Rwentutu School - Summer 2010

What I've Learned...

 Jackie, Evan and I enjoying one of our last days in Kasese!

In no particular order, here are the top seven things (because I couldn't cut it to five, and ten was too long) I have learned this summer:

1. Have Patience
Whether it was waiting all day to see an elephant at a National Park, going over the concept of fractions with my students slower than I ever had before, or waiting, always waiting, for general day-to-day things, my patience was tested and strengthened many times this summer. There is no rush for anything in Uganda, and pace of life is much slower than what I was used to. "Now" doesn't mean "right away," but it means within an hour. In fact, a common phrase among people here is "Now?" or "Now Now?" People don't have schedules, or if they do, there is a general understanding among everyone that it's not set in stone. If it is imperative for someone to be on time, the people here actually refer to it as "American time" (i.e. "The meeting will start at 4:30 American Time"). At first it was difficult to adjust, after living such a fast-paced lifestyle in the States, but eventually I got used to it, and to be honest came to enjoy it. It was nice to relax, take a deep breath, and just let go. Patience sure is a virtue, and I mean it when I say that everything this summer turned out to be worth the wait.

2. Make people come first
Two of the closest friends we made in Kasese taught me this lesson, and ironically they were also two of the busiest people we met. Godfrey, who I have written about before, owns and operates a beautiful hotel near our house. Afan runs an energetic video/music store in Kasese. Despite their busy schedules, whenever we would drop by to say hello they would put their work completely aside to sit and chat with us. Not once did they ask if we could come back another time, or cut the conversation short so they could get back to work. They put friendships and relationships first, work second. They made us feel worth their time, knowing that whatever work was waiting for them would get done, it would just have to wait. Granted, people here do live a slower-paced lifestyle and can usually afford to spare endless amounts of time away from their work without being penalized, but it really is amazing how much people value family and friendship. Make family and friends number one on your priority list. 

Pictured above with our good friend Afan

3. You can't control everything/anything
I can't even begin to tell you how many times this summer things didn't go as planned. In fact, there was no "as planned." We quickly learned that when making plans, there was a 90% chance things wouldn't work out like we expected them to. We had many difficulties with our car, the power would randomly go out at our home (for hours, sometimes days, at a time), our time at school was shortened by a week, and we found ourselves waiting around for things quite a bit, either in town or at school. In these situations, it's easy to get frustrated, but becoming frustrated will only make things worse. We've been playing a lot of Scrabble this summer, and to use a Scrabble analogy, you have your seven tiles in front of you, and you can tentatively plan out where you want to place them on the board, but you never know what the person ahead of you will do. They could block you, forcing you to take a different approach that could lead to a better or worse outcome. They could avoid your original plan completely, and you could lay your tiles like you always wanted to. Or, they could lay a word that opens up a better opportunity (maybe a triple-word score) for you. The point is that you can make plans and have ideas, but things change and there's nothing you can do about it (in Scrabble, you're not allowed to move or rearrange other players' tiles). You still have to play the game and make the best of every situation.

4. Take the time to ask, "How are you?"
In this culture, people greet each other. All of the time. You never ask for something directly or begin a conversation without first extending warm welcomes to each other. The greetings all follow a similar, predictable format. A strong handshake, warm smile, and then:

"Hello, how are you?"
"I'm fine, how are you?"
"Fine, how is the day?"
"The day is good, how is yours?"
"Ah, mine is all right, yes."
"Good, good…do you have yellow bananas today?"

And while it might have seemed simple, the point of the greetings is to acknowledge each others' presence and inquire about each others' lives before doing anything else. I thought of all the times when I'm in a rush at home, and hastily tell the man at Starbucks my order before taking five seconds to greet him and ask how he is doing. Or stop an employee at a department store to quickly ask where something is located without even saying hello. Greetings don’t take long, and while not all answers may be genuine (even over here, people say they are "good" when really they might not be), you are at least inquiring about the person first before taking care of business. It's small, but it makes a difference.

5. Live Simply, Live Passionately

People here don't have much, but they have everything that they need. The lifestyle surrounding me every day sometimes made me forget this was a third-world country. People enjoy each others' company, they bring intensity into their singing and dancing, they are expressive when they tell stories, and they are always grateful.

 

6. Take Risks and Have Faith
Being the pioneers for this program, we took a huge leap of faith when we decided to come this summer. We were the first teachers to come to Rwentutu School from the United States, the first teachers to come and stay for an entire term. There was the chance that the local teachers wouldn't enjoy our presence or our ideas, a chance that being so far from home for such a long time would be too hard for us, a chance that we wouldn’t be able to acclimate to our new surroundings and new culture. But taking risks and having faith go side-by-side for a reason. I’ll admit there were days when I didn’t think I was cut out for this experience, that I questioned my decision and wished I were home. That’s when you have to have faith. Always have faith that everything happens for a reason, everything will work out how it’s supposed to. Relax and enjoy the ride.

