Sounds of Grief

The wailing went on for at least 2 hours. I knew something horrible had happened by the intensity and raw hurt in the sound coming from the woman next door. I wasn't sure what to do, so nothing was the option that I chose. The wailing finally petered out to just sobbing, then to nothing. Over the next 24 hours the sobbing would begin, then end, again and again.

The next day when we were outside under the mango tree talking to our dear friend Robert, the sounds of several people singing began next door. A peculiar look came over Robert's face. He speaks Acholi, the local language. Robert said the song was sung when someone died, and that he could tell that it was a child. The song was interspersed with the sobs of the mother next door. Robert said that when he had walked past the opening to the yard next door, he knew someone had died because the stalks of a banana tree had been placed on both sides of the opening to their compound.

Over the next few days, there was crying, singing, and talking from next door. Lest you think that we were eavesdropping, you need to understand that the people next door sleep inside but the rest of the day is spent outside in whatever shade they have from the trees in their compound. I've included a photo that I took right after we arrived; I thought the assortment of structures  and activities was fascinating. I especially appreciated the juxtaposition of the straw hut and small stucco house, tin shed (and a wooden house) next to our property which contains a large and permanent house.

The intermittent sounds of grief left me sad and wondering what I should do. I found out that, no different than at home in the US, it would be appropriate to pay a visit and take some basic staples such as oil, tea, and soap. So we bought the basic items, and included a non-essential item, sugar. Robert went next door with us to translate. The father and mother met us in the center of the compound, and explained that their three year old son had died of pneumonia while in the hospital. The grandmother joined us and pointed to a 4 foot high freshly-turned pile of soil and indicated that he was buried there. The mother didn't cry the entire time we visited. Our gifts were accepted, and Jeff added a very small amount of money. Other children from the family joined us in a line and introductions were made. The father told us how much he appreciated our visit. He also told Jeff that he enjoyed it that Jeff waved while passing by on his daily walk.

Over the next few weeks, sounds from our neighbor's yard returned to normal. I wonder if life had reached its new normal with a child missing from the family. I wonder if the young boy would have died had there been better health care. I try not to wonder if the mother still sobs.

So This is Christmas?

No, this is not a post about whether or not it might be difficult to be away from our family and friends during the holidays. You can probably figure that one out yourself. No pity party.
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Yes, this is a post about why I can walk around town and not tell that it will be Christmas tomorrow. No gaudy decorations (no classy ones, either.) No Christmas carols being gently piped outside so that when you walk around you'll be in the spirit to spend money. No unusual rushing, no children crying about what they want, no parents frantically trying to buy presents for family and friends.
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Several weeks ago on FaceBook there was a friendly battle about whether it was too early to decorate your home. So as I watched the comments on FaceBook and looked around Gulu, I kept thinking that it must be too early. Okay, it is still too early,  But here we are - Christmas is tomorrow. It must still be too early. The only sign in town that something is different is that there are more people on the streets. This is because villagers have just harvested their crops and have come into town for shopping and to celebrate. And live chickens are being sold on street corners for dinner on Christmas.

Still, I wait for Christmas to arrive.

I looked forward to church last Sunday. I love Christmas carols. But no; no carols were sung. It was explained to me that the celebration of Christ's birth happens on Christmas day. On that day, people wear the newest clothes that they have. Some even stay home, I've been told, because of their lack of a new dress or suit. I've been told that on Christmas the church services will be very special with Christmas music, dances, and skits. I'm looking forward to participating in this tomorrow, even though I don't have a new dress.

I haven't quite decided if I like the way things are done here with respect to the celebration of Christmas. I could conclude that this is a better way, focusing on the day that Jesus was born. That would be easy. "Yes, that is what Christmas is all about," I would say. Too easy.

Things are just different here with respect to Christmas, just like they are with just about everything else. That is just a fact. Not good, not bad. It is just the way it is.

Have a Merry Christmas wherever, whenever, and however you celebrate.

5 Tips Everyone Should Know

Here are some of the things I've learned so far which make me a better person. I hope they help you, too!

Our egg trays in their place on the counter.

1. Raw eggs won’t go bad for at least a week and a half in warm temperatures even if kept unrefrigerated on the counter 
2. Women do not whistle (even while they work)
3. Mosquito nets won’t work if you nap in the middle of the day unless you pull them down around the bed just like you do at nighttime.
4. Bats fly out from the attic of a house at dusk at a rate of about 1 per second for 45 seconds, and 
5. Never use a toothpick on a bumpy road!

A little bit of education can be a bad thing.

