We were driven to the site and were told about why we were there. The goal was to create a house for a mother and her two children in our community. The mother had no other place to go and David impressed on us the importance of taking care of each other. Instead of having two children go to orphanages due to the inability for parental care, they would be able to remain in the community as well as be taken care of by their mother.
We were given hoes, pick axes, shovels and gloves. There were a few Ugandan engineers on site and they helped us lay out the measure for the foundation. Each of us took turns evicting the clay baked Ugandan soil from its home. We dug down about two feet.
As this process was underway, several of us walked about fifteen minutes downhill to a water tap. At this water tap were many children filling up 20 liter Jeri cans with water who would then carry them home for their family to use. The water was clean of debris and looked clear. However we could not drink it due to the presence of typhoid. Some of the children were drinking the water. We were told that this was okay since their immunities had built up enough to allow them to effectively fight off the typhoid bacteria.
We filled up the Jeri cans and then struggled to carry them by hand back uphill to the construction site. I was humbled many times as children perhaps four or five years of age walked past me with their Jeri cans in hand with no huffing or puffing. I tried to be a stud and took two. However, I quickly found out that I was not able to manage them. I was thankful for one of the children who had come with us. He must have been eleven or twelve. He picked up both and carried them for a bit up the path. He then set them down and I then let out a sigh as it was my turn to carry them. We alternated this way until we got back to the site. To be perfectly honest, he probably carried them 2/3 of the way while I only huffed them about 1/3 of the way. Quite the trip.
Those who had stayed behind had not been lazy. Four enormous piles of bricks towered each of the corners of the freshly dug trench. I also noticed that a dump truck had come and dumped a large pile of sand nearby. A wheelbarrow was quickly brought and sand was shoveled inside. I walked over to the wheelbarrow and proceeded to deliver seven large bucketfuls of sand to a clear spot on the ground. One bag of cement was added as well as the water. Two of the Ugandans grabbed hoes and began to work the water into the sand and cement, creating freshly made concrete.
The freshly made mortar was shoveled into trays by some of our children and others then began taking the mortar to the brick layers. Other people were taking bricks and making sure that the brick layers had the bricks handy. We worked throughout the day and finished the foundation as well as the four corners of the house. The following day we made more concrete and finished the walls as well as installed the doors and windows.
The third and final day, the team wasn’t available so the Ugandans and I went back and spent the day finishing the roof. It was a lot of work. We framed it out and then nailed metal sheathing onto it. Some of the others with us made concrete for the floor. This involved mixing large stones into mortar. It looked like a lot of work. I was too busy helping make the roof to help with the poured concrete floor. It looked like a lot of work and I was actually thankful that I didn’t have to do it. The children who helped us worked very hard too. Many of them worked without shoes.
As I was reflecting on child labor, I realized how much of a blessing this work was to them as it was to us. The children are learning valuable skills that will aid them in getting jobs as the grow older. It also builds their muscle, their work ethic and their knowledge of the building process. It was interesting to see how the Ugandans all worked together. Each one was looking out for the other. There was no competing or boasting of one over another. I have never before seen children be so respectful of adults or so hardworking. I didn’t hear any complaining at all. Of course, it is not in Ugandan culture to complain. The could have been complaining inwardly, but I didn’t know it. But from the looks on their faces, they looked as if they were enjoying the process. I also noted that the children seemed to know what to do better than we did. They acted like they had done it before. Indeed there are lots of opportunities to help out.
Speaking of children, Javonta came one of the days and helped out. He worked his butt off and didn’t complain one bit either. He helped mix the mortar as well as dig the trench and carry water. He said that he enjoyed his experience and was thankful for having gone. I was impressed by the amount of work he put forth. Javonta has really manned up quite a bit since arriving here. I think he sees just how good he has it. All of the other children on the FDLM base have chores to do and they all share a room. Javonta has his own room and hasn’t had to engage in the chore regime as of yet. Javonta has been engaging the other children and staff in conversation and has been going in and around the base on his own off and on to play with them. The Ugandan children are extremely outgoing and have been very committed to loving Javonta. Some of them had even asked my why Javonta was so quiet. At the time we had just gotten there and Javonta was struggling with a mighty bout of jet lag. It was interesting to see the concern these children had for getting to know Javonta. He has since opened up a bit and is letting them in. He loves to wrestle with them and they definitely love to wrestle him. As I write this, Javonta is actually out with one of the staff members monkey hunting. He had wanted to go before with a bow and arrow he had bought in Jinja. But since shooting monkeys with bows and arrows is ILLEGAL, we told him that he could only go monkey sighting. I’m sure he will have an interesting story to tell when he gets back.
No comments:
Post a Comment