Bus Accident

* NOTE ADDED AFTER WE RETURNED TO THE USA: when I originally posted this - we thought Kaitlin was ok. After Kaitlin was released from the hospital in Uganda with an all clear bill of health, she walked around Uganda for two more weeks, flew internationally (hauled luggage) and upon returning home, went to her doctor. He discovered she has a broken back (the T9 vertibrae) and told her she was lucky she was not paralyzed!



Saturday night, coming back from Paraa, a car cut the bus off unexpectedly in a construction zone. We did not see a brand new speed bump, and the bus hit it very hard. We all flew up out of our seats. Kaitlin was in the back of the bus, hit her head HARD on the roof, and was slammed back down. She was injured, and could not speak or move, but managed to whisper "Help Me!" Debbie heard her, and got the group's attention. Renata and I rushed to the back of the bus. We got the bus to stop (the road was terribly bumpy as all roads here are) and tried to assess what was wrong. Clearly, we had to get to the hospital ASAP... but traffic was a nightmare and we were at least an hour away.
We had no choice but to try to continue to the hospital while the ambulance (we called on the cell) tried to find us... Kaitlin was in severe pain and shock. Her mom is going to read this, so I am not going to get into the scary details, but we were afraid she had a broken back or spinal injury. All of her extremities were in pain, and all the way to the hospital,Renata braced Kaitlin's body and I was massaging her hands and shoulders to keep the feeling. Others were rubbing her feet. Everyone else prayed. I kept watching her pupils to see that they were normal (and they were I just kept talking to her to try to calm her down and to reassure her it would be ok. There was a wild, frightened look in her eyes and she was crying. All she would say is "Something is NOT right.. Something is very wrong!" So it was a time we could not freak out ourselves. We just kept with her. It was about an hour before we made it to the hospital. We called Herb and Ellen Cook, missionaries that have lived in Africa for over 35 years, and they promised to meet us at the hospital, but were some distance away.
At the hospital, the "paramedics" wanted to lift her off the bus.. I told them NO WAY.. she has to be put on a backboard. They said it was not possible to get it through the bus door with her on it.. COME ON PEOPLE... THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX!! I insisted they bring it and told them we would lift her out the back window of the bus. No way were they going to mess up her spine.
Gene, Renata and I put her on the backboard ourselves because these people didn't have a clue.
Everyone helped to lift her down off the bus...
It did get somewhat better inside, but again, it will be Kaitlin's choice on how much detail she wants to give about the treatment. Let's just say that the hospitals here are at least 20 to 30 years behind facilities in the USA... and we were at THE most modern hospital in Uganda. I would hate to see the non modern ones.
The neurologist that was called was definitely qualified, and the good news is that she did not break anything, but had a massive and instantaneous compression which caused such pain. And the body reacted with a great deal of shock. She is ok, and now going to be fine.



Fred is a GREAT bus driver... and a lot of fun too!

I am in LOVE... who would have thought it would happen?

Ok so I was warned that I might fall in love when I least expected it...

And I did....

It was love at first sight, and I am pretty sure it was mutual, although we don't speak the same language. Her name is Kaden, and she is about three years old.

She came right up to me on the first day. And every time I go back, she runs right to my arms...
I do love her... and she was abandoned by her mother. Her father is dead, and her elderly grandma is already taking care of 5 kids.

.


The first day we met.


The second day...



And every day since....







Kaden and her grandma

Nile and Safari

Here I am, with the whole world in my reach!



Murchinson Falls...



Is it a wild African beast??? Yep... Fred our driver, being funny.



The elephant in the background isn't as dangerous as Fred. He's a cannibal.




Me with the Nile River in the background.




An interesting road to somewhere unknown




Jerome is either proposing to Renata, or he is pleading with her to increase her fruit intake...

Mukono Namyoya School Visit

Mukono Namyoya Schoolhouse...

The team stopped in on a school day. We knew most of the kids in the village from our previous visits to the church building and well digging projects.



Inside the school



I love meeting other teachers throughout the world. These teachers have "students" as young as 6 months.... So they teach ALL ages. Can you imagine teaching reading, math, and all subjects to 30 or more students while simultaneously watching infants! Talk about hard working teachers!



We did a project with the kids.




They were happy to show their results!

The Dichotomy of Africa

Scenes from Everyday Life in Africa





Africa has such a mixture of great beauty, yet pieces of ugliness are scattered throughout the culture.






It is Majestic........



It is Sorrow.....

AIDS graves such as this one are all over. There is not one man, woman, or child in Uganda who does not know a family member or friend that has died of AIDS.



It is Despair.......

The AIDS clinic that is built in Kamwenge, one of the hardest hit regions for AIDS in Uganda. However, there is no money to currently open or operate this clinic.



It is Community..... These people live with very little economic resources, but they are rich in relationships.



It is Strength... The women here lead hard lives, but they are proud and strong



It is Innocence.....




It is Rural... These long horn cows wander freely. Don't get in the way!



It is Confusing, and sometimes Entertaining. The signs are very different here.




It is Beauty.........



It is Entreprenurial...

This family sells their produce in a store they built from sticks and mud.




It is Fun..

This little boy made his stilts from sticks...




It is Hard Labor....

These boys have no money to attend school, so they work at breaking rocks to use to pave the roads to earn money for their families.



It is Poverty.....



It is Love...

This man takes his baby almost everywhere with him on his bike because there was no one to watch him at home. The baby (who looks about 18 months old) must hang on over many kilometers of bumpy dirt roads



It is Hope....

These schoolchildren hope for a better life through an education.

Kamwenge School...

We went to Kamwenge and visited a school there.. The community was so happy to see us. They had made baskets and mats for us. We bought some, but they wanted to give us some as well. They wanted to show us their love for us as we were showing our love for them.




This woman made this heart..... and clearly gave it from her heart.




The school building is a central part of the community.


True ingenuity... I love how the people here make things work and they think outside the box; This is an old wheel from a car, which is the school bell.

The older students learn a trade, such as sewing and embroidery so that they will be able to earn a living.




The patterns that the girls use for the sewing classes are made from stiff paper and reused many times.





Primary Students




Taylor and Renata handed out school supplies. It was like Christmas in June! They were thrilled.



This teacher really was amazing. Being a teacher myself, I could tell that she really had her act together and was doing an excellent job. Although she had little materials, and with over 45 small kids in this little room, she was doing a fantastic job in giving them the best education possible.


The primary classroom, for 45 students.



We did a puppet show called The Guardian Stone Lion (about a greedy brother and a generous brother) knowing the cultural tendency to like stories with a moral to them. Milton, our Parents Concern community facilitator was BEYOND EXCELLENT. He should be a teacher himself!




The kids were captivated. It was definitely a low-budget production, but they didn't mind a bit! I am so grateful to my team of puppet people for making this good for the kids.



Although we geared it to primary kids, the adults were plenty interested too! We had people hanging in the windows so they could see the show too!


I presented the Henry the Hand handwashing methods as part of the health and hygiene program. The puppet team helped out!

Again, Milton translated for me, and put a lot of enthusiasm into it! The kids really liked the part where I put the special lotion that shows germs glowing under the blacklight on a student's hands!



Henry The Hand posters and puppets were given to the school. We turned it into a party with balloons and stickers for all the kids.