More about life

A fun story from last week that I didnt really get a chance to mention, but September 11th was Emily's birthday and all she wanted was Christmas dinner - she's from England, so she doesn't do Thanksgiving, but that is what I am comparing dinner to. We bought a turkey at the market - yes, a live turkey, with feathers and all, and I watched (partly) as the other Emily sawed off it's head to kill it, then have to proceed to pluck and gut it. It was slightly intense. Then we were in the kitchen all day cooking stuffing, green bean casserole, roasted potatoes, mashed potatoes, and chocolate cake! And it should be noted that we have zero of the luxuries of American cooking haha - everything is completely from scratch, including the fried onions that go on top of the casserole :) and all of the veggies are fresh from the market! It was by far the best meal I've eaten in a long time! But to really make it Christmas, we listened to Christmas music all day so we were all in a holiday spirit which was fun!

Something else I realized I haven't talked too much about is church. I mentioned that I met the pastor on the first Friday I was here, at a cafe in town, and then that Sunday he remembered my name and has asked how I was adjusting. He is so sweet and I feel really wants to be invested in his church and the people in it, which is really awesome. He is from Roanoke, and is a huge Tech fan, even has a VT flag hanging in his yard haha. Church is in his back yard which is pretty neat that it's outside (I keep waiting for the day it rains on us - but so far it's been beautiful every Sunday I have been here). The church is called Acacia Community Church and has a pretty contemporary feel. There is definitely a strong missionary community that goes there, but there is also a lot of Ugandans as well. There worship team is all Ugandans, which is fun and the music is really good - with a couple more popular songs thrown in that everyone knows! Then along with a great feel, there is definitely a strong message that is preached. They are going through 1 Peter, and for those of you reading this who go/went to Portico, the sermons are similar to Chris', in that we cover a very small chunk every week and we really dive into it. I'm loving that it is similar to Portico, it makes me feel a little more at home:) 

Last week we covered 1 Peter 2:7-10 and Pastor Terry posed the question "who are you?" in response to the scripture. In thinking about these verses, especially verse 9, he really challenged us to ask "who we are and where do you seek to place your reputation in?" (totally God's timing, especially after processing everything the other week in Bible Study) but also reminded us to see ourselves the way God sees us - that we are created beautiful in his image. I love that while being here the Lord has constantly been giving me scripture to point me back to the fact that he has made me for a purpose, has chosen me to be here in Uganda, and that he ultimately wants me to "declare the praises of him who called me out of darkness" - I want this to be my answer to the question "who am I?"

Then this week we read 1 Peter 2:11-17, and the question was asked "what do people say about you?" Whereas a lot could also be commented on about this sermon as well, a part that really stood out to me was in verse 11 - " Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and aliens..." and do I consider myself a foreigner or alien? Here, in Uganda I do, but at home it's easy not to. I want to feel at home and desire to feel at home, and even with coming here I have been struggling with wanting to feel like I have a place - but in thinking of this verse, and in light of being a Christian, Peter is saying that we should feel like aliens and foreigners in this world because this world should not be our reality of home. This was just a really neat message to hear, especially in feeling like I need to find a "home" for the three months I'm here in Uganda, or feel comfortable that my "home" is back in the U.S. but rather that my hope and view of home needs to be in a heavenly sense and completely focused on Christ. This switches gears a little bit but still focusing on home, this sermon also had me thinking a lot about home, back in the states with family, friends, and the comfortability I have known for so long. In thinking about all of this I was really overcome with feelings of thankfulness. In ten days I will have been gone one month, and even at this point in my trip last summer I was halfway through my trip in Botswana, but thinking about that now I really am not as homesick as I thought I would be, or was last year. I know that is going to be hard to hear for some people, but I am so thankful that while God has me here, I am really here, and not longing to be somewhere else - and for this I'm grateful!

