Last week we had the opportunity to visit a village on one of the islands in Lake Victoria with a team from Welcome Home. The team was made up of a group from Australia, England and Canada. The trip started out in a small community right on the edge of the lake where we loaded into a large wooden boat. I was not sure we were all going to be able to cram into the boat, but somehow we all made it.
Before we went over to the island, the boat took us to the Source of the Nile. Although, I had been to the Source of the Nile before it seemed more majestic this time. It was really neat to see the water bubbling up from the springs below the lake and watching it flow into the mighty Nile River.
After our tour we started the “20 minute” trip over to the island. I have learned that you can almost multiply every length of time that you are given by at least two here in Uganda. It was a beautiful trip on Lake Victoria, with one small issue…. our boat had a few leaks. By a few I mean a lot! At first it was not that big a deal because there was a small trickle but it soon became an issue when our ankles were getting wet. So what do you do when your boat begins to fill with water? You bail it. We bailed until the water went from ankle level down to toe level and repeat process every few minutes. We arrived on the shores of the village about 30-35 minutes later.
Once we arrived it was amazing to see the fishing village and all that was going on. The whole shore line was filled with boats and fishing gear. Just past the beach were tarps filled with thousand and thousand of small fish that were drying in the sun. The sight was something to see and the smell was a bit overwhelming.
Our goal for the day was to visit the children in the school and to provide de-worming medicine. We were given a very warm welcome ceremony in the church that was filled with singing, dancing and lots of smiles. After the welcome we set out to get all the children de-wormed. To accomplish this we give the children a medication called Albendazole, which takes care of the parasites for up to three months. The medication comes in pill form and is chewed by the child. Our mission, get all four hundred-plus kiddos in a circle, hand out the medication and make sure the chew it up. From my experience in the past villages having the children hold hands and make a circle was the most effective way to get the medication handed out quickly and to make sure nobody came back twice. This worked like a charm with the children from Pillars of Hope and the Wakissi Village while the team from Brazos Fellowship was here. With full confidence, and the confidence of the team backing me, I had everyone get in a circle and we stared the process of handing out medication. Of course this did not work for this group of kids, as soon as they saw us handing out a “sweetie” (the medication) they all rushed up to us in a big mob. We abandoned this plan and had them make a line, they walked in the front door of the church, got the medication, got a mark on their cheek and walked out the side door. It only took about 30 minutes to get all the kids and some of the adults through the process. What worked in one village, does not always work in another……..live and learn.
I spent a little time treating some of the very sick kids in the village, two cases of malaria and two very bad ear infections. Afterwards we had a traditional Ugandan lunch. We spent a little time playing with the children before heading out. As we were leaving we heard loud drum beats and shouting. Our guide said it was a circumcision procession for a young man from the Bagishu tribe who was to be circumcised that afternoon. In some of the tribe the boys being circumcised is a “coming of age” ceremony. This boy was about 12-14 years old. As they made their way down the road I was videoing the procession, they made their way over to us and I realized I was right in the middle of things. There was the young man who was being circumcised and the medicine man chanting and waiving some sort of stick. I was entertaining to see the medicine man, he was painted his headdress was made up of bows and I am pretty sure several light bulbs, I have included a video at the bottom. They came and danced and chanted for us and then made their way down toward the edge of the lake to “complete” the ceremony.
It was an amazing journey to the island. I had one of those “Africa moments.” I realized I was in the middle of Lake Victoria, the second largest fresh water lake in the world and had just witnessed a circumcision procession. The boat ride home was full of reflection, awe at the scenery God created..... and of course more bailing water out of the boat.
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