Just Around the River Bend

Clever title no?? Ha I was trying to think of what could be the title since time is going really fast here.  And I thought of "just around the corner" but then the song from Pocahontas "Just Around the River Bend" came into my head, and what do you know... my new title.

Anyways, news since my last blog, which wasn't too long ago, but I thought...."hmmm I am leaving soon, and have a lot still to say... why not write more" so here I am doing that whole "writing more" thing.  So let's see... as I said before I went to Soroti, a think no later than a day later, I started feeling chills and then got a very high fever and went to bed.  My friend Tee crawled into bed never to me and took my temperature and then brought me water, which was later spilled on me (I am convinced it was Tee's way of cooling me down :) ).  Later, Becca came into the room and I could tell by the glances that Becca and Tee shared that they were thinking the same thing.  They wanted me to get a malaria test.  Of course they know I am like a little kid when it comes to needles and clinic talk so they did it in "code" .  I caught on after some time and then played the whole "nah, I'm fine, really guys"card.  It stinks quite a lot when people actually know you, and now when you will say just about anything to get out of something you don't want.  I went to sleep that night praying that I would feel better the next morning.  Sadly, no.  Tee took me to the clinic at 9 that morning.  I did complain the way there (sorry Tee).  They gave me a Malaria Test(again sorry Tee).  We had to wait half an hour to see what the results were.  We went back to the room and Tee let me sleep in her bed, a blessing.  Becca would check on me when she would get time off from her shift.  I awoke to Tee rummaging to get some things in the room, she saw me wake up and said "Hey, you have Malaria.  I'm going to get your meds"  I don't know if I felt a sigh of relief for actually knowing what was wrong with me or for the fact that I had a disease?? maybe both.  Tee then returned with water and my meds, told me to sit up and take the first dose.  Let me put this nicely, for the next day I was not a pleasant person to be around.  But I do want to thank Becca and Tee for sticking with me when I was not said "pleasant person".  They kept asking me what i wanted and my only answer was "I want to be home(not Colorado. In Jinja)"  Didn't seem possible.  But people back in Jinja, actually wanted me back home (how flattering).  So they were doing all that could to make that happen.  I ended up getting a private hire taxi form Jinja to Soroti and then from Soroti to Jinja.  Longest journey ever.  The journey consisted of MANY bumps and my driver getting lost.  I kid you not.  He decided that it was a good idea to take a short cut, which would be fine if he didn't forget the way.  So instead of taking longer but being on a smooth road, we were on a deserted dirt road that consisted of about 90% bumps.  One of these bumps was a 3 foot 90 degree drop. Woo that felt awesome.  He started laughing.  I didn't think that it was necessarily the time for laughing considering he knew I was sick.  After what felt like a lifetime and a quick nap, we arrived at base at 4 in the morning.  I grabbed my bag and went into my room and fell into bed.  I wish I could tell you that I had a much anticipated great night go sleep, but sadly I didn't.  Instead it was full of me burning up for about 15 minutes where I considered sitting in the cold shower, and then being freezing. That lasted for about a week.  Gross.  But have no fear for I recovered from the dreaded Malaria! But even after that I felt sick which isn't normal.  And I was really sick, so I was taken to the clinic by my friend Chasity and her fiancé, Nixon and after about 3 too many tests I was diagnosed with a stomach infection.  Again, awesome.  Got the medication and am now healed! Praise the LORD. Hopefully that is my last sickness while being in Uganda. ( I would say in my life, but I think that is asking too much)

      It is now starting to hit me that I leave in less than two weeks to go to England.  And by "starting to hit me" I mean days are going by slower ( which is 50% good and 50% bad) and i'm starting to feel my first wave of really longing to see my family and friends again.  But don't get me wrong, I love love love being out here and really don't want to leave but I know that this is God's way of showing me that He is behind how I am feeling and that it is time.  I am walking through the streets of Jinja and even my base ( which I call home) with new eyes on.  I now compare Jinja to Denver.  Weird right.  And my base, I feel like I cannot get enough of it.  But I feel that it is time.  Funny thing about the whole time aspect of that, about two weeks ago I felt in my heart that I was supposed to preach at prison ( and my breach it is the main speaker) the women's prison in particular.  So I told my leader that,and was so excited to prepare.  Hmm yea... I had NO clue what to speak on.  I pulled out my Bible and made a pray asking God to put something on my heart to speak about.  I got nothing.  The night before it hit me to speak on time.  So I went to prison the next day with only the topic of what I wanted to speak on and the brief notes, that I didn't once look at.  And went up in front of them and let the LORD lead me.  And man, did he lead me.  The words rolling out of my mouth were magnificent and powerful, and they kept coming.  I used the verse Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 -" A Time For Everything" After I finished, and we got back in the car to go back to base, one lady from my group,Becky, said "wow Tess, I have heard people speaking time, but I have never heard it in that perspective, you did amazing!" I was taken back by those words.  All I could do was smile.  But it is true, time is in everything we do, the time we arrive some place, the time of day, the amount of time we have for a certain task...etc.  And that God is the "Ultimate Time-Keeper".

      This past week, we did something new for our Wednesday Intercession (prayer).  What we did was we had a prayer walk.  We gathered the whole base together and split into two groups and walked around the entirety of the base, each group going the opposite direction.  Whilst doing this, we were praying for protection over our base and for people to know that we are the owners of the land ( we have had court cases trying to steal our land) and anything else we though would be necessary.  It was amazing, and that is putting it lightly.  It was a very hot and sunny day, but it didn't matter.  I felt so happy and content throughout it all.  We walked by workers in the fields next to our base, by the wall that had been completed vandalized, by tombstones of people who had been murdered next to the road and so much more.  The time went by way too fast for my liking.  Before I knew it, the time was 10:30am and we started @ 8am.  But it felt like we had just started.  I recommend taking a walk and praying or thanking God for everything.  It will be worth your while, I guarantee it.

    I have been hearing about the fires that are occurring back home.  wow.  That is all I can say.  Reading articles and seeing photos of what is occurring back home is astonishing.  I wish there was something I can do being in Uganda, so far from home, but there isn't anything besides praying, which is the strongest weapon.  So know that i am praying for all of you back home and those affected from the fires that you remain safe and that you receive the rain you need.

