Buffalo Solider

9.26.09

The other day I was in a taxi coming home from Jinja. They started cramming a lot of people in the taxi and my fellow passengers were yelling at the taxi men. They were putting four or five people in each row (that should only have three). The two Ugandan women behind me were very upset. One looked at the other and said “this is Africa, what do you expect”. Hearing that from a foreigner is not uncommon but to hear a Ugandan say it in perfect English made both my friend and I turn around. In the movie Blood Diamond, Leonardo Dicaprio says “TIA” meaning “this is Africa”. TIA is a phrase you regularly hear westerners say. I feel like all my really interesting stories have to do with transportation.

 

Today I was riding out to a village on a boda. As I was looking around, it hit me. I am taking for granite this place I live in. At first the stunning landscape is one of the only things your eye catches. While all around it is some of the world’s worst poverty. The beauty of Uganda was overshadowing the dark reality. Soon the glimmer of the landscape faded and the poverty was all I saw. Today I realized that at some point in time the two seemingly opposite things transformed into one. The chaos and brokenness only added to the beauty of this country. It’s hard to describe how poverty can be a beautiful thing, but it can. Even in some of the worst circumstances the children still run to you smiling, the women still greet you and offer the little food they have. Seeing such generosity from people who have very little is a beautiful thing. Anyways, you make think I am crazy but that’s just how I feel. Back to why I was headed to a village. I was teaching woman in Buwongo how to make paper bead necklaces. We sat under a giant African tree. Somewhere close by Bob Marley’s Buffalo Solider was playing. Twenty-four women were all seated around watching closely. Some picked up bead rolling quickly, while others really struggled. Soon children and men from the village gathered looking on at what their wives and mothers were doing. It became such a community thing. I am really excited to be working with them but not so excited for all the trips out to the village!