Sam & Zuena

So I mentioned in an earlier post that Sam came home on Saturday, but it has been such a joy having him back in the house. I now completely understand how empty the house felt without him here for the week and a half that he was in the hospital. He still cannot walk or put weight on his foot, so he pretty much lays on the couch and pleads to be entertained by anyone who walks through:) He has one of the brightest smiles and his giggle is absolutely contagious. The other day a couple of the girls went into and the kids were napping, so I just went and cuddled with his on the couch; we read books, played with play dough, and started watching a movie. He is so loving and one of those kids you can’t help but cuddle and completely fall in love with!

For his foot, we have to do dressing changes twice a day and it is not an understatement to say that this is the least favorite part of everyone’s day. It doesn’t matter where you are in the house, you will hear his piercing screams - which I am realizing are all the more hard to hear after you have heard him laugh. It is seriously heart-breaking, and though I don’t have kids, I feel like it would hurt this bad to see your kids hurting this bad (sorry Mom and Daddy, from Stephan, Anna, and me). His foot has two crater-like holes in it, on the outside of his foot. One is more towards his heel and literally looks like you could take a golf ball and place it comfortably resting in it. Then the other one is more in the middle of his foot and is about the size of a quarter but not quite as deep. We are still fighting infection but but he went back to the hospital in Kampala on Thursday and we were told that we were doing a good job with it - which was very reassuring to hear! (I have a picture of us that I will try to get up soon)

Despite the wonderful joy of having Sam home, we have been faced with yet another difficulty this past week. A little girl Zuena, who is about 5 or 6, was admitted to the hospital Wednesday, and then the ICU shortly after. She hadn’t been feeling well the few days before and Wednesday morning was almost unresponsive. She has A-Fib (which I have had some exposure to), as well as some other heart and health conditions, which are typically found in the sub-Sahara African region. Thursday evening we heard back from the doctors that her kidneys are not functioning properly, she is in heart failure, and her blood pressure is really low - so lots of areas for prayer.. It is a bit scary, not just for her life, but also with the timing of everything that has been happening here, it’s just hard to be going through yet something else. Thursday night, we sat around and prayed that the Lord would heal Zuena and that He would grant peace to all the lives that she has touched, but ultimately that His will be done, as hard as that may be. For He has definitely ised her in many ways in only the short number of years she’s been alive, and the past year she has been at Ekisa.

In the two weeks that I have been here, here are some things I have learned and observed about Zuena. She is really small built with big tummy and chest (as ironic as it is to say, her heart is literally too big for her body), a huge smile, and a lot of sass:) She will often laugh at you, and not always with you, especially if you are laughing at her haha. She has this look where you know she is either not happy at something, or wants you to do something to fix something immediately; she looks up at you with her big eyes, narrowed eyebrows and her mouth in quite a sassy way - all together you can’t help but laugh, but she usually always gets what she wants. Actually she is the kid I was primarily thinking about when I said in an earlier post that “these kids can be quite sassy and know how to work it to get what they want.” Yep, Zuena has mastered this! She is also so funny and will be buddy-buddy to anyone who she thinks can be of benefit to her. She loves sitting on the kitchen table while we are cooking because she knows that her aunties will always let her taste something, or maybe even share half of their meal with her. She is also one of the biggest flirts here! Emily did her hair earlier this week in these little puff-balls and the first thing she said when Emily was finished was “Auntie, Walter” while gesturing to her hair. She then proceeded to make Emily carry her outside to show her hair to Walter and the other boys - so funny! And then, she likes to cuddle, and I have tucked her into bed a number of times where I will end up laying in bed with her for awhile in her small bed; she’s also so funny when I’ve done this because I’ll close my eyes and act like I’m sleeping, and she’l touch my face and whisper “auntie.” When I open my eyes she’ll whisper “shhh” and tell me “close your eyes.” 

I don’t think that any of these tidbits about Zuena really justify the beauty and joy that is embodied in this little girl. I have only been here two weeks but I feel blessed to have gotten to know her already and continue to pray that the Lord heal her and bring her home, and I ask for your prayers as well for all us here at Ekisa. 

But Lord, I pray above all things that we continue to trust in You - Your will, Your desires, and Your plan - for you are faithful and above all else deserve to be praised, even in the midst of trials and hardships. Amen.

