Behind Open Walls...

These past few months, we have spent a lot of time thinking and praying about how to live well where we are, to be faithful disciples of Jesus. In one of those conversations, we found ourselves discussing our desire to build stronger friendships with Ugandans near us, and not just those we work with, buy from, or attend church with. Ashley's neighborhood walks have helped to lay the groundwork for some of those budding relationships, as well as having our oldest around who is quick to make friends and invite these new friends over for some football/soccer. One date night in, we listened to a TED talk that also showed us the impact our tall compound walls have on our relationships with neighbors. We are now striving to tear down the mental walls that accompany physical walls by inviting people into the walls as often and freely as possible (while still utilizing wisdom) as best we can.

Incorporating a weekly date night in has been a nice rhythm for us. We typically have spent it sitting on top of our back porch roof enjoying the quiet skyline of parts of Kampala while watching a TED talk or two, or discussing an article or sermon. One particularly eye-opening and challenging TED talk we listened to (https://www.ted.com/talks/alexandra_auer_the_intangible_effects_of_walls_apr_2020?language=en)  talked about the impact of physical walls and how they create mental walls as well of us versus them mentality. Since listening, we have felt a strong urge to do as much as we can to tear down mental walls and keeping our compound as open as possible to create community and togetherness in our neighborhood instead of separation and division.

Like many of you, we have endured this COVID-19 pandemic behind our home walls....well, compound walls, mostly. Since our last update, we have had a lot happen within our compound walls...and outside of them too. We've also been struck by a desire to have “open” compound walls...

Due to restrictions, we have continued to have church at home. The President of Uganda announced in his last speech that churches and other places of worship would only open in the last phase of re-opening post COVD-19.

Uganda has continued to register COVID-19 cases and at the time of writing this has had 870 confirmed cases, 808 recoveries and not a single death. Though we enter, as the Ministry of Health announced last week, Phase 3 of the pandemic with evidence of cluster community cases in a handful of districts, restrictions have started to ease for us in Kampala district. We may now drive our private vehicle with no more than 4 people inside (driver included), public transportation has opened at half capacity (but double the price), and more and more shops and businesses have opened with the requirement of social distancing and wearing of masks, to name a few.

Curfew is still in effect within Kampala (and all of Uganda) from 7pm to 6:30pm. Ashley was rushing to get home in time after a farewell gathering for a friend along with many people flooding the streets and “side-walks”. We have had several friends and colleagues leave Uganda on repatriation flights arranged by various embassies that have received special permission from the government as the airport remains officially closed. It has been hard to say goodbye especially as some have moved from Uganda back to their passport country, and others just aren't sure when they will be able to return. We remain confident in our decision to stay.

Thanks to the generous support of so many, Doors Ministries has continued to be able to provide food, soap, and charcoal for over 100 families throughout this quarantine restriction season thus far. Within the past month, Doors has also been able to connect with two local pastors in Namuwongo allowing for more widespread distribution of food, specifically to the neediest and most vulnerable families living within the slums. Thanks to the many of you who have given to this relief effort. Our oldest has been able to help with weekly food distributions, he has enjoyed the opportunity to serve in the community where he spent some of his younger years. https://www.allegrosolutions.org/donate/DoorsMinistries.001

Matt was able to return to work at the EMI office in Kajjansi on June 10^th. He must wear a mask, limit the number of people at meetings, and eat lunch in his office or outside. It has been a big adjustment for him and our family as we had been able to get into a healthy rhythm those months of him at home. He was able to be productive at work, while also getting more family time as the commute was less than a minute to our bedroom office compared to the 30 minute commute to the office one way. We miss having him around for the extra hour every day, but having meetings in person and being around coworkers has boosted his and the office morale in these trying times. 

