I sat under this tree this morning enjoying the soft breeze and the beautiful fragrance.   I have asked and no one is sure what this tree is called in English.  In any event, I highly suggest sitting under one if you can.   It’s delightful.

Together with the two staff interns from the NGO I’m working with, I headed over to the District Offices in Lira for meeting with the local officials to discuss the logistics of the permitting process for the shelter.   As is the norm in Uganda, the meeting was rescheduled.

So we headed to Aboke for an afternoon sharing circle with the community group doing outreach work to educate the surrounding villages about HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment.  I was welcomed as family and felt quite at home.   The group, made up of 22 community members,  was discussing the recent local drama that was held as an educational and informational tool to spread the message HIV/AIDS prevention to neighbouring towns.    The dedication and motivation of these local volunteers is amazing and really, really motivating.   We talked about the challenges, the successes and the lesson learned.  And then we ate.   Stewed chicken (together with in utero eggs), rice and cabbage.    And a Pepsi.   It was delicious.

Jennifer, the staff intern, who has been working with this community group, is going home after a six month term in Uganda.   The group presented her with a chicken as a thank you gift for her hard work and dedication.   We dubbed the chicken “Aboke”, for her town of origin.    The little bugger, Aboke, that is, took a sh&t in the car before she decided to make a break for it and 3 mono girls ran down the road trying to catch her!!   No doubt that story is making the local gossip rounds as fast as fire.

Piggy Smalls is the pig we nearly hit on the way home.   Alas, Piggy Smalls lives to grunt another day.