He continues to be faithful

This week has been really great :) It has been great getting settled in and I really am starting to feel like I have a place here. We have a bit more of a schedule laid out with school and day-to-day activities, which being my type-A self, I'm really enjoying. Getting up in the morning for school, we have a lesson/activities from 9-10:30ish, snack and outdoor time, then another lesson for some of the older ones usually focusing on literacy or numeracy, then it's lunch time, nap, and then a gross motor or multisensory type activity for everyone afterwards. Our earlier lesson is focused on either fine motor, daily living skills, or science. On Wednesday we focused on brushing our teeth (which was really cute with some of the kids), and one of our activities was painting with old toothbrushes. Once they dried, I cut them into the alphabet, laminated them and then we strung them across one of the walls in the living room - kind of like decorating my classroom, right? It looks really cute though and I'll try to get a picture up soon. Also, a fun note, for those of you who would share in my excitement about this, I'm starting PECS with two kids here who are nonverbal in hopes to get them a sort of communication system. I'm super pumped about this and I guess we'll see how it goes:) Their names are Mweru and Fiona, so you  could definitely be praying for them and me as we begin this!

Wednesday night we had Bible study and it was great. Now here's to a little more about how I have been processing things about being here..I have in the past, and still do I know, struggle with comparison and feelings of inadequacy. These definitely resurfaced heading to Bible study just thinking of the people who were going to be there (not that I really know any of them except for the Ekisa girls) but thinking of the missionary community that is here in Jinja, most of the people being in their mid to late 20s who have given up so much to be here long term or even indefinitely. I was really caught up in questioning if me being here for three months was sufficient, or how people viewed me coming in for a short time. The lesson though was so great and God really wiped away doubts I had, but also had me check the motives of why I am here. 

We read 2 Corinthians 3 - go read it, it's pretty powerful! Paul first talks about how we, as Christians, are God's recommendation letter for the world. I read that and think, "yes, makes sense, for He wants to use us to bring the good news to the world" but when I really think about it, do I realize what that means!? God wants to use me and my life as a witness to others about His love, His life, and His sacrifice. This is a slightly daunting thought. But God seems to know that too, because He then uses Paul to say that we are able to have confidence because He knows that by ourselves we are not competent in anything nor can claim anything for ourselves, but our competence is solely from God. Whereas this is so comforting, it also makes me think a lot about how I never aim to be just competent and how often in life we, especially as Americans, we do not strive to be just competent but want to go above and beyond in everything we do - but how humbling to think that we are made to be competent in Christ, and Christ alone, and without Him we are not. Verse 5 also speaks to me in thinking how often I "claim" things to my own accord instead of giving them back to God. And a big example of this is being here in Africa. This circles me back around and gets me a little off my tangent, but how I have had to check my heart for being here. I know that this is where God wants me but I also struggle in not feeling prideful in what I am doing, as hard as that is to admit. I continue to pray that this trip is forever about God, not about me, and ultimately that He may be more and I may be less, for it is truly all about his glory that I am here. 

I really feel I have learned a lot this week and am so thankful to be here. On a super fun note, here's a story about our kids:) Every night before bed, after baths, the older kids come to the living room to hang out for about an hour or so, and either watch a movie on a laptop, play music, read a story, color, or really anything else, and Thursday night was music! We have a couple of drums and lets just say that we have a couple of kids who have great rhythm! Some of the boys were playing, most were singing along to African songs with the Mammas, and everyone's dancing to some capacity. Then about halfway through a song, this little guy Jason stopped everyone, announced he wanted a new song, thought for a second, and broke out (drum included) to "If You're Happy and You Know It" and sure enough everyone joined in! It was so stinkin' cute and just about made my week:) I do pretty much love it here!

