A very important member of my Ugandan family has suffered with sudden onset seizures for many years which was diagnosed as Epilepsy though a true diagnosis is very difficult to find here in Uganda, for a start patients are being examined in the Mental Health department and it is not a mental health problem!!

I have been horrified to see and hear how he and others have been treated even by some of their own family members! They are bullied, spat at, kicked, their belongings stolen, left to die wherever they fall, chased away from people cooking “you will poison our food!” The list is endless!

The people who make life so unbearable at times often are still following traditional beliefs that this type of affliction is caused by evil spirits and the only way you can be cured is to go to the witch doctor! Yes, they still exist here in Uganda and they have influence! Only a year or so ago the body of Charles’s young son was dug up to be used in witchcraft. Horrible horrible horrible!

Two years I decided that as in most cases lack of education was the reason why these beliefs still had such an influence and the only way to fight them was to educate the younger generation so I made a start! With the help of Judith (Innocents mum) interpreting and Charles having the most lifelike seizure in front of all the year 6&7s (I wish I could have captured the faces of his pupils!), we talked through what a seizure was, the most important facts being that it is not contagious and does not happen because of evil spirits! The children then did group dramas and we discussed the rights and wrongs of each. They were brilliant!

I asked these young people if they would be my ‘ambassadors’ and go back to their communities and ‘spread the word’. They not only agreed at the time but actually did as I asked as for many weeks afterwards Charles was getting many positive comments from parents and community leaders. On Parents Day at the end of the year he got a group of students to repeat the drama. And then last year at my leaving ‘assembly’ I was so pleased when they performed in front of me, my heart felt like bursting!

These lessons were a resounding success which has changed the attitude of the many of the local people and in doing so has made a profound difference to the life of my friend and many like him. I have to admit to feeling just a teeny weeny bit proud!

So two years later with new Year 6&7 pupils yesterday with the help once again of Judith and Charles, I repeated program, sending a new set of very enthusiastic ‘ambassadors’ out to spread the word. 

BTW I returned from school with thick dust covering my clothes and legs having thrown (well almost!) myself into assisting the ‘patient’!!! Getting up from the ground had been a bit tricky too! Ha ha, all in a good cause!

Soon after I came home from a morning at school Mum Judith (Innocents Mum) informs me ‘the master wants you’. The master is what she calls him in fun. I go outside to find the newest member of the family legs tied together, sat on Innocents lap on the back of a boda taxi bike! Meet Marie the calf!

Why Marie, well she is one special lady to Innocent and this calf was a Christmas gift from her and her lovely family. Marie when older will provide milk a valuable source of protein.

It was a real battle to get her off the bike and Innocent almost lost her when she escaped when tying her to a tree but they both survived. Judith brought a bowl of soapy water out for the calf and explained they just like soap!!

Written at 5 am today! Marie is mooing right outside my window. I’m sure she’s missing her mum!

With the Hollies Pre-School in Poynton donating  twenty yesterday and Bjorn from Norway (he read my website!!) donating three, there are only 11 mosquito nets still needing sponsorship to reach the 1000! If you haven’t already done so please consider donating just £5 for this life saving gift. Maybe ask your friends too. Here’s hoping!!!!! Only 8 days left in my wonderful second home! X

Sunday-The first big hot mosquito net delivery!!

I’m writing up my blog sat in Gerry’s Plaza. Innocent is just about to go down to the trading centre to get us a very well deserved Nile Beer!!

It’s pitch black, no light pollution here except for my phone, and there’s the chorus of night time critters all around. Love an African night!

Today was hot hot hot 🥵 and it was the day my ‘new’ transport arrived to help me deliver m mosquito 🦟 nets many of you have sponsored. It’s always difficult to know when you are going to find people at home and as it’s a Sunday many were at church in a morning so we didn’t set off until after noon when the sun was highest in the sky giving little or no shade! The car itself is a 15 year old pickup who was certainly showing its age (like me!) and I apologise now to my hubby Norman as I might be in the habit of slamming car doors really hard when I come home! The pickup had some funny little quirks for getting the windows and doors to work (Charles had to climb over my drivers seat to get out until we worked out how the door opened!) but basically, though rather old with the usual creaks and wonky joints like me, it worked! Today we were giving nets to those children at Brain Trust that missed out last year and newcomers to the school especially the nursery children that are most affected if they get Malaria.

