A Glimpse of Ugandan Teaching....

So this past Friday, we made the 30 minute trek to the outskirts of Kampala to Bwerenga. I met the much -talked about Mama Catherine and she was just as expected. 

Her face shone with grace and love, and her hug was warmth personified.

We visited the school that serves the children there.

The dirt road that led to the school......

  I got a taste of what it's like to be a Ugandan teacher. I taught a 30 minute language lesson, from impeccable lesson plans handwritten by their teacher, Miss Doreen.  Nervous, I pulled my resources and had a really  fun time teaching about the topics of" accidents". The children got familiar with American words like "nail"  "razor" and I even learned what a "panga" was (a machete in our terms.) 

To say I was amazed at their behavior and interest was an understatement. After I taught, they took their pencils and got to writing in English what we had just learned!  Their papers started out....
Today is (the date)

My name is __________

My teacher is Miss Flo

My school is the ______

No lined paper and their sentences were so straight! (Teachers in America, you know how hard this is...) and these kids were 5, 6, and 7!  Amazing.

 Miss Doreen then got up to teach the rest of her lesson.  I wished she had gone first. Her style of teaching was so energetic - dancing, singing, and full of discipline in love.  She was a light to those children!

On a separate note, Boog had his first experience driving in Kampala!  If anyone knows Uganda, they know that driving here is terrifying.  People come close, cars come closer, no rules and very little regulation!

To sum it up, I think I'm beginning to get a more realistic view of what being a long-term missionary is like.  This trip so far has been a combination of what I did last time (huggin' and lovin' on kids) combined with real life - raising kids, laundry, cooking meals, etc.   That's a good thing to know because "real" is always better than what's in my head......as I've learned on this trip.

This post would be a loss without mentioning our saving grace and house mates, the Jobes. This whole situation would be umpteen times more terrifying if their wisdom and experience weren't being given in mighty doses.  Thank you, Lucas and Colleen! You are a mighty team!