Christmas Ornaments Ready!

Seasons Greetings family and friends!

As we said in our previous posts, we have been working on this years Global Ties Christmas ornaments brought to you exclusivly by the members of Kamba Cooperative. We are using this opportunity to help other refugees get more acquainted behind the sewing machine and to be a way for their hard work to receive some much needed attention. Because Kamba members believe in the value of a good, healty education, we will be putting the money made from these ornaments directly into a water project for Hope Primary School. We can't thank them enough for donating their time and their skills to help make this project a success. Now we must do our part. We have completed nearly 200 ornaments which we have sent to Karen and Tommy David in Statesboro, Georgia and to Mary Graves in Naples, Florida.

(Deborah rockin the Hope Primary Uniform. Notice the badge.)

If you are interested in donating through the purchase of an ornament you can Contact Mary or The David's, comment to this blog, or you can email us directly at jimbograves@gmail.com.

The Check Is In the Bank

Success! Jimbo and I had our first meeting at BRAC micro finance on October 5th. After much convincing, hard work, determination, and weeks of pacing back and forth....we received the loan! BRAC finally approved Jacques and Kamba, despite the refugee status, and gave Jacques the check on Monday! This is a huge success and is going to be the beginning of a very good future for Kamba.

Since this is the first loan, and Jacques is a refugee, the loan is for a smaller amount than what we asked for, but about the equivalent of $500 (1Million Ugandan Shillings). The check will be available for use on Monday and Jacques will purchase more materials then. Kamba Cooperation will be rockin' and rollin' this month and we are so excited about this opportunity!

As for this week, we have been diligently working on ornaments for fundraising. It has been so much fun to be at the shop with everyone working on this project. We are using this opportunity to teach more refugees how to sew and it has been fascinating to see the progress. We shipped out our first batch to Karen and Tommy in Statesboro, so please be on the look out.

Always sending our love and thanks to everyone at home!

Morning Meditations

(11/9)
Some days the words hit me harder than others: strength, courage, resentment, forgiveness, acceptance, patience…It is good that I can at least depend on their firmness. They are always there built like Egyptian temples, blocks of indestructible ink. They are universally used: prayer mediations, yoga practices, Native American fold tales, religious traditions from all over the world depend on them. They help us connect each in our own way to the source of life. They help remind me to live in the present, to not miss a moment because it is the gift of life, these moments that we have been given. I move in and out of this energy. Sometimes I feel like I’m reading an old treasure map that is torn and faded. I can barely make out the symbols or the direction I should be going. I want to understand it so badly: I study it, re-read it over and over, ask people for help. I get frustrated. Then a little bird tells me ‘You only realize where you are on the map when you begin your journey. Once you begin, your destiny will make itself available to you. You can only read the map when you're on it.’ Mollie and I are here in Africa because we chose to start our journey. We have to stay focused because there are plenty of chances to misread the map. We are headed towards our nearest marker: an idea that is Global Ties. We feel that there is something very tangible within the idea. Now we must discover what that is. How? Don’t look past anything! The markers are there for a reason. This sort of thing takes courage. Following your destiny is no easy game, but it’s a very exciting one. We are grateful for the support.

(11/13)
Good morning. I’ve been reading the meditations regularly, but I haven’t felt very inspired to write. The meditations are so full and vivid. They leave me nearly thoughtless. They are the complete opposite of numbing, vast, and so I end up lost and delighted that I can recognize the spaciousness. I just am. Words aren’t important. They couldn’t be because everything is totally present. Attaching a word to something, defining it, can mean you’ve spent too long with that something. It’s hard to let things completely go, but we can do it mainly because it feels so good. Here in Africa and perhaps anywhere I am, my emotions towards life change like traffic lights. One minute I’m at peace with how different and uncomfortable I feel. I’m even a bit proud that I have successfully made it this far: I can get around, I understand a few words, I’ve made friends, I’ve toughened up to being the only whitey on the block. The next minute my head is spinning because I’ve been waiting 45 minutes for the bus, people are starring at me, I can’t understand anybody, and I feel like I’m getting cheated at every turn. Either way I have it, I’m staying too long with my words, my judgments. Traveling, living abroad, is a practice dedicated to letting go and letting in all the strange, wonderful, difficult, exciting, and completely out of your control experiences that make up life.

