Almost a month here...

We will not be at the hotel this weekend. We are not going on the safari either! We are staying at the orphanage so we can go to church there on Sunday! But the rest of this week has been good! Thursday we just stayed at the orphanage. It was a nice day to journal, read, and spend time with the kids! One of the girls got a package. It was so awesome! It was her birthday package from a couple in the states. Babra did not even know it was her birthday. I can't fathom that! But she was so thankful. It was awesome to see! She prayed, thanking God for it before she even opened it. I have never seen a little girl so excited to get crayons, paper, a doll, and 2 shirts! She was truly thankful. She could not stop smiling! It was beautiful!
I am sitting here, in disbelief that it has already been one month here almost! I can not imagine leaving these kids. It is going to be so hard! I have gotten so attached to them. Maybe I will finish college and move back next year... we'll see where God takes me!

Short Update!

This week has been so busy!! Monday we left the hotel and came into town. We ate lunch at The Source... our favorite restarant here! We meet so many "mzungus" that are all here on either mission trips or adopting children! When we got back to the orphanage, the kids were so excited! I didn't realize how much I could miss them in one weekend!
Tuesday was awesome! We came back into town. While eating lunch, a lady came and started talking with Ms. Agnes. They have been friends for a really long time. This woman has a ministry for women getting out of prostitution. She has 8 girls that she is counseling right now! We are going to set up a time and go check out her ministry. I'm not sure what we will do, but I'm super excited! We then went to Pastor Henry's church to practice puppets and drama for Evangelism. I got to hold a 1 month old baby for a long time! All of the people at Pastor Henry's church were laughing, because I always have a baby in my arms if there is one around! When we got back to the orphanage, Tiffany and I put on our African dresses that we got made and TRIED to dance the Ugandan way! It didn't work so well, but the kids got a good laugh! Then we taught them the Cha Cha Slide! They loved it!
Today we are in town again. We were on the bus to town and I was once again holding a baby. The man in front of us turned around and said "How is it that you can produce a black baby?" It was so funny! Well, I know this is short, but that is this week so far! Oh, and Tiffany and I may be going on a safari this weekend!!!

Happy Father's Day Daddy!

Daddy! Happy Father's Day!! I love you so much and miss you! You are the greatest dad in the world! I could never express how much you mean to me and how much you have changed my life. I look around and realize that so many people do not have a good father in their life! I am unbelievably blessed to have a dad like you! I could never thank you enough for all the times you have been there for me. You do so many things for me! So many times I take you for granted, but being here working with the children who have no parents alive, I realize that God has put an amazing man in my life as my father! Your love for our family is such an example of God's love! You work so hard to support the family! It means so much to me! I hope that one day when I have a family of my own, I can take the lessons you have taught me and teach it to my children! Thank you so much for always being so supportive of everything I do! I know it scared you when I was 12 asking to go to Africa, but through it all, you have supported me! And when things are tough, I will always remember the way that you encourage me to pray! You are such an amazing dad! I can't thank God enough for the blessing you are in my life!

More of this week...

Wednesday night at evangelism in the village of Wakisi with Pastor Henry's church about 10 women accepted Christ. It was amazing to be a part of experiencing! I love doing evangelism with the team from the church. It's like a big party when someone accepts Christ. They are truly excited from the inside out that another person has joined the family of Christ!! They sing and dance without holding back, giving glory to God! The passion of these people amazes me more and more everyday! I am learning so much here!

Thursday was really good. About 4 or 5 of the kids were at the orphanage because they were sick with malaria. Here, malaria is a very common thing. The kids just take some anti malarial medicine when they get it and it is gone within about 3 days. But since the kids were sick, we got to hang out with them. They taught us how to make different things out of the fibers of banana trees. We made balls, dolls, jump rope, and Stella even made me some flip flops as a joke!

As we were making things, we heard music coming from outside. In fact, "It's a Small World" was playing. We asked what it was. Grace and Stella told us it was the ice cream truck. I decided that since there were only a few kids, I could buy them some. We go outside and the ice cream "truck" is a boda boda with an ice chest strapped to the back. It was homemade and he just scooped it out with a regular metal spoon. It was so good though. And the kids were SO excited. It was definitely something they do not get very often. It was awesome to be able to treat them to some!

Once all the kids got home, Sarah, a 13 year old at the orphanage, began braiding my hair. Then a few of the other girls joined in. It was so funny. I had about 3 girls braiding my hair. And they just kept saying "Oh, your hair is so different. It's better, it's better". Then about 3 other girls began to do Tiffany's as well. I don't know what it was about Thursday, but the orphanage really felt like a home to me. I think we are really connecting with the children and with Ms. Agnes, Grace, and Stella. It's amazing! It's even to the point that walking through town, Ms. Agnes just says that we are her daughters!

