Unreal.

Family & Friends!
The past few weeks of my time in Uganda have been absolutely unreal. Unreal in the sense that I have experienced some unreal cultural incidences (such as learning how to shop in a crowded market in Kampala where everyone is grabs your arm because you are white; such as riding in an open-sided, hour long, bus ride along the Nile with Ugandan, American, Australian, and Kenyan white water rafting guides and singing and laughing with them all the way; such as delivering milk with my home stay brother Joel; and such as attending an all day Scripture Party and being the only white person there; such as helping my roommate take out her red and brown weave; and such as watching my friend getting body-painted and perform in a tribal dance)….
Unreal in the sense that I am learning an incredible amount (about Ugandan politics and the corruption that follows; about the HSMF and the LRA and the impact that they are still having on the people of northern Uganda; about African traditional religions and the role they play in Ugandan every-day life; about Ugandan taboos, saying, myths, and proverbs; about poverty and the selfishness of the West; about living simply; and about the fact that I now feel more comfortable in poor towns like Mukono than at fancy resorts in Jinja)…
Unreal in the sense that I have been stretched emotionally, physically, and spiritually (as I have become more settled, homesickness has finally sunk in, but I am learning to live in the present and enjoy every moment of every day that I have here; being in Uganda is absolutely exhausting—I pass out every night around 10:30 because I am so drained from a day of walking, learning, difficult conversations, new concepts, cultural misunderstandings, and a full stomach of rice and beans; I was physically stretched last weekend went I went white water rafting on class five rapids and Bungee jumping 145 ft. over the Nile—the most petrifying, exhilarating, and exciting 30 hours of my life; spiritually stretching in the sense that God is revealing himself to me in new ways every day… I am just praying that he will continue to give me guidance as to what he wants me to do with all that I am learning, seeing, and experiencing; spiritually stretching in the sense that I am surrounded by a very faithful community of people—Africans incorporate their beliefs… whether they are traditional religions, Christianity, or Islam… into every part of their lives)….
Unreal in the sense that I still cannot believe that I am here, and that I am still here. Does that make sense? I have been talking to my roommates lately about how it feels like I am in a perpetual dream. Uganda is so different from anything that I know; I still cannot get used to the fact that this is my home, and I am not leaving for another two months.
For anyone who has ever studied abroad, you can sympathize with me when I say that writing a blog about my experience is ridiculously difficult. Attempting to put everything to words is very overwhelming, and I hope you can all forgive me when I say that there is sooo much more that I could be telling you.
Thanks again for all of your prayers and thoughts. I’m definitely feeling them over here :-D
By the way, if anyone gets a random urge to send me a package or a letter, here are some items that I am dearly missing:
- granola bars/ energy bars
- chocolate of any sort
- Mexican hot sauce (weird, I know… but the food is REAL bland)
- Plain t-shirts or tank tops (mine are already 6 times bigger than their normal size because of hand-washing.. even plain Hanes v-necks are lovely)
- Lollipops
- Candy corn!!!
- YOU (good one, right?)
Here’s my address in case you get the urge to write or send something (btw, don’t send anything later than the first week in November… it may not get here before I leave… or at all……):
Kelly Ranck, Uganda Studies Program
Uganda Christian University
PO Box 4
Mukono, Uganda
Thinking of you all daily!!!!!