Also, Sam, our little guy with sickle cell came home yesterday from the hospital. It was such answer to prayer that he was able to come home, but he is still going to have to have another surgery because he has a bone that is dead in his foot which is where the infection was/is. If I knew more medical terms I would explain more, but my understanding is very limited:) But everyone here is so excited that he is home! Literally yesterday when the van pulled up, all of the kids were screaming and running around saying "Sam is home, Sam is home!" There really is such a family here and I truly am blessed to be a part of it! However, despite all the excitement with him coming home, Emily and Emily are really worried about covering the costs of all the medical bills, as well as all the other expenses that have been accumulating elsewhere, such as paying the Mammas, food for the kids, and other medicines for other kids. Whereas I don't really want this blog to be a billboard, I would love to ask that you prayerfully consider supporting them at www.ekisa.org. While raising support to come here, I was blessed to have raised a good several hundred dollars over what I thought my budget to be, and that will be going towards these costs as well. I have been so blessed by the support, both monetary and encouragement, of so many of those around me, and know that God will continue to provide and make happen! But please also put Ekisa on your prayer list as well that the money will come in soon:)

You all are great! Thanks so much for your continued prayers and encouragement! It literally means the world to me!!

A whirlwind of a week

August 31 (I'm going to date these bc I'm writing them at the orphanage but won't be able to upload them until we go to town)

I'm here at Ekisa! Oh, and it's wonderful - the staff, the other volunteers, and of course the kids!

I already feel like I've been here for several days, yesterday was forever long! The drive to Jinja (only 120 kilometers) away took us a good 3 hours to get to, but in comparison to the 10 and 8 hour plane rides, it was nothing:) When we got here I was I thrown right in meeting everyone and started playing with the kids. That's essentially what we do is just spend time with the kids and love on them, which is great. School starts next week (they were on 'holiday') and a couple of our kids are mainstreamed in a local elementary school, which is awesome! I hope one day I can go check it out:) But for the kids that stay here and can't go to school, because of their lack of special ed classrooms, Emily, one of the girls who started Ekisa, is making lesson plans to do with them here. I'm also really excited about this for the opportunity to help and experience this kind of "classroom". Sure makes me thankful for programs in the US available for kids with special needs:) and that I getto go home and be a part of it!

Then last night we went to a restaurant that overlooked the Nile; it was beautiful! And while we were there we saw a red tailed monkey climbing around in a tree, first siting of wildlife:) Then coming home we didn't get to bed until around 11:15, and I was shocked that I wasn't passed out already from jetlag. Little did I know that it would catch up with me this morning as I slept until 12 haha! I guess it was good for me.

After waking up, we went to a cafe in town to get internet and it was such a cute little place. I loved it:) And over the course of being there for an hour, 3 people, including their pastor (who is from Roanoke, and of course a tech fan haha), came in that the other two girls knew. It was a fun feeling, because it gave me the small- town, Berryville feel of knowing everyone who walks in the door, and such a sense of community, which I am so excited to become a part of:)

Now here's to answers to questions that people have had and other things I've have learned:

- there are 22 or 23 kids here total and range from 3 months to about 11 or 12 years

- the kids disabilities also vary a lot - everywhere from CP, Downs Syndrome, language delays, physical disabilities, TBIs, intellectual disabilities, autism, to spina bifida - but they are all absolutely beautiful and created just the way God intended:) 

- I'm staying in a room in the orphanage for the volunteers and it is so much better than expected..Yay! There are cold showers, but that doesn't come as a shock.

- there is a washing machine, also, yay!

- they drive on the left side of the road

- there aren't as many mosquitoes as I thought there would be

- the roads and dirt everywhere really is a red clay (note to Dad)

- most public transportation are boda bodas, aka the back of a motorcycle, or matatus, aka a van

- the kids and staff call all of the volunteers and white staff, "Auntie ____" and the Ugandan staff are called "Mama___". Everyone has a hard time saying Brecklyn, so I'm called "Auntie B" :) 

September 2

Today I went to church for the first time and I was thrown right into leading Sunday school for the baby class. I kind of wished I had gotten to hear the sermon, especially since it was my first Sunday, but I guess there are plenty to come:) 

The past week has been hard on the staff and other volunteers, because on Monday a little guy named Jojo passed away pretty unexpectedly.then on top of that another little guy named Sam, who has sickle cell, went into crisis and had to be taken to the hospital in Kampala and has been there since Wednesday. So since then there has been at least one or two staff there and always a fear for the worst. He has been going up and down in terms of getting better but we are hoping he'll be coming home soon.

