Christmas in Uganda

Christmas week; Sunday,
I write those words, but they seem unreal; it is summer time. We are planning on going to an outdoor concert this afternoon.
We are trying a new church this morning. Someone told us about an Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) in the area, near enough to walk to. For real? We sure could use one that close because it gets tiresome always having to ask for a ride and people are not always available either.

Sure enough, we found the OPC meeting in the nearby National School. No wonder we’d not heard them before. They sing accapella and with only a few people at that; not loud enough to be heard across the neighborhood. :<) The familiar hymns, and also Psalms set to familiar tunes were music to our ears; I’d been threatening to wear ear plugs if we continued with some of the other churches we attended. The preaching was great and we were sorry to hear that pastor Dan was an interim pastor. He’ll be going back to his village this week. The regular pastor, Philip Proctor, is on vacation in the States.

The afternoon concert at the Mt. Elgon Hotel, (in easy walking distance) was great. It was put on by a choir, The Overcomers, from the Deliverance Church here in town. They are raising money to build a church of their own, now meeting at a school. Many other groups and soloists from other churches came out to help with the Concert, which lasted well over 5 hours. Yes, it was loud and no, people did not stay seated at all times; there was singing and dancing as well as much coming and going; like a huge picnic with 800+ people attending. Our friend Harriet was elated because I was able to take her picture with her all time favorite female vocalist, who also was on the program.

Monday brought a surprise. Harriet, a dear friend who is staying with us, discovered that someone had made comments on a plaque I had placed on the toilet door of the servant quarters; placed there because our night guards often leave the place a big mess. To stop that practice I made a sign with the exact words I had seen on a toilet door at the Water Department.
Our night guards have been the main users of this facility and the remarks were clearly directed at Harriet. The guards see her here and that particular guard must have had a bad day, but this was uncalled for.
What did the sign I made say? You really want to know? OK;
After a short stop,
Flush.
After a long stop,
Flush.
That’s all and very African. Some of these guys just don’t seem to know better.

The day ended back at the Elgon Hotel for dinner with our Sunday evening Bible study group, mostly muzungus (white people) As our leader said, “It will give us a chance to get dressed up.” We had a room to ourselves, giving us a chance to get better acquainted and to sing our Christmas Carols.

Tuesday; we call that day ‘The Bee Day’ but that is for a later story. My big assignment for the day was one I had decided on at the dinner on Monday. Amongst our Bible study group is a Palestinian family; refugees from Palestine in 1985, now Ugandan citizens. We really enjoy this family of 7; 3 sons, 2 daughters. The eldest daughter, Dianna, has a full 4 year scholarship to a Christian University in Lubbock, Texas and was supposed to start classes the first week in January, 2010. The only thing lacking to get to where she needed to be was a visa into the States and the Embassy seemed to be too busy for her. So I decided to send an email. Thankfully, I received a reply that same evening saying for Dianna to be at the Embassy by 8 the next morning. Wow, that meant getting up at 4 am for Dianna and her Dad, Joseph. But it was so worth the effort. Dianna called me at 9:30 saying she had the visa in hand. Thank You, Lord!
Dianna and her Dad were also able to give our friend Harriet a ride into Kampala so she could go and spend Christmas with her family. This was a big saving for Harriet. As Dianna said, “The Lord works in mysterious ways.”

Wednesday; Having been up with Harriet at 4 am, I slept ‘till late in the morning, as Sam was returning from the farm. Most of the rest of the day was filled with accounting work.
Keeping accurate accounts and chasing receipts keeps me very busy, one friend calls it a full time job.

Thursday, Christmas Eve; Friends Dr Patrick and Helen Mutono stop by early in the am, inviting us to spend Christmas with their family at Sisi Falls, their privately owned, very large piece of real estate that includes a beautiful water fall. They have built 3 large African huts on this property. The first hut, located near the entrance is for use as a restaurant. The kitchen and bar take up most of the space inside, and a small veranda up front in case of rain; the main dining room is the beautiful garden area. The other two huts are placed up the mountain and are used for motels. Each of them has 4 rooms with 2 single beds and a bathroom. They are placed quite a distance apart, going up, and in between is an area for tenting as well; including toilet facilities and shower stalls, cold water from the falls. Should the guests desire warm water for bathing, it will be delivered to their door in a jerry-can in the am.
The family uses the sleeping facilities for their own use, and guests, at Christmas. We’d been to Sisi the first Sunday in November and looked forward to going again. Tentative departure time for Sisi was set at 4 pm, later changed to African time; 2 hours or more late. We’d have dinner on arrival and in total there’d be 17 people coming.
I decided to still make a big batch of cinnamon rolls for our contribution on Christmas morning, the cookies were already waiting. Around 4 pm there seemed to be a steady knocking on our gate, like knocking on someone’s door. That’s when we were introduced to the lovely Ugandan custom of delivering plates of sweets (baked goodies) to your neighbors and friends, for Christmas. Thankfully, I already had some prepared for the nearest neighbors, the rest would have to wait till New Years; oliebollen, the Dutch tradition.