Friday we just hung out around the orphanage and helped make necklaces that they can sell in July when teams come to visit the orphanage. There will be a team here on July 3rd, then another on July 17th. July is going to fly by. I can't believe we have already been here almost a month!

Saturday, we went to the home of Ms. Agnes' family. We met her daughter, husband, and grandchildren. She took us around and showed us her garden. She has everything imaginable in the garden- mangos, jackfruit (African fruit shaped like a watermelon with a very weird taste and rubbery texture), potatoes, etc. She even wanted to take a family picture, but she wanted Tiffany and I to be in the family picture. It was awesome. Her family is amazing!

Today at church was the most interesting week by far. As the guest pastor from Kenya was speaking, a little girl fell asleep on my lap. She has slept on my lap the past two weeks, so I thought nothing of it. But this time, I felt something really warm on my lap, then something running down my leg. The little girl peed in my lap- a lot. Tiffany and I could not stop laughing. I felt so bad. We could not focus, but it was so funny. I told Carol, the girl that was sitting next to me. She said "Well I hope it didn't go through on the other side. Then the people will think you wet yourself." Then after the service, I was telling our friend Brenda and she told me that because I got wet on, I was ready to be a mother. It was so funny. I don't understand that comment, but it was funny to hear her say it! When we finally refocused, the pastor had a really good message. He was talking about counterfeit christianity versus authentic christianity. He said that authentic christians were FAT- faithful, available, teachable.

Please continue to pray for us. We are doing really good in every aspect. I also have 2 special requests. One of mine and Tiffany's friends, Blake, is in Burkina Faso serving as a summer missionary with the IMB. He has malaria. I think he is getting better, but just keep him in your prayers. Also, a couple from our church in Hattiesburg is in Kampala, Uganda trying to adopt 2 children. They are running into a lot of issues with the embassy. We are probably going to meet up with them next week because they will be in Jinja. They were scheduled to be able to return home next Sunday with the children, but it is not looking that way now. They are really having a tough time, but know that God is still faithful through it all. Pray for them though!

Tiffany and I have been so blessed on this trip. We have had no problems. The people go above and beyond to take care of us! Especially Pastor Henry and Ms. Agnes. They are amazing people! I am learning so much from them day by day! I just wish I could bring all these people back to America so all of you could meet them and understand what I am talking about. There is no way to describe the presence of the Lord and the passion in these people!!! They have very little compared to us in America, yet I can not describe the difference in the joy of these people compared to most Americans.

This week so far...

So Sunday we went to Pastor Henry's church again. It was awesome! I feel like we are really beginning to develop relationships with the people of the church. After church, while waiting for a ride back to the orphanage, we just sat there for about an hour playing with one of the babies there and talking to his mother! Once we got back to the orphanage, the children showed us how to make purses out of the beads that they make!
Monday, I got to carry a baby on my back like the mothers here in Africa do! Then we went into town and met with the Chairman of the Board for the orphanage. It was awesome meeting him. I want to share something that he said! He was talking about the challenges they have been through with the orpahanage and he said "It's been hard, but Ms. Agnes' love for those children will not let her be defeated." I thought it was so true! Ms. Agnes loves those kids so much! She had made so many sacrifices to care for these children!
Also on Monday, we met many Americans. It's cool to meet them here because it's almost like there is an instant bond. Everyone we have met is here either on a mission trip or adopting children. It's amazing to hear their stories. A family from Texas we met is adopting 3 young boys and they have a daughter and two sons of their own!
Monday night at the orphanage we had some adventure! A bat started running through the orphanage and the kids had to catch it! I didn't even know bats could run. Of course Tiffany and I started asking tons of questions about bats. The kids thought it was SO funny that we were asking about bats!
Tuesday was a resting day but the kids ATTEMPTED to teach us how to dance!!! Attempted being the key word!! I also got to help some of the older children with their homework. It was good bonding time! They are precious!!
Today we are in town again. Two years ago I was looking into orphanages online. I found one called Amani Baby Cottage. I wanted to visit it so bad last summer but did not know how to go about it. I knew it was in Jinja but no more then that. Well today, Ms. Agnes', knowing my fascination with babies, said she was going to take us to a baby home ther her friend works at. We get there and it was Amani Baby Cottage!!!!! I love that place! There are kids from 10 days old to 6 years there! It's an amazing place! God is really moving there!
So I just wanted to write an update of this week so far. Pray for us as we are going to do evangelism again with Pastor Henry's church!!

Contact Information

I figured since we have a cell phone here, I should post the number just in case any of you would want to call or email. The phone number here is 011256771651457. My email is harrison_amanda@bellsouth.net. Thank you so much for all of you who have been praying for us this summer! It has been amazing so far! All the comments on this blog are such an encouragement to me! I love hearing from all of you!

