September 8 and 10

September 8, 2007

Yesterday I finally was able to visit the hospice for widows here in Soroti. I have begun a friendship with our neighbor Stella. Stella’s husband is the doctor at the hospice. They are from Mbale and Stella has been very lonely here. I have brought here banana bread, books and magazines, and she has come and read with Lydia. She loves to read and wrote me a couple notes telling me how God has used the books to work in her life.

So Stella and I went to visit the hospice together. Dennis, her husband showed us his office and told us about the place. It opened in March and has had 86 widows treated there mostly older, terminally ill, HIV, or cancer patience. James gave us a tour of the place. It is a beautiful place, quiet, with plants and trees, and a very nice building. There is a lot of empty rooms right now and some construction going on. The organization that funds it is in America. They hope to have a chapel and chaplain some day. Right now there are 23 widows there. I think the main thing they do for them is give them a place to stay and try to keep them comfortable. I was thankful I could bring them some joy just by shaking their hands, touching them, and greeting them. That is when I wish I knew Ateso because I couldn’t communicate with them. They must be so bored just lying or sitting there all day, everyday. Most of them look very frail, but they could still smile. I was glad I went and was able to see another ministry here in Soroti.

Lydia and Grace are doing well and continue to be the joy of my life. I do have to remind myself (a lot) that I need to slow down and enjoy them. I wont care or remember the email or work I did two years from now but I will remember being with my girls and that is what matters. Lydia now wears underwear to bed! I am so proud of her. She is earning money to buy boots in market. She is now into rhyming and figuring out what letter words start with. (We are asked all day long!) Lydia is a very good big sister too. She helps and shares a lot. Grace is in a big girl bed (I think I told you that). Grace seems to be a better listener now and is so much fun. She goes around saying, “oh where Lydia?” or “oh, where, oh where baby?” For the first time the other night she said, “I lub you Daddy.” Talk about a happy parent moment. She also likes to ask for hug and kisses (“kiss a me, hug a me”). Grace talks up a storm and I love just listening to her. Josh built the girls a play kitchen set out of wood for them. It is really cute and they love playing restaurant with it.

We brought banana bread and visited with Pastor Patrick and Florence today. Florence is about ready to give birth to their third child (they will have three kids in three years of marriage – two years old and under). We had such a nice visit and I love the quietness and beauty of the village. (Ahh, Mahula.) I really like them. She is growing pumpkins and gave me one which I was quite excited about – fall time! It is so good for us to take time to visit and encourage our friends here. I want to do it more and be better at that. I too am blessed by doing it.

September 10

Tabitha had her thirtieth birthday so we had her over to celebrate. We had cake, presents, decorations, and Josh made her a balloon hat (which she wore all night and even to her home). I think she really appreciated it. It was her first birthday party she has had. We really like Tabitha and are thankful for her. This is one way we can thank her and show her we love her.

There has been a lot of rain and lighting lately. The past couple weeks we heard popping noises when there was lighting and a light would flash in the house. We thought something much be getting hit in our house. We unplugged everything but it continued to happen and it fried our internet so we think it came through the phone line. The other night we saw, heard, and felt the lighting hit right outside of our house somewhere. I was so scared! It was loud and bright. Our lights went out and the thunder roared. I do not like when it is so close!!! So our internet went out again and so we will be out for another week or so, again.

However, we are safe and some people aren’t. There has been so much rain there is flooding all around the area (I think in a lot of Africa right now). They say it is the worst it has been in 35 years. People are loosing there crops, some have to leave their homes and live in schools, a few have died, and they are afraid the major road to Soroti and beyond will be flooded soon. The saddest part is that the people most effected are the people who were also most effected by the war and they have just returned from the refugee camps. There is so much suffering. We will have to see what happens in the next couple weeks.

Our neighbors, Joseph and Martha and their two small kids, are thankful for their new zinc roof with all the rains. They had a grass roof and it leaked so bad that they couldn’t sleep when it rained. It would rain in black because of the mold and the ground would be flooded. I was looking at their one room home the other day and the Lord seem to say to me, “Mandy, your bedroom is bigger than their whole house.” (And they are a family of four.) I have so much. God continues to teach me about being generous with all He has given me.

Lydia continues to sing (and amazes me how she learns song) and the other day she added, “Okay, I have a testimony.” They give testimonies each week at church. I decided I love having girls! It is simply so cute and brings me so much joy to watch them sing, dance, play house, dress up… and I just can’t imagine boys doing that.