Things I've learned in the past two days:

- Jinja is absolutely beautiful (I'd upload pictures, but hey guess what all that stuff is in my other bag which is still MIA - I'm not sure that truly captures the frustration I'm feeling towards the airports)

- there is a pretty good Chinese restaurant right down the road from us

- there is a cow field across the street (note to Hardesty's) :)

- I have a phone, and it's one of the old school Nokia ones that has snake on it! But I'm not sure my number haha

- the kids can be quite sassy and know how to work it to get what they want, but let's be real what kid hasn't mastered that:)

September 4 

First up, I got my bag yesterday! Ahh, this is going to make these next three months much more bearable haha:)

Yesterday should have been our first day of "school" but it was a bit chaotic  so we started today:) Yesterday a couple of the kids were sick so I went with Emily to take 3 of them to the doctors..what an experience and let's just say I'm grateful for American medicine haha. For school we are breaking it into sessions per say, and we have 2 in the morning, and 1 in the afternoon. It's going to be really fun, and Emily is letting me do a lot with teaching and helping with ideas and stuff which is great! 

Right now I'm sitting in a little cafe called The Keep during the kids lunch and nap time. I also wanted to get into town because usually we eat what the kids do for lunch, but today they were these little fish over rice, so I decided against it haha, apparently it's every tuesday, so Tuesdays may become a popular town day for me. But I came into town by myself on a boda boda :) we have a driver who knows everyone at Ekisa, William, so I called him and he came to pick me up. Since I have a skirt on, this required me to sit sideways on the back of a dirt bike, essentially, and ride to town. I was slightly panicked the whole time to say the least haha.  Drivers here are crazy, pass whenever, use no turn signals, and honk at each other all the time. But nobody's that aggressive or mean like you get in the U.S. Everyone here is so friendly and I have gotten used to being pointed at by kids and being called 'musungo' meaning white person haha. It's funny though because everyone speaks English but people talk very slow and completely enunciate each word. Usually everyone says hi to each other and the question to follow is 'how are you?' which is replied 'I am fine and you?.' It makes me smile because every is very rote but really fun. 

Love you all and thanks for wanting to stay updated! I'm still trying to process everything thats really going on, but for now this is it!!

I'm here and safe!

I am starting writing this in the airport in Istanbul, Turkey! I have an hour layover here before getting on the plane to head to Entebbe. The first 10 hour flight went smoothly enough, but its nice to have a layover to move my legs a bit - except navigating the airport has proved slightly difficult because everything (including most of the announcements) are in Turkish so I can understand next to nothing. But I found my gate number so here I sit getting ready to board. Internet is a little shaky, but I think (hopefully it went through) I sent a message to Stephan telling him to tell dad I made it here! I'm hoping he got it and someone at least knows I'm safe:)

And after a very long journey I am sitting in the hotel on Entebbe eating breakfast consisting of coffee, fresh fruit, and a nutrigrain bar packed from home. Our flight from Turkey to Entebbe had a stop in Kigabe, Rwanda, but we remained on the plane for about an hour. I'm not really sure where time went wrong, but even with our stop we were supposed to land in Entebbe at 2:50 am, but we managed to leave Rwanda at 2:45 - and I seemed to be the only one that really minded this, I guess this is all part of "Africa time" that is going to take some getting used to:) Needless to say we arrived way late, closer to 4:00, and I was very nervous that the guy who was supposed to pick me up at 2:50 had already gone home. Then I went to pick up my bags and only one came, and it should be noted that the one that is now missing is the one with all of my clothes in it..good. So I had to leave Abdul (my driver) waiting even longer as I gave them all my info to hopefully find my bag. But around 5:15 I checked into the hotel and about 5 minutes later there was a rooster crowing out my window haha. I got about 2 hours of sleep and am now back up and waiting for Job (my driver to Ekisa) to come get me at 10:) Can't believe that this is actually real, that I am in Uganda and will be meeting everyone this afternoon!!

