Tree of Wisdom Atiak

Greetings to All!

My days in Gulu have been full of life. Flexibility is definitely the key here as you never quite know where the next hour will take you. Earlier in the week we visited Lacor Hospital. Sr Rosemary's 2 y.o. nephew Timothy was admitted with malaria. Wow--what a difficult experience. The hospital was incredibly overcrowded. In some areas they had 2 children to a bed and there were family members all over the floor. Each room had 10 beds in it. I walked around feeling so helpless and wondering how they all are able to cope. The patients and family members were patient and quiet. They bear their burdens very quietly here in Uganda. I can't imagine what it must be to practice medicine in a world like this. With a doctor:patient of 1:25,000, I can't begin to comprehend how overwhelmed they must feel at times. No matter how much we think our medical system is broken in America, we should never forget how lucky we are. In Uganda, life and death is a daily grim reality.

We spent much of the week planning the Tree of Wisdom activities for this month. The staff that Sr Rosemary has put together is great. Mr Komakech follows the 61 children in Atiak, Brother Bede Beda follows the 40 children in West Nile/Paidha district, and John Kennedy follows the 15 childen in the Gulu region. We also have 4 orphans in Moyo at an orphanage being cared for by the Sacred Heart Sisters. So as you can see we are approaching 120 children. The Tree of Wisdom is growing strong and tall. We are working out logistical issues, visiting schools and trying to find the best ways to meet the needs of our children.

Today was the first big TOW celebration since my arrival. It was awesome!! We left for Atiak at 7AM with the car full of 9 people and lots of gear over bumpy roads for 2 hours. We got there a bit early and visited the site of the new St. Monica's Tailoring School in Atiak which sits on 12 acres of land. They have 2 classroom blocks erected and have begun building the hall/kitchen/restaurant building. The compound is on a very busy road from Sudan to Gulu. Their eventual plan is to open a restaurant to serve travellers and tour busses. This will provide training for the young women in the school and also help sustain the campus.

The day began with Mass at 10 am. It was beautiful! Atiak is one of the hardest hit areas from the war. We saw obviously malnourished children and people dressed in their ragged Sunday best. Out of their poverty comes a richness of spirit and faith that is truly overwhelming. After Mass we began the TOW festivities. Robert Komakech is such a soft spoken humble man with such a big heart and a love for the children. Unknown to us till now, he has bee meeting with them every Sunday, trying to teach them practicalities of life and build community. On this day, we met with the children and all their guardians. The children were clean and well cared for. The guardians have formed a co-op and are trying to support one another in many different ways. There was much singing and dancing. The dancing kills me because every time they do it they drag the visitor up there and you have to shake your booty as fast as you can in the traditional Ugandan style, and let me tell you...this white girl can't dance!

After the laughing subsided, we all ate lunch--complete with meat. The children played with the balls, frisbees and jumpropes provided by all of you. They had a GREAT time! Later we drew pictures, wrote letters, and distributed the great beanie babies, matchbox cars and snacks sent by all of you kind hearted people in the US. Afoyo!! You have no idea how much they appreciated all of it. They are truly destitute people. Every small kindness is one step closer to a more promising future.

This evening Sr. Rosemary and I sat and reflected on our day. What an amazing blessing Tree of Wisdom has been for so many people. It gives the children a brighter future, the guardians a greater sense of commuity, and for those of us in America, a way to help that is direct and relevent. I told those children that they each have a Mom or a Dad in America who loves them very much and prays for them every day. Please pray for the people of Atiak. They have endured such terrible suffering from the war and are now falling prey to a 3 year drought. Throughout the day I choked back tears and thanked God for all the blessings in my life. I never imagined that this tree would be so strong so fast.

On the other side of the planet, I get reports that bead sales at St. John Festival of the Arts have been great. Thank you so much to all who participated.

With tremendous gratitude to all of you. Thank you for all your prayers and support.
God bless!

Monique