St.Valentine’s Day

Posted on February 14, 2015 by Fiona Schneider

Not much hype here about St Valentine, obscure Christian martyr of 269 AD.
Not that there isn’t an ethos of romance and love and ‘Go forth and multiply ‘. I’m surrounded by little children. Persuavive skills to encourage contraception, even for child spacing, trip on the edge of a cultural springboard signed ‘Multiply’.
No society escapes misplaced sexual behaviour but an effort to challenge it for the good of relationships, families and children.. is that not positive?

I love the word dignity, in this photo.It’s not a word I use much in my sexual health practice. But it’s a healthy word and worth repeating and pondering on.Created in a virgin state, the choice of when to first have sex needs to be dignified and under the control of the virgin.
So it’s sad to hear rumours of hype about a film of domineering, manipulative sexual abuse taking the limelight in the UK. When porn or sexual abuse are sought out as entertainment and marketed as mainstream in a society, the society is in decline. If we can stand up about this we may give a glimpse of a film’s attempt at degrading an undegradable people. A report this week gives shocking figures for UK teenagers in sexually abusive relationships.

http:// http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/four-in-10-teenage-girls-coerced-into-sex-acts-10037846.html

Children thrive in safe families built on a parent relationship of trust. Trust thrives in a supportive nonabusive, non threatening exclusive sexual relationship. Society thrives on building blocks of secure families. Of course, there will be childless households and unpartnered individuals for many reasons, but the multiplication of a society of dignity requires security of its children and young people who can be confident to enjoy a responsible freedom in their own generation.

Here is an anti HIV poster…. Change the word AIDS to PORN….use both. In the year of removal of topless women in the Sun newspaper, there can be hope for a responsible society putting sexual behaviour in its rightful place.

As the children of Uganda cry out
‘How are you, European ? ‘

Thankfully,God is Love is timeless and meets us at our point of need.Know love this Valentine’s day.

Degrading Undegradable

Posted on February 14, 2015 by Fiona Schneider

Plastic,plastic,plastic..
everywhere,everywhere, everywhere .
It’s a mess. It’s cheap and it’s careless. It’s bags,it’s bottles it’s water cans and broken chairs.Rubbish with a price… and with a value.

Plastic bags

The road has been remade recently and the plastic bags are now half embedded in the road.
On the path home, the pigs and chickens scratch amongst the debris.,the plastic. We have the knowledge on food chain contamination but no will to care.We know that water sitting on a plastic bag is a great place for breeding mosquitoes.We know there is a lot of malaria here.No will to clear up, no will to educate. No will to afford large scale recycling.The fall in oil prices is bad for recycling.
A worldwide problem and A We Don’t Care problem.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-31432515

But a ray of hope.Fazzi with his broken plastic jerry cans

Eeking a living out of collection and nurturing the infant recycle.
I like this guy, he wants to collect metal but for now he wants the plastic monopoly. On the back of research into the process of collection and recycle, a trip around the main plant for plastic recycling looms.Should be interesting even if not on my original Uganda agenda. Might stop my scream of frustration at this degrading undegradable mess.

#InspirationalUgandans

Posted on February 11, 2015 by Fiona Schneider

Hear the stories and be humbled.

Uganda is a goldmine of talent,strong spirit,courage and endeavour. It’s all around me and that talent’s
seismic activity just needs to break out of the crust and be free.

Lois employee

Christine

Meet Christine, a dress designer of much style and talent.She’s made a great dress for me. A smiling happy lady who learnt to sew 8 years ago, then trained 6 machinists and now employs them. She works from 0700 til 2200 each day except Sunday. She is a Christian and her faith is her strength. She has two sons and has lost her husband.Look and see that she has no use of her legs since polio targeted her as a small child.

And yesterday,a blind Leeds university masters scholaship graduate came to talk about the orphaned siblings she cares for.A lady whose computer has a voice and so does she. Already she has lobbied the UK House of Lords on disability rights.Now back in Uganda to contribute with her talent to the buzz and excitement of the young generation. Discriminated against because of her lack of sight yet resilient, courageous and inspirational.