Soul Food

My mom shared some wisdom with me the other day. There are two kinds of food that nourishes our spiritual selves, World Food and Soul Food. World food is like crispy cream donuts. It's for the ego like being congratulated on a job well done. Tasty. Soul Food is all vitamins. It's for the body, mind, and the spirit like watching the sunset into the ocean. Delicious.

The other day was soul food for me. Hakim came to get me around 1 to go play soccer. He is a P6 student at Hope. His mom is Rwandese and his father is from West Uganda. They have a small house with a few things and hearts that could fill a small stadium. We went to the pitch for an hour and a half. There was a game going on so we just juggled. It felt good to juggle again. It is a game that connects me with anybody else that finds pleasure in its simplicity. Everywhere around the world kids right now are passing a ball between one another. It matters very little where you come from when the ball is in the air. Once we stopped there was time for questions form the crowd that had gathered to meet this new whiteboy: Where do you come from? Do you like Michael Jackson? Can you breakdance? They came so quickly there was barely time for an answer. I must have done okay because when I left we were all friends. Hakim helped me find my way back home, but he wasn’t finished with his immersion lesson for the day. He insisted I come back over for dinner and a movie. He showed up around 7:30 and led me in total darkness jumping over ditches and ravines back to his house. We talked about carrots.

His house was a brick house as many are in the city. The door is always left open because visitors are always welcome. And with just one window it can get a little stuffy. Everyone drapes a sheet over the threshold for privacy. That's how you know it is a house and not a store. There were three rooms: one for living, one for sleeping, and one for bathing. I sat on the couch in the living room beside one of Hakim’s sisters, Nifa. We watched a DVD of popular music videos. Some of the children were signing along, others were laughing, and others were dumbfounded why a Muzungu was in the living room. Hakim kept running outside to check on dinner. He had prepared the Ugandan favorite of matoke, boiled bananas, and cow peas. They served me a hug dish and I polished it off willingly. All that was left was to watch a little WWF before calling it a night. All the kids and the parents loved it. They laughed and the kids imitated the wrestlers. It was the first time I really enjoyed watching wrestling. It started raining very hard just as my time to leave was arriving. They insisted that I either spend the night or let them borrow a car to drive me home. I told them my wife might get worried if I don’t come home. They agreed, handed me a rain jacket, and hurried me out the door. Thanks Hakim. Soul Food feeds you for a lifetime because it never expires. Praise.

(to not confuse anyone, this picture was not taken here.)

BRAC Microfinance: aka "drive me bananas"

Jimbo and I had a very busy week last week and this is the first time since Sunday(a week ago) that we have been in town. We celebrated Halloween with Indian food and beer on Saturday and continued treating ourselves on Sunday with a movie and popcorn. A very fun way to celebrate Halloween and GA/FL (too bad we lost!), but it was hard to leave the dark, air conditioned theater and return to the reality of life in Africa outside.

Let's see, then Monday we went to BRAC Microfinance institution and spoke to the head honcho about acquiring a loan for Jacques and the refugee cooperation. He said that he would allow his people to loan to a refugee since we presented his case with such passion. Then he asked us if we wanted to volunteer a week of our time to go and see the Pygmies and then write a proposal on how BRAC could start a branch there with them....like what kinds of things they need and skills they have. This meeting was very exciting. We would love to volunteer a week of our time to doing that. What an awesome opportunity! He gave us some phone numbers and sent us on our way with high hopes...but you know Africa....

Tuesday we went to the local BRAC branch in our area and found the place flooded. I mean flooded. They don't call it the rainy season for nothing. There was no way to get to the office without wading through the water...and that is what Jimbo did (regardless of me telling him how dirty the water was, and how we could just wait, but he wanted to go, so he took off his shoes and waded all the way to the office.) I did not. I know better than that. Well, actually I took my shoes off and touched them to the water and then someone else said "but it's dirty" and I thought "I KNOW! what am I doing?!" So I put my shoes back on and waited and watched person after person come across the rode, see the flood, debate for a second, and then just wade through the water. We are in Africa....you have to do what you have to do. Anyway, we waited for 4 hours for the loan officer, she finally came and we set up and appointment for Thursday morning for her to come see Jacques, the business, and the school.

