Mrs.O's writing room.

Oh oh! This doesn't look right Okay guys! Take 1 Take 2 Just take me Uhm I didn't mean literally

Its Christmas time! Tinsel and lights, spruce and pine trees are all on display. An invitation was made in church to join the choir for our carol service. As I toyed with the idea I recalled my experience last Christmas. We had just moved into the area and I wanted to get involved. I signed up. Every practice my faith was tested. I got to see another side of Jesus that I had brushed aside or didn't care to notice even though if was written all over the scriptures. Because of my low tone I sing tenor. That's not a problem, I'm used to being one of the few ladies that sings with the men. I was sandwiched between two goofy guys. One smelled like a chimney and the other a bar. I struggled to hold my note through "glo -o- o-ria" as fumes clashed right at the center of my nose. During the 5 minute break, one dashed out to get another puff while the other hurried to the restroom. I enjoyed their company for the most part but couldn't wrap my mind around thei...

“The value of life is not in its duration, but in its donation. You are not important because of how long you live, you are important because of how effective you live. And most people are concerned about growing old rather than being effective,"  ―  Myles Munroe , "The people who have impacted the world didn't live long.  Martin Luther King . John F. Kennedy. These people who impact the world were not old people, but they lived so effectively that we cannot erase them from history,” ―  Myles Munroe , On this first day of December I remember Evelyn, a graceful leader, elegant, intelligent, compassionate, thoughtful and selfless. She was here for 24 years and left a precious imprint. She led a school, she was a faithful friend, a big sister and a wonderful daughter to her parents. At a young age few things terrified more than being dropped off to boarding school. I watched clouds of dust rise as my dad drove away. My stomach plunked down on my pelvis and li...

" The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively " ...and if that man's life is under Jesus' Lordship his purpose has been fulfilled. Some people come into your life for a period and at the time you may not realize that their influence in that season will be a pivot for life. Today, I celebrate Danstan Kisuule for his influence as a worship leader. He taught me to revere God's presence, to love God's Word and to worship with abandon. As a young Christian in Kampala Pentecostal Church I found my gift of service in the Worship ministry.  Danstan selected the worship teams, scheduled the backup rotas and chose the choir specials.  He exhorted us to keep time and make good on our word. To be present in "the moment" and not to worry about things we couldn't change. He encouraged us to tithe and dress well. "If you have just one shirt or dress,...

One morning my little guy lined his bowl with foil and proceeded to add cereal and milk. After a while I could not resist. I asked why the foil? He said it was to reduce on the number of breakfast dishes he had to wash. I smiled all the way to work.

I have the bad habit of checking my phone every few seconds; at the dinner table, between mouthfuls, in the living room, during family banter... I check my phone - anxious to receive an imaginary email, text message or stumble on the news of a life time on social media. My son throws me daggers and I can almost hear the words boiling in his head. Sometimes I eat while standing in the kitchen and sermon my little girl to her seat when she roams the house with a snack in her hand. When it's time to head out with the family I sound the alarm "It's time to go - put on your shoes and get to the car". Then I remember I didn't close the curtain or get the book I had planned to carry, so I rush back in. My little girl insists the humidifier should be plugged in her room because she senses a cold coming on (it's been "coming" for a while now). To reduce the incessant requests I tell her yeah I will do it tomorrow and never get round to it until she ...

The beginnings of craziness: The swelter of a summer’s day stirs a sudden desire to perform regrettable acts, to disregard values that have governed life. As I strain to make my way home after a day at work the sun beats down with relentless pressure. I force one foot in front of the other and resist the urge to remain motionless - to shrivel up under its burning gaze. Concerns and frustrations coupled with the need to fit into a different culture, to be accepted and understood boil within.  I straighten a paper clip and fix it in the Nissan parked in the car lot. I want to get in and drive away. The alarm goes off but I don’t care. I don’t care for the consequences, my instincts are not motivated by the need for a car. I just want a little attention. Sweat oozes from my pores. The reflection from the sun irks me. I want to scream. Now I understand why  Camus’ Stranger  pulled the trigger. The rays unravel crude instincts buried under frustrations and nagged by egoti...

Every time I walk into a dentists office, I'm reminded why I should have listened to mom. She told me sweets were not good for my teeth but it didn't register - Big G, toffees and tropical mint were essential to life. I insisted and look where it got me - constant sessions on that dreaded chair opening my mouth wide, sweating profusely as huge needles pierce my gums. I have cut a few inches off my waist and strengthened my stomach muscles in that chair. The doctor drills, fills, cements and crowns and all the while thoughts of building sites and house construction flash across mind. My stomach feels like one big pool of cold porridge at the sound of those machines. I imagine the doctor might drill through my skull, or pierce through my lower jaw. When silent machines are invented perhaps I will be a happier patient. If  teeth were on our elbows perhaps it would not feel so life threatening, one could then choose to look away while the doctor poked and pulled. But because ...

I suspect Africans possess particular hereditary material. Some of the Africans I have met here highlight the very issues we are constantly battling in Uganda. To think that these people don't know each other and yet act the same way leads me to this interesting conclusion that there is African DNA. Certain streaks die hard! I made an appointment with a Senegalese hair dresser and called her the day before to confirm. Because I had to juggle my schedule between taking kids to daycare, dropping my husband at the metro station and getting to my dental appointment, I rushed the little people's breakfast. So glad I was on schedule after the dental appointment, I drove at a good speed to the hair dressers 17 miles away (you could compare that to a trip from Kampala central to Namagunga). She let me in as soon as I arrived and proceeded to tell me how she burned her finger two days ago and therefore couldn't braid my hair. I don't know why she didn't provide this inform...