EMI continues to have plenty of work to do, along with some big transitions coming up (and passed). Some staff have completed their time with EMI and moved back. Others have gone on extended visits to their passport countries leaving plenty of gaps in the office...plus the current Director will be transitioning out of his role into a Global Office Role on June 30th giving Matt the opportunity to step into a Deputy Director role which he does so with hesitant excitement. It all feels a bit overwhelming right now with all the gaps within the office (particularly under Matt's new role) and unknowns of many things project and work-related. In addition, he will be starting another 7 week Master's Course a week after the transition/promotion which may put additional stressors on his time. In all of this, we are confident this is the path God has for us and him. Would you pray with us, that Matt wouldn't rely on his own strength or wisdom to perform the tasks and roles set before him, and that he would simply be obedient to God through it all? And that we would be able to set healthy family rhythms that would allow him time to study without sacrificing quality family time?

EMI recently published Matt's presentation from the EMI Network conference last year. Check it out here https://emiworld.org/inside/emi-tech/getting-design-construction-appropriate-track

Our oldest has continued to stay home from boarding school. The President has given no indication of when schools will reopen. There are rumors that the earliest would be February of 2021 meaning this entire academic year (which runs from February to December in Uganda) would be at-home-learning. Once we all wrapped our heads around this, we are now trying to help guide him to set healthy rhythms and priorities for himself and continue to re-evaluate as everything continues to regularly change and opportunities come and go. He did have a friend staying with us for a couple of months, however, that friend recently moved back to his home to face some challenging situations there. Currently, our oldest is spending plenty of time studying on his own each week, attending tutoring sessions with a hired tutor a couple of times a week, and teaching/playing guitar. Most recently he has been asked to help lead worship for a local church via zoom with some of his friends from Doors. We've enjoyed the extended time at home we have had with him and conversations about making decisions, Biblical truths, and much more.

Three days a week, our oldest studies with 2 friends and a teacher for several hours at our dining table. Joshua likes to come and “study” with them toting along his coloring book and set of crayons.

Near the beginning of lockdown, some friends and neighbors would gather on our compound for a small football match with our oldest, and this day, some fresh jackfruit. Joshua and Abby have absolutely loved having different people around the house and compound regularly.

When our oldest joined our home over 3 years ago now, he did not know his true birthday so he chose a day in June and guessed at his age. Now that he has a smartphone and a Facebook page, on his fake birthday which just passed, his biological brother reached out to tell him his true birth month and birth year. He was overjoyed to have real information about himself and his semi-mysterious past. He celebrated this “fake” birthday by having some friends spend the weekend with us and playing lots of football. We will celebrate his real birthday in August.

Joshua and Abby have loved having so many people around the house and have really thrived being at home (mostly). Ashley and the kids started doing daily morning activities (mostly for Ashley's sanity...but also to establish some semblance of routine and rhythm). The kids look forward to the 30 minute to hour long morning activity which ranges from a water-based game, a craft, a learning activity, or music-based. Currently, they are very loosely going through a friend of a friend's self-made VBS-like curriculum that uses the Jesus Storybook Bible as it's basis. Last week was Noah's Ark themed, this week they are looking at the heroines of the Old Testament.

A friend of ours has been dropping her 6-year-old daughter off with Ashley and the kids 2 to 3 times a week while she goes to work. The kids have especially loved having a friend around several days a week to do our special morning activities and run around outside with. Here they are using a fallen palm tree branch as a boat.

Some of our special activities have included learning our days of a week and keeping a morning routine. The kids like to point to what is next on the morning routine.

These are some of Ashley and kids' morning activities which have included making lion masks (“Lion Hunt” song), coloring in the lines with chalk on bricks, lots of highly supervised painting (can't find washable paint in Uganda), and trying to build our own “towers of Babel” with toilet paper rolls and balancing balls on top. Ashley and the kids have all enjoyed these activities and the consistency, joy, and purpose they bring to each day. Feel free to reach out if YOU have any ideas to share!

Unfortunately during the most restrictive season of lockdown, Joshua had a post bath fall that ended him up needing one stitch on his chin. We are thankful that at the time of his fall, we quickly called the local government official for permission to drive him to the hospital immediately for stitches. To our shock, he was still at his office and waited the 10 minutes it took Ashley to load Joshua into the car and make her way to his office in order to give us the proper paperwork needed to drive to the hospital 15 minutes away. Joshua was a rockstar and is now fully recovered with a small battle scar under his chin.

