So it’s a bit overdue but I thought it would be appropriate to try and sum up Cross-over’s trip to Kampala. There are some observations that I did make about my time there that I thought would be worth sharing:
- The kids were like sponges, they just wanted to know more about what we were teaching them in regards to Basketball and wanted to do it right.
- The small pile of letters I had from some of the children made it all worthwhile, their thankfulness and appreciation was so heart-warming.
- The kids loved watching Churchill falling over so we made it a bit of a theme through the skits we did.
- Dan thought he had malaria; he was given vitamin pills, panic over, great to share the journey with him though.
- A weird doll got snuck into our luggage by one of our fellow Compassion colleague’s, not sure what ever happened to the doll but think we accidently donated it in a bag to one of the football groups.
- Pot holes are a real nightmare on the roads in Kampala and if you think traffic in England is bad then visit Kampala.
- Driving along the road and it’s a rare sight to see another white person let alone to see a John Mayer look-a-like with a guitar round his shoulders coming out of a shop.
- A child from the orphanage called Alex doesn’t mind telling you what he is thinking, said that Churchill needed more food as he was bigger, awkward but funny to!
- Decided I was going to pretend to throw Alex in this boggy area next to the football pitch, he didn’t go in but my foot did, ruined trainer.
- Uganda football team have the chance to make the Africa Cup of Nations if they win beat Zambia on the 13th October, been around 30 years since they last made the competition. COME ON UGANDA!!
- Paul had the nick name ‘Chipala’ which apparently meant bald, kind of stuck with him for the rest of the trip.
- Dan got some of the kids to call me J Dog while I got some of the kids to call him Handsome Dan, some of the letters that we received did greet us with these names, although Jimmy was another popular way for the kids to spell my name!
- After the run in with the traffic officer due to one of our drivers being involved in an accident it ended up having to be dealt with there and then with our driver giving money to the other driver for his busted light. Whatever you do don’t try and make friends with the traffic officer as Churchill found, for some reason he got insulted and nearly ended up taking the license away from our driver.
- Mzungo is a word that will follow you wherever you go.
- Me and Churchill loved the food we had at the orphanage, Paul and Dan not so much, fuss pots!
- Me, Aimee and Dan sat at a table in a revolving restaurant for a whole 2 minutes before deciding it was too expensive, kind of cool though!
- The kids love to win competitions, there was a song that basically went ‘We are the winners’ and sparked massive celebrations, which even the kids that lost joined in with, fun times!
- I was very impressed with the team’s acting skills in the skits, found the kids really responded to it and they took a real interest in what we were trying to show.
- Sport Ministry is an incredibly effective tool and long may it continue to thrive across the world.
What a trip and despite coming back with a case of man flu I loved the experience we had. Just to see the kid’s appreciation and then trying their hardest in whatever we asked them to do was motivating to us. The kits that where donated I’m sure will get great use out of by the number of football projects already up and running. The coaches that help run these projects are inspiring people and even though their situations and circumstances are not easy they still want to give back. Thought it be worth ending with a great bible quote that I once again came across in the book I’m reading:
Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them. Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go.Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go
I lover the assurance of this passage, you can probably tell already but the words ‘strong’ and ‘courageous’ are the key words and I feel I have met a lot people in Uganda that have had to demonstrate this on a daily basis. Let us do everything in the faith that God will be there by our side and do it will full confidence that he will work in any situation we are in. Let's do it with the full cofidence can make things happen.
Just to end I thought I share what one of the children from the orphanage shared in her letter to me that made me understand how important this ministry is:
Thank you for training us in Basketball, you have developed our talents. Some of us have hope in Basketball, Football, Studies and the Gospel. Thank you for preaching us the word of God. You used wonderful parables and I really liked them and I also still need them. I have accepted Jesus as my personal saviour as he died on the cross for our sins. May the Lord Jesus be with with you everywhere you go
Thank you so much for reading the Uganda trip blog, don’t worry I will still be putting up the odd blog to keep you posted about all that’s going on with Cross Over. We have an event running at the University of Sussex in November which I am very excited about, including a lecturers vs students game. We shall be looking to put a lovely website together soon so it can help keep you guys engaged in what we are doing and the possibility of a trip to Chennai, India next year. Will keep you posted…..