Thursday morning, we woke up very early as she asked us to be there at 7am. Luckily no water, but guess what, no loan officer either. When she had still not arrived at 9am I called her...and do you know what she said....."I'm sorry. I'm not coming. My boss said that we don't loan to foreigners". CAN YOU BELIEVE IT! This is why Jacques needs help and advocates! He has papers for his business, for his land, letters of recommendation from 3 Local Charipeople and a document signed by the King (things many Ugandans don't have!!!) and they say no! Well, you can imagine how upset I was. So I immediately hung up with her, called her boss and told him that I had met with HIS BOSS and his boss said it was O.K! Not only that it was o.k. but he supports the idea and wants us to work with him! (I am going to ask if I can volunteer to write a proposal to start a branch strictly for REFUGEES!)

So the loan officer quickly called me back and we scheduled an appointment for her and her boss to meet us at 9am on Friday. I was feeling a little proud of myself for not letting her brush me off so easily. Then we met on Friday, Mr. Musa was somewhat nice and it took a lot of convincing on my part, but he finally agreed to come see the business. We scheduled that Laya, the loan officer would come with Jimbo at 2pm and then Musa would come on Monday. But guess what, Jimbo showed up at the office to escort Laya, and she did it again. She said, "Sorry I'm not going to see anything, my boss said we don't loan to refugees". Well, my blood was boiling when Jimbo arrived at the shop with no loan officer. I mean I was HOT! I called the head honcho, Musa, and Laya and expressed my outrage at this discrimination. (Of course in a very sweet, respectful, stern Mollie voice) The big man, said he would talk to Musa and ask him to help me, and so Musa scheduled again for Monday (yesterday) but said he would not promise to come see the business.

Monday - we took Jacques this time, all necessary documents and letters, and a lot of energy. We waited for 2 hours, and finally he showed up...with some back up force. But we pleaded a very good case and guess what...they ALL CAME TO VISIT!!! He and his colleagues saw how hard working Jacques is and how many people, families and children, he is helping and AGREED TO A LOAN! Is is a small loan but a huge step! We are so excited. This was a huge feat as Jacques has continually been rejected by microfinance institutions due to the fact that he is a refugee. Refugees are humans too, they just got a tough draw!

You cannot imagine the frustrations that come about here. But they are actually kind of fun. They give you insight into how the world really works. I'm so glad that the office was flooded and they treated us so poorly so many times, so that we can have a better perspective about the reality of refugee life. Success wouldn't be as sweet if it wasn't a little difficult!

Introduction of Annet

We are in the beginning of a new week and a new month here in Uganda. We have made new friends, acquired new experiences, and gained new comforts. We see the same faces as we pass by the same stores so that now we can acknowledge each other, often by name. In other words, we have become familiar in a foreign place. This is one of the most exciting aspects of traveling: seeing how well we adapt to one another. The recipe is always the same: an open mind and a common belief that we are sharing this life together. And so we would like to introduce to everyone, Annet, our new friend.

Now that you have all met Annet and been properly introduced to Hope Primary School, we would like to address some of their sincerest needs: Food and Water, that which is needed for the pursuit of a better life. We understand that there are countless schools in countless countries under the same conditions, but we shall begin here because we can.

Over the next few months Global Ties is going to begin fund raising on behalf of Hope Primary and the refugee families of our community. We are going to assist these children, their teachers, and the parents to build an organic garden big enough to feed all of them. Most importantly we will give the children an opportunity to eat lunch at school…for the first time. We will also be working on bringing running water directly to the school. Currently, children must carry jerry cans, many of which have holes and leak, down a treacherous path to fetch water. We want to change this.

Some friends and family have already expressed a very enthusiastic interest to help facilitate some of our ideas. Two close friends of Jimbo’s, Jesse Danger Johnson and Ryan Sir Friendly Horn, have agreed to sponsor a show of the musical variety on the beautiful St. Simmons Island. It is said to be sometime around Christmas. Mary, a.k.a. Mundawger or Jimbo’s mom, has also agreed to host a benefit party we are calling Cocktails for a Cause. The date has not been arranged but the location will be at her home in sunny Naples, Florida. As well, Mollie’s awesome sis and bodacious brother(in-law), Katie and Mack, have agreed to host a fabulous winter party at their home in snowy Jackson Hole to raise awareness and money for this community.

