Roots

A strange, not altogether unpleasant feeling, one quite familiar and quite un-doing.  Love.

Love in our culture is often reduced to a Hollywood-ized romance between plastic people who seem to think that love is temporary, rather than enduring, that it is disposable, rather than permanent and victorious.  The kind of love that I am talking about is the kind that creeps into your heart unsuspectingly, that sinks down lower and lower and suddenly emerges unwittingly.  This kind of love has nothing to do with romance and everything to do with relationship.

This love that is creeping into my heart is a love for Uganda, for the people that I am meeting, knowing, and wishing could stay a part of my life for years to come.  A love for the green hillsides of Rukingiri, for the spontaneous friendship sparked by a smile, for milk tea, black tea and fresh mangoes.  For the eucalyptus forests, Russian spies, and Peter Gabriel songs that totally make me want to laugh and cry and sing and dance at the same time.

This love is also doing something unusual- it is enticing me to put down roots and in the process, reminding me of the roots that I have, have lost, and have refrained from making for fear of them being uprooted.  This love, like a tiny seed planted in my somewhat hardened heart, reminds me of the brevity of life, and the beauty of vulnerability.
I am a tree planted by streams of living water, my roots going down so deep, circumnavigating the barrenness of the soil and reaching life life life.  What I am learning here is that it is better to feel that ache of love than to remain untouched by it-  and yet, it is easier to hold our roots tightly unto ourselves, never daring to let them touch the ground and sink in.  Love is messy, love is risky.  Love crosses borders

Jean Vanier once said something to the effect of, “If you love community, you will destroy community.  If you love people, you will build community.”  I pondered that for a long time, wondering what this meant in my own life. During a time not long ago when I was really considering the meaning of international engagement, those words came back to me in another form; “If you love international engagement, you will destroy international engagement… if you love people, your love will cross borders.”

I think that sometimes the idea of ‘international engagement’ can seem glamorous.  But what does it really mean? It means spending time with people who are different than you in many ways, who speak a different language, eat different food, and yet….are the same.  It means stepping into the challenges faced by a people not your own, and being invited into their beauty.  It means stepping out of your own comfort zone and trying to learn to listen.

It also means being accepted despite the differences, being welcomed implicitly without needing to prove your worth, and encountering treasures hidden in obscurity.

International Engagement is steadily being reduced to one word.              Love.

 

Chapatis

So far on this blog, I have tended towards a more philosophical interpretation of life, giving few concrete details about the events behind these musings…

Well, as I sit here ready to write, I think that I will change my style a bit, and share with you the stories that I am living, and allow you to make your own interpretations.

Today I returned to Kampala after two weeks of travel.  A large part of what we are doing here in Uganda consists of moving around the country to gain a sense for the different regions, specifically the TASO centers and the work they are doing in Sustainable Livelihoods.  We began by driving north to Gulu, where we spent a few days.  It was amazing to be in this region, and interact with these beautiful people.  This area has seen a generation of war, and I went not knowing what I would find.  What I discovered was a tenderness in the people there, a soft, gentle spirit that captured my heart immediately.  One of my favorite memories of this trip (and of life!) happened the day we were leaving Gulu as we were introduced to a group of three ladies who have been a part of the Sustainable Livelihoods Program at TASO Gulu for the past few years.  We walked through the hallway, down the stairs, outside, and through a maze of people in colorful clothing until we reached the edge of the compound. Nestled between a building and a fence on a narrow strip of land they had set up shop, and were busy rolling chapatis and frying them over a charcoal heated pan. They smiled and lept up to greet us with a warm Ugandan welcome, inviting us into their shop.  Excitedly, we walked in and sat down on the cement next to them.  I felt like the list of questions I had for them was out of place, and instead, learned to make chapatis and listen to that which is spoken in  silence.  This moment was a privilege- and a window into a different world.  A sub-culture of resilience and overcoming in a wave of hardship and war. The amazing thing is, this is not unique; it is the norm.

The thing that continues to amaze me as I travel, meeting many people, is the consistent smile.  The welcome that is wholehearted and unabashed.  The uncomplicated acceptance, and the willingness to share time, space, stories, successes and challenges with humility.  There is no pretense, people don’t keep you at a safe distance- they invite you in.