   Fourth of July is coming up!!! I know I'm currently not in a country that even knows/cares about America's Independence, but its still happening for me :).  I also found out that the AMerican Ambassador and his wife throw a celebration each year on the Fourth of July! I am very excited for this.  I am taking the day and going to Kampala to celebrate with other Americans! wot. there is supposedly fireworks and music and good food. Fingers crossed it is at least 20% like home. wish me luck :) but HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!! to every American reading this :)

    So that is all I can think of to write in this blog :) but have no fear, I am thinking of having one more blog post while being in Uganda! So before the 13th of July, expect to see a new post :)
I enjoy so much writing on here ( and not having to worry about grammar and punctuation :)  ) and just expressing myself :)
love each and every one of you!!
Tess
p.s. I will bei n England in 13 days!!!

p.p.s.  This is a picture of my infamous roommate Judith and me :) Enjoy.

Unexpected Turn of Events

Hey Everyone!

    So every so often we have we like to call a 'fun night' at base.  We have fun nights to try and raise funds for the base.  SSo in preparation for this said"fun night" and then a group of us all of the sudden got an extreme amount of energy and had this crazy idea to call my leader, ( Masiu) and tell him that we wanted to perform a dance tonight.  he laughed ( not reassuring).  but whilst laughing he agreed.  So we all got really excited to do such dance.  this excitement lasted until we entered the room where the fun night was.( where essentially the entire base was)  Once we saw all the people, that changed.  We all looked at each other shared a similar glance ( as in pure fright)  and then mouthed the words "no way"   We were all hoping that Masiu wouldn't inform everyone of our dance... we were on edge for so long. Then we saw Masiu stand up total to the MC ( person in charge) our hearts were racing.   After amazing dances occurred, the best one being right before us ( of course), they announced that there was a special surprise.... awesome,great lead up. We walked up on stage and Naomi, kept saying over and over and over ( i might add) that she hated me. ( great start ) So they started our music and it was us 3 muzungus standing there in front of everyone while we waited for our music. Then we started dancing. After our many attempts at shaking our hips and looking good while doing it, the music stopped ( Praise God)   Funny thing was, I had just taught tee( one of the girls on Year For God with me)  the dance an hour prior and Naomi had only done it once.  It was enjoyable.  We succeeded though and got a decent amount of claps afterwards.  Job well done, I'd say.  I told Naomi that she must repent for saying she hated me, because i could tell she had fun. she wouldn't do it.  I'll pray for her. 

    Earlier this week on Monday, I got some very upsetting news.  I got the news that one of my friends from my youth group, had past away in a rock climbing accident.  I didn't want to believe it, and I don't think it fully set in until I started receiving the emails from everyone telling me what had happened.  I found all of this out while I was in town.  I sat in front of the computer screen covering my mouth in an attempt to muffle my sobs.  Tears were streaming down my face.  I had  NO ONE to comfort me or give me a hug, for I came into town by myself.  Luckily, I have a friend who works at the cafe I was in.  I went up to her and she saw me crying and asked what was wrong, I told her.  Harder to tell someone what had happened than it was read it, for it was  just another reminder of what had happened.  I really wanted nothing more than to be back at base in the comfort of my friends.  I texted my two best friends ( Judith and Franco) telling them what had occurred and to be praying for me.  Franco then called me and said that he was in town and asked where I was, I told him, and he did was any good friend would do: no talking, just hugging. All I could have asked for.  I felt anger and rage that first night towards God.  "why would you take yet another person from my life?" "especially Kevin, why him?" It didn't seem fair at all.  After a very long night of crying, and praying, I felt free.  Not free in the sense of no pain, but just free.  The next day brought many tears especially during intercession, but that was followed by the amazing Skype dates that I had with friends back home.  I couldn't have have asked for anything better, it was just what was needed.  I am now living my days in highs and lows.  I will have highs in which i feel happy and content( not with what happened just in general) and then I will have lows, where I cannot mange to stop crying no matter what happens.  loving everyone back home, who are going through this as well, love all of you.

    I recently went to a proper "football" game! man oh man was it awesome! I got all "dolled" up in my attire. which consisted of my Uganda jersey ( which I had bought in September, but never wore until now), a yellow tank top and my yellow ray ban! yea I looked so legit! I also got my face painted, I am pretty sure it looks 100 times better on a white face ( pr that is what I tell myself).  I took great pride in yes being a muzungu but also being a huuuuuuuge fan of Soccer, which made it all the more fun.  I made the stadium more international :) BUT the game was very fun.  The game was Uganda vs. Senegal.  It was a WQC game, which is a World Qualifying Cup Game, which apparently is big deal here. oh well.  I just fully enjoyed cheering as if it was my high school home team and getting so into the game.  I am told that it is refreshing to have someone, yes white, but also having them know what is going on an cheering on the team.  It means a lot.  I loved hearing that.  I was a very long day though, leaving base at 10, arriving in Kampala at 12 and returning to base around 10 at night. wow oh wow, But it was an amazing day :) 


    As I was teaching my VTS girls (aka my daughters) back in Jinja, one of them said "Madam Tess, you are getting so small!" Of course I took that as a compliment and wanted to give extra credit...  I later found out that by saying this is the equivalent of us (muzungus) saying "Wow, you are getting so fat!" this is because being small in their culture is not seen as good.  The bigger you are the more attractive you are.  Diets for sure don't exist out here. haha.  none the less, if I am getting even the smallest bit smaller, ill take it....even if they mean it in a mean way :)

    This past Thursday, I went to the prison with only two other members on our team because Masiu, our leader, is preparing for his family to go to Canada.  So that left us with no driver... so Masiu hired one of the guys around base to drive us, so we went to prison...half an hour late.  I was the preacher of the day... so nervous.  1. because public speaking scares the beejeezus out of me and 2.  because i was preaching in front of one person whom I have never preached in front of before.  But none the less, I went up in front of the women's side and preached.  Later on the ride home, Becky one of the members of my team told me "Tess, let me just say you did amazing!" and then another agreed saying "Yea, I have heard someone preach on that before, but never have I heard it put like you put it. Thank you"  I felt so empowered. I felt empowered because I KNEW that it wasn't me preaching but God preaching through me!!