It was well past 7 when we were picked up for the 1 ½ hour ride to Sisi. The place looked dark as we neared and we soon learned of the reason why. There was a major power outage in the area because of a heavy rain/wind storm in the afternoon. The generator already was powered up and running and the kitchen crew was ready to serve dinner. Where? In the main dining room of course, where the tables were set; we just could not see them very well because the generator had to mainly be used for cooking.
The meal was delicious, I just wish we could have seen what we were eating. By 10 we were ready to trek up the mountain and bed. The generator was switched over to serve the lights along the path and the rooms but there were big shadows from trees and rocks, and the ground was slick because of the recent rain fall. I sure was glad we’d been there before so we knew some of the path that was coming. Our flashlights did help somewhat and finally we arrived at our door, of the last hut.
When the door opened and the light turned on, we were delighted at the sight of that cozy room and because of the elevation we didn’t need mosquito nets, how nice. It did not take long for us to unpack and fall fast asleep, not waking till 8 am on Christmas morning.

Friday, A knock on the door announced that breakfast would be at 9, in the main dining room. On opening our door we were welcomed by lovely sunlight and the scent of warming earth. Soon we were ready to go down for breakfast, I wore my Christmas blouse and vest to remind me it was Christmas. :<) It took a while to get down the mountain for there was so much beauty all around us, we just had to stop and look; and take pictures. We also were surprised at all the tents set up in the tenting area, the young people in our group preferred sleeping in a tent. We were glad we were in a hut with reed roofing, they are warmer/cooler and much quieter than tin roofs.

Breakfast in the great outdoors was special. You could order eggs any way you wanted and the cinnamon rolls were much appreciated. As we were eating we could hear the last songs of the service next door and I felt guilty of not being there among the worshipers.

This was also the day that the Mutono twin girls, Peace and Joy, were born, 4 years ago. They now introduce themselves as Peace-Peace and Joy-Joy. Helen and Patrick adopted the girls when their 15 year old mother died in child birth.
Helen reminisced about how tiny and fragile the girls were when Patrick brought them home from his hospital. They’d been brought there in a box when the place where the girls were born didn’t know what to do. Now they are healthy and try to rule the family. The girls were very excited about their party to come, especially the 2 cakes baked by the older siblings.

During breakfast there was much planning on how to spend the day. Some were planning to hike to the top of the Falls in the afternoon but first came the excursion to the pool at the bottom of the Falls. Could they swim there? Some claimed it to be very deep.

Going back up the trail took a long time, because of all the picture taking. We were really impressed, now that we could see, by what the Mutonos had accomplished in their park. The first time we were there, 2003, it was mostly a muddy trail and no buildings; just Helen’s great plans. Now it is a mini resort, attracting many visitors; daytime only, as well as overnight guests. Yes, there is an entrance fee to help with maintenance. The 8 full time employees are doing a great job.

Alongside our walking trail we would also catch glimpses of the stream coming down, and the sound of the falling water grew louder. When we came to the place where, in the States, one would expect a fence with no entrance signs, there was a large cement structure on the lower slope. That was build by the community and from where they get their water. A huge boulder blocked our view of the pool at the bottom of the Falls but one could see the long water trail, over slippery rocks, leading to the pool. Three of the men in our party, including Dr Patrick, decided to try getting to the pool, the rest of us found the path too treacherous.

Since we’d gotten there early we still were the only ones at the site but soon there was a steady stream of visitors, most in their Sunday best; because it was Christmas, don’t you know? One father took his 2 young sons by the hand and headed into the water, to go see what was around the corner of that huge boulder. I couldn’t believe my eyes, all 3 of them were in suits. Soon there were many others following.

Sam also wanted to see but he decided to go the land route. To our right was a steep grassy hill with signs that people had gone up that way. My first realization of what he was planning was when I saw him, on hands and knees, half way the top. Picture time!
Patrick also wanted pictures, before he went around the boulder. Soon all of them had disappeared from our sight.

Then I noticed some people far above me, seemingly on the path where Sam had disappeared. What route had they taken? I decided to back track a ways and sure enough, there was a small, hardly noticeable path meandering up. At times that also was slippery but there also were trees to hang on to if needed. It’s also a beautiful view of the valley and villages below. Nearing the end of the trail I met a party of four, who wanted me to take their picture; they told me that Sam was just a ways ahead.

Sam smiled when he saw me and said to bring the camera to where he was. Sure enough, from that vantage point one has a clear view of the pond and our 3 friends were having a great time. Not swimming, just letting the water poor down on them. As it was later described to us; “The pond is not deep, you just get the best massage ever.” I’ve got many great pictures of those guys. Sam and I had our picture taken up there on the trail, with me in my Christmas blouse and the waterfall behind us.

On the way back down, there were signs that we might be in for a rainstorm in the afternoon. The cloud formations were awesome, picture time! As we were getting near the sleeping huts, someone came to tell me that Patrick wanted pictures of him and the twins, playing in the stream below. I’d not noticed that stream before since it’s away from the path, what a beautiful place to play and relax. I don’t think many visitors to the park know that place exists. The girls just loved to have their picture taken with Dad.