Or one of the top students in his specialist subject at Gulu university. Bright and articulate he’s peaceful and yet striving to better himself and his family. He spent the holidays rebuilding the roof of the family thatched cottage.Formerly a Kampala street boy and before that running for his life from the massacres and atrocities of the Lord’s Resistance Army.

There is a lot more to tell of his story and he is slowly writing it down. Pain and agony just allowed enough space to appall and his reaction, to humble and inspire the listener.

There are many many more. Let there be a bright dawn for Uganda.

Funnels and Pyramids

Posted on February 4, 2015 by Fiona Schneider

February 3rd 2015

Grey grey highlights bald blond grey grey coloured highlights coloured grey grey.Or black black black bald bald greying black bald black black extensions bald.
The first applying to the typical hairstyles down a typical local street.The second sentence; hairstyles typically, here, children often shaved bald for hygienic reasons.
At home, at the Christmas period you can see the return of an 18-30 generation. In between we are pensioner lopsided and Clark Foley, the over 50s centre, open to a fair few of our town. For rest and refreshment and University of the third age.
Come south to the Equator,zero degrees north and south, and zero is a very common age. Us European northerners match our latitude too where over 50 is the boom.
Lots of little children everywhere, here

Exploring languages as they call to me, ” Bye…see you ” “how are you Muzungu?” It’s a pyramidal demographic that is vibrant, engaging, energising and hungry for a great future.
Our funnel demographic may be pensioner rich and pension payer poor but wisdom of experience is a treasure.Our elders have stories to tell.Wisdom to share and experience we know nothing about. Generational fracture is common place in Europe allowing us to dismiss and forget the value of our greyheads.

The pyramidal society need to know wise stories and our funnel society would do well to listen to them and give them voice before they are lost. A cylindrical demographic would help.
Respect for elders here is engrained so that children and young people kneel to elders in their family. Can I feel my western audience cringe? Why?

Education Sunday

Posted on February 4, 2015 by Fiona Schneider

1st February 2015

It’s Sunday!
In many Christian churches in the UK,today, education is talked
about and schools staff and pupils prayed for. Education Sunday. This is an education Sunday for me, as was last Sunday and as every Sunday can be.

I didn’t like the cockrel this morning.. All that loud flapping of wings before his virile pride burst forth into a dark hot 5 o’clock morning. Shhh and go away!

But education Sunday had begun and out of the darkness came harmonious rich beautiful singing. I’m not able to understand the words but the gentleness of the singing was a much better alarm clock than Mr.Cock.African singing at its best.

Lesson one : the local church can be
deeply devotional and not tied to a Sunday lie in.Jesus comes first.

Lesson two: corperate harmonious worship can enrich a community and it’s ok to let the neighbours hear.

At 7am, still behind the mosquito net snoozing I heard my host, the pastor, leaving for the first service. I didn’t want to get up.Too comfortable. Others of our household were sweeping floors and tending to small children. I didn’t want to get up just then,either.

Lesson 3: There’s a lot of work to be done. Lying in bed doesn’t get it done.

I attended the third church service of the day at 1100. What joy!
Music already in full swing with over two hundred gathered for worship. Singing, drums, dancing and lots of small children everywhere. It’s loud but the amplifier makes it very loud. It’s welcoming and joyful and controlled. It’s a performance only to an observer not to those interested in worship,but it is hard not to feel stiff.Everyone’s smiling and that soon includes me.

Lesson four: don’t be so self conscious. Noone ‘s watching you. Worship.

The photo attaching this post is all about help for shoes punning the good news.

The preacher’s job is to point to real help for souls. I’ve never experienced so much applause in a sermon as this one progressed. Spontaneous congregation participation. Real anguish healing and forgiveness from God is the experience of the congregation here.They know it and are believing and very very grateful.

