The greatest joys.

The greatest joys of being in Uganda.

  

Seeing Stephen. Being with my husband. Being together as a family. I worked on my hand held because work never stops. I helped him wash and cook and take care of Gracie and Glory and do the next project on the compound. Nothing spectacular but just home life. Every ounce of togetherness felt like life. 

When time is to be had in abundance: 365 days a year—I’m sure I would experience home life much differently. But when it is rationed to 10 days every 1-2 years, one is forced to take in the experience like a perfectly flavored cup of coffee. Sip slowly. Breathe in the air that calms the soul. If a coffee ground happens to grit between your teeth, pick it out and continue to enjoy. Being a family together poured a sense of home into my soul.

My daughters who are seven now, experience the separation much differently than I do. After the first five year separation, The airport meeting was filled with joy. For me, airport greetings and goodbyes are now filled with tears. My daughters are always saying, “Mommy, don’t cry now.” Yet when they spent the summer with daddy at age 6, Saying goodbye to Mommy at the airport was a cry all the way home ordeal. 

Being a family together poured a sense of home into my soul. If that wasn’t enough, there was a sense of fulfillment and accomplishment that looked back at me from the two years of hard work and agony working with my staff at the school. When I said my goodbyes two years ago I had no idea if anyone cared or would ever remember me. Yet they remembered. They more than remembered. And 2 remembered me in a way I would have never imagined: they remembered me as someone they could have a relationship with!