Final Days in Uganda

So I decided I would write one final post about what I did the last few days in Uganda, since they were quite eventful.

Wednesday night we had youth fellowship and it was so much fun.  They turned the evening into a sending off party for me and Jonathan, another volunteer who was returning home the next day.  Each person said something special about us and it was so very meaningful.  I won't soon forget the words that were spoken that night.  After that was finished we had cake and had some more fun.  I am going to miss those people so much.

Even though I don't feel like I did a lot of "tasks"during my time at Eagles Wings, I still found it incredibly meaningful, because I felt like I spent time with people, deepening friendships and really just being able to be present with no agenda. I felt more than ever that Uganda was home while I was there.  Being able to walk down the streets of Masaka, and have kids on the street know who I was, and slowly beginning to feel like I understand a bit more of this culture. 

Friday night the Macris family had us over for dinner.  I love that family and the way they open their home.  We had a wild dutch blitz tournament and Jovan entertained us with his antics the entire night. 

Saturday we made our way to Kampala since I was leaving from the airport late that night.  We brought 4 kittens Joan had rescued to the only animal shelter in Uganda, which is located in Kampala.  I was incredibly impressed with the animal shelter.  We didn't know what to expect, but they take really good care of the animals and we all felt good about leaving the kittens there. 

And so now begins the adjustment back to the Western world.  I am reminding myself that coming back from an experience like I just have does not make it easy to fit my life back into an 8:30-4:30 routine. Being back in Canada for less than 24 hours, I'm reminded that things that are part of my everyday life seem strangely familiar yet still somehow foreign. I have mentioned before struggling to figure out how to live this fractured existence is not easy. Part of me here, and part of me there.

 Me with one of the rescued kittens.  They were so cuddly and cute!

 Farewell party at Youth Fellowship.

 Me with some kids from another nearby project.

 On our way to Kampala.

 These kitties weren't always so happy being in the car for 3 hours to take them to the animal shelter.

Bill & Ann came to welcome me back home at the airport.  It was so nice to see some familiar faces again.

Another Update

So I finally have some time to sit down and write.  As I mentioned in my previous post, I had a wonderful time with my eMi team. We were designing a primary and secondary school for a ministry that is actually not to far from the Eagles Wings property.  And it turns out I met the American directors last time I was here and I didn’t even know it.  It seemed like a rush to get everything done in the amount of days that we had, but then again I guess it always does on these projects.  However, in the end, it all worked out and things managed to get finished just in time.

I really enjoyed working with Angie, the other civil from Idaho.  We see life much the same way and I found it very easy to work with her.  And she really was so very gracious to me when I wasn’t feeling well. We presented out design on Sunday night and the ministry was happy with the finished product.  I’m going to miss my team when I get home, this I know.

Now I am back at Eagles Wings and trying to hold on to every last minute I have here.  Some days are emotionally draining and I struggle to find ways I can be an encouragement amidst the challenges, however, I have done this enough to know that as soon as I get home I’ll be wishing I was back here, so I think that helps add perspective while I’m actually here on the ground.

I’m not sure if this will be the last update until I get home or not, but I do miss you all.

 The architects hard at work.

 The "poop crew".  We had to get into some specifics to design a good bio gas system.

 One of the boys at Rapha's House.

Back in the land of the internet

So, sorry for the lack of posts.  I have been out of internet access all of last week.  I am now back at Eagles Wings for my final week here in Uganda.  As usual it has flown by and I don't think I'll be ready to leave by the end of the week.

I had a good week with eMi the past week.  These projects are so valuable to me for so many reasons.  First of all, I always meet so many quality people on these projects.  Secondly, I think they make me a better engineer.  They give me experience in two areas I don't really do much of at home, namely design and public speaking, which I think makes me a more well rounded engineer.  This time I again had the pleasure of working alongside another extremely talented civil.  This project was based out of the UK office, so the team was a mix of people from England, Northern Ireland, United States, and of course Canada.  I really enjoyed Brad our team leader as well as everyone else on the team.

Unfortunately I had the experience of picking up some kind of stomach bug and was out of commission for Saturday and part of Sunday.  However today, I am feeling mostly back to myself and I still wouldn't trade being here for anything.  More and more I see that I leave more of myself behind here, and I'm not sure what that will mean for me in the future.  It could mean simply continuing doing what I am, coming for a few weeks once or twice a year, or maybe someday it will mean making development work a larger part of my life.  I'm really not sure, but I do love being around people who have the same heart as I do.

Well I feel like I have so much more to write, but in the tired space I'm in the words just don't seem to be coming.  I'll try to give more of an update on my project maybe tomorrow when I've had some more sleep.

Until next time,

Jaimee

 Sweet Janet

 This water, which the locals drink had e-coli, but I promise I didn't drink it.  So I'm not sure what made me sick!

 Me with some of the girl's from Rapha's House, one of the orphan's homes we were working with.