    I took a visit to Soroti, Uganda, which is about a 5 hour bus ride from Jinja.  I wanted to see where my two friends Becca and Tee were working.  They are working at a Childrens home at the YWAM Soroti base, it is called Amecet.  What this Childrens home is primarily for is for HIV positive babies and kids with the occasional few that have been orphaned.  I now see why they didn't come back to Jinja.  I have only been here for a day but I have already fallen in love with the kids.  They are all just friendly even to a complete outsider who is just staying for the weekend.  My heart is being taken on a ride of its life right now. Today, I got to watch as they fed a 4 month premature, 3 1/2 week old , 2 pound baby.  Wow! As I watched Tee fill a syringe with milk and then feed him through the tiny green tube attached to his nose I was literally in awe of how much of a miracle this baby is.  She slowly slowly slowly pushed the milk through and you could see by the response of Jesse(the baby) that he was receiving it.  It was an experience that i will never forget.  So blessed.   I am currently in the internet room on my computer right now, and little toddlers who are just learning to walk come and find me and say "auntie auntie" with their arms held up to be held.  Such a dream.  Really makes you want a baby... don't worry though i'm in no rush. :)  I have been so blessed being a visitor for once.  I get to see Becca and  Tee's hearts for the kids and how they have made them their family.  It is a different side to them I didn't see in Jinja, I love it.  Tonight we are having Spaghetti!! woot! kind of really excited for this, especially since the best meal at base in Jinja would be irish and rice.... umm yea I'll take the Spaghetti :) Really excited.  Oh! also today in the market Tee and I split the cost of fabric and each got a skirt made....really excited to see how that turns out....fingers crossed!! I do miss Jinja....a lot and all the people there but it is good to get a breath of fresh air and take a break once in a while.
 {the photo is of me and Tee and two of the adorable kids here in Soroti}

    Sorry for this blog being so late, but I have actually been quite busy with my now 4 ministries!! These ministries are: 1. The VTS, for whom I teach the Cherish program(Abstinence and finding your true value in Christ), I teach them math, and am now helping with the baking program. 2. I am working with Discovery Centre, I joined their school ministry team.  I absolutely adore the little kids we minister to each time.  They love having visitors and it seems like they true do receive what is spoken to them.  3.  Evangelism Team - Going to Prison.  and 4.  I am going to start going to this Street Kids home in which I will home school some of the little boys who have just been taken off the streets, so I will be teaching them and then playing soccer with them on Sundays! It is going to be fun...hopefully :)

Wish I could tell you everything that I do out here, but you'll just have to wait and see what is yet to come in the next blog....that makes me blog seem like a TV series... "stay tuned for next weeks episode!".... but yea that is basically it haha
until next time!
~Tess
p.s. I have less than 4 weeks left in Uganda! How crazy is that??? I don't want to leave but I also really really want to.... hmmm problematic.
p.p.s.  This is my shout out to....the one... the only.... Cameron Bannister Weber!!

All I Need is You, Lord

Hello everyone, well not everyone but those who are reading this a hello t you :)

I have had some interesting things take place since my last blog.  One of which being that one of my best friends Auntie was killed in the very town I am in.  I found this out when I was walking with my friend, Gad, and he told me.  I immediately took out my phone and called my friend whom had just lost his aunt.  I told him that I wanted to give him a hug and for him to know that I am here to talk.  Later that night was the first time I saw him since I found out when he visited me and my roommates room.  I felt like crying for him, since he was being so strong.  I found out when he came that there was an overnight to mourn his auntie and my roommate, Judith was already going but she advised me not to go because i would be cold and I might get tired. ( funny thing is though, that she was the one running to the car in the cold ) But I wanted to go.  It started at 9pm and we left at 4am. long night. but one of the best.  When we arrived there was a lot of people sitting around talking and me and Judith both didn't know what to do so we followed Franco ( one who had just lost his auntie) and we went and sat down on a bench and they brought out water for us to wash our hands with, and then later brought out food, but I really wasn't in the mood for eating.  Then me, Judith and our friend Becky decided that it would be good to lead a worshipp kind of service.  So we did, mind you I am not one to sing in public, but I felt so at peace whilst doing it. No one sang with us, but it didn't matter to us, we were enjoying just knowing that they could hear us.  Time passed rather quickly, but during that time everyone seemed to leave, whether they were tired and went back to base or were like Judith and went to the car.  In either case, I was the only person left with my friend.  This is where I knew that it was definitely a God moment for me to be there.  We started talking and laughing and it was such a memorable moment.  I was forcing my eyes to stay open just so that he didn't feel forced to take me home.  It also started to rain, but that didn't bother me (might be because i love the rain) and still stayed outside and enjoyed the experience.  Then the clock struck 4am.  Not a minute sooner or am minute later did we both book it to the car.  I am so blessed that I had the opportunity to experience something like that.  

Ministry has been really good except for the minor setback.  The minor setback was that the condemned block(death row) at the prison were transferred to another prison in Kampala.  We found this out when we had our team of 6 enter the prison, and to have them ask us what we were doing here.  I know for me it took my breath away hearing that news.  These men were our friends and we had developed such strong relationships with them, especially seeing their faith in the Lord grow more and more every time we went.  I grew especially close with a man named Zeff, which makes it hard as well.  We all started brainstorming about how we could continue this ministry, what we have come to as of right now is that at least once a month we make the journey to Kampala and visit the prison.  Theo nay downside to this, is that we are not authorized to actually do ministry like we were before.  All we are allowed to do it meet with one of them at a time. 1 on 1( what you would think of when you think of visiting someone in prison, you know with the phones and glass) .  Which is fine for now.  But we are still praying and hoping that we can find a church to overlook our ministry and let us run it through their church.  No luck as of yet.  