Ashley has found a new hobby through all of this quarantining...gardening. It all started with a papaya she bought from the market for a snack. We kept the seeds, dried them, and just for “fun” planted them in an unkempt garden bed that was in the yard. Weeks later we had over 200 papaya tree seedlings. Since then, Ashley has taken a keen interest in watering them, transplanting them, and planting other seeds harvested from our fruits and vegetables bought from the market for consumption, or gifted to us by neighbors. We now have not only papaya trees growing all over the compound, but also pineapples, some passion fruit, tomatoes, sukuma wiki (similar to kale), avocado trees, and dodo (another type of green leafy veggie). The kids have loved “helping' her in the garden.

Ashley's new gardening hobby has taken us by surprise. It's a nice way to spend time outside while watching the kids, and feeling like something productive is getting done.

In addition to morning activities, gardening, and interacting with anyone that comes into the compound, Ashley and the kids have continued to take some neighborhood walks each week to buy food and supplies from the local shops (to feed all of our regular visitors) and interact with our neighbors. Its been a great chance for Ashley to not only get off the compound, but also practice Luganda and build new friendships, and also for the kids to try to pick up some Luganda words.

Neighborhood walks to buy food from nearby vendors has been very lifegiving for Ashley and the kids. Friendships have been build with moms and children in one area of the neighborhood in particular. One mom came over to teach Ashley to make sambusa snacks pictures above. These deep-fried pouches of goodness are filled with potatoes, cabbage, and sauteed vegetables. Since then Ashley has made some filled with Mexican rice, and others with ground beef. We look forward to seeing this relationship, and others, continue to grow.

Also a result of our neighborhood walks is our unanticipated afternoon neighborhood playgroup that we host. The children started asking if they could come and play, a simple yes has brought a lot of joy, freedom, and relationships to the compound for very many children...as well as Luganda.

Prayer requests:

• Many people in Uganda continue to struggle financially as many restrictions remain in place. Many still cannot work and earn money, especially teachers who now will likely be out of jobs until early next year. Most schools are not able to provide salaries for their teachers when school is not in session because they rely on school fees from students to pay staff. Distance learning is near impossible for most in Uganda and thus most schools as well. Please pray for the many struggling to make ends meet in Uganda, especially the large number of teachers throughout the nation.
• Please pray for Matt as he transitions into the role of Deputy Director this week and as he begins another 7 week Master's Course on July 6^th.
• Please pray for Ashley and the kids as they continue to try and learn more and more Luganda.
• Please pray for more opportunities for us to safely open our compound walls to neighbors and budding friendships, that mental walls on both sides would tear down, and that deep and meaningful relationships and conversations would develop.
• Please pray for our oldest as he continues to balance at-home-learning with fun and learning other helpful skills.
• Please pray for us and our extended families as we both had fun trips/visits planned that we were very much looking forward to. Matt's trip to Canada in late June for his brother's wedding was cancelled (the wedding postponed another year), and Ashley's mom's trip to visit Uganda during that time also cancelled. Ashley is currently still planning to travel to the USA in September for her sister's wedding, but plans are pending Uganda's borders opening and what quarantine restrictions would be in place.

Praises:

• We are so thankful for the new fun and healthy family rhythms that better reflect our priorities, including intentional time of fun and discipleship with our oldest after the young ones are in bed, reading of Scripture and discussion around the dinner table and morning exercise for Matt and Ashley switching off every morning, to name some. These rhythms are continuing to be changed and fine-tuned as we adjust to incorporating them into our lives more and more.
• We are thankful for the new friendships that have budded because of lockdown measures.
• We continue to be incredibly grateful for the beautiful compound that we call home and have been able to spend lockdown in with plenty of space for play, exercise, gardening, relaxation and more. We continue to see this place as a gift from God (see a previous update of how we found this house)
• We are thankful for the peace and confidence we feel about staying in Uganda even as we are saddened by missing trips and opportunities to see extended family this past month.
• We are thankful for Matt's opportunity to step into a new role at work that better reflects his passions and vision, as well as a Master's Course that will better equip him for this role (even if it will make life a bit busier for the next couple months).

