notes on the subject of life

The Lutjens' take Times Square
hands in pockets...check. (L -> R: brother Jeff, sister Carrie, cousin Jeremy, cousin Brad)
say hey y'all. it seems to me this photo says a lot about each of those photographed...I couldn't decide which of these photos, I stole from either Sus or Ricki, was my favorite so I'm posting both :)
Lake Vic (if looking at a map of Africa...that big body of water in the middle...this is the Uganda coast)
International Women's Day Football Match at Christ School...run like a girl!

*These are just a few of my favorite photos from the last several weeks of my life...not in any way directly corresponding to the post below, other than both are reports of my life :) Just thought you'd enjoy some visuals.*

Notes on the subject of life…

• I moved. Not countries, not cities, not neighborhoods, just next door. There are lots of reasons (community, visitors, household tasks, etc), and in almost all cases it seemed to be a good idea. So I’m now living with Ashley and Anna in what is commonly referred to, since I’ve been here, as “the girls’ house.” It’s been great. I’m so glad I was given the freedom to go ahead and do it, and glad I decided to “just do it!” It’s so nice to be living with Ashley and Anna. I don’t work much at all with them, them being teachers and me being a nurse and all…but that makes for a nice living arrangement…stories to tell at the end of the day, we all learn to appreciate the skill sets of the others. They’re lovely, talented, caring women after God’s heart that I have a lot to learn from and I’m really thankful for them. I have my own room, one wall of which is painted a nice periwinkle blue, and it’s the room in the house with the most light, which is so nice! In the afternoons (the time of day I’m most often at home and needing to get work done) the sun streams in the window right next to my desk. It’s nice having a place to escape school talk for a bit ☺ and for preservation of my introverted heart and mind ☺. It’s a great little corner of the world to call my own. Bonus: HOT SHOWERS and a toilet.

• Bambelela. “Never give up” in a South African language of some sort. You know how you begin to pay attention when themes seem to keep reoccurring in your life? Well, this is one of them for me as of late. I think I wrote a couple months back about the Send Me band concert at the community center and the “shout out” of sorts that Kyomuhindo, the lead singer, gave to us at the Mission, that went something like “and the Bajungu of World Harvest Mission, remember this, pray without ceasing, don’t ever give up praying.” Well, when I was at home, one of the songs we sang at church was an acapella song with 3 parts called Bambelela that simply repeats that word over and over in harmony. Never give up. And then in the theme of South Africa, I was recovering from jet lag on my arrival back here in Uganda, doing grocery shopping in Kampala, and had some afternoon time to spare so I decided to go to see a movie. The options were Avatar or Invictus. I chose Invictus. I won’t spoil the movie if you haven’t seen it, but definitely a theme of perseverance on the part of a certain man named Nelson Mandela. And somewhere in that time period Jennifer wrote a post on their blog to the tune of how the practice of perseverance and persistence and “never giving up” plays out in her life here in Bundibugyo. So, my ears are perked up, I have taken note: Heidi, never give up.

• “One of the most beautiful places in this country.” That’s where I live. Upon my return to Uganda, I flew back into Bundibugyo from Kampala on a MAF flight. MAF rocks. Their ministry of flying to difficult to reach places is so valuable and needed on this continent. I am so thankful for them, for our sake and for the sake of work going on all over Africa that is changing lives. In any case, Samuel was the pilot. My flight was scheduled for Thursday afternoon, and after 2 hours of weather delay, he wisely called it off due to a huge weather system between Kampala and Bundibugyo. Better safe than sorry…little 6 seater Cesna over the mountains in rain and lightning sounds like a death sentence to me, no thank you. So, we tried again on Friday, this time the skies were crystal clear and sun was shining brightly, it was a go. As he loaded up the plane a guy from the hanger was around and Samuel tried to convince him to come with us. “You ever been to Bundibugyo?” he asked the guy wearing the Calvary Chapel baseball cap. “No, I haven’t” he answered. “I have an extra seat, you should come. We are going to one of the most beautiful places in this country.” And he was right on.