6. You don't have to go to Africa to make a difference
I could not have done what I did this summer if it weren't for the support from each and every one of you. Every time I was feeling frustrated or homesick, there was an encouraging email in my Inbox, a comment on my blog, or even a letter in my PO Box. You are the ones who made a difference in this world by your support and encouragement during my time in Uganda.
I was strong in Africa because of you. I approached each day with high hopes and motivation because of you. And I also am excited to come home because of you.
You don't have to go to Uganda to make a difference. We make a difference, no matter who we are or what we do. And you have all made a difference in my life this summer.
As they say in Lugandan, wasingja (wah-seen-ja).
Thank you.

Friday's Farewell

All goodbyes are hard, but this was one of the hardest.  After eight weeks together – eight weeks of reading together, teaching together, singing, running, laughing, and becoming part of the Rwentutu School Community, our time together has come to an end.  It was a bittersweet day on Friday as we spent time cherishing the relationships we had made this summer while at the same time realizing how hard it was going to be to leave.

When I think back to the first day we came to Rwentutu, when all the kids just stared at us in shock and didn't quite know what to make of us, and when we were "the visitors" who really had no idea what to teach or where to start, it seems like it should have taken longer than eight weeks to get to the point where we are now.  But in only eight weeks it has become so comfortable for all of us at the school that Evan, Jackie and I can walk across the schoolyard like we were any other teacher at the school…well, almost :)

We still had kids clamoring for our attention, or crowding around our door at the end of class times to come and play outside (like the little ones in the picture above).  We were still learning more about the school, the children, their families, and our fellow teachers.  But for the most part, we felt like we belonged, which is something to be said about everyone who is a part of Rwentutu School.

What an incredible school.  While I wish I could teach those kids forever, and I am so sad to be leaving, I am comforted by the fact that they are in good hands.  The teachers and staff at Rwentutu are wonderful.  They care about the kids, they want the kids to receive a good education, and they will continue to provide them with that gift term after term, year after year, and visitor after visitor.

In our farewell ceremony on Friday afternoon, the Headteacher, King James, spoke to us and thanked us for an amazing time together.  "We have a saying here," he said, "that an old broom knows all the corners of the house.  And while a new broom might sweep better than an old one, it is because old one has known all the corners."  I think I can safely say this is the first time I have ever been complimented by being called "an old broom."  The three of us this summer were the "old broom" – the first visitors from the United States, and the first students to stay and teach at Rwentutu School for an entire term.  The old broom that grew accustomed to the school system, that learned how the school works and how we could figure ourselves into the school in a way that would both respect and enhance the educational practices that were in place.  I hope, and I really do think, we have done an adequate job of "sweeping" this first year, and I can't wait for more students to come and pick up from where we left off.

 

In some ways, I can't believe eight weeks has come and gone, and in some ways I most definitely can.  While the days were incredibly rewarding, they were also physically and emotionally exhausting.  We gave each day everything we had.  Sometimes it was hard.  I'm not sure yet how much I miss those chaotic moments when it seemed like all 43 of my Primary Three students needed me to give them paper, spell a word, read a paragraph, sharpen a pencil, give them colors, lend them a pen all at the same time without having me lose my patience, but I do miss the moments immediately following the chaos…when all the students were settled, content, and genuinely happy and grateful to be learning.  The days were long, and the days were draining, but the days were always, always worth it.

I wish I could help Beneth finish her book, or once again play Darryne in her favorite game, or kick the soccer ball around a few more times with my Primary Three boys.  I wish I could just have a little more time to read with Lyric and Vasta, and I wish I could see the leader that James is going to become.  They have all worked so hard, and together we have accomplished so much this summer!  The evidence that these kids have grown and developed as thinkers is phenomenal.  All summer long I encouraged them to express their opinions and tell me their thoughts, not someone else's.   The other day I received a letter from a little boy in my class, James, and it read:

"Dear Teacher Whitney.

Please Teacher Whitney, don't go to USA.  You should not go back to USA.  Why?  Because you said that I should be telling you things which I want.  That's why you should not go to USA.  I will miss you and shall not forget you.

James"

And then there was Rachael's, whose letter started off like the kids had been instructed (all of them were told to begin, "Dear Teacher, My name is _________, I am in Primary Three.  I am very happy to write this letter for you."), but then took a little turn from there.  It reads:

"Dear Teacher Whitney.

My name is Rachael.  I am in Primary Three.  I am very happy to write this letter for you.  But actually I am not real happy, and why I am not real happy is because you are going.  You teach us good things.  I will never forget when we were playing games with you.  At our home, I tell my family that I have a friend and she is called Whitney."

I can't make myself believe that I won't be seeing those kids again, but I'm so happy and grateful that we were able to be a part of each other's lives, if only for eight short weeks.  In those eight weeks, those kids taught me to live passionately, to live simply, to laugh hard and laugh often, and to cherish everything life has to offer.  Never have I seen so many kids who yearn for an education, and I think these kids have inspired me more than I have inspired them.

Thanks kiddos, I love you always :)

 All smiles with a few little girls at school

Teacher Whitney and Primary Three

July 2010