Simple Solutions

A poignant dichotomy occurred this weekend that really brought home the fact that there are such simple and inexpensive solutions available for some of the world’s top reasons for loss of life… and yet so many do not have access to them. The difference of a few US dollars can mean the difference between life and death.

This weekend, as we were staying at the Mayor of Lugazi’s house, his 17-year-old daughter, Rita, passed by and we asked how she was doing. She shruggingly said that she had just returned from a visit to the hospital, where she had I think received an IV, and then was sent home with some medicine that would clear her system in a few days. We said we were sorry, and she said she was feeling alright and just needed to rest up for a day. Next day she was back and moving.

Kristen and I were called in last-minute to teach the young women’s class in church this Sunday because all of the teachers were preparing for the funeral of a young boy in the congregation who had died of malaria. I do not know the situation of the family, but my bet is that they are not the most well-to-do. An IV and a few pills!

At the beginning of William Easterly’s book “The White Man’s Burden” he talks about two great tragedies: one being the unacceptable number of people living in extreme poverty. And two, being that with all of the trillions of dollars poured in to “foreign aid” by the rich countries, so little of it has actually reached those who really need it.

Since I’m new at blogging, I don’t know how to end a sad blog entry. Okay, let’s try this: with such simple and inexpensive solutions to some of the world’s greatest health challenges, we all can contribute a little that can make a much greater impact. Do a little research into the organizations that are really using homegrown solutions, rather than handing over money to inefficient or corrupt entities (such as governments) and contribute what you can. Here’s a few I’ve heard of:

Heifer International – an organization that works to end world hunger and allows you to contribute money towards buying a cow, a flock of chicks, a goat, or even a water buffalo for families who have experienced a natural disaster around the world. www.heifer.org

Kiva- a renowned online microfinance organization where you can donate for as small as $25 towards loans to be given to qualified entrepreneurs in the developing world. http://www.kiva.org/

New heroes- bios of incredible people who have created extremely innovative solutions to social problems. Read up and get inspired on how you can implement your own ideas! http://www.pbs.org/opb/thenewheroes/meet/

Good luck! Let me know of any more fun ways to get involved, your ideas, or what you have done or are currently doing!

I am a mzungu

In Luganda (the predominant language spoken in Uganda… among the other 51 tribal languages) the word "mzungu" means “white person.” Every day walking from our house to the town, all along the way little heads appear around corners bursting “Mzungu! Mzungu! Bye Mzungu!” A few really zealous ones make it a point to shake each of our hands no matter the size of our group walking through the dirt road neighborhoods. A few will take your hand and then kneel, a cultural sign of respect. As of late we have instituted “Bonga!”- the American equivalent of “Give me some bones” (bumping fists) instead of shaking hands for sanitary purposes (can’t shake that public health influence). And it is quite incredible to see this same song/dance that kids all over the town spontaneously do- they’ll start chanting “A mzungu… a mzungu…” with accents in the hips and hands in the air to the beat of the chant. So fun. I wonder what it will be like to go back to the states and no longer be a rock star each time I walk down the road.

However, on the flip side… I have found that I have this gift for making kids cry. Seriously! My first real day here, the Mayor took us to this mostly lovely little isolated village atop a hill overlooking the sugar cane fields to discuss possibilities for income-generating activities with women there. Probably very few mzungus have visited there. I past by a mother holding a little 6-month old baby- the baby took one look at me and seriously shrieked at the top of its lungs and then started crying. It was as if she’d seen a ghost (which is probably what I looked like to her- probably the first mzungu she’d ever laid eyes on!). And this happens to me more than any of the other HELP volunteers. I think it is because I make the googly animated baby faces, which kids love in the states… not so much here. And actually, today was a double whammy, as this little baby boy in the marketplace took one look at me, started crying… and wet his pants. Yeah, that’s what I do.

Call me crazy, but seriously, it has started sounding like the roosters (which begin at about 6:30am- a perfect alarm clock) are saying “M---zuuu---nguuuu!” Check it out next time you hear one. Or maybe its just me…

The Adventure

“An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered.”

Never has that statement rung so true than since I’ve been here in the land of Africa. In fact, I had written about five blog entries and saved them on my computer as they awaited to be uploaded… and our computer got a crazy African virus that erased everything. So I begin afresh! I’ve got a lot of fun, funny, crazy stories, but first off, I want to share with you the gems of what has happened thus far, the work of our excellent volunteers. In the short space of about 3 weeks since they arrived in Uganda, they have taken the initiative to meet with local partners, brainstorm together solutions, and then begin to take action. All 26 of the volunteers are involved in a variety of the following projects (with more details and explanations to come):

