spread out village. The land and it's people where absolutely beautiful! The trees and flowers were like nothing I had ever seen. Even in this paradise you could not escape the horrible disease. There was one family that brought me to tears both the husband and wife are HIV+ and they have 6 children. The eldest daughter (16, and also has a child) is HIV+. The father now refuses to get any of the other children tested. The stigma of a positive test result is extremely present among the men.
So the lighter side....then there was The Nile! So my group decided to go white water rafting...on The Nile! Yes, baby Moses in a basket, Queen Nefrititi and them, the longest river in the world: NILE! Let's just say it was quite an experience...one that I love but NEVER have to experience again. Quickly here's an over view: trip was 30km long (roughly 18 miles) went over 10 rapids (4 of which were Grade 5), group leader named "Big J" was great, our "punk raft" never flipped over (thank God).
Also, you know how people joke about taking a class in underwater basket weaving (as if it would be an easy "A")....I learned how to basket weave and IT IS NOT EASY! I have much more respect for all hand made crafts.
Peace & Blessings
previous travel blog entry
Comments or Questions for the Author
MamaBurnett says:
What a blessing Ms. Erika....I love you.
B-None! says:
Look how you have blossomed. I am very proud of you. You have always been a good learner in man's classroom. Your GPA shows it. Now learn from the biggest classroom there is, our Creator's. Learn about the beauty that sounds you – the animate and inanimate. Clearly, there must be a creator (Ro. 20:1). And what you see in the way of suffering will not be forever (Rev 21:3, 4). God did not purpose for man to live this way. Remember your GPA (grade point avg)? Here is his GPA... God's Purpose will Arrive! Continue to learn... Love you! db
TRENEEJ says:
Erika!!!!!!!!!!! I'm finally here! Sooooooooooooo this whole white water rafting.... now I know I am down for the wild and crazy things, but i would have never thought you would! Awwww my baby! Your mom said you got sick too, I hope you feel better. I um...have been under the bed fighting two different things. inchecked on the crib....everything is copastetic. I am so proud of you and this journey you have embarked on. i hope that you are taking pics of the things you can. I can only imagine the beautiful things you are seeing. My mind won't let me process all of the hurt and pain though. It's easy not to think of things when they do not affect you directly. Be strong my sistah! I know this was lot and I wanted to say so much. I miss not being able to pic up the phone and call you...tear! Your sistah, Tiff P.S. The granny bed is fixed!
diva-wina(she s bk) says:
by the way mam i saw those pics willie said you blending to well get ya butt bk lmao. an ive tried texting u a couple times r u not gettin them///////oh an that rafting right there lady we will talk soon
miss rena says:
Hi Bunny! How exciting to be able to raft down the imfamous NILE..at least you can say that you did it onct! So sad how AIDS is literally ravaging the continent of Africa. It is so hard for us to understand how the people continue to pass the disease on to one another without realizing its true devastation. Perhaps someday soon it will be a thing of the past. Keep the blogs coming..I do so enjoy reading about your adventures in the Motherland. Take care..LOL...(:>