First, Mama Kwo-Tek. The fun, silly, always smiling woman of 48 is very ill. We found her last week, took her to Lacor only to have to wait a few days to get an x-ray. We
stoped in on Saturday and she said she wanted to wait until Monday. Well, today, Simon got a call that she was not doing well at all and needed to go to the hospital. See, today, we had planned for our weekly staff meeting and reports. We didn't plan on staying in Lacor as a team...no as a family...for Mama, her two daugthers and much more, Kwo-Tek, an eleven year old boy who loves his mother way too much to ever show any emotion. We still do not know what is wrong, but as the nurse stated, the whole family came and stayed to figure it out. She did end up getting hospitalized for treatment. Kwo-Tek cried...not balling out cry, but tears rolling down his cheeks. I can't imagine it from his perspective. Loved ones he has already lost and displacement from home due to the war, friends gone, people walking in and out, isolation...a bunch of stuff an eleven year old NEVER should have to go through. NEVER! Can I scream that out loud one more time? NEVER!!!!!!!!!! And here he is leaving his mama at a hospital that is about an hour away from home not knowing if she will be ok. Just seeing her weak on a stretcher with no smile...something he doesn't ever see his mama wear. We, (Simon, Mary, Pato and me) tried our hand at comforting him, hugging him, holding him and trying to make him laugh. Pray for her please....and Kwo....I am happy to report that I gave my first Bible lesson to the kids of the neighborhood on Sunday. It was on creation....very, very, very, very basic because I SPOKE ACHOLI!!! I was able to communicate the lesson and they understood!! Most knew the story so they helped out when I wasn't sure...but I did it!!! It made me soooo happy....not because I just spoke Acholi but because the Bible lesson was well received by the kids. They wanted to play football but sucked into a lesson - HA!! :)
One of the big reason why my language acquisition is moving along so nicely is because Stella and Michael, brother and sister, have been coming over on Sunday afternoons to hangout and teach me Acholi! I have some great flashcards - the stack grows every week!! This week we were going to make malakwan but we opted for some tea, pineapple and photography lessons. Michael especially took a liking to taking pics while Stella had fun posing. They cracked me up. Teenagers and cameras are always friends. Ha.
The started out shy...
Soon they were posing and taking pics...
Stella kept wanting to pose and Michael kept on shooting...
Michael got a house shot...Stella for some reason needed to go into the planter area...
(yes, this is the front of my house...the far left window is my bedroom)
Fun times by all.
But before I forget....I visited Simon's home in the village and saw his father's dairy farm!!! Nothing like seeing dairy cows for a Wisconsin gal. :)
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