Kakira: "They're crunchy tanks!" (Becky talking about cockroaches)

Yeah, so you thought yesterday was bad.

Today we headed out to Kagoma Gate, which is still under the jurisdiction of Kakira Town Council, so although it's a bit of a ways from where we live, it's still a part of the community we serve. When we got there, I'm pretty sure we all thought: "We were NOT prepared for this."

The place was made up of mud and grass thatch huts. Children look at you blankly, stomachs bloated due to hunger. Think of a World Vision commercial. It's a town of 600 people who don't even have a latrine. The nearest school is four kilometers away. Half the people we met in town were drunk on the local brew--it's kind of like moonshine, very strong and very addictive. For some reason, when we were meeting with the village leaders, drunk guys kept sitting next to me (and trying to touch me, alack). I was sitting next to Billy, and I was practically on top of him while trying to get away from them. Men are so annoying...I am not interested, thanks, and would you please stop staring? There were some teenage boys in the street today who thought they were cool and were checking me out, and as soon as I passed them they turned and kept looking at me. I was like, "F*ck you. Get a life."

Sorry. Rant over. Men suck. Yeah feminism. OK.

Anyway, this village was the poorest of the poor. There were three little girls who were following me around, and they were so sweet. They didn't want money or candy or anything, they just smiled at me and laughed when I made funny faces at them. And I just have to think, "God, when was the last time they ate? Do they get to go to school? Do their parents drink and beat them?" Despair is wasted potential.

After work was done for the day, my group and I sat down together and talked through everything--the issues that we have seen, how they match up with St. Eliza's priorities and our own capabilities, and what we each thought was most important. We've come down to two things: Hunger in schools (the government requires all children to attend primary school, but does not pay for lunches in schools, leaving the burden on the parents, who often cannot or will not pay for their children's lunches. This results in children going all day without food, which they may not even get at home, so many skip school due to hunger. Those who stay often perform poorly) and economic development, because it links to so many things. When a person is gainfully employed, they are not only able to afford more things but stay away from delinquency and alcoholism, which leads to less domestic abuse and theft. That's just a couple of the ways that we were able to pinpoint economic development's branching effect. Not that money is a panacea, but hopefully we are able to create something that is successful in getting the money and other gains into the hands of those who need it most. We are currently working on more specific proposals that specifically cater to Kagoma Gate.

The day ended on a positive note, in closing. We feel like we have more direction now and that we agree on basic aims. After meeting post-work, all four of us went to Billy and Robert's host family's shop; it is the biggest shop in Kakira's market. They sell secondhand clothing, bags, and have a separate shop for shoes. The mother of the family, Medina, always hugs Becky and me when she sees us, simply on the grounds that we are friends of Robert and Billy. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Mama Fina keeps checking on me because I was sick yesterday. She was worried because she didn't think that I was eating enough last night, but I didn't really want to vomit again (something at lunch didn't agree with me). I'm better today, but she keeps asking, which is sweet. I told her I would eat a lot at dinner, which made her happy.

That's all for now, folks. Thanks for all the supportive comments on the last post, they cheered me up.