Back at the restaurant, it was lunch time. This was not to be in the main dining room for already rain drops were falling, which soon turned into a deluge. I felt sorry for the kitchen staff as they were preparing a wonderful meal for the 17 of us, with only the generator as power. At the same time they were filling orders for daytime visitors. Lunch would be late so I brought out my cookies, for hungry teenagers. I’d also brought my large felt board to present the Christmas story. When the twins tired of playing with the felt pieces, a girl (12) from the visitors asked what we were doing. So I told her the story of Jesus’ birth. She smiled, saying she knew about that and could she arrange the pieces her way? Of course she could, while I asked if she was a Christian. No, she was not, they were Hindu.
How then did she know about Jesus? She told me that she was studying many religions and her mom had told her about Christianity. Where did mom get that information? The girl beckoned for her mother who said that she’d learned from the nuns in Catholic school but she was Hindu and respected all religions. I agreed on the respecting of people but I asked, what would happen when she died? The nuns had surely taught her about needing Jesus as a Savior to get to Heaven? That is when mom’s face fell, she had not thought about that, probably did not want to. So I reminded her of all she had been taught, to which she agreed, and told of the responsibility she had toward her daughter.

Just then someone said to me, “You need to look at what is happening behind you.” Turning around I saw a large group of children and adults hanging over the wall of the veranda. They’d been listening to all I was saying to the mom and daughter and now a Dad of these children had questions. So from then on I concentrated on that bunch. Mom and daughter had disappeared next time I looked, I’m just glad I’d given them some tracts to take home and in which mom seemed to take great interest.

I also had Gospel bead bracelets with me, so I used them with the crowd outside, staying dry underneath the eaves of the hut. Sam was talking with one of the dads outside. The children paid very close attention to my explaining the use of the bracelets, I had the Dad read the scripture verses. He told the older children to remember what they were. I was so sorry that I did not have a Bible for each family, when they told me they didn’t have one. They loved and were reading all the tracts and proudly wore the bracelets. They also knew they’d go to heaven because they loved and believed in Jesus. I told them to go ask their pastors for a Bible.

When the rain let up, the trucks were started and the crowd said goodbye, with many thanks; of course having first had their picture taken. Most of that group was standing in the bed of the pickup as they drove away, they had about 20 kilometers to go. Very African.

Next was a big and delicious lunch/dinner. Not what the hosts had planned, a barbeque, but what God disposed, including not being able to climb to the top of the Falls in the rain. We talked about man proposing and God disposing and how thankful we were for all we’d received, being so undeserving.

The twins showed off their fancy birthday dresses and served their cakes. By 9 pm we were more than ready for bed but had to wait for the rain to let up once more, it would also be nice to have lights along the trail. We also learned that the next day we were invited to a home dedication party for one of Patrick’s relatives on the other side of Mbale.

Saturday, A beautiful sunny day and we had electricity. At breakfast Sam received a call that one of the cows was sick. There was nothing he could do about that from where we were so the vet was called. Since we’d be stopping in Mbale before going to the dedication party, Sam decided to go home and go to the farm. I was persuaded to go to the party. Thankfully, I’d worn a colorful dress on Christmas eve, that would now have to do double duty. The teenagers in our group were not too excited about going but it was a family obligation. They were bribed with all the good food that would be served.

Another long bumpy ride in the 15 passenger van; first to Mbale, 1 ½ hr and 2 hr to the party. I don’t think my body will ever get used to those roads.

The dedication party was a huge event, attended by 200-300 people. There were 2 huge tents set up in the front yard of a beautiful new home. The one was mostly filled with the groom’s family while the other was still waiting for many from the bride’s side. The music playing were all Christian songs and not too loud. :<)
The Mutono family was asked to enter the grounds through a special archway, so Patrick motioned for me to take pictures. When everyone was seated the festivities could begin, with introductions of family members, and long speeches. I learned that most of these two families had not met at the wedding, about 4 years ago, so they decided to do it at the dedication of the family home, including the presentation of the dowry; a young cow, a huge stalk of matoke (green bananas) and a chicken.
Their pastors also participated, with prayer and reading scripture. It reminded me of the readings in U.S. wedding ceremonies. Then the ribbon was cut and the immediate family was allowed to enter the home, where they were asked to sit and were served a slice of cake and bottle of soda by the bride and her attendants. After that the guests outside were served, their soda came with dinner.

And what a dinner it was. There was a long table filled with huge bowls of food, matoke, rice, beans, chicken, beef, coked greens, sauces; everything delicious and not a crumb was wasted. Before we got to the serving table we had to wash our hands and pick up a plate, then proceed to the serving table. Plates were heaped full and I wondered how we were going to eat it all, besides where was the silver ware? Then I noticed everyone eating with their hands and when they were satisfied they motioned to the children from the neighborhood, standing all around, to pick up the plates. Believe you me those children also had a feast and they came prepared. They’d come with plastic bags and filled them with what they could not immediately eat. That also is Africa.

We were thankful that the long threatening rain held off till on the way home, where we arrived around 9 pm. I was glad to see that Sam was also at home. He shared that the cow seemed to be feeling much better. Thank You, Lord!

That was our Ugandan Christmas week, 2009 Anne and Sam De Jong