A Funny Life, In Pictures

The following is a photo essay (albeit a strange mix) of everything photo worthy I've been doing for the last few weeks. A long December already, indeed.

Faces of the Pandemic

On December 1, I attended Mbale District's World AIDS Day commeration and celebrations. It was held just outside the town in a near 'suburb' called Nauyo. I was also part of the planning, and I attended several town hall-style meetings concerning the preparations. Mothers of Hope, the organization I'm working with here, was a sponsoring partner. The day was completely thrown together (the Chairman leading the "planning" meetings had to call someone to figure out the day's worldwide theme on the second to last meeting).

Alas, I was privy to a strapped local government's attempt to unite a community with only donations from other nonprofits and the hard work of only a few. These inside experiences are illuminating in many ways: it is disheartening to see the Ugandan local government having so little vision for a day very close to the country's mettle, and it's encouraging to see community members step up when the government does not. There was no free testing, no informational for people living with AIDS, no facts on prevention or ARVs. In fact while most of the local NGOs that deal with HIV/AIDS were present, none provided services or information aside from their drama performances.



Acholi Dancers

What there was: plenty of robust drama groups, singing, tribal dancing, deworming (?!), and some very long speeches by some out of touch government officials who all touted the dated, problematic statistics Uganda is known for: turning back their HIV prevalence rate from 15 percent in 1991 to 6 percent in 2001. Never mind the fact that HIV infections in Uganda are again rising at a very alarming rate. Official statistics that I consider up to date are not yet here. Yet local stats seem to hold the clearer picture. In Mbale district, 33% of women tested in 2006 tested positive. For men this number is lower (about 25%), but both are up at least 2% from last year. And the struggle continues.

Crowd Control

I don't want to discount the importance of art and drama in the fight against AIDS, but it the target was sorely missed on Dec. 1 in Mbale. While the ceremony proved plenty entertaining, the theme of "Unite for Children, Unite Against AIDS" was never addressed. Yet the crowds teemed with hungry school children that were sometimes beat with a stick by "crowd controllers" (older men schoolmasters or young 'trainees' given a stick) while they watched the uninvolved goverment workers drink sodas. All while the real faces of World AIDS, like these little girls, stood and waited for something to happen or something to change.

Uphill battles

On another day in December when it was hot, sticky and generally sauna-like, Will and I embarked to Buwalewa village, which is about 1.5 hours away from town by car. Except most of the way up- we didn't take a car. We arrived at Will's host organization called KAFAMI, they are a small, rural farmer's cooperative. I was going to do a short HIV/AIDS workshop with some members in another village. Two-and-a-half hours of hiking up a smallish mountain later we arrived dripping with sweat and kicking ourselves for not bringing water with us. "It is near," our Ugandan friends from KAFAMI kept saying. Ugandans aren't known for precise directions. Well the view from the top and the robust and receptive group meeting us at the hilltop parish made our trip worth the lost salts. With the help of a fantastic translator I think we had a productive, educational session. And the walk down wasn't nearly as bad.

Get Wired

More recently, Will and I have been holding computer skills training at our local internet cafe, whose sign is shown above. Jenepher, the woman to my left had never touched a computer but had heard of email. It was challenging and so rewarding to finally get her to master using a mouse and keyboard. We even got to typing and copy/paste. In our second session we set up email accounts and the KAFAMI peeps were excited to be connected.



Meet Violet

At the clinic where my roommate Brianna works there lives a beautiful and vibrant girl named for my personal favorite color of the rainbow. Violet was badly burned on almost a third of her little body about 4 months ago, after playing with matches. Bri has been helping change her dressings since she was back in the clinic after a life-threatening infection. She cannot go home, not even for Christmas, for risk of infection again. So we threw her a Christmas party the other day in the clinic, complete with soda, presents (Brianna got her and her baby sister Jenny two African dolls), food and toiletries, and we filled her room with pictures and cards we drew for her. And boy can Violet dance - she has so much spunk and sass you wouldn't know she is still badly injured. Her story is an inspiration and a reminder what Christmas is really all about.

Gift that Keeps Giving

When Will and I invited our friend Sam the bartender and his wife and kids over for dinner two weeks ago, we didn't know they would give us a gift we'd remember forever. Over spaghetti bolognese, we opened this frame/clock/funny life thingie with weird anime girls in the middle wishing us "the coming year in the fullest measure." We were really touched they would buy us something, and even though we did not get what the heck it was at first, it's full meaning (although most likely not intended) has become illuminated since. Now it's sitting under our mini Christmas tree (decked with interesting 'ornaments' if you can see).

"We have to put this up in our apartment and all our houses after that," Will says with a half laugh.

"Yeah, but maybe in the basement."

"Or the closet."

"Every time we'll look at it we'll remember Sam, and Uganda. And think, funny life."