Falling in love...

Everyday just gets better and better. I am falling in love with these children. They are so beautiful and have such joyful hearts! I want to bring them all home with me! We are beginning to learn some of their stories of how they got to the orphanage. I am amazed at the joy they have even after all the things they have been through!Sunday after going to Pastor Henry's church, we went back to the orphanage and had so much fun! The kids danced for us and attempted to teach us how to play the drums. One of the dances was about Moses leading people into the promised land. All of the children got stuff to carry with them into the promised land. One of the girls stuffed her shirt to make her look like she was carrying a baby. Another boy went outside, untied the goat and brought it inside and was bringing it with him. It was so funny! These children bring so much joy to my life! After dancing and attempting the drums, we went outside and played Yes Ball. Basically you have teams and you try to keep the ball away from the other team. Our team won, so the children began saying "I am the winner!" but it sounds like "I am the winna". I wish I could express how they say it! It is too cute. I might just bring home the Ugandan accent :)
Monday was pretty laid back. Ms. Agnes went into town and Tiffany and I stayed at the orphanage with the other two women that work there. Stella, one of the girls that works at the orphanage is 19. We have really connected with her. So Monday was cool just hanging out and playing games with her!Tuesday the kids were out of school for a public holiday so we had all day to spend with them. It was so much fun! We also ate casava! It's a tree root that is fried. It tastes kind of like a potato chip and french fry combined!

Tuesday I also painted all the girls' fingernails and they absolutely loved it!! Then they all wanted to paint mine, so each of them painted a different fingernail, then it moved to my toes as well. It was so much fun! They were so excited! That night the kids were trying to teach us some Lugandan. It was quite funny!Wednesday we went to the school that the church runs. We went to the kindergarten class and these kids obviously do not see very maney "mzungus". They were just touching us, even our toes. And they just crowded around to watch us. It was so funny! We also went with Pastor Henry's church and did evangelism in a village called Wakisi. We did dramas and puppets. Some of the guys preached and it was amazing! They are so unashamed of the Gospel. And they have so much passion for the Lord!
Thursday and Friday we just hung out around the orphanage and once the kids came home from school, we just played with them. We were teaching them some American games.
Today we are at the hotel. It's almost like coming home. We are developing relationships with the people here at the hotel. It's great!
So I am loving Uganda. The people here are so amazing! I just see passion like nothing I have ever seen before!

Quick Update :)

Sunday we got to go to Pastor Henry's church! It was amazing. The people were so welcoming! The worship there is so free! They truly show what it is like to be the brothers and sisters in Christ. I saw many people that I worked with last summer, so it was also a time of reuniting. It was awesome. The joy of the Lord is in those people like I have never seen. They dance and shout to the Lord! It's amazing to be a part of!
Things at the orphange are going great. Yesterday the kids had a public holiday from school, so they were out. We got to play with them all day. It was wonderful. I painted all the girls' fingernails and then they painted mine. It was so much fun! They enjoyed it so much! I am falling in love with these children. They are wonderful! Last night they were teaching us some Lugandan, which is their language. They were enjoying us trying to speak it with our southern accents! I will write more later. We are at an internet cafe and my time is almost out! Thanks so much for all your prayers and support!

First Days at the Orphanage

We are back at the hotel for some rest tonight! The first night at the orphanage, we only got about 4 hours of sleep. All night, we heard banging. We thought someone was trying to break in! It turns out that there are bats in the storage room next to us, so they were banging against the door all night! Last night was much better rest. The bats were still active, but we knew what they were so it wasn't as scary. The first day at the orphanage was good, but somewhat difficult. We didn't really know how to relate to the kids because most of them do not speak english. Also, the women that work there wanted to serve us like guests, which is not what we were expecting, but it is a cultural thing and it is what they wanted to do. Yesterday was good with the kids. They came home from school and we just played outside with them. It was really good! They are so precious. I want to bring them all home with me!! Maybe one day I can adopt some of them :). Today was really good! We got up and went to the water pump with the kids and got to help them pump water to bring back to the orphanage. Soon I am going to attempt to carry it on my head! We will see how that works out! After getting water and eating potatoes for breakfast, yes potatoes for breakfast, we watched the kids make necklaces. They are gorgeous and this is how the children help support the orphanage. We made some beads as well. They laughed at us quite a bit... I was not so good at the whole bead making thing! But it was good. After that, Tiffany, Ms. Agnes, and I caught a taxi. By taxi I mean 14 seater van that about 23 people cram into! It's a great experience. Today the whole way into town a little girl from one of the villages was sitting on my lap. I am in love with these African children!!! Once we got into town, we got on a boda boda (not sure how to spell it). Basically, it's a motorcycle with a seat on the back and they serve as taxis. It was so much fun! I got on and these are the questions that were asked to me. First, "are you married?". Second, "do you have a boyfriend?". Then he said "I need some mzungu friends!". Mzungu means "white person". It was a fun experience though! The days here keep getting better and better. We are getting into somewhat of a routine. The first day at the orphanage was pretty hard. We felt a little lost and weren't sure what to do, but the kids are beginning to feel comfortable around us as well as the women that work with Ms. Agnes. It's going to be a great summer! Thanks so much for all your prayers and encouragement!