Lesson five:
Jesus died for you and can heal your soul and bring healing in your life.The cobbler gets it and it’s up to your answer to the question Jesus asked Peter. “Who do you say I am? ” See Matthew ‘s gospel chapter sixteen verses15-19

I’m sort of bilingual.. I can get by.Spontaneous translation is quite another art. They have sermon translation down to a fine art. Fast and fiery at times, the preacher changes language and so must the interpreter. It’s slick and professional.And the occasional untranslatable word or saying

Lesson 6:
Uganda and so much of Africa is a bank full of credit for the world. The world sits staring like a miser at a pile of gold.

Lesson 7 : Man’s inhumanity to man is a worldwide phenomenon not an African one.

Education Sunday… So much to learn, so much to be thankful for and so much to respond to.

Welcome

Posted on January 31, 2015 by Fiona Schneider

21 JAN 2015

And so we arrived in Uganda. My luggage and I. The beautiful bicycle all in the box.A big thank you to KLM for waiving the fee as a charitable gift. And to the packer.

(Just for the record re the “dwellers all in time and space ” post, my plane neighbour was upgraded and left me to enjoy a seat for two.Not complaining that his penchant for a violent film didn’t distract my reading)
Uganda is a place of warmth. Not just the equatorial sunshine, but the kindness of her people. So many people give such heartfelt greetings and
” Welcome ” is their word. It’s hard not to take a step back and feel undeserving of their words,smile and kindness.

Some have invited me into their houses in the few days I have been here and whatever the home style, the welcome has been humbling. “Welcome” tumbles off the lips of strangers as I struggle with quelling a sense of intrusion into their privacy.The visits are deeply appreciated as the pastor of the church his team and I call in on neighbours in the community just saying what a church is about. And they have a lot on offer.Caring, feeding educating, healing,medicines,support and salvation. Whatever the worldview of the folks we have seen there has never not been an active “Welcome “. Europe. Let’s learn.

Dreams and Angels, Boys and Bikes

Posted on January 18, 2015 by Fiona Schneider

A vivid dream. It always brings me to wondering why I have a vivid dream . Sometimes it wakes me suddenly with anxiety or sometimes it is just a strange pondering of why did I dream that . Go back a few months and I had a clear dream on three separate occasions within ten days .And exactly the same dream.

By then,I had to question what is going on .Why? and will I dream it again ? It wasn’t an unpleasant dream but an urgent dream of taking a mountain bike to Uganda. On making further inquires about my forthcoming trip, I was told that a mountain bike would be highly treasured and loved. The reply to my query was a definite ,” Yes , take the bike ” . The only problem was I didn’t have a mountain bike . Without very much searching at all, but with an off the cuff remark that I was thinking of taking a bike to Uganda, a very kind colleague offered me a mountain bike ,a few days later. One that was’ in the way ” and one that I was more than welcome to have. My remonstrations followed, that the bike could be sold .Were my colleague and her family really sure they wanted to give the bike away? A definite “Yes”.

My colleague’s generosity now means I have a large box packaged and ready for the flight to Africa .I have pondered over a few days how the mountain bike will be used,Will it be a communal bike for the school or for a particular family or community?

As it happened , just a few days ago I heard a story about Archbishop Sentamu, who in his childhood had cycled for medical help for his miscarrying mother.He had to return to her and his fearful siblings before the doctor arrived and he is reported to have seen angels surrounding her and protecting her. This was a great story to hear as we repaired the mountain bike. A story of a small boy in Uganda, needing a bike for speed, in an emergency, to reach out for help. Angels protected John Sentamu’s mission and his mother and we can pray that the angels will protect this special mountain bike so it can be useful in Africa.

Angels featured again in conversation this week. Our homeless local told me of the angels that sleep with him at night .The cold had not bothered him and his only regret , was that the angels were not so present in the daylight hours. Whatever our faith, creed or country people see angels and know the protecting power of God , whose messengers they are.

Dreams and vision, faith and bicycles …it’s a great mix for the start of a trip to Africa , but also for the everyday routine.

Fiona Schneider

…at home at fifty three point nine degrees North

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