 

Finding Hope in the Abnormal

“I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.” Psalms 27:13

Since our last update, it seems the world has turned upside down, and normal is no longer a word in our vocabulary. I know many of you feel the same way. Nothing is as it was before COVID-19 in this physical world. It all feels surreal. BUT as we entered the Easter weekend, we were reminded of our unchanging Saviour and God, Who is above by the circumstances of the world and moved to walk with us through it all. His truth and Gospel remains even if everything around us is so different. May this be a season of asking God what He has for you in all these abnormal rhythms and newness. What an opportunity is before us to reevaluate life as we knew it and reset and refocus our priorities!

A very quiet street in our neighbourhood that is typically bustling with vendors and people. This was taken the day after the government instituted vendor restrictions on April1st, and banned non-cargo vehicles among many other things in Uganda.

Before the global pandemic, we had some fun family changes. For starters, Joshua started school for the first time. We enrolled him in a Ugandan-curriculum nursery school run by our church where he started what is called “Baby Class” (pre-K about equivalent). He absolutely loved the idea of starting school and was so excited for his first days...now he's not so sure about being dropped off by Mom 3 mornings a week while Abby waves goodbye, and struggles with the extra attention he gets as not only the sole non-African in his class but in the entire school. We are thankful for his teachers who are sensitive to his dislike of the extra attention and are diligent to protect him and get the other children to call him by his name and not “muzungu” (the term used for foreigners here). Our hope in him attending school is for him to learn the local language at an early age, gain friendships with other children his age, and connect our family deeper within our church community. He loves the actual learning aspect of school...and getting a cup of porridge every day that he is there.

Abby mostly enjoyed her alone time when Joshua is at school...but was extremely happy to see him every day when we pick him up and typically spends the first 5 minutes of seeing him trying to give him hugs and just hold him. Joshua is mostly unphased by her attempts.

Matt finished his Master's class at the start of March and was able to glean a lot from it that he hopes to begin implementing into his leadership at EMI more and more. His next class begins in July. To celebrate the end of that busy season of full evenings and weekends studying, we took a family trip to the Entebbe Zoo. We had the place mostly to ourselves and even stopped for a special treat of KFC ice cream on our way home.

At our recent trip to the Entebbe Zoo, a baby elephant decided to come and say hello. This was a highlight for all of us. The Zoo was so empty we felt like we had the place to ourselves. Abby especially loved it and giggled anytime we saw a new animal though oddly the cow was her favourite one. Joshua's favourite was the huge lions who were on full display for us.

On our way home we stopped at one of 2 American chain restaurants in Uganda...KFC (Pizza Hut is the other one). KFC is considered pretty high class here. We were treated to ice cream cones by Daddy.

Also pre-pandemic, we were able to open up our home and host a fellow member of our church who needed a place to stay during a difficult season for a few weeks before returning to the US for a couple of months leave. We are thankful to have the space and ability to open up our lives and home to others and hope to do so again in the future. 

We invested in some outdoor plastic chairs a couple of weeks ago and now are so thankful we did. The kids (and Ashley) love having snack time outside on the porch and the novelty of not being at the dining table to eat.

Now enter the COVID-19 pandemic which felt unreal before it hit Uganda. We would read news stories and hear updates from family and friends in North America, and feel disconnected from what was happening in the rest of the world. Uganda started taking measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in mid-March before a single case was registered. Upon writing this update less than a month since the first restrictions were put in place and first case detected, there are 74 confirmed cases within Uganda. Most cases are recent returnees (primarily Ugandan) from abroad, Dubai specifically. As far as we are aware, the virus has yet to hit the general population. We are thankful for this: that restrictions are in place before a huge detected outbreak, and that the government is having time to think and plan in the event of an outbreak.

A beautiful sunrise over Lake Victoria taken by Ashley on a morning run before curfews were put in place, and public exercise prohibited by government COVID-19 restrictions.