Growing up I knew there were cats period. Dad brought kittens home and we loved them. We scrambled to carry them, to sleep with them, to feed them. They lapped milk in the morning and sometimes we shared our bread. We watched TV together and put pieces of meat or chicken bones on their plates at dinner time. We curved card board boxes for them to sleep in - life was simple. However since my little guy was bit by the cat-love-bug, I have been introduced to several tribes of cats.He did the research. He counted the cost. And now a cat has to come home. Types of cats His dad and I are not too thrilled about getting a pet, it's an additional member to the home and it comes with extra expenses. I don't have strength or the money for that. My little guy insists he will take full responsibility but if his room is anything to go by, I doubt a cat will help with the situation. Cat adoption in this place is a whole other thing; the temperature in the house should remain favorable ev...

"Everyday bring everything all the time" Maya Angelou Somewhere within us is the desire to leave a legacy. My 10 year old son is on a constant search for ways to become famous. One idea he contemplated was to jump out of a flying plane without a parachute. His dad explained that with such an act he would be far from famous and not have the chance to listen to what people thought about it. Now he is on a quest to find the one thing that hasn't been invented yet. The road to greatness is not certain. Some people just know they are great, others stumble upon it, yet others wake up to it when encouraged and others still grow into it through the fortunate or not so fortunate events of  life. These events propel them to find the fire in their bellies that shoots them up to the top. News of Maya Angelou's death ripped through social media like a wild fire.The Internet was like one big slide show of her photos and quotes, tributes were on every page. Those who had never ...

"I'm going to turn you into a  bear!" She mumbles, waves her wand then strikes. The look on her face is priceless, like she actually believed her brother was going to start growling. She looks at him intensely as though in her mind it happened. Perhaps she is the only one who sees the brown fur and the sharp teeth, she left us behind, running away with her imagination. Last night with a glitter in her eyes, she said "Mummy, tomorrow is Easter!". "Yes! Tomorrow is Easter". I suspected we were excited for different reasons. Was Christ's resurrection the cause of so much joy?. Curious, I asked. "What will happen on Easter?". She gave me that don't-you-know look and said "I'm going to get an Easter Egg". Hmmm, I didn't want to burst her bubble just before she went to bed, so I smiled and said "Good night!" It's the birthday season at day care, we are constantly getting invitations. She knows all the...

Tidal basin Washington Monument and the capital in the back ground Washington Monument across the basin Martin Luther King Jr Memorial

I love it when I walk through the door and a little stray shoe lies in the corner. When I can't fit my toes into my slipper because someones tiny ball rolled into the dark space to play it's own hide and seek. It bounces into the living room. I love it when the dinning table is strewn with little toys, sometimes bent forward and other times backwards in a hap-hazard fashion. It's the little art pieces piling on the table, the pink crayon laying forsaken on the kitchen floor. It's beautiful chaos. I love this beautiful chaos, bursting with life. Little heart beats pump blood through little bodies. Learning, searching and exploring this vast universe without a care - sweet abandon. Thank you Lord, I wouldn't have it any other way.

Clock of leaves Winter-Spring Moon trapped in branches Bird sun bathing

Petticoats! Remember them? If you landed on this planet after the 90's you'll probably wonder what I refer to and no! it is not some fancy coat worn on top of a boob tube. Petticoats or half-slips are little nylon skirts worn as undergarments. Sound like the dark ages? Yeah, like who would wear extra clothes in the African heat? Probably explains why they were made of nylon and light cotton material. It was an essential item on every school girls shopping list next to Always and Vaseline. These skirts were everywhere; in suitcases, hanging up on a bathroom peg, sometimes they showed up on the clothes line outside; black and white - the two most preferred colors. We giggled when girls in primary six and seven begun to wear them - they were mature, things we studied in biology were taking place in their bodies.  Woe unto you if the elastic around the waist came loose or the lace on the hem came undone. It wasn't any of our business but when those little skirts pe...

Temperatures were in the 60's today. We thawed and busked directly under the sun's rays. Play grounds bustled with laughter and giggles of children previously deprived of their favorite activity. Thank you Lord for the sunshine.     But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays. And you will go out and frolic like well-fed calves. Malachi 4:2

This morning I finally understood 1 Corinthians 1:25 "For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength". As I sat in the auditorium I pondered how God placed a simple person like me among the brightest, most intelligent people in the world.  They moved swiftly. Suits and ties flying as they paced with purpose, making haste for an all important session. Having just returned from the dentist's office (a story for another day) and hungry as could be, I joined the pre-meeting lunch. Obviously not for matooke , rice and chicken but muzungu style nuggets: leaves, bread, cookies, water, soda ... you get the drift (and people wonder why we lose weight in "outside countries") kiri bubi bambi ! But you get with the program and eat with more passion than the owners, even looking for more salad dressing. So I was picking my leaves when this guy, his orientation clearly spelt out by his hairstyle rais...

Sun rise on the train tracks Evening moon A dash of moon in the evening blue sky Night sky

Looked like a painting Reminded me of tie and dye :-) Loved the bright spot of moon in a dark blue sky