List of pictures you asked me to take while in Africa

So remember at the beginning of the summer I asked you to create a list for me of what to take pictures of? :) So here is the list and pictures (if I was able to get them):

McDonalds - Does Not Exist in Uganda.... :(
Two People in Love - African's don't usually show their affections for each other out in public, so I didn't get that one.  However, even though this picture has three people, I sure do love these two amazing women so much.

 Many many beautiful children - I couldn't get enough of them :)

 

Sunset

 Nile River Sunset

 

 Safari Sunset

 Sunrise

Nile River Sunrise

 Safari Sunrise
 

Rain Storm - this rain storm turned into a HAIL storm for a couple of minutes!!!

 We decided to run around in the rain storm and the kids soon joined us:)

Marissa Maxfield

African Baobab Tree (upside-down tree, monkey tree, monster tree) with me under it - Sorry, I didn't find one. :(
A spider, anthill, or anything as big as my head - I never got a picture of the anthills! They were TALLER than me.  They were huge.  I always would see them as we drove past them in the taxi so I never got a picture - Sorry!
Elephant

 Lions - he is in there, I promise.

Leopard - We saw none. :(

Cheetah - We saw none. :(

Zebra - We saw none. :(

Giraffe

 

Wildabeast - No wildabeast :(, but buffalo and antelope!

Hippo

 

Rhino  - We saw none. :(

Wild/exotic animals

Ants on the march...

Beautiful colored birds

Crocodiles

Monkeys!!! :)

 Baboons! :)

 

Warthogs (Pumba!)
 

Me riding and fighting a lion - Sorry...after I fought the lion, he ran away into the bushes and no one got a picture of the epic fight.  Just a picture of him running away into the bushes (the picture of "Lions" above). :)
Everything - I took WAY too many pictures to put EVERYTHING on here.  Just check Facebook.  That has a LOT of my pictures.
Kony - No picture of Kony.
Elder Corey Kimzey, Elder Dyllen Cafferty and Elder Cody Eckman - Corey was North-West (Togo) of me, and Dyllen and Cody were South-West/East (Angola/Mozambique) of me.  I never traveled that far unfortunately. :(
Melman, Marty, Gloria, and Alex ;) - See "Giraffe", "Hippo", and "Lion" above. Marty never showed himself.
the Giant mountain - Mt. Elgon: the 7th tallest mountain in Africa -14,178 feet.

See the waterfall just to the left of the power-pole? That is Wanale Falls.  Which I hiked up to. :)

Stuff you're doing - Children with Disabilities and Eye and Dental Campaigns

Sam!

 Joel and his parents

 Noel! :)

 Daphine!!  My last visit.  She smiled (can you see it!?)!

 Dental Camp in Kampala

 Eye Camp in Mbale - giving out reading glasses

 Eye Camp in Mbale - cataract and other eye surgeries

 Chocolate covered grasshopper

 Not quite chocolate covered....

 Just fried and seasoned...

 My favorite cookie

 These are what we made our smores with! :)

And that is all folks!  If you want to look at more pictures, look on facebook.  It has more than it should... :)

My Life is Forever Changed

I started my internship and trip to Africa with HELP-International thinking that I would be helping many people and teaching them the information they would need to fight their poverty.  However, that was not the case.  I have been taught more by the people than they have been taught by me.

Carrying rocks from the mountain to build Seya School

I’ll be honest; living in Lugazi was no piece of cake.  We lived in Africa, and we lived like Africans.  A lot of Ugandans have nothing, but at the same time, have everything.  They don’t need cars, fancy houses, or a lot of income to be happy.  They are thankful for everything that they have, even though it is not much.

This summer has been full of amazing experiences and beautiful people that I will never forget.  I was the project lead for two projects in Lugazi, Uganda: The Children with Disabilities Project, and the Eye and Dental Camp Project.  Being the project lead for these projects I learned so much and came to love so many people.

I grew to love the Children with Disabilities project.  At the beginning of the summer our goal was to construct different devices for the children that would fit their needs.  This was a good idea, but during the summer we realized that this wasn’t exactly making the project sustainable.  We kept asking ourselves, “How are we going to keep this program sustainable?  How will it continue through the rest of the year while HELP is out of the country?  And how can we make it so next year will be able to pick up this project and run with it right from the first week?”

We made a therapeutic chair for this boy, Sam.

That is when we decided to switch our focus from the children to the parents.  We were still working on helping the children individually, but we decided to focus on the parents about their child’s disability.  No matter how much we help the children this summer; if the parents don’t know about their child’s disability and if they don’t know what they can do to improve their life, what is the use of just helping the child?  We need to educate the parents!  Once the parents are educated, hopefully they will have the desire to help their child on their own without help from HELP volunteers in the future.  We were hoping that by educating the parents, it will make it so they will continue to help their child while we are gone.  Then next year, volunteers can work on helping more families, present the information to the parents, and soon start a support group within the community for all the parents who have a child with disabilities.

After presenting the information to Joel's parents on Cerebral Palsy

After presenting the information to Noel's mother about Down syndrome.

I have come to love these children so much.  I know this is why I came to Uganda – to help these children experience more joy in their lives despite having a disability.  I have made a life decision while being here.  I am still planning on majoring in Exercise Science so I can be a Physical Therapist, but I am going to specialize in working with children with disabilities as a Physical Therapist.   I have found my passion as I have worked alongside Moses (a local Physical Therapist who works with children with disabilities) and as I have gotten to know and love these children over the past couple of months.