Currently, we live in a state of severe restrictions. Borders are closed to travellers coming or going from Uganda on land, water, or air (apart from cargo). Only agriculture input shops, medical supply shops, food shops and supermarkets, hospitals, communications, banks, water, and electricity providers are to be open and working on location at this time. We have a set curfew where you are not to leave your compound or home from 7pm until 6:30am (hours of darkness) to prevent theft. No cars or motorcycles are allowed on the road, including private vehicles (including ours), apart from special exemptions granted by the government to transport cargo, medical personnel, medical emergencies, or military/police. This means that we must walk to any place we need to go, which is primarily to buy food from the local shop (1/4 mile away) or the supermarket (1 mile away, though there are some that are allowing deliveries to be arranged). Groups and gatherings are not to exceed 5 people. All churches and other places of worship, schools, and most businesses have been closed. A recent restriction put in place was prohibiting jogging/exercising outside of your home/compound. Uganda's 75-year-old president recorded a home workout to inspire people. This was put in place because the roads of Kampala specifically were becoming quite congested with the very fit and energetic population of Ugandans. These are just some of the 36 restrictions in place. The restrictions originally were for 2 weeks. Those two weeks, however, ended on April 14^th. On the 14^th, the government extended the restrictions for at least another 3 weeks, until May 5^th.

Abby and one of our guard dogs, Buddy. They are the best of friends and we are thankful for his presence on our compound that deters potential thieves. With the increase in restrictions and forced unemployment of people due to restrictions, theft and crime are starting to climb up. We have thankfully had no incidents.

We live within these restrictions, but don't feel unnecessarily burdened by them. We understand mostly why each is in place and are thankful for a government that is trying to protect it's country's residents, including us. We aren't sure what the future of COVID-19 in Uganda holds, but we aren't afraid or anxious. We are mildly stocked and prepared physically, but more so prepared emotionally and spiritually for whatever lies ahead. EMI Canada made a Webinar available to us the other evening that has helped equip us to process through this season, and discern how to live well in it. We are happy to remain in Uganda during this time and have not questioned that decision to stay.

 

The kids love riding around the yard with Matt on his motorcycle. He starts it (and our car) every couple of days to keep the engine strong as we are not allowed to drive personal vehicles outside of our compound during this time. Joshua insisted that everyone wear boots and a helmet for the ride.

 

As of the 20^th of March, our oldest is home from boarding school and spends hours every day studying and trying to catch up academically. His school provided work for him to do. Matt also was able to find online resources for his curriculum to supplement his learning. He has really been enjoying that. He's really missed friends as he is a very social person. Due to restrictions, we've not allowed him to go and visit friends, but overall he seems to be holding up well...especially after a friend of his from primary school who lives in a tough situation across town showed up at our gate and asked to stay during this season. He now has a friend, a study companion, and someone to play soccer with for exercise (within our compound of course...). He has also been able to help Doors Ministries distribute food in Namuwongo (more on that later).

Our oldest is home from school for almost a month now and spends most of his daylight hours studying at our dining room table. He is still a bit behind his classmates academically and is trying to use this time to catch up well. It also helps to distract him from feeling more isolated from his friends than he already does right now.

As of March 31^st, Matt began working from home and has set up his office in our bedroom. He has found it challenging to lead a team remotely, and even more challenging to know how to respond to all that is going on as it is so far outside his education and expertise. 

Much has changed for EMI globally as worldwide travel restriction prevents our typical project teams. Thankfully most of our term 1 projects had returned so there is work for a few months. However, the summer project trips have been cancelled and the fall remains uncertain. Each office is thinking about creative ways to engage in project work during this season, including assisting the COVID-19 responses. We have reached out to some health care facilities to aid in planning temporary spaces for the influx of COVID-19 patients. Our R&D department is exploring how to design and build low-tech ventilators.

EMI Uganda is thankful to have several established ministry partners whose projects will likely keep us busy through the end of the year. However, our construction sites and fabrication workshop are shut down until government restrictions are lifted.

Joshua also received some homework from his school to complete while schools remain closed. He has joyfully been working on it and loves tracing numbers and counting.

Joshua and Abby don't seem to have any idea what is happening apart from everyone being home all the time. They love it. They love having lunch with Daddy everyday, getting to play outside together, watching our oldest juggle the soccer ball, and Joshua doesn't even mind that he somehow mysteriously stopped being dropped off at school. He does have some homework they sent for him which he loves doing. Their favourite activities have been climbing trees in our backyard, and “cleaning” anything they can get their hands on with a basin of water and a scrub brush (from clothes, to baby dolls, to toy cars, to our car, to the walls of the house).