Uganda

We got to Jinja around midnight on Monday. Tuesday we got up and went into town to get some neccessary things like a phone so that we are able to communicate with the pastor and the other locals who are helping us out while we are here. We met a girl, Whitney, from Texas who will be a missionary for a year here. Her parents are in the process of planning and building an orphanage here. She has been a great help to us the past 2 days! While in town eating, we sat at a table with a man from Texas. We got talking with him and it turns out he has been a missionary in Calcutta, India for like 28 years and is now in Africa! Even more awesome, he was one of Mother Teresa's friends. Mother Teresa even nominated him for a Nobel Peace Prize! I think if Mother Teresa nominates you, you must be doing something really awesome. He even showed us the news article!! He has built hundreds to thousands of orphanages, schools, and hospitals all over the world, mainly Africa and India. He was great encouragement!!
We also met with Ms. Agnes, the lady who runs the orphanage. She said that the kids keep asking when their visitors are coming! We are so excited! Tommorrow we will be going there for the summer!!! We have been in a hotel the past 2 nights just to get some rest.
Today we took Whitney to the airport. She will be going to Kenya for a week, then Zambia for 2 weeks. Pray for her as she works with different ministries in those countries! Then we went to Pastor Henry's church. I saw a bunch of the people we worked with last summer and they remembered me! They are such amazing people who love the Lord. They were on their way to do evangelism in the marketplace! They give so much time and energy for the gospel to be proclaimed. They are truly unashamed and excited about the Gospel of Christ!!
I love love love love it here! It's only been 2 days and I can't even imagine being anywhere else. It's going to be so hard to leave this place at the end of the summer! I might just have to stay! Haha.

Peru 2

We are now in Uganda and it is so amazing! But let me finish telling you about Peru and then I will move onto Africa!
I look back and see God's provision throughout so many things that happened on the trip. The first day, a man busted the window of the car we were in to try to steal our bags. The window shattered. One of our flights got cancelled. There was a strike going on and when we got off the bus there were hundreds of strikers holding spears, chanting. The strike was not directed at tourists... thank goodness! Because of the strike, our train ride was cancelled. We had to walk 12 kilometers down the train tracks through the jungle of Peru. Supposedly there were some cannibal tribes through the part we were walking... still don't know if they told us that as a joke or not! But we didn't get eaten, so we're good! Then after the hike we had to drive 6 hours up the mountain to 13,000 feet above sea level. While driving up the mountain, our van went over a rock slide and started fish tailing towards the edge of the cliff. We serisouly thought the back wheels were off the cliff. The van drove on the edge of these mountains the whole time. Through all these things, God's hand of protection was over us. Never in my life have I been on a trip where there were so many setbacks, yet I believe it is one of the best trips I have been on. The team and I went was amazing! We got along SO well- maybe a little too well at times. :) Let's just say we know too much about each other now, but in a good way.
The ministry in Peru was awesome! We went into the schools in Jimbe and taught English as a Second Language. In the afternoons, the guys would play soccer and the girls would just hang out with the girls in the village. We had the opportunity to givr gifts to the teachers and they offered so much encouragement. Most of them were from low incomes, yet they all had master's degrees because of their hard work. One night, we showed Fireproof in the community and a few people accepted Christ!! The men that went with our team did training for church leaders. Cool story about this: Brett, one of the men that went with us had gone to a village in Peru about 3 years ago. While there, a little girl named Ibete burned her face so Brett took her and her dad, Sylvia, down the mountain to get medical care. While driving, he shared the gospel. It turns out that Sylvia and his family were at the training for chruch leaders! And he is donating family land to build a church. Also, while we were there, Sylvia was baptized. It really showed me the effect that sharing the Gospel with just one person could have on an entire community.
I must say, I fell in love with little Ibete! She is three now and the most precious thing ever! She would come running to me, yelling “mi tia, mi tia” and would grab onto my legs and reach up for me to hold her. When I picked her up, she would give me kisses. “Tia” means aunt in Spanish. She would tell her mom over and over again that she loved me! One day, she was playing with my hair and looked me in the eyes and said “You are very pretty like my mommy” (in Spanish of course). I never knew that one little girl could impact my life so much after just a few days! She was a precious, precious child of God!
So to end, I loved Peru! Just about as much as I love Africa! I never thought I would say that, but it's true- Peru has captured my heart!