Thursday, June 18, 2009

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Lira – Ogur Youth Center

Rain! Heat lightning! The crops are saved for another year! It had not rained for a time and the crops were beginning to look a little droopy so when we heard the rain begin to fall last night we cheered!

Breakfast in the main room and then we are off again, first we stop at the MTI office to download the blogs. There is breakfast awaiting us… we don’t share that we have just eaten! Breakfast/tea is normally around 10 a.m. here after the people have worked since 6:00 a.m. – then a snack of biscuits and juice around 2 p.m. and dinner at 9: p.m. The eggs we are served in the mooring are a very pale yellow and when we saw a hard boiled egg we saw that the yolk is barely discernable from the whites. The chickens are free range so obviously their dietary differences account for the change!

Our team is anxious to get up to see the kids so off we go! The people walking the road are so colorful, there are few cars but since the pavement is only in the middle of the road we have to move to the dirt side and honk our horn when we encounter a vehicle coming the other way. It’s considered a form of pothole dancing, a little bit of tarmac amidst the potholes. Again we are amazed that it somehow works. Felix shared with us that if you are in an accident here you leave as fast as you can because if someone is hurt from the neighborhood the neighbors will come and beat you up! So, the injured are left for the neighbors to deal with and you report to the police (if you think you were recognized).

It is a little after 11:00 a.m. when we arrive at the Ogur Youth Information and Care Centre. The main room is filled with students with pink and black uniforms. The boys wear what we now call African pink shirts and black shorts and the girls wear black jumpers with pink shirts underneath. Some have rubber flip-flops; some leather shoes and several have no shoes at all. There are 48 students sitting facing the raised stage at the front of the room! They are between 11 and 15 years old and have walked here from their school. The boxes of colored crayons, colored pencils and tablets are brought out and we decide to divide into 4 groups – a group for Sue, Deb, Megan and Dana. Each student gets 2 sheets of paper, a package of 12 crayons and a box of unsharpened colored pencils. Sue explains with a natural teacher’s enthusiasm that we would like them to draw something that makes them smile! Anything… a friend, a family member, a flower, their school, this center, we would like to take one drawing back with us and they can keep the second. At first everyone sits and stares quietly at their papers but once one student begins to draw the pencils fly! We all noticed that the majority drew what the first person started – but a few were original! A young man in my group drew a large soldier with a rifle; he made camouflage design on the clothing. Sue had a young man who drew an eagle that was outstanding. Every drawing was beautifully drawn. The students were very well behaved, the talk in whispers (even to each other) and we noticed that they don’t look you in the face. Later Felix shares that they are taught to be seen but not heard and to keep their voices low, it is disrespectful for them to look their elders in the eye. You would not see 48 pre-teens and teens in the U.S. behaving so well! The two doors were jammed with children who were not in uniform so we gave each one a crayon and a piece of paper. Little guys about 3 came in immediately and orderly, then sat in the corner and began to draw pictures themselves. Smiles spread across their faces when we exclaimed at their work will forever remain in our hearts and memories. Frank was everywhere taking pictures and then sharing the image on the replay screen of his cameras – the children were delighted, as usual with seeing themselves. Franks brought his small HP 4x6 printer so Deb began to print the individual shots and give them to the children. They took them and stared – giggled and showed their friends. I am sure these will be treasured for years to come!

Frisbee time! Frank brought a stack of Frisbees so Joe and I each took a stack and the students followed us to the lawn area for flying Frisbees. We don’t know if they had ever seen Frisbees but they quickly learned how to cock your wrist and let them go. Laughter and flying saucers everywhere. Joe and I noticed several groups of children watching from afar who were not a part of this class – they were also not in uniform which most likely means they cannot go to school because there is no money for uniforms and books! Joe and I broke off from the melee and approached several group with Frisbees in hand – one wave and a toss and we had more children join us! This was such fun!