o Adobe Stoves- Built and trained community members to build over 10 energy-saving adobe stoves for homes, schools, and have plans to build a huge one for the local hospital and an HIV/AIDS clinic
o Youth Outreach Mission- Partnering with a local group called the “Youth Outreach Mission” which is comprised of about 40 youths here in Lugazi who are wanting to build their community. They are led by two 19-year-old college students who really have caught the vision of community transformation. They will be holding soccer games starting this coming Friday with orphans and street children, and then afterward will educate on HIV/AIDS prevention, hygiene, and other important topics.
o Square Foot Gardens- Built six small “square foot gardens” in a local school, one for each grade level. One of our volunteers, Abby, is majoring in math education and came up with the idea to use the gardens to teach practical math skills and will be assisting the teachers in coming up with lesson plans appropriate to the grade level.
o Mushroom Garden- Just today put up the bamboo walls of a large mushroom garden shed that is built for a women’s group to generate additional income for their families. Last week we got to sit with the women and talk about the idea, and then got to ask THEM what they wanted to do with the extra income, what their dreams were. It was so fun to hear them talk about growing their small businesses, starting new ones, and securing their children’s schooling.
o Teacher trainings- today the teacher training group will complete their second session of training with the Ssanyu school. Last week they taught the teachers about different learning modes (tactile, auditory, visual, kinesthetic). The teachers LOVED it (as we heard from the head mistress afterward) and were very engaged in the training.
o HIV/AIDS Extravaganza- this group is planning a huge community-wide all-day fair to raise awareness and educate on HIV/AIDS in June. They are contacting tons of local performing groups (including a live band to start off the day with a parade and to gather the townspeople) to participate. This is in collaboration with the Youth Outreach Mission.
o Music/Dance/Drama for people living with HIV/AIDS- Alexis has just graduated with a degree in acting. She has been asked to come up with a one-hour presentation incorporating music, dance, and drama with a group of adults living with HIV/AIDS, to be presented to the US Embassy for the grand opening of an HIV/AIDS clinic recently built by USAID.
o ESL/Literacy- our cook, Mary, is an incredibly talented, vibrant, absolutely caring individual. But she cannot read. She grew up in Sudan during the time of conflict, and thus never attended school. Yesterday Lezley begun the first literacy class with Mary, and she described Mary’s absolute delight to begin reading her first few words!
o Hygiene Education- this group has met with the managers of the Lugazi outside marketplace and discussed the idea of getting hand-washing stations into the marketplace and educating on proper hygiene in handling food.
o Women’s Groups- we are meeting with several women’s groups to find skills they have within the group that they could share with eachother and turn into an income-generating activity. Tonight we will actually meet with the women in the neighborhood we live in!
o Kawolo Hospital- volunteers have spent time assisting in our local hospital. It is incredibly underfunded and understaffed, so they welcome any extra assistance. Some have been able to witness births, invasive surgeries, and even the passing of an auto accident victim. HELP volunteers are really brainstorming and looking for opportunities to make a lasting impact in the hospital. They are working to find partnering organizations to help fund the hospital and may be involved in running an “Eye Camp” where people who cannot pay or live too far away will be able to come to the hospital and get their cataracts removed.

Yeah, can you believe it?! And there are several more projects in the works right now. Kristen and I have been caught up in a bajillion administrative stuff the past 2 weeks, but we just feel so happy to see that fire ignite in our volunteers as they discover an area they are passionate in, see how it can be applied here, and then begin working with local champions to make a change within the community. And at the same time, we are each learning so much from the rich culture and beautiful people here.

Bumps in da road, but getting there

I safely arrived in Amsterdam... to find out that my flight to Uganda was canceled (or never existed?? weird). Soooo, they've put me up in a *sweet* hotel for the night, and rescheduled for a later flight tomorrow. I've called Auntie Peggy in Uganda and got to talk to the Mayor of Lugazi as well until my card ran out, so they know I will be late but are making arrangements to pick me up.

I sat next to this cool, cool Ugandan lady from St. Paul to Amsterdam, and found out that she has HIV and really wants to partner with us for the month that she will be in Uganda to speak to others with it, and tell them to get tested and treated. She's been living in the US for 8 yrs and has really seen the great benefits to breaking the social stigma attached to HIV and to properly deal with it to lead a healthy and happy life.

Crazy Dragon China Spider!

Today the head teacher was gone, so at the last minute I was asked to
take over her class. I had prepared... nothing, and didn't know their
class routine. Well... the day turned out to be rad. It all started as I
walked to school and saw a HUMONGOUS spider wrapping up a bee that had
got caught in it's web. So, I went to class (it was supposed to be
math time), told them what I saw, found a good container, and we all
went out and caught it!During lunch I went online and printed out a
bunch of pictures of different spiders, and then for science time, we
compared and contrasted the different spiders, learned their body parts, etc. We even named our little guy- Xiaohua (I think it means "Little ____" something). They were so excited about it all day, and were so
well-behaved because of that, I think. I've been encouraging the teachers to give the kids real-life experiences as much as possible (so much lecturing, very little hands-on or experiential learning taking place), so this was a fun opportunity to model that.

My first love in China

When a new visitor first steps foot in the PHF Foster Home’s “Inn,” most likely the first thing to catch their eye is the smiling, vibrant boy sitting on a stool yelling out “Hallo! What is yo namuh?” Confident, quick-witted, and even a little bossy, Grady was the first to capture my heart here in China.

