Thanksgiving Week

Happy Thanksgiving Week!  I am thankful this week for all of my friends and family in Uganda AND in the U.S.  I am so blessed to be able to serve at Cornerstone for the time God has me here. 

I wish all of my American peeps a great Thanksgiving holiday!  I will be thinking of everyone as we have our chicken (or possibly turkey!), rolls, and pumpkin pie in Budaka, with a few fellow Peace Corp friends  :)

Here's one person I am thankful for at Cornerstone: David, whose about 9 years old, is one of our leaders.  He has a great personality, funny sense of humor, and tells it like he sees it.  I love this boy!

Funny Events

A few funny things to share:

1)   Moses was upset with Aunt Monicah (the “mom” of the orphans) the other morning because she made him do something he didn’t want to do (how mean of her, right).  After she walked away, he was crying and saying, “Mommy, I’m going to report you to Mommy!”  Hehe.

2)  We gave some of the younger kids charts for their daily routines.  They have to make their beds, get dressed, etc., and each day that they do all the tasks without being reminded, they get a sticker for that day.  So on the first day we started using the charts, I had all the little children running up to me to tell me that they had gotten dressed or tied their shoes or washed their hands.  I was surprised I didn’t hear about each time they went and peed, too.  So funny!

3)   I’m sitting on my day off and watching a truck stuck in the mud.  Watching 5 men struggle to lift the front end of the truck up.  Then watching them do this 4 times because they forgot to put something under the tire for traction the first 3 times…

There’s a little bit of my week in a nutshell.  Kids are well and it’s been another great week.  Until next time, bye!

Great Developments

Here are some of the wonderful things that have been going on here at Cornerstone: 

     The kids have been learning about responsibility on Wednesday nights.  We just reached the end of a 5-week study on that subject, and there are already some encouraging changes in behavior.  All of the children were given new mosquito nets last week, and when I went into their rooms this weekend, every child in every room said : “Look, Teacher Abby, my net doesn’t have any holes!” 

I’m so proud at the effort they are putting in towards becoming more responsible…and I’m guessing the candy and little prizes they are earning has something to do with the change, lol.

     Lately, I am seeing several of the older children (who are part of the leadership team) growing in huge ways.  Hellen, whose about 10, had been bickering with the other girls in her room daily and generally being a bossy adolescent.  During this last month, Hellen has turned a corner and is being one of the best examples on the leadership team.  She is cheerful towards others and is extremely helpful with the little girls in her room.  Praise God for His work in her! 

          Another child I’m encouraged with is Emma (a boy’s name here).  Emma is one of the quieter children, and he had a lot of behavior problems when he first came to Cornerstone in 2010.  But as he has matured, he has shown what a gentle spirit is inside him, and he has made a wonderful leader.  We recently moved another young child, Isaac (about 5 years old), into Emma’s room, because Isaac was (and is still) needing extra attention.  Emma is assigned to be the one to care for Isaac and to help him learn to do chores (like washing clothes and polishing shoes).  Although Isaac is really good at pushing people’s buttons, we have watched Emma stay calm and collected, and come and ask for help with Isaac whenever he needs it.  Even though other children might’ve lost their cool by this point, Emma is still quietly patient but firm with Isaac.  Yeah Emma!    

That’s about all I have for now.  Thanks for visiting my blog!!

-Abby