Dry Season

Where I grew up there are four seasons, spring, summer, fall, and winter.  In Uganda there are two seasons, wet season (hopefully from mid-February until early December), and dry season (somewhere in December to somewhere in February [or March]).  Sometimes there are mini-dry seasons, a week or more without rain during the wet season; however, those are usually location specific.

The dry season has arrived and the water tanks for collecting rainwater are empty.  The city water was extended to my house last June; however, I have already seen several days when there was no water at the tap they installed in my yard.  That is why I was not eager to invest in having the water system extended to the house, it is not reliable.  I continue to depend upon the local water carriers and near-by wells.

Christmas Dinner

There are several differences about Christmas dinner in Uganda when compared to my experience in the Puget Sound region of USA.

To begin with, we ate outside, under a tarp to protect us from the warm sun.  The temperature would reach 27 C (80 F), a sharp contrast to the freezing weather the Puget Sound region has received the last week.

The meat of choice for the midday dinner was goat, not ham or turkey.  There was also chicken and cooked intestine (poor person’s meat) available.  The main side dish was something I was more likely to find at a mid-July picnic, potato salad.  No Jell-O or cooked vegetables; however, there was some shredded cabbage with tomato slices on top (salad).

The dessert was mango (not apple) pie and banana bread.  Both gifts from Amanda so our hosts could sample some US items.

Christmas Service

We (the members of Truth is Light) left at 8:43 a.m. for the 10:00 a.m. service in Mugujai.  As anticipated, we arrived around 9:40 a.m. which allowed time to unload the items we brought with us for Christmas dinner before going to church with Bishop Moses (he likes to go by Baba Moses which means daddy Moses).  It also gave me an opportunity to share the notes for the sermon with Baba Moses so he could provide translation in real time as I gave the sermon.

The service started on African time (when enough people arrive which is usually after the announced start time); however, it was not delayed too much.  The Christmas celebrations and singing were joyous and long, extending the service to three hours.  We also had three choir presentations.  The church, which should have a capacity of fifty, had more than 100 inside with many more under the canopy outside.  The noise from those outside provided a challenge for me.  I tried to raise my voice, but it kept cracking.  Fortunately, the voice that need to be heard was Baba Moses and I gave the only microphone to him so that the Kakwa translation would be the one coming over the speaker.  My voice lasted, by the grace of God. 

It was another blessed Christmas.

Christmas for the prisoners

The prison ministry team asked permission to bring foodstuffs to each of the prisons we serve.  We wanted them to be able to celebrate Christmas by eating something different for their main meal.

Gbukutu prison, where we have been locked out because we are not all from the preferred denomination, was ready to welcome us back now that we have been officially recognized by the Commissioner General (of the Uganda Prison System).  A member of our team had heard that the prisoners really need soap, so we were considering bringing soap instead of rice and cooking oil and tomatoes.  The staff told us they (the prison) had been given a cow for Christmas and they needed us to provide the sauce.  (The sauce is anything that goes with and gives flavor to the main item.)  We returned to our plan to provide rice, tomatoes, onions, and cooking oil.  We even managed to provide some salt which is used in abundance here.

The plan was similar for Lobule prison, except the population there is much smaller (single digits for the prisoners and again for the staff).  We knew they were often forgotten so we planned to include a couple kilograms of meat with the smaller portions of rice, tomatoes, onions, salt, and cooking oil.  When we arrived, we learned the prisoners at Lobule were worried about having something for the big day.  Their OC was telling them not to worry.  The OC (Officer in Charge) knew and had previously given us permission to bring something, but he kept it a surprise.  That OC is Muslim; however, he welcomes us and knows how to care for people of all faiths.

Christmas Eve Service

The Christmas Eve service at St. John’s was scheduled for 2 o’clock.  My experience with other high feast days was a crowded church, so I made sure I arrived before 2 o’clock.  There were only two people inside the building, both seated at the back – of course – but not together.  I looked towards the Piot (pronounced pie-ot) building where the altar party would gather, but they were not there.

