African Muzungu

I’m 9 years old, lying in my bed with the blanket of darkness wrapping me snuggly. Many children are afraid of the dark, but not me. It’s the fear of something more sinister that has me paralyzed beneath the covers: demons. I’ve heard stories about them: people seeing them, hearing them, watching objects around the house be moved by them. I peek open one eye towards the door. I’m sure that any moment the form of a demon will appear in the doorway, and a chill runs down my spine. My only small comfort is the form of my sister, Melinda, curled up in the bed beside mine. Her presence brings temporary relief, and I fight to fall asleep in that moment. It’s this way every night. My fear of going to the bathroom at night and walking the halls in darkness surrounded by the spirits of darkness. My steps racing up the stairs to my bedroom, unable to simply walk in the darkness. My cover pulled high over my head, fighting to shut out any hint of demonic activity. At least in the day, I have the...

One of the things my kids love to do in school is tell ‘news’. Each day during the appointed time, one by one the kids jump up front like popcorn singing out, “News, News!” All of the other students chime, “Yes please, tell us!” Then they can tell about things like what they ate for supper the night before, if their cousin is visiting, what they did on school holiday, ect. It’s a fun way to get them out of their shells, teaching them stage presence and improving their English. Well today it’s my turn to tell the news! These past months have been so full, I never really had a chance to catch my breath until this past week when a nasty head cold landed me in bed for   a couple days, and rest was no longer voluntary. But the upside of that is a chance to finally put pen to paper! My 6 weeks in the States were a whirlwind, as I knew they would be. I’m hoping to do a longer post about my brother’s wedding, so stay tuned! I arrived back in Uganda with a team who were an ...