I have been exposed to the whole visa process out here.  I honestly had NO idea how difficult it was to get a visa to anywhere outside of your own country.  My roommate, Judith, who wanted to do the School of Worship in Germany was put on hold for a good 2 months while they processed her visa.  After that time, she found out the embassy in Germany had accepted her visa, so she traveled to the German embassy here in Uganda.  The news there was that she was rejected.  She was broken, and that broke me. I longed for her to go and fulfill her calling to be a worship leader.  But what I have been living by out here and what I told her was this :  If God wanted it to happen and it was in your plan, He WOULD make it happen.  And if things don't go as you would have liked just to know that He must have SUCH a better plan for you.  So stay tuned.   I have repeated that in my head time and time again.  Always manages to give me peace in every situation.  So blessed.

So this past week me and my roommate, Judith, took a trip to Kenya.  This trip was coming in the best time ever.  We both were feeling emotionally drained one night and I lightly mentioned " hey, we should go to Kenya."  Judith immediately looked up at me and said "yea!" and it was settled.  We started making plans.  So excited.  We started thinking about where we could stay without spending too much money.  and then I remembered that I have a friend, Collins, who always told me that I could visit him.  So I mentioned it to him and without hesitation, he said that we could stay with his mom and his family.  More reassurance that this was going to happen.  So I bought the tickets for the bus journey (12 hours).  And we were out of Uganda within a week. We both had packed what we thought was enough.  Then we got a ride to the Kampala Coach station and we waited for our bus which was an hour late.  I was so excited to go.  But I had forgotten how terrible the bus journey is.( bad memories from my DTS outreach journey) So, we got on the bus, and before we found our seats, it started driving away. We sat down and caught up on all of the stuff that we couldn't share at base.  We met these two english boys that were sat behind us ( I think it is a muzungu thing that we  find one another hah.) We started talking, and during that time, Judith fell asleep. ( but don't be mistaken we were only talking for about 10 minutes, she just fell asleep.) What makes this journey so terrible is the roads that we travel on.  Honestly, imagine your body flailing in every direction without your consent. Yea, that is the 12 hour journey that I had, you can't sleep no way.  ( well I can't, no matter how tired I was) We got to the Kenyan border at around 1230am.  And didn't quite no where we were supposed to wait, but this girl who was on our bus assured us, that she knew, so we followed her direction.  LIttle did we know that she had no clue either.  This guy from the bored came up to me and ask "umm are you lost?" and I was like yes!! and he took us all the way back to where the rest of the people form our bus were..  He then asked "didn't you see the rest of the muzungus and people waiting here??"  I answered no.  but then thought that, they probably had seen us just walk passed them and though "haha what dumb people" but had no reason to stop us, how considerate.  We waited and got back on our bus an hour later.  The long journey continued… and then we arrived in Nairobi @ 11am and Collins met us at the station and we went straight to his moms house.  We quickly met his mom and dad and then found our room and fell asleep for a good 6 hours.  It was great.  Then we were awake for sinner and socializing til about 10pm and then went back to sleep till 8am.   

The week started out by Judith getting sick, the day after we got there.  I didn't want to leave her alone, but she insisted that I go out and have fun.  So, I did.  We went to the Kenya National Museum.  It was so cool seeing all the different cultural wear and the events that had taken place, that most people aren't aware of.  Then we went to lunch at a small cafe outside the museum and I decided to call Judith.  She told me that she was throwing up and was really not doing well.  at that point all I wanted to do was get back to her as soon as possible.  So, we got to the house as soon as we could.  And i went straight to Judith, and when she saw me she said " I am so glad you are back" I knew that I was not going away again.  anyways, back to the week, we went out for pizza!! ok, so I have not felt like I was in America so much, then while I was in Nairobi.  The pizza was amazing.  oh! I went to a football game ( soccer for you American folk ), and it was beyond amazing!! I loved every moment of it.  I even bought a jersey and wore it to become a true fan haha.  The teams name was Gor Mahia.  A local team in kenya.  Wow. best day.  The team won 3-2, which just added to the awesomeness.  On Sunday, we went to Church, and it was the cutest church, they were so welcoming to visitors and the worship and everything was so great.  Me and Judith were told to come up on stage and introduce ourselves…. have I mentioned that I am very very very self conscious of how my voice sounds in a microphone?? Well, I am. extremely.   what didn't help either, is that the guy in the front row was taking pictures with his phone of us while we were introducing ourselves… umm excuse me haha. We then walked back from the church to his house.  Then monday was the day that me and Judith were traveling on.  OUr bus left the station @ 730pm.  So we went into town at around 5 and waited for a taxi for about an hour ha woo adventures.  And when we got into town the matatus( taxis) weren't in a complete jam, not moving at all.  So we got out of the taxi and literally 30 seconds after we got out, There was an accident between two taxis, with the door falling off.  I'm not sure if it was our taxi or not, but yikes.( Dad, remember that article you read about the matatus in Nairobi??) ha ha and then Collins told us that the reason why the taxis weren't moving was because people were fighting the police, because they aren't supposed to sell stuff in the main part of town.  Interesting.  But anyways….. we went to KFC!!!! like proper KFC.  Oh man it was nice! funny thing is though, I don't eat KFC when I am home, but when I was told that it was in Kenya, I wanted nothing more than to go and eat there. :)  So that was our week in Kenya.  But to add to all of that, both Judith and I fell in love with his family!  they were the most friendly and loving family.  Didn't feel like visitors after a while.  It was so nice.  Collins' mom also cooked every meal for us, and it was delicious every time.  It was such an amazing experience to be there.  Great vacation !  

We had our journey back, which was just as painful :) but when we arrived at base we were received so well.  It was great to be home :) Except that I got flu (a cold) and still hitting me right now which isn't fun, but ill live :)  Love you all so much!! 

Be blessed!

 Tess

it is crazy to think that I leave Uganda in 8 weeks! mixed feelings on that. 

Imani, Tumaini, Upendo (Faith, Hope, Love)

Just been sitting here in my room, reading emails,and listening to music when all of the sudden I realized "wow I haven;t written in my blog in forever!!" so I just sat down and opened a word document.  So here goes, 

So it has been about a month since I have last written… my apologies. hopefully the quality of this blog entry will create a feeling inside of you that forgives me?? And if not, I still love you! 

