Jan. 31, 2018 – It’s mid-week of my final week in Uganda. My time here has been shorter, but always good in it’s own way – with its own stories to tell.

This trip has not been without its challenges: no water for a couple of days and after it was restored, having a truck drive by my place of residence and clip the power wire extending to my home. I now have no power – even when the rest of the village has power. The power usually goes off and on during the day, but mine is really OFF! Hopefully someone is coming to look at the problem, but in Ugandan time!

I do feel I have handled these problems and the situations that occur, with more patience and acceptance. It is just the way it is, and you figure out how to go on and deal with it.

This morning Rose and I set off to visit Stephen at Saint Augustine University where he is in Medical School. He’s no longer in the Road to Hope Program, but his former sponsor has extended her support directly to him to continue schooling to fulfill his dream to become a doctor. He is doing well and wanted me to visit. We didn’t stay long because classes were starting. He is certainly a “success story” for the Road to Hope and is proud of where his support has come from. He wants to remain a “spokesperson” for Palliative Care and the Road to Hope!

After our visit with Stephen we set off to visit Annet, a child with disabilities who Tom and I sponsor. She stays with her grandmother during school breaks. Although communication is a problem for me, we always have a friendly and warm visit. Jaja is very pleased with Annet’s schooling at L’Arche and feels she has returned looking healthy, more settled, with better eating and toileting habits. This is what we all want for Annet. She is a happy person and gets lots of love from everyone.

Rose and I returned to the village following our visits. My resource to “fire up” my batteries was to use the power at the office, but here I am in the village and my computer has about 30 minutes of power left. I hoped to use Rose’s power from her home, but the power in the village is off and on today!

I am still hopeful!

Tomorrow George and I are going shopping. I am sure that will provide more stories to tell!