I was surprised when this fully self-assured boy stood up from his chair- he was much shorter than I had expected. Grady has severe scoliosis, causing his back to curve any which way, and braces on his legs. But don’t worry, with a crutch on each arm, he can keep up with any able-bodied kid. I was also surprised to find that he has been here at PHF only a few months. Before that he lived on the streets begging, until, perhaps too burdened by living such a difficult life with a child who struggles to keep up, he was abandoned by his family.Two memories of Grady that will stick in my mind.


1. The day we got a new badminton set. Out on the playground, Grady motioned for me to be his partner. Unable to both play the game, and support his weight with his arms, he plunked down in the sand and hit it to me. We continued back and forth, rarely hitting it more than once because he could never run for the badminton ball-thing when I hit it to him, nor gain enough body motion to hit it more than a few feet (okay, and the other two-thirds was my lack of skills). Despite the wind blowing sand in his eyes because he was so close to the ground, and minimal success, he kept right on playing. Will Grady let his disadvantage make him miss out on life? Never.




2. One day I was walking passed Grady’s perching point in the Inn, and he motioned me over to him and pulled out a mixture of sunflower and other edible seeds and gave them to me. Later I found out that the Primary School teacher had taken the oldest kids earlier that day to the little shop around the corner to learn about using money and such. Each of the kids were given 10 yuan (about $1.35 USD) to spend on whatever they wanted. [Now know this- these kids really have nothing that is their very own- toys, books, play equipment is shared with all ] Grady, along with most of the other kids, had spent his ten yuan- perhaps the first in his life- to purchase things that could be given away to nannies and friends.

Pretty understandable how I fell for him so fast, eh?

National Children's Day!

We celebrate Mother’s Day. Then comes Father’s Day. And there’s also Secretaries Day, Veterans’ Day, Columbus Day, and even Mule Day, Hermit Day, and Feast of Fabulous Wild Men Day (January 12, if you didn’t know).
As a bright little youngster, I realized that I fit into none of these categories. So one day I remember asking my mom, “Why is there no ‘Kid’s Day?’” Her wise response- “Every day is Kid’s Day.” That was definitely true in my home- thanks, mom. However, today, June 1st, is China’s National Children’s Day. The moment I heard about this celebration, I thought to myself “Aha! Now I understand how I’ve found my way to China. We think alike, the Chinese and I” (as if no child has ever asked their parents the same question… but I’d like to think it was original). However, in a little internet search, I actually found that in 2001, President Bush wrote a proclamation declaring the first Sunday in June as “National Child’s Day” as well. So kids, (there is no age restrictions attached) I hope you get ahold of this blog in time to live it up!

So, let me share some highlights from our Children’s Day Celebration here at PHF, and then highlight some cool parts of the proclamation.

We actually celebrated this last Friday. They sure know how to have fun here at PHF! The staff was busy making preparations all week for it. So, after lunch and naps, the kids got to skip the last two hours of school, and enjoy a sort of carnival-type afternoon. Face-painting, crafts, water-balloons and squirt guns, candy, music, a big blow-up moon-bounce toy thing, and McDonald’s for dinner! The kids were loving their lives. But really, they love even the simplest of things- so this was like joy to the max.

Though only an hour from Beijing, I live in a more isolated part of China- about twenty minutes outside of a "town" called Langfang (and yes, a "town" of over a million!). The PHF campus is nestled in the middle of fields, tree groves, and little traditional neighborhoods. Recently, I had one guy in Beijing ask me "What in the world do you DO in Langfang for fun- there’s nothing out there?" Well, through this blog I hope to introduce you to some of the treasures of Langfang- and why I’m having the time of my life here. It is these beautiful, creative, resilient children I live and work among.

Besides being a fun day for kids, I think that the celebration of Children’s Day across the world has a much deeper purpose. As expounded upon in the above-mentioned proclamation, it is to remind us adults of our duties to the world’s “most precious resource, our children.” It also states that “Every youngster deserves to live in a safe, permanent, and caring family…” Though government cannot make people love eachother, it can “cultivate a climate that helps families, as well as the individuals and groups that support them.” The document mentions the current crisis of single-parent homes, and the need to “promote responsible fatherhood, in all its aspects, including spiritual leadership, emotional security, and financial support” (sound familiar? See The Family: A Proclamation to the World). Oh, that these dear children whom I have so quickly grown to love, could have these basic and essential elements of a real home! It continues “We must also help families in crisis, protect children from abuse and neglect, and encourage adoption…” This is where I put in a plug for any of you considering the prospect of adoption. I was able to witness the first meeting of an adoptive family and little Sadie this week, and it is truly a marvelous and life-changing event for all parties involved.

The document concludes “Every child… has unique gifts to offer. We must nurture our children’s dreams, help them develop their talents and abilities, and ensure their healthy development so that they may reach their full potential. Our success in this vital endeavor will affect the direction of their lives and the future strength and vitality of our Nation.” No matter what our relation is to children- whether parent, sibling, aunt, uncle, or the neighborhood “candy-grandma” (which my mother has become on Cherry Circle), we all can take this day to think of our influence on those little guys in our lives, and evaluate how we are doing in this most important role.

Happy Kid’s Day!

(And sorry, for some reason I can only post one picture for the time... I've got plenty more to show, so I'll work on fixing that!)