A Day in Bududa
Part 1
The simplicity and beauty of the landscape and our community in Bududa have significantly impacted me. I see the simplicity of their lives as humility, a value I respect, being a part of a Quaker Meeting In Philadelphia.
There is no electricity, other than a bit of solar, and no running water at my small house in Bududa. I wake with the sun and bathe with a basin of water. Which I fill from a 20-liter jerry can.
Our house director, Kalenda Justine, comes early, always with a smile. She prepares breakfast. It might be only me, but it might be as many as sixteen. Breakfast is always the same: an omelet and fried bread. It is my favorite meal of the day, probably because it resembles food familiar to me. Tea, toast, and eggs. We all sit down together with Justine and plan for the day.
In North America, I do not have a house director, someone to cook and clean or do my laundry. The idea alone makes me uncomfortable. However, this is one way that, while in Uganda, we respect the customs and help spur the economy.
Quite often, when I wake, I hear some folks have arrived at the house and are sitting on the porch, waiting to see me. They have come early to request help (school fees or health issues ). Sometimes, I know them, and sometimes not.
Founder, Barbara Wybar, between BLC cook Robina and cleaner Evelyn
Once dressed, I meet them and listen and usually ask them to come down to Bududa Learning Center to see what we can do there. It isn't easy because the need is so great. We simply cannot provide for everyone or for all issues. It has taken work to determine how, as an organization, we can commit to helping the community combat the poverty that plagues their daily lives.
After breakfast, I walk down to school via a footpath that takes me to the main road, a dirt road. Depending on the day, I sometimes meet a traffic jam of barefoot locals carrying whole branches of bananas, called matooke, on their heads or men herding cows, goats, or pigs along the road to market. There is a vibrancy in the air.
At school, a security guard greets me. Then, I check in at the headmaster's office and greet our secretary, Betty, and other staff members. Most have been with us since we started in 2008. Some are new, as we have opened new disciplines since 2008.
It is exciting for me to be in this milieu and feel a part of something so different from what I am familiar with in North America. Besides, seeing our school thriving and many of our graduates succeeding with their own businesses is rewarding. "Skills for Jobs" is what we are doing, and it is working.
…read part 2