So the month of March was an interesting one for me thats for sure.  Let's see, I got the news of my Grandma passing away, that hit me so very hard, especially being so far away from home.  It was the first time I realized how far I truly am from my home.  The only thing I craved was to be in the presence of my family, although I knew it was impossible, that was the ONLY thing I wanted.  I found the comfort in all sorts of different places, whether that be the whole base surrounding me in prayer ( literally they circled me) or having the unexpected visitors that would come and visit my room, bringing gifts.  It was great to know that people cared enough about me to come and visit ( when I had told them that I didn't want visitors. But those who know me, know that I need them anyways).  So it was a rough week that is for sure. The verse that kept replaying over and over in my head was Joshua 1:9 "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged,for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go."   It hit me that, God is right there with me ALWAYS.  Also, that He is the ultimate father that anyone can have.  So while I was wishing I could be with my family, I had my Dad right there with me, without me knowing it.  As I mentioned earlier wanting my family and everything I got my wish.  My parents came out less than 2 weeks later. God truly does work in miraculous ways.

I could not contain my enthusiasm at all. Ever since I found out the exact date that they would be coming out to Uganda, I would not keep quiet about it.  "Naomi, is is 10 weeks!!" "9 weeks!" "3 weeks!" "I leave tomorrow to pick them up!!"  I am pretty sure everyone on base knew about y parents arrival.  So, I had planned on surprising them by actually making the 4 hour journey to pick them up from their hotel.  Sad part is that the car broke down on the way there… to make it even more cliche, it started to pour rain followed by immense thunder and lightning.  My dad called me and asked when the taxi was going to arrive, and it was at that point that I had to ruin my secret of me being so close to them ( less than 20km, I wanted to walk).  So, after my taxi driver called his brother who was about any our away, who brought a spare car did we get on our way.  I was getting so mad and had my first feeling of homesickness since I had been in Uganda, at that very moment.  We arrived at the hotel and my heart was racing so much.  We parked that car, and I saw my mom standing there.  I ran as fast as I could and gave her a hug, that I had only dreamed of.  My tear ducts were trying to hold in the tears but it wasn't working that well.  I then saw my dad appear, oh man so surreal.  It all seemed like a dream.  We piled ALL of their suitcases into the car and my dad got the front seat ( leg room) and me and mom sat in the back, and somehow caught up on life.  It was amazing.  We then arrived in Jinja after the journey.  And then before I could believe it, we were home.  We got to the guest home that they were staying at ( which was conveniently just across the way from where I'm staying).  I was on such a high just knowing that after the long wait, they were here. I then gave them the tour of base, and introduced them to the people who have made up my family whilst I have been here.  And they were well received.  My dad carried his camera wherever we went and would fall behind because he was taking pictures.( right now I am more than glad that he did that :) )  It became dinner time before we knew it.  I was quite excited to see what dinner would be, since i never eat on base.  The dinner consisted of rice, sweet potatoes, posh and g-nut sauce.  Before I continue, I want to mention that the sweet potatoes that I mentioned are not like the ones you may get at Boston Market, you know with all the flavorings and brown sugar. no way. But yes, that was dinner… first and final meal on base for my parents ( can't blame them), the preparations of the food was very mediocre.  I would introduce them to anyone who would pass by even if they didn't notice the new muzungus on base.  I was definitely bragging.  After dinner, we went back to their room, and they asked me if I wanted to open the suitcase of stuff for me…. do you even have to ask?? I felt loved so much at that very moment, yes the attention was to die for …BUT also just seeing people who had sent cards out, or packages, or just told my parents to tell me they loved me was such a fantastic feeling.  Our following time in Jinja consisted of taking a day trip with my roommate( Judith) to King Fisher Resort to swim and have lunch, and then we went out to dinner, it was such a day of leisure.  My parents also treated all of my fellow year for God'ers and Judith to a necklace with the outline of Africa on it.  We had all had our eyes on it since we had arrived here but had not gotten it. Now we all never take it off. EVER.  We then returned to base and socialized! woo. And I think it was  day later that we left to go to Entebbe to fly to Nairobi.  On our journey there, I got my hair cut!!!!! You don't understand what 8 months of being in Africa without treating your hair does to you, until you enter a salon. So nice to have that situation taken care of.  :) Arrived at the hotel, which was top of the line, I was in paradise.  It still felt so surreal that my parents were sitting right by my side.  We then flew out of Uganda the next morning and then arrived in Nairobi that afternoon.  I had been through nairobi once since I have been here but not like this.  I arrive in styyyyyle. Got picked up from the airport the wonderful Sharna and John Coors :).  The rest of our time in Kenya consisted of this: 5 planes rides ( the size of these planes was ridiculous), seeing every possible animal imaginable with the exception of the leopard, but I'll let that one slide, having my picture taken with a Maasai warrior!, visiting the Children of Hope children's home located in Kitale, Kenya and having the time of my life with my parents.  Then came the time for the 2nd round of goodbyes, I said goodbye at the hotel and got a taxi to the airport.  It was hard, but not even close to the goodbye I had made in Denver last July.  Couldn't have planed a better trip to take place. 

I got picked up from the Airport in Uganda by my friends, Franco and Judith. Such an amazing feeling to actually have friendly facing there for me to arrive back to.

When I returned, my parents were famous around base, everyone came up to me asking if my parents had reached safely and that they thoroughly enjoyed them.  Made me proud to have amazing parents that people loved.  

The transition from being with my parents was quite difficult but it was good.  I came back and started my routine yet again. I felt great after a couple days.  

Then it was my Grammas funeral, I had told my dad from the time I heard about it, If i could Skype in for the funeral and my dad assured me that he would do all he could to have that arranged.  Then came the time for the service and no one was on Skype!! I started to get worried that maybe they had forgotten about me. And before long Sarah ( my sister ) signed on and that made me jump in joy.  But Skype wasn't working on her computer, I was on my dad's iPhone. I honestly felt as if I was there with my family.  Then the service actually started and my friends, Judith and Franco, wanted to be there with me for it.  So I was sitting, with no power, watching my Grammas funeral,  quite difficult.  Especially when my dad shared what I has written. It was closure, I think that is what I had feared most. After the service, I was held up on the phone while people came up and said hi ( half of them I had no clue who they were) until it got very weird. So, I then said my goodbyes and that was it.  

