Blogging Africa Style

So I guess I'm blogging africa style now, delayed and about two weeks behind! Sorry everyone I guess I've adjusted to running on Africa time really well! So much has happened in these last two weeks, I guess I'll just hit the highlights and lowlights for you.

HIGHLIGHTS:
1)Just returned from an amazing weekend on Bushara Island at Lake Bunyoni and spent Easter in Embarara with other missionary friends. It was such a great chance to see the more of the country side (wild zebras out the bus window) and the mountains! I also even was cold one day there-I forgot what that felt like! We slept in furnished safari tents overlooking the lake, we had outdoor showers out back that you had to order hot jerry cans of water for and you had to take a boat ride to get to the private island. It was glorious. Easter holiday was spent with a family that we discovered had been 2 rows ahead of us on our flight from Amsterdam to Entebbe when we came in March (God does crazy stuff, even halfway around the world, it's still small sometimes).
2) Youth Camp starts a week from Monday! So excited, we are taking the kids to the zoo in Entebbe and staying there until Thursday-please keep praying that the final details would be worked out and that God would be glorified and that the kids would be responsive.
3) I got care packages of muzungu stuff from home! could not have come at a better time after a frustrating week...some of that chocolate didn't make it past the post office door but thats ok:) it was nice to have a little bit of Easter candy here.

LOWLIGHTS
1) African transportation. I had an amazing trip but the travel days were brutal and the buses are always filled until there are people standing in the aisles and they don't leave at any set time (just when they are fulll) which resulted in us spending 4 hours sitting on the bus so we could take our 4 hour bus trip home yesterday. It was tiring and frustrating at times (our boat to our island even ran out of gas in the middle of the lake-we were having one of those days).
2) Rose, of the girls in our transitional home who had been rescued since i've been here ran away about 2 weeks ago and hasn't been seen or heard from since. Me and another girl at work were pretty close to her so that makes it more difficult and just knowing that an 11 year old is back living on the streets is hard to stomach sometimes. Please pray for her safety and her return.
3)Cultural Frustrations: I have had a fairly easy adjustment but there are defiantly some ways of doing things and cultural norms here that have been frustrating me and making it hard to get the things done that I need to. I have learned so much here and it has mostly been amazing but there are small things that can rub me the wrong way. Please just pray that i'll continue to be a learner here and that I would always have a servants attitude while I'm here. The Easter trip was defiantly a well-timed break and I'm feeling much better this week.
4) On my way home from work today  my boda stopped and chatted with someone and then turned around and went home a different way. There was tear gas being sprayed on protesters on my normal route home. I am greatful for God's protection but I'm also grieving for these people. There have been small pockets of rioting and protesting for about 2 weeks about every other day. The people are protesting high food and fuel prices as well as tuition hikes at the university. Life is already difficult for most Ugandans as a majority live below poverty line and these increases just make things more trying. Please pray for peace for Uganda and for God's provision for ALL people.

I think that sums up the major points. It is hard to believe I have a little over 2 weeks left here. It went way to fast. Please pray that I finish well and that I have direction for life when I get back stateside.
Love you all.

-LO