Joshua and Abby spend most mornings in their sandpit with a basin of water “washing” anything and everything. We are so thankful for this home and compound and see it as such a gift for this time of being home 24/7. The kids have tons of space to explore and stay busy for hours on end. The weather has also been amazing, another gift.

Ashley made a makeshift swing set with the straps of our broken hammock. The kids giggle with delight anytime Daddy pushes them on it.

Ashley has been kept busy with the kids at the house all day and trying to maintain about a month's supply of food (difficult with 2 teenage boys in the house). She has also been able to help Doors Ministries fundraise to provide food to families living within the Namuwongo slum community. The government restrictions have unfortunately put many people out of work, particularly those that live day to day: the money earned from a day's work goes directly towards feeding self and family that night. Most families within Doors Ministries have lost all means of income and have no way to buy food or soap, or even stock up on food. This has been the case for thousands and thousands of Ugandans throughout the country. Doors has been able to provide over 100 families (and counting) with enough food and soap one week at a time. We have been amazed at people's response to this huge need, and especially at the number of our own supporters and prayer partners who have also contributed to Doors Ministries. Thank you so much. The need is great, but so is the love of God.

Doors Ministries is raising funds to provide food and soap to families living in Namuwongo who live day to day. Without work, these families are struggling with hunger and fear starvation more than COVID-19. Doors' staff has creatively been able to distribute food and soap in light of government restrictions on non-government food distributions and thanks to the generous financial support of many. To learn more about the situation in Namuwongo, feel free to find Doors Ministries on Facebook or send us a message. To contribute towards food and soap for impoverished families in Namuwongo, visit www.allegrosolutions.org/donate/DoorsMinistries.001

We were able to celebrate Easter from home over the holiday weekend. It was a quiet weekend, but we were able to have some neighbors (one at a time of course) over for a meal each of the days and spend time reflecting and enjoying life-giving activities ourselves such as reading, being outside, and going for short walks. Unfortunately, Abby had some high fevers over the weekend which were a bit scary because we can't just jump in our car and go to a hospital at this time. We need government clearance to use our personal vehicle for any reason. Thankfully her fevers subsided by Easter dinner, and she began to return to her normal “full of personality” self.  

We had a nice Easter at home which included some nicer meals, a family worship service led by our oldest on his guitar, and an “envelope” scavenger hunt (we didn't have any plastic Easter eggs, thus improvised).

Despite high fevers over Easter weekend and 10 mango fly infections, Abby was able to revive herself and appetite just in time for Easter dinner...and especially for chocolate cookie desserts that were gifted to us by friends nearby. She is now fine and ended up not needing professional medical attention.

Prayer Requests:

• For our oldest as he studies at home, that his time is productive academically and he is able to glean from the online curriculum.
• For the friend staying with us, that we would have wisdom on how to handle his difficult family situation and steward our time with him well if he does stay longer.
• For Matt as he navigates leading and managing remotely, and the rest of the EMI team. Many are unable to work from home due to their environment or the nature of their job.
• For the many in Uganda that are struggling to find food to eat each day and soap to wash. The government has promised to deliver food to people in need but the need is incredibly large here and difficult to get food to people without gathering in a large crowd (which is why public food distributions have been outlawed causing Doors to get creative in how food to give to people)
• For protection of Uganda and the health system here that is not outfitted or equipped to handle a major influx of cases

Praises:

• We are incredibly thankful for the home and compound we have to “shelter in place” with a large grass yard, lots of trees for climbing and shade, and walking distance to shops, supermarkets, and friends.
• We are also thankful for the way our kids love each other and generally get along great. Not once have they complained about being at home all day or wanting other friends to come.
• We are thankful for opportunities to open our home to others
• We are thankful for the amount of finances that came in for the ongoing Doors Ministries fundraiser and the dedicated Doors staff and volunteers who walk more than 5 miles one way to distribute food to needy families (all within curfew hours under a hot African sun)
• We are thankful for friends and family from afar who have checked in on us admist their own craziness and chaos of change
• We are thankful for the long holiday weekend to celebrate our Hope and Savior through Easter. He is risen indeed!