After my parents had returned safely home, I started hearing God in telling me I had to remove something from my life, and that this was a Year For God nothing else should be in front of Him.  It was very hard, but after a week of praying, I knew that I had to obey God on this one.  It hurt me immensely to do this, but after long God started to work in a variety of different ways to bring me peace and comfort.  I am in such awe of what the LORD is capable of doing.  

OH! I started to go to the Rugby Club in Jinja, with my leader Masiu.  He plays on the team there and me and Naomi were bored, so we went to the tournament! I had never watched rugby in my life and seeing how brutal they are, made it obvious why I hadn't. ( sorry to all the rugby lovers out there) But it was an experience I will not forget, how I felt like a famous celebrity there just because I am white. Guy came up to us and took out either their phones or their cameras and snapped a picture in our faces. "umm gee thanks bud for invading my space' but I guess the whole saying "take a picture it lasts longer" comes into play here right?? 

Love always,

Tess

p.s. fun fact. I have exactly 12 weeks left in Uganda starting from tomorrow 4/20.

Finding Joy in Unexpected Places

SO here is the promised blog.  This past week, I was on my outreach in the village of Mutai.  It was the best experience ever.  Where to begin.  On our drive to the village, which is usually a 30 minute drive, took us around 2 hours.  Why you may ask… well that would be due to the riots that were on the main road.  We literally almost drove straight into one if we weren't warned about what was occurring..  The people of the villages along the main road were protesting the governments refusal to pave the road( after driving on it , I'm not surprised as to why, the road was terrible!) and so every car that drove on the road, they would throw bricks at.  You would think hearing this that it would be something that would scare you away , but it just made the adventure have an epic beginning!!  

So, we arrived at the compound in which we were staying at, and the compound was off of a little road and not blatantly in the middle of the village.  I then noticed our sleeping accommodations. This was a tent.  I was super stoked about sleeping in a tent in africa none the less.  And it was enjoyable.  Except for the rocky surface in which our bodies would try to find comfort in at night, that would have to be the downside to sleeping there.  I could not have asked for a better group of people to be with at this time.  After settling in ( which wasn't that hard), we went out and went to do a school ministry( in the top 2 of my favorite ministries).  When we got there, ALL the attention was on us. Not a joke. The students that were in class all turned their heads towards us, and those who were already outside started swarming the car that we were in. ( it's our entourage).  We couldn't manage to get our generator to work, so we had no sound system aka no music/dancing… we had to improvise.  This involved us getting all the students to form a huge circle around us and then having us essentially yell when we would be sharing.  I was told I was going to share for this time. I was nervous.  Judith ( my roommate) prayed over me when she could sense my nerves.  I then felt so empowered by God, saying "Have peace, for I will speak through you." It was crazy how true that was. I felt so comfortable going out in front of all of them, I even started walking while I was sharing ( big deal for me, I usually just stay put) and the words just flowed out of my mouth.  I felt the attention of the students( aged 7- 19) all on me, but it didn't freak me out. After i finished, i got a well done handshake from members of my team, nice touch. Then, since we were unable to perform the dances or sing, we conducted what i like to call "strength exercises".  What this entails is where my leader ( Masiu) and his brother ( Leki) do certain things that show the kids that these can only be done when you have peoples faith and God is the one who can give you the strength.  These demonstrations would be having two iron bars duct taped together, with a towel in the center to not hurt your head. And then you placing your arms at both end and trying to bend the bars into the 'fish' shape. It blows me away each time they do it.  When they did this, the kids were blown away by it ( as anyone would be).  After that we would conclude and then depart in our separate ways. Then we would go back to where we were staying and relax until around 7, which is when the village dance party would begin.  Literally, people of all ages would come to where we were staying and we would play music ( VERY LOUD) up until around 11pm. yikes! but the skill level of some of these kids and adults is ridiculous. After a while of dancing, we would receive our dinner at around 9pm, still playing the music I might add. It was a really fun time.

Every day would start out with us having our breakfast ( brown porridge and g-nuts… usually) and then getting ready for door to door ministry ( not my favorite).  What door to door is, is when we break off into small groups and literally go house to house and preach to them about the Word of God.  It is a very interesting experience you can only fully understand, once you have gone through it.  We would do door to door for about 3 and a half hours. ( in the scorching sun) and then come back for lunch.  After lunch we would get ready to go to a school to do our ministry. Same thing would occur at the schools as before but we would do our dances and skits when we had the generator working.  I thoroughly enjoy going to the schools.  At one of the trips to the schools, I absolutely fell in love with this little girl named Joann.  I first met her when we were trying to distract the kids from noticing the fact that we couldn't get the generators to work.  What better way to get their attention than by having a muzungu trying to African dance right?! Well that was me.  I was in the middle of a huuuuuuge crowd of kids, they would sometimes come one by one and have a duel with me. ( they usually won, but I had a positive attitude :) ) I was trying my very very best to shake my hips like these little girls, and I am getting pretty darn good at it, i might add. Joann was one the little girls who has the most sincere faces I have seen, she is down right beautiful. She would smile at me through the crowd and then came and danced with me.  Then we returned to the same school, and I saw her again and told her to come over to where I was.  The first thing she did when she got there was she got down on one knee to show respect.  Then I got her on my lap and she got the biggest smile. I held her for about half an hour before we had to leave.  She stayed by the car until we couldn't see her anymore. Ah my heart soared. 