Meanwhile Deb, Sue and Scott were interviewing Brenda, the young AIDS girl who talked to us yesterday. She told her story again in front of Deb’s movie camera. There is some question as to whether the microphone was working but hopefully we will be able to share this moving story with others. Brenda joined the drawing group even though she was not part of the classroom. She drew a picture of her Mother (who has died) holding a sunflower and then she wrote in perfect printing “I would be happy if I could see my Mother again”. Unfortunately she will probably sooner than she should.

African music began to play on the loud speakers that were set up in the grassy field, Megan began to dance and very quickly we all joined in the mix. Fun… just pure joyous dancing and fun! We will ever remember the big toothy grins of everyone on that field!

The team was called to “tea” while the students prepared for the Drama performance that was scheduled for us. We sat in the white plastic chairs on the far side of the Center and enjoyed Mango juice and biscuits. One little guy who was almost in rags but was the first to dance joined us so I asked the school counselor if I could share a cookie and a juice pack with the boy – he said yes, and George then asked the boy to not show the other children. He sat on the trunk of a tree hidden from the group and watched us while he obviously enjoyed his treat!

While the Peer Group performers prepared for the afternoon program we were invited to tour the Health Center and Maternity Ward that are within this compound of buildings. These buildings are older and were taken by the rebel forces that lived there for over 10 years and destroyed the little equipment the clinic had. This was hard… very hard! They have recently been rehabilitated by one of Medical Team’s many volunteers over here, Elizabeth Lie. The halls were lined with people lying on blankets or sitting quietly, sick babies, thin and frail, adults curled into balls. The head of the Health Center is a woman who made a plea to us to get them chairs, equipment, anything. Evidently the Ugandan government agreed to do the repairs to the structure and the Department of Health would be responsible for the interior furnishings. For whatever reason this has not happened so there is very little there. This was so hard for all of us to see. Several patients were in the hospital building, a few with I.V.s running and one with a chicken sitting on the bed! The maternity ward had two new Mothers, one who was holding a one-day-old baby with a cleft pallet. This cleft will probably not be repaired for a long time, if ever. At the back of the hospital was gathered what we assumed to be a group of different family members – cooking pots, chickens, a skinny dog, blankets. An encampment of support! While patients are in the hospital, it is the family’s responsibility to provide cleaning and food for them, though they do not provide housing for them. Often, one patient’s visit to the hospital takes two, three, or an entire family away from their village to care for the one sick person. This was a sobering experience for us after the afternoon of lighthearted fun.

The Drama! 7 white plastic chairs amid a sea of color – loud speakers and a music mixer were set up on a table and run by the generator. Older Peer Group members performed the play. When Megan was here the first time she helped to interview and pick 65 young people between the ages of 16 and 20 to act as mentors for the community. Megan is such a part of Uganda – the people and children love her. They know that she loves them, her energy and caring are acknowledged and appreciated by all! There are still 47 of peer educators active in their community today on behalf of the youth centre and MTI. They participate in weekly or bi-weekly meetings to strategize how to teach HIV/AIDS prevention to the youth, as well as behavior change to reduce stigma and preventive health. An impressive commitment that must mean some personal sacrifice. This drama was unbelievable – well over 2 hours – the crowd sat mesmerized and respectful as the performers shared a tale whose lesson was the importance of being tested and of being responsible, as a couple. Of course, we could understand a word since it was all done in the Luo dialect but the two staff members who sat with us to interpret were having a difficult time doing so because they were laughing and enjoying the performance so thoroughly themselves. This lasted until after 5 p.m. and it was a tired team that piled into the MTI vehicles to return to Lira. Another day filled with rewards and heart wrenching experiences.

A quick shower and we were off to dinner at the Lillian Towers restaurant in Lira. Felix, Anthony and Peter joined us for a delightful evening of shared tales and lots of laughter. The stars are brighter than you can imagine, then the heat lightning performance lit up distant dark clouds. Uganda is a special place and the staff that make up this MTI Main Office are incredible. They are a dedicated group full of challenges and hope.