Family

I’ve been notably silent this summer, for which I apologize. It’s been a hectic month, with interns to host, medical school to apply to, and visits to plan, all while continuing my normal work on the team. Just about every time I’ve thought that I should write a post, I’ve thought that it’s probably a better idea to work on medical school applications. I’m now finished with the primary application, but have already received secondary applications to work on. No rest for the weary, I suppose.

But the main purpose of this post is to say that I am incredibly blessed to have my parents and brother visiting me. They arrived about a week ago and have been experiencing life here and just spending time with me and with the team. I still can barely believe that they’re here – it’s a fusion of disparate worlds that hardly feels real. I feel like I exist in two separate worlds, one here, and one in the States, and the two have previously had precious little connection. But now I find myself struggling to believe that I’m walking down the road into Nyahuka with my mom; not only does it barely seem real, it almost doesn’t seem possible. Their visit has been a huge blessing to me. I’ve been anticipating it all summer and it’s truly beautiful to sit around with family in evenings, just talking, drinking port, and enjoying each others' company, something I hadn’t been able to do for nine months. My parents also have my house in a state of cleanliness that it probably hasn’t seen in that same time period.

It’s wonderful to have family see the things that I see and meet people that I know. Their presence here is an amazing gift to me, though it makes me miss my sister even more. This weekend we head out of the district for some travel – a time to see new and wonderful things, to explore new places, to rest in a way that one can never rest in Bundibugyo, and to spend time together. It will be a striking contrast, especially for my family, going from the rugged, sad, hectic, painful, beautiful, and poor landscape of Bundibugyo to