First Weekend at Home

Speaking of 'home,' Friday Toto told me I was to get a good diploma so that I could get her to visit the United States. I asked her where she would like to go in the United States and she said, "I want to go where your family is because then I would be at home."

Anyway, Saturday Dean and I woke up and went with Sam to the field. We ended up making four or five very long trips carrying heavy firewood back. I was very tired afterward. Joshua and Sam had stacked bricks about 13 feet high, and these bricks were to be fired. In the afternoon, the boys started the burning inside the bricks. It is now Monday morning and the fire is still going.

Sunday we went to church at Nkoyoyo Hall on campus. Kevina escorted us there and stayed with us. I like the on-campus theme this semester: Walk the Talk - all of the preachers yell things about how if we're calling ourselves Christians we need to act accordingly. They back it up with all kinds of New Testament scripture.

We were back home after church before 10:30 and got some breakfast. Both lunch and dinner contained the sweetest pineapple on the face of the globe, and it was so good. The weekend had tons of downtime. I read The Great Divorce by CS Lewis in one day, read other assignments ahead of time, and finished the Primal Vision (which is supposed to be done being read by October haha).

The Primal Vision is a great book written from the point of view of a 1960's missionary. It is way ahead of its time because this missionary recognizes the need for American and European missionaries to understand the African culture, languages, religions, and worldviews before engaging in "spreading the Gospel." I made a connection while reading this book. Papa (he left Sunday for the semester as he is a teacher in northern Uganda) told me that his daughter's name (Kevina) was the name of his only sister, who was shot in the Atesso region on the streets. In the Primal Vision, Taylor talks about African family systems. Children are often given names of ancestors who have passed away, and that ancestor is commonly thought to actually live in that child. Some parents actually consider their children also their parents or grandparents. I wonder if this type of thing is something Papa believes.

I am definitely beginning to feel as if I am part of the family. Things are less awkward, but I still don't know exactly what I should be doing at the house, especially now that Papa is away and I have no one to sit around with and chat for hours on end. I think Dean and I feel more obligated to engage the family in other ways. At least I do. I'm not entirely sure now though.

Oh, and it rained pretty hard yesterday. The tin roof was very loud, and apparently there are some holes in the roof.

The class schedule has changed so many times, but hopefully this week will be the first full week on the correct schedule.