A little bit of education can be a bad thing.

We found out there is a large opportunity for support raising at the end of the year as people reflect upon finances and decide where to donate for tax deduction purposes. Since we are so new to this missionary thing, we decided to sign up for a course about end-of-the-year support raising.

Bad move on our part.

Granted, the course did have helpful templates to send to current and potential supporters. There were bible verses to use, with places to plug in names of our country and the names of our ministry. But they felt phoney. We know the best way to ask you to support us is to be genuine, tell our story in our own words, and to let you know up front that, yes, this post will end with a request for funding. Move on right now if you want, but we hope you will give us just a little of your time to tell you about what we have accomplished in Gulu since arriving a few months ago. We hope that you will see the importance of our work to individuals in Uganda and will choose to support us financially.

We found out that our home church, The Grove Community Church in Riverside, refers to our residence as “the Missionary House”. At first this was amusing to us; it is our home. But as things have evolved, the term makes more and more sense. The garage has been set up as a place for sewing and we call it “The Sewing Studio”. One of the rooms in the building behind our home has been converted into a “Fellowship and Fitness Centre” with gym equipment. Two rooms inside our home host visiting pastors (only one has a bed, the other has two sleeping pads that we would like to exchange for 2 twin size beds soon). Our living room has been used for a planning/study session by the leaders of Gulu Bible Community Church. Our dining table is always in use for computer lessons. Do you get the feeling that this house is truly not “ours” but “His?”

Our days are now filled with teaching ladies how to sew, doing outreach in outlying churches, hosting visiting pastors, encouraging church members and friends to exercise, doing computer trainings, and providing resume services to the community. We have settled into a nice ebb and flow of an “always busy but we never know just what the day will hold” mode. Our days are so unlike the ones that we left in Riverside - there we rarely entertained, and this house of sustained activity has been a huge adjustment. We also need to remind ourselves to say “no” or we might have ladies sewing from 5 am to 10 pm every day instead of 10 am to 5 pm; or men exercising through the night.

The major milestone we are looking forward to is an exhibition in the Marketplace in Gulu on December 28. It is an open air bazaar where tote bags made by our sewing ladies will be sold. Please pray that the sales are successful.

Pastors here rely on tithes and offerings to survive, just like in the US. Yvonne’s most touching moment was when one of the young pastors whose wife is learning to sew, confided that “she now has hope”.

We would like to share some information about our current financial situation. The Grove Community Church provides 15% of our monthly budget. Individual/family contributions total 43% of our monthly requirements. We contribute from our personal funds to make up the balance.

This is your opportunity to support a ministry that has eternal impact to the people we reach in our bible classes, and also provides hope to individuals through our sewing ministry.

To continue to support us on a monthly basis, we thank you for your kindness and generosity! No action is necessary on your part unless you would like to increase the amount that you contribute.

If you would like to join us as a new donor in making a difference to individuals in Uganda, please click here. Monthly donations help us plan for expenses. We are genuinely grateful for any amount you are able to contribute, either one time or on an ongoing monthly basis. Your gift is tax deductible.

Thank you for considering supporting us.

Yvonne and Jeff Weinstein

Here is a timeline and some photographs of activities over the months:

Mid-August: Arrive in Uganda. Begin to set up house with essentials such as kitchen supplies and bedding. Nighttime theft while we were asleep of all our valuables. Amazingly generous response by friends and church community of donations of cash to partially recover losses.

Early September: 3 treadle sewing machines purchased.

Mid September: Social event held at our home (aka “Missionary House”) Yvonne invites 10 ladies over to have tea, eat, and hear about the free sewing activities available to them and others in the community. Began meeting and researching with Gulu Bible Community Church leaders for Vision 2040 (Church planting in 10 African Nations). Our home (aka “Missionary House”) first used for lodging for visiting pastors.

End of September: Exercise equipment (barbells and dumbbells) purchased. Almost daily walks (2 miles) into town to build relationships with shopkeepers.

October: First of monthly visits for Men’s and Women’s programs (Bible and sewing) in Adjumani and Anaka. Hired local church member/tailor to teach ladies to use treadle machines. Began computer trainings. Outfitted room in the back building for use as a “Fellowship and Fitness” Centre. (Painted room, built weight bench, hung mirrors, painted inspirational texts on walls). Church members and pastors begin coming for exercise.

Mid October: First Quilt top finished. Yvonne invited to “Women of Virtue to show how to bake cakes and hand sew clutch purses.

November: First tote bag completed. Plans are made to sell tote bags at a local exhibition on December 20

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