I would love to not only have you read about my life but also hear from you too, either via email (brb9p@virginia.edu) oorrrrr if you want to send me snail mail :) my address is:

Ekisa Ministries

Attn: Brecklyn Bodkin

PO Box 817

Jinja, Uganda 

Formatting kinda sucks.. Sorry about it, slightly technologically challenged:)

1 WEEK!

1 week from today I get on the plane and head across the world. People have been asking me all summer if I'm getting ready for my trip, or if I'm ready, or how I feel, and most of the time the answers are "kind of," "not quite," and "so excited!" Now, one week before I leave, the answers are "trying to," "still not quite," and "still so excited, but a little nervous."

This past weekend I was in Richmond after being in the wedding of one of my best friends - Mrs. Brittney Kraus :)  Not only was it such a blessing to get to be a part of such a beautiful weekend and celebration, it was also so nice to be able to see, and consequently, say good bye to so many close friends. However, with that said, it was a much more emotional weekend than expected, as it was a lot harder to say good byes than I thought it would be. I realize that three months is not that long and will go so quickly, but I started to feel some feelings of anxiousness of going by myself, not really knowing what to expect, and adjusting to everything as it comes.

I have mentioned previously how I am completely affirmed that this is where God wants me this fall, and I don't think I can truly describe how awesome that feels! So with that, I know that I need to cast my fears and anxieties to Him (1 Peter 5:7), and I ask that you pray for me to do this as well. I want to be on my way to Uganda in a week with a heart that is anxious to serve Him and His beautiful children!

Here's my itinerary:
Depart from Dulles: August 28 at 11:25 P.M. (it will be a late night for my parents)
Two Hour Layover in Istanbul, Turkey, than land in Entebbe, Uganda at 2:50 A.M. where I will be picked up by a hotel van and spend the rest of the night at the Entebbe Inn :) Later that morning I will be picked up by someone from Ekisa, and then taken to Jinja to meet everyone!

I am assuming that I will get internet access somewhere, so hopefully I will be able to at least get on to let everyone know how travels are going! Please also pray for safe and easy travels! Thank you all for your support, prayers, and interest in my adventure - I really could not be more excited!

Update

It's been a long time. But now I am officially done all of my classes, and all I have left in school is my student teaching - and I could not be more excited! But before I do that, I get the opportuniy to spend three months in Jinja, Uganda, with the beautiful children at Ekisa!

Now for an update on support raising!
I sent out support letters mid-April, and since then have raise right around $2400. I need about $3000, which will cover my flight, housing, meals, vaccinatons, and other in-country expenses, such as transportation, internet, and a Visa. I have received such generous support, both monetary as well as letters and words of encouragement, and I could not be more appreciative and grateful for those in my life who continue to support me in seeking after God and His plan for my life. I continue to be affirmed in the fact that Uganda is where God wants me in the fall!

I know that God is faithful and will continue to provide for both me and this trip, and I am hoping that with extra funds I will be able to bring extra items with me to benefit and support the orphanage. A couple of weeks ago I received an email from their volunteer coordinator with advice and help in planning for my trip. At the end it said included a list of things that Ekisa needs, such as HP deskjet 2050 j510 series ink cartridges, medical tape, boys clothes (size 7 and up), and chewable vitamins, as well as suggestions for what to bring for the kids: cloth diapers, toy cars, building blocks, wooden Brio type trains/cars, books, craft stuff (like paint), construction paper, stamps, punches, glitter, stickers, PVA glue, glue sticks, and wax crayons.

Whereas, I would love to ask for donations for any and all of the items listed above, packing them and shipping them will probably pose difficult. However, I am really hoping that I am able to raise above and beyond the needed costs, and with extra money (or if anyone would like to make donations to put specifically towards these needed items) I want to find out more specifically what they need and then shop/pack accordingly. Ultimately, I want to be able to bring with me a lot more than I come home with:)

Please let me know if you have any questions! Thank you everyone who has already supported me, and for those of you who are keeping me in your prayers! You are amazing!