Moments
Today was an amazing day. The school we visited greeted us with dancing and singing. We feel like royalty when we arrive at these schools. They are so honored to have Fields of Dreams Uganda partner with them. We hear over and over that Fields of Dreams is trustworthy and that they keep their promises. It is so comforting seeing that what we hear in the USA about Fields of Dreams is so true and more. We will never comprehend the magnitude of "HOPE is a basic need" while living in the beautiful USA; but after being in Uganda for a few days, you start to see how HOPE is hard to come by.
Before we said our goodbyes at the school today we had some extra free time to just mingle with the children. We all scattered. Todd and Pastor Mike played frisbee with about 100 kids. Chaos doesn't even describe it. But Happiness does! Those smiles were plastered on those kids faces. I noticed Jeanne and Rebecca got time to chat with some of the older girls. The girls we passed out Hygiene kits to the Women of Substance girls. Rebecca mentioned that one of the girls opened up to her and shared her story with her. A very special moment.
The younger children swarmed around me. We took a few photos together and had fun with that. They all wanted to SEE their picture, so when we about dropped the camera from all the hands reaching for it to see, I put the camera away. Then it was the moment of what next. These younger children do not speak English yet (not till P4) so quickly I came up with teaching them how to do our American handshake. The Uganda handshake is similar so they were able to catch on quickly. The joy and desire to be the one shaking my hand in this new handshake with the knucks and the "blow up" noise at the end was so exciting for them. The small group of children grew into a larger group. Soon I had them doing the handshake to the others. Right before we loaded in the bus to leave, Rebecca mentioned that a kid just went up to her and gave her knucks then blew it up. I laughed and said, Oh they are learning from us! I just taught them that.Yes, teaching children how to be Women of Substance and Men of Integrity are very very important. However so are the real moments. The moments of just making eye contact till a smile appears. The moments of teaching children something new. The moments of picking up the littlest child and loving on them because they too are important. The moments of passing out photos or little pieces of paper with your name written on it. The moments of hugs and waves as we say goodbye. The moments of saying to a girl child "stay in school," "be beautiful," "be strong," be educated," Even the simplest times of asking "what is your name?" Those moments are why we flew to Uganda. Those little moments are actually BIG moments that will make an impact for a lifetime. And those are the moments that SHOW those children what a Woman of Substance and a Man of Integrity looks like.
To those of you who have given to Fields of Dreams Uganda, I thank you! I challenge you to keep giving. The funds will go to some amazing children who have dreams and who are going to follow those dreams. Thank you for giving, I want to close by encouraging you to step out of your comfort zone and make moments happen to those who least expect it.