We also have a new seasonal idea that could allow just about anybody to get involved if they are interested. We have designed a special edition 2009 Global Ties Fund Raising Christmas Ornament that will be available to order by the beginning of next week. It is made from traditional African Kitenge fabric and traditional bark cloth and will look excellent adorning any Christmas tree this season. The refugees of Kamba Cooperative are making all these awesome ornaments, and all proceeds will benefit the children of Hope School. So, if you are a teacher and you think your class could help us, your church, your business, or just yourself we would love to have you support.

(we will post a picture as soon as we have the first ornament ready)

For all the fly-fishing men and women out there, we will also be fund raising through our program Global Ties: Tying the World Together One Fly at a Time. We will be selling our Bead Head Midge Nymph flies for $2 a piece and preferably by the dozen. We pay a lot of attention to our quality control so that we make qualities flies that will catch you fish.

(Picture to come)

We have also secured a few willing participants that will be sponsoring change collection bins. Our first partner is Griffin GriffTown VanMeter. He will be placing a change bin at Stella’s Deli in Lexington, Kentucky. If you happen to be dinning there, and you should be because it is delicious, please check it out. We would be very grateful and appreciative of anybody willing to participate in this.

A Ugandan Wedding

Sunday – 10.24.09

The wedding! Our friend Annet, the head teacher at Hope, invited us to her best friend’s wedding. She was a bridesmaid. The bride and groom were from different districts, so the wedding was a unique mixture of two Ugandan traditions, Christianity, and much Western/American influence. We were so excited and honored to receive a formal invitation to attend such an occasion. Jacob, a Hope teacher, his girlfriend Grace, and Annet’s 10 year old niece Sharon all met at our place where we boarded the first taxi. The wedding was scheduled to begin at 12noon, so we met at 10am and left close to 11am. But remember what I told you about schedules and plans…
We actually arrived at the church a little late due to traffic and shoe difficulties. Sharon’s shoe broke as we were walking to the church, so we had to get it fixed. Luckily, that service is readily available here so all we had to do was find the nearest shoe fixer on the side of the road and pay 600UGsh (roughly 30 cents) for him to sew her shoe back together. We were escorted to our seats around 12:30pm and relieved to hear that the bride was running a little late so we were on time. We made it! The preachers and musicians began to entertain the growing crowd with praise songs and dance. Three hours later we were still praising as the bride had not yet made it to the church! This is African time at its core! The bride finally arrived around 4pm and the ceremony started shortly after (4 hours late!!). There was much excitement in the audience as the bride and bridal party danced down the aisle. There was clapping, and singing, and all sorts of noises including a traditional yelp that sounds a bit like a rooster alarm. The ceremony was followed by a sermon, but only took about an hour. (Not as long as we had anticipated, but by this time we were so hungry!) The bride and groom danced their way back down the aisle and out of the church. We, the guests, followed singing and clapping behind them and made our way down the road to the reception. At the reception, the guests sat in chairs separated by districts. We sat on the Hioma (the bride’s district) side. The bride, groom, and bridesmaids danced around the cake table several times, then cut the cake, fed each other, and fed their parents. Eventually, they sat in front facing everyone. Everyone was served a soda as a group of school children provided the entertainment of choreographed dances and songs. Then the guests presented their gifts one by one dancing their way up to the couple and presenting it to them. Many women, wearing their traditional dress (gomesi) brought hens or chickens. Quite a site to see a line of people dancing to give presents, some wrapped in colored paper and some with a hen by its feet. A normal occurrence at a wedding reception here in Uganda especially since the groom’s aunts and uncles must give birds to the couple. Finally, after the gifts, we ATE! What a treat. After not eating or drinking anything all day, we were so happy to eat matoke, millet, stir-fried cabbage, g’nut, and rice. They even served some sort of meat. Something interesting though….we all ate with our hands. No utensils. Just when you start to think things are not so different here in Africa, something else happens and you remember you are definitely not in the States anymore!

This wedding was such a great experience, but not one that everyone gets to have here. Many people cannot afford to get married, because of the dowry. The men can’t afford the woman. Dowries are different in each culture here, so it changes according to where the woman is from, but it usually consists of sugar, money, goats, cows, and chickens. That is why many (we have been told MOST) Ugandans never have a formal wedding. Even if they could afford the dowry, they can’t afford a ceremony and reception. Needless to say, we felt blessed to be invited and included and had a great time regardless of the late start!