I did see a small group under a tree near the Church Teacher’s home and they welcomed me.  The Church Teacher joined us after a few minutes.  Since the reader was also in the group, we had half of the altar party.  Reverend, who is usually adamant about starting on time, arrived around 2:35 p.m. and the altar party moved to the Piot to prepare.  The rest of us went into the church building.  There were around fifty people now, plenty of seating in a building that seats 300.  By mid-service the building was between half and two-thirds full, far less than I had expected.  Here the big service is on Christmas day.

Christmas decorations

In 2020 I noticed several shops in Koboko put up Christmas decorations.  Sometimes it was just a few strings of Christmas lights.  Several shops decorated a Christmas tree and put it near the entry.

I was in the USA for Christmas 2021. 

Christmas 2022 is different in Koboko.  I have seen very few Christmas decorations.  The supermarket is selling small artificial Christmas trees again, but they do not have their own decorated tree this year.  The church I attend has not decorated yet, nor brought out their two artificial Christmas trees that flanked the lectern in past years.  However, we have been renovating the Church and painting the inside was just completed.  Decorating the church building is planned for Christmas Eve day.

My theory is the price increases we have seen worldwide in 2022 have made it hard for store owners to spend money on decorations this year.  I hope there are decorations where you are.

Shopping

I went shopping with the daughter of the other missionary here in Koboko earlier this week.  Her family and I observe the Christmas tradition of gift exchange as we learned it in the USA.  In Uganda, the parents give their family (including grown children) clothes for Christmas.  Beyond that, gift exchange is a foreign concept here.

I enlisted Patience’s help because I needed ideas for all her brothers and sisters.  She not only had plenty of ideas, she also knew where to buy them at good prices.  She took me to parts of the market that I was not familiar with; however, the merchants knew her and that meant she would get fair prices.

Prison Ministry Team

The prison ministry team is turning up in good numbers now that we are getting close to Christmas.  In the past, I anticipated a drop during the holidays, with the possibility of cancelling the meeting closest to Christmas and the meeting closest to New Year Day.  Here in Koboko, Uganda the prison ministry team members seem to be more committed and more willing to make time for prison ministry during the holidays.

We have plenty of volunteers for visiting the prisons this week.  We plan to make an extra visit to the prisons on Christmas Eve. The Bible also mentions Paul receiving support while he was in prison.  Here in Uganda, that is expected.  Even the head of religious affairs for the Uganda Prison System encouraged it when I met with him.  Our team plans to gather on Christmas Eve (morning) and buy foodstuffs (rice, tomatoes, onions, etc.) to take to the prisoners (and prison staff).  This will allow them to have something different than the ilo (pronounced ee-low) and sauce.  (Ilo is a dough made from cassava flour that looks like play-dough.)

Commissioner

The Deputy Officer in Charge of Gbukutu Prison put me in contact with the head of religious affairs for the Uganda Prison System (UPS).  He asked me to make another quick trip across the country (night bus to Kampala, meet during the day, night bus back to Koboko).  It is a 12+ hour trip each way; however, meeting the head of religious affairs would be a privilege and he was offering to advocate for formal recognition of Truth is Light Prison Ministry.

He arranged for me to meet Commissioner Anatoli.  Commissioner Anatoli shared his background in social work and in education with me.  When he asked what US state I came from, he immediately knew the difference between Washington state and Washington DC (most do not).  He did a lot of field work in the prisons in the Los Angeles area and has also worked with prisons in Alabama and Georgia.  We talked about the US prison system and how it differs from the Uganda prison system when it comes to the idea of reform so people will be ready to re-enter society.

Relationship is important in Uganda, and this helped me build relationship for the ministry.  Truth is Light Prison Ministry was granted formal recognition for one year, renewable upon recommendation of the Officer in Charge of each of the prisons where we are serving.

Walking

Now that I have been in Kampala a few times and have talked with people that know what areas are okay, I decided to walk the 1.6 kilometers from the bus station to my meeting at the prison headquarters.  There is a lot of historic information about Kampala being unsafe, muggers, pickpockets, etc.  I have learned that this is still on the US State Department website about Uganda because the embassy is in a bad section of town. They have that experience and get those reports.  I was told if I stay to the main roads and well-traveled areas it is safe.

I have a better understanding of where several government offices (not all, but several) are located now that I have walked the area instead of being whisked by in a car.  By the way, I had great meetings with the head of religious affairs for the prisons and with the field commissioner.