I’m amazed how far out we had to travel to reach some of the homes! Some children, and Charles himself who walks to school and back every day, live a few km away!

The road, better described as a deeply rutted mud track, threw up the usual challenges where many a time I had to steer the wheels along either edge of a deep  crater! Twice we came across massive sugar cane trucks blocking the way, collecting the cane from individual farmers who had foolishly rented their land out to the industry for a measly 1.800,000 (£400) for six years! The Land then has to be left fallow for a time because all its nutrients have been used up by the sugar cane! So many are tempted with the short term gain then find themselves unable to grow crops to feed their families! Of course the government should prevent its people being taken advantage of like this but money talks!

Anyway back to my story! The first of the lorries had been piled so high and precariously, (the workers are paid by the weight) that it had tipped right over completely blocking the track! One of the workers waved me to drive the pickup through an area of uneven grassland which, as Charles warned, could be hiding anything. I knocked on the glass behind me to alert Innocent to jump out and check the area carefully. I cautiously followed his lead and was safely guided through.

The second truck was parked right across the track with men balancing precariously on the top to receive the sugar cane that is passed up to them. When I drove up they just stopped work and stared, probably at the shock of seeing a Mzungu driving a pickup in the middle of nowhere! It took a while for it to register that I wanted to pass and even then that I expected them to actually move their vehicle but with a set of hand gestures, polite ones I promise, and perseverance with said gestures, the truck was slowly moved out of the way. My friends are not surprised anymore of the way I manage what could be awkward situations so let me get on with it most of the time! I don’t speak the language but this is an advantage because I can’t get into noisy slanging matches which is normally what happens in these cases!

As it’s only a two seater Innocent was in the back with the nets and the spare wheel, in fact he found the shape of the spare wheel just right for a seat! I was worried he would melt under the bright orange plastic sheet that covered the area, but he hopped out at each stop looking fresher than Charles or I!

Charles knew where every child lived and their circumstances so would guide me which is good as every track, bush and homestead looked similar to me. I’d hate to get lost here!

We were greeted with excitement by the children and even some of the mothers broke into a smile falling on their knees and offering a handshake as a greeting to each of us. Once we handed over the nets Innocent would go through how to wash them. Nets could last a few years if they allowed themselves only to wash once or twice a year, which is difficult for most Ugandans who love to wash and scrub everything all the time!

There are many fatherless families here and even a bigamist, which is still allowed in Uganda! We went to the wrong wife!

With the awkwardness of getting to each homestead we had still only delivered 30 nets by 5pm but I needed a break from the relentless heat and I had to admit a proper rest! We had been at it four hours and had gone through several litres of water and two hands of tiny sweet bananas but I could feel my wobbly legs coming on! One way I kept a little cooler was by wetting my head at every opportunity and even put my head under the borehole pipe to the amusement of people around. It worked! In fact with the dripping hair and the wet hat (which dried within a few minutes by the way), I was much more comfortable. 

I will forward photos of all donated nets and their recipients directly to those who sponsored them. These are just an example.

 

I’ve walked down to school to see how the roof work was coming on. What a surprise, one classroom is almost complete using all the rescued roof panels and is just being competed by the brick layer. Innocent has gone out to buy the new ones corrugated roof panels and he will be carrying them here by tying them across the back of his bicycle! I’m sat with Charles in the shade watching the five builders, all local men, working hard chatting away amongst themselves. They will stop at 11 (it’s 10.45) for their breakfast which the school cook is making maize porridge. Innocent told they should finish today, a day early! Thanks again Poynton Rotary!