Partnering with Moses, we were able to get Daphine a prosthetic hand,

which she now is learning to use to help her with various jobs, like cutting potatoes.

Being able to do the Eye and Dental Campaigns have been a great experience as well.

Extracting teeth at the Dental Camp.

The Eye camp we held in Mbale was very neat.  Those people had gone years without being able to see.  Whether it was from cataracts, presbyopia, or whatever may be wrong.  It was amazing to see their gratitude.  It was like instant rewards.  Their smiles are definitely genuine.  I could ask for no greater a reward.

This man had cataracts in both eyes.

These two ladies both received glasses and were very grateful for them!

Cataract surgeries were performed at this eye camp

I left Uganda August 8th.  I wish I could have all the time in the world to stay there and help those people.  There is so much that can be done!  Uganda will always have a special place in my heart.  The friends who I have made will always be dear friends.  I will never forget them.  I love them so much.  They have nothing, yet have so much.  It has been a very humbling and great experience.  I will miss this wonderful and beautiful place so much and I hope I will be able to return one day.

I'm back in the US and misisng Uganda like crazy!

Well folks,
I am back on American soil.

Jace and I had done gone crazy waiting for the airplane out of Uganda.

Amelia got me cookie dough when I arrived!! :)

I have been back since August 9th.  I just haven't had the time to post yet.
I arrived into Phoenix, AZ to surprise my brother for his wedding that was happening on August 11th.

Getting ready for the wedding

It was a wonderful surprise!!  I love him so much.

He looks very happy with his new wife, and I am so glad I was able to make it to his wedding:)

Me and Danny :)

I was informed that the 3,020 glasses that we received the day I left Uganda were put to GRAND use in those last two weeks!  They were able to organize outreaches super quickly and distributed many glasses around Lugazi and somewhere that is kind of near Gulu (I haven't received the update from Kristen who became the project lead after I left, so I don't know a ton yet).

It was so good to hear that we were able to help many more people with their eye sight! :)
Moses keeps me updated on my children with disabilities.  I miss them so much.  Those children are what made my experience the best it could be!  They have such sweet spirits.
Here is the most recent update from Moses!

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Hey, Jessica.  Hope your fine and Julia.  Here is a small up date about Daphine when I visited her yesterday.  When I lived at their home. Dahine, her brother and a cousin run and gave a big hug they were very happy to see me.  After Daphine brought a mat for me to sit on from their house.  Then she sat close to me and leaned against my shoulder also her little brother and the cousin did the same.
They started asking me about YOU GUYS, DAPHINE SHE WAS USING SIGN'S POINTING TOWARDS ROAD DIRECTION'S.
Then I was able understand what she meant.  Then in the process Daphine she was showing me her hands and legs. Then her little brother was able to tell me what she meant "He told me that Daphine she was abused by their previous care taker with marks of a cane on her legs. I think you remember a girl we met at their home mopping the cement floor, she is the one.  I was told through the conversation I had with them that the Naan used to beat Daphine severely for no reason and abused her vulgar language about her disability.  I was shocked but, nothing I could do at the moment since she was expelled by Daphine mother from her Job.  But it is so sad!!  Again they reported to me that the neighbor's children stole (Daphine soft flyer).  Then immediately I asked them to escort me to the home of children they suspected, to have the Flyer which they did.  So I was able able to discuss with the mother "I told her that Daphine and the brother told me that your children stole her Soft flyer".  Then she answered me "Ssebo, it is true my children stole Daphine Flyer but they did get time to take it back" I answered her .  "That is why I have come to visit you Nnyabo and get it back"   Then she entered the house and gave me back Daphine Flyer.  I was able to rescue Daphine Flyer back.  She was very happy.
Moses Musasizi ( Uniting Children)

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I'm glad I have someone there who is looking after these children.  I am very grateful to Moses for what he has done and continues to still do. :)

My Young Women's class! I got to teach them my last Sunday.

I have days where all I can think about is Uganda.  I miss everything about the place.  Mainly the people and the friends I met there.  The Musana women.

Eve!

Rosette!

The children with disabilities.  My friends from the Jinja branch.  I miss seeing their smiling faces all the time.  I miss speaking in my "Ugandan accent".  I miss the dirt roads and amazing scenery.

These girls always remembered my name each time I visited Seya School

I miss living there.  It will always hold a special place in my heart.  I will go back. :)

Me and my good friend Sam! :)

Me and Moroni - he was thee cutest baby ever:)

Although I miss Uganda so so much, I am glad to be back.  Being back is bitter-sweet.  It's nice to have hot showers again and electricity constantly.  I don't have to sleep under a mosquito-net anymore!!  There are some perks to being home, but I sure do miss Uganda a lot and I think about it quite often.
I've started school again and I've started working again.

All moved in!

I was even able to attend a REAL Salt Lake Soccer Game, thanks to my brother, Loren.  Definitely a different experience compared to the soccer game in Uganda!

When I got back home to St. George, I was able to go to the St. George Temple and do baptisms for the dead.  Boy oh boy!  How I have missed going to the temple!  It was a great experience. :) The closest Temple to Uganda is in South Africa.  What a glorious day it will be for those faithful members when a Temple of the Lord will be built in Uganda. :)

Dried Banana Leaf art of the St. George Temple done by Robinah:)

Me and Melissa - my last Sunday

Love being home but missing Uganda so much.

Love these girls:)