tuesday, june15...fingernails and fun!

my usual breakfast is toast with canned red plum jelly along with delicious ugandan coffee. it is perfect. some of that will be going home with us! for sure! decided that it's a must for me to sit by a window in the bus that opens. i think if i have the wind hit my face it helps with my nausea. i have been fine on the rides since reaizing that. thank the Lord! i was really dreading this week of motion sickness. today we started with recreation. there were 4 teams (2 of girls and 2 of boys) and we had to draw to see whose team we would support. it's funny how competition is everywhere. world cup fever is here, too! i hope to find caroline a ugandan soccer jersey. the boys competed in football (american soccer) and the girls competed in net ball (american basketball- except there is not net). after the girls finished their games, it was time for the teachers to play us! the kids were so funny because they were for us. they kept shouting "USA...USA!" we didn't win but i have to proudly say abigail scored all of our goals. the teachers prevailed. i didn't participate. i took the little ones because they were bored. danielle and i colored with them then started painting their fingernails...and not the just the girls! the boys loved it too! after the football games the older ones began to come back down towards us and we started on their nails. we still haven't finished. we will tomorrow. but i had the best time with the older girls. i loved being able to really comunicate. all of these kids speak english (their main language is either lugandan or swahili...one actually said "hakuna matata" to me yesterday...which is swahili... loved it!) we speak too fast and our accent throws them off. the little ones have a really difficult time. we have learned to speak slowly to them. but the older ones are great! while i painted i had a group of about 10 around me at all times. i laughed as i pretended not to hear these two girls who were right next to me. just super close and rubbing my left arm. they were examining my skin. in the middle of their lugandan conversation i could understand them saying "skin rash". they were talking about my freckles. they would rub the freckles as if trying to erase them. it was funny. i just let them continue to be amazed. i had fun with this group of girls as i learned how to say one at a time... "gumu gumu" (not sure of spelling) and how are you "olee-at-chea" (for sure not spelled correctly but grammatically so. they laughed at how i said things and how i began to sing things in my silly singing voice and they repeated what i sang like "one at a time" or "please get in a line" or "i am crazy" or "it is going to rain"...and rain it did. all i could think of was the toto song and it reminded me of caitlin and julianne. caitlin had "serenaded" me with it before we left and julianne had posted it on facebook. we ran to the shelter as the sweet boys put tables on their heads and moved them up the hill for craft time. they made verses to hang by their bed "you will lie down and you will not be afraid. you will lie dwn and your sleep will be sweet." proverbs 3:24 this is the basis of the founding of sweet sleep. they then wrote the sweetest and most colorful thank you notes. i kept this for last but after lunch we were treated to the fact that we could give them Bibles. they were so taken with these beautiful books that they could call their own. they were so proud! i have pictures of some just immersed in their reading. the little ones got picture story Bibles but the older ones got the good news Bible. a 15 year old, named andrew, was sitting there as the chaos was around him (rain, moving of tables). you could tell he was just so interested. can't wait to show my pictures to you! barbara handed me a note for me and one for me to take home to my family. she approached abigail and emily privately today and said "will you allow me to call you my sister? i love your mom." they were so proud of that. i am honored. we headed home, had dinner (some type of noodles and meat and fresh pineapple (which by the way is the best i have ever eaten! one of my staples this week). we have a team meeting, as usual after dinner, and had affirmation time. we spoke to each other about what we see in each other and affirmed our gifts. it was a nice time and this proud mama heard some wonderful words about two of her daughters. i am so extremely proud of them! they have taken this mission on and have embraced it lovingly. off to bed...goodnight! another busy day tomorrow!

"there is nothing to make you like other human beings so much as doing things for them"- zora neale hurston