Another instance when my heart soared was when we met a man named Geoffreys.  Geoffreys was a man who was 25 years of age and would come and eat food where we ate. Geoffreys has the most joy out of everyone we have encountered.   Geoffreys had very bad malaria at one point and it affected his mental state.  Also, he has jiggers. For those of you who don't know what jiggers is ( I didn't), it is an insect the crawls into your skin and drinks your blood.  They are usually found in dusty,dirty places.  He had so many in his feet, legs,arms and hands. Well, on our last day in Mutai we decided to dedicate a day to helping Geoffreys.  We went to where he stays and was blown away by the condition of his house.  He shares a house with his founder brother (22 years) , but his brother is currently going to University and is unable to be around to help for the most part.  So when we entered his house, it had a stench that was crazy.  So we went and sprayed anti pesticides in his room and hallway to get rid of any pest that would live there.  We also saw his mattress, which you could tell was secondhand, then me and masiu went to the nearby town to go and buy him a new mattress. When we returned with a new mattress, his smile was the biggest ever.  Then, the two other guys on our team, Leki and Gad, went to bathe him and clean him up.  This involved taking out the jiggers.   I have not seen God shine through two guys so much as He did through them.  Their spirits whilst cleaning him was so amazing. I was in awe.  While they were cutting his nails and taking out the jiggers, Gad asked Geoffreys if he was feeling pain and Geoffreys response was "yes, but I know that God is going to heal me" when I heard this is made me cry. We then brought him new clothes that actually fit him, and then we prayed over him.  Nearly everyone in our group of 7 was crying.  Geoffreys had touched each of our hearts in a way we didn't know how to express.  I felt changed by this experience, seeing how someone going through so much in his life, can have more joy than someone who is 100% healthy and has money.  Such a different perspective.  

We then returned home to people greeting us and saying "welcome back" a thousand times over.  That will never get old.  It is our family that we are coming back to and when you leave your family they will miss you.  We all were on such a high the day we returned.  Would go on another outreach like that in a heartbeat.  

but fun fact!!!!!…. my parents come and visit in exactly 18 days!!!! ( that is the day that I will first see them) So excited!

Well I don't really know who all is still listening to my blog but yea, it feels so freeing to put all of this down on paper regardless of it people are reading it or not. 

Love you all,

Tess 

p.s. The picture is of me and Joann

Bwana Yesu Asifiwe!

Hello all,
Still loving Uganda!! I have started my placement, in other words my work.  It has changed from what I had set out to do, to what I have actually chosen to do. What I am doing is 3 different programs ( I know busy busy ) but the first one is the Evangelism Team.  This is by far my favorite thing to be a part of.  What we do is visit prisons,hospitals ( I don't do that one) , schools and street ministries. Oh my goodness, it has caught my heart.  I wasn't planning on doing any of this but I had nothing to do one day and asked the Leader Masui ( Matthew in Muzungu talk) , if i could come with them to the Prison.  He said of course but that I would have to prepare a 15min preach. For some reason this didn't stress me out that bad.  I had all the preparation one could need to preaching whilst I was on Outreach. So the following day we went to the prison and split up into 2 groups, one to the women's prison and the other to the mens side.  I breathed a sigh of relief when he said the 1. he was going in my group and 2. that we were going to the women's side.   It was so inspiring to walk in and see the women prisoners come in( some with children) in their yellow jumpers. I felt so at peace and knew this was something I was supposed to do while I was here. When I left I asked the leader, Masui, if I could join the team full time and he responded with "Yes! we have been praying for more people to join the team." That was just more clarification on this was the right choice. Then the following week, We went to the mens side. This is by far my favorite, which is ironic because being the only white,blonde girl in miles of the prison, you would think I would feel so uneasy, but it as the exact opposite. I walked in through the multiple gates to go through the courtyard.  Yes, I noticed them staring but didn't care. As we walked up the stairs to the hallway where they host the church service, I was just soaking in what an amazing experience this is for me.  afterwards I was still blown away by how in love I was with this ministry.  And just this past monday ( yesterday) a group of four of us went back to the prison, but this time we went to the condemned area, aka Death row.  Besides the color of their uniform you would not know that these men were in this area.  The way that they worshipped the LORD, is so inspiring. They are 110% in love with the LORD. It made me get God chills.  We danced with them, sang with them, and prayed with them.  I shared a word God had put on my heart.  And then after it was all finished I got to know some of the men.  Wow! That is the only word I have to say about it all. So glad I am doing this.  But also, being a part of the Evangelism team entails going into different communities and preaching the Word of the Lord to those who have never heard it before.  So, that is what we are doing the week of the 13th, we are going into the town of Mutai and having a week long outreach there.. Before we leave , we have to prepare and by prepare I mean get skits and dances ready for us to perform for all of the people.  Oh my goodness, I have not enjoyed learning a dance that makes me look funky more in my life. I will try and video it so you guys can see what I am talking about :)
      The 2nd program I am working with is called VTS ( Vocational Training School), which is where we enroll girls who were unable to complete their school because of reasons beyond their control.  In most cases, that is not enough money for their school fees. We are going to be teaching them practical skills such as sewing, baking, planting etc. I am going to be running the sports program and helping with the baking program. which I am excited for because that means proper cooking such as cakes,cookies,pies,burgers and pizzas! ah so good!
       hmmm I am trying to think of what has happened that you guys would enjoy hearing about.... o0o0 fun fact my parents come out in exactly 4 weeks and 4 days, which is exactly 32 days, but who is counting right??  I cannot put into words how excited I am! It is going to be the best 2 weeks ever, I cannot wait to show off my parents :)
     That is all I can think about at the moment... but that doesn't mean that nothing is happening because things are definitely occurring on a daily basis BUT nothing blog worthy...catch my drift??  I will post another in about a week or so with new and exciting adventures. ie. my outreach in mutai o0o0

until next time,
Tess
p.s. my title is 'Praise God' in Kiswahili
p.p.s. I am trying to organize a type of fundraiser to raise money for Kiswahili Bibles. When I was at the mens prison, I looked around while sitting amongst the men, I noticed that so many of them didn't have a Bible to read. These men could further their faith so much more if they had access to Swahili Bibles so that they are able to read in their native tongue. If any of you feel from God that is right for you to donate money so that we could provide Bibles for these men, please contact my father, Russell Jones, who is the one who can directly put money into my account for these Bibles. The bibles themselves are about $10 each bible. Thank you so much! love you all.

I'm Home!!!!!

Hello everyone,
I am home as the title says, home as in Uganda but, I can't feel better about being back in a place where I feel so comfortable about the environment and people.  Well, as most of you guys know, I have been on my outreach in both kenya ( two weeks ) and tanzania ( 6 weeks) and what an outreach is, is when we go out into two different environments and preach to the villages there. It was such a life-changing experience for me.  It was definitely difficult though thats for sure. ok let's see where i should start...the beginning duh :)
so 1st week - mutwala, Kenya
So, on the first week we went to this tiny village called mutwala, and we arrived there late on a night.  And our bus that we were traveling in couldn't make it to the village so we had to walk ( in the dark) to the village ( with no torch) with the leader of the village ( up some hills and across a river). it was a "fun" journey. when we got there, they fed us the best meal of chapatis, and this bean soup. After that, they told us where we all would be staying.  The girls first..." you guys will be staying up there" and by up there that means up a mud hill ( how fun that was to climb every morning).  So we stayed in a mud hut..( not a joke) and it was definitely an experience i will never forget. we had 6 girls in one mud hut. space was VERY limited. not good with girls..just saying. But besides that we did ministry at secondary schools, primary schools and we did open air crusades.  I LOVED it. at one of the secondary schools we went to, there was over 200 students aging from 16-25, and we had to go on stage and introduce ourselves. When it came my turn to introduce, i was so nervous. ( I'm very insecure of my voice through a microphone .. :) ) but when i got the mic, before i said a word they started cheering and cheering ( great ego boost ) and of course i laughed and then introduced myself. and then i was told that i would be leading the dance game. ( oh man) and so i went back on stage and called 6 boys and 6 girls up on stage to play essentially the freeze game while dancing. people swarmed the stage ( i felt like a celebrity ... who knew it was only cuz I'm a muzungu) and so the music started and people dance and froze, danced and froze. it was sweet so how much mad skills they have in that area. then the preacher ( one of our students) came and preached and we did a skit and then worshipped.  That is pretty much the program went when we went to every school.  such an amazing feeling to minister.  I didn't know how much i would enjoy it. God found a strength in me and used it to his advantage. AMEN.    We also did open air crusades.  Open air crusades are when we "set up shop" either near a church or in the middle of town and essentially have a church service right then and there.  At first it was very awkward, but you get so used to it and learn to really love it.  My favorite thing about them was the children that were there.  They either would be dancing or just really soaking in the Word of the Lord. wow! So the ministry there was phenomenal!

Week 2 - Riat, Kisumu , Kenya
The house we stayed at was so nice. Most of us felt uncomfortable staying at such a nice place, but we didn't complain.  We did essentially the same thing as we did the week before, but it didn't feel like that spiritually.  It felt like God was needed so much more that He was in Mutwala.  Time for us to show what we had learned. Loved it.  During this time, 4 out of the 7 westerners came down with malaria and the rest of us made sure we kept taking our doxy and bug spray.  ( Still no malaria for Tess Jones!! win win) After every crusade that we accomplished we would watch a movie, the movies that we watched were : Passion of the Christ , David and the Ten Commandments.  It rained so much here and we got caught in the rain so many times, hey its a very convenient shower!  I started to feel a strong pain in my chest towards the end of our stay at this house, and i was told that if it still hurt when we got to the next place , we would handle it then.  Sounded fine although I really wanted to be home in the comfort of my parents and family when something goes wrong.  So, we left the house and embarked on our 16 bus journey to Tanzania.

Week 3 -week 5.5 - Kilala, Tanzania
We arrived safely, although every bump we went over I wanted to cry because of my chest pain.  People thought I had cracked a rib.  So the place we were staying at for this extended period of time was one of our leaders houses.  His mom is the pastor of the nearby church and he has three brothers.  The house was so lovely and just welcoming just by the appearance.  We moved into our rooms ( 6 each) and had a day of relaxing. ( much needed).  The next day, I told my best friend on this trip, Naomi. that my chest was still killing me.  We went to the leader and he took us to a clinic. ( for those who know me you know I HATE clinics..hospitals...blood...needles... all of that. so for me to ask to go there is big).  The first clinic we went to was just a small local clinic.  The gave me a blood test to check for malaria ( blood..check, needles...check,) negative. The doctor then said that I had sprained my ribs.  They gave me pain killers and I was on my way.  The pain killers didn't seem to work. I still continued in the ministry because I wouldn't let that get in the way of blessing people.  I then went to a actually hospital twice more.  I was then diagnosed with kidney stones and then later a liver infection due to contaminated water.  how lovely.  Back to the house was the best feeling ever. I couldn't have asked for a better place to feel ill. This was my favorite place to stay.  I could have quiet times right outside on the lawn and feel relaxed.

Week 5.5- week 8 Kikititi, Tanzania
The house we stayed at here was our school leaders Musaki's house.  It was such a nice house. but the location was in the middle of town.  And having a missionary house in the middle of a small village draws a lot of attention to us.  The town there was filled with drunkards.  It got to be a little scary at times , especially at night when you are unfamiliar with the environment you are in.  We got to celebrate Christmas and New Years there.  Definitely different.  Christmas day consisted of us waking up early to go and fetch water from the well. I carried 20 liters of water on my head!! ( hold your applause) I felt like an actual african :)  Then we had to go and cute-ify ourselves. We all got in our Christmas dresses and headed to the Church service.  It was long and hot but well worth it in my opinion! After that we returned to the house for lunch.  This lunch was open to the entire community! 70 people swarmed in for food ( which was amazing).  All of this was fine until they pulled what seemed like a cruel joke,  they announced to everyone "time for cake!!" so all of us ran out primarily the westerners.  Little did we know that when they say cake they mean a dead goat. ( my mistake) we were all sooo disappointed! New Years was fun we stayed at the church until about 12:30 am and when it struck midnight everyone cheered and cheered and prayed a lot. It was a great culture experience. We also had the option of leaving and going back to the house early but me and my my friend Naomi decided to stay the whole time and I am so glad that we did.  We finished out outreach there and then headed back to Uganda ( 26 hour bus ride) not fun. but we were all so excited to get back home. we all had the same feelings.

Now I am home and couldn't be happier.  I had my graduation from my DTS this past Saturday and I am free now!! I am now going to be starting my placement which for me is  running a program called cherish which is an abstinence program. and then i am going to help staff a VTS ( vocational training school) both of these with start in february and will take place on base.
    I am very excited for all of this to begin :) i have definitely missed posting on here! i love you all!!
p.s. I know so much more swahili then luganda now so my departure will be in Swahili.
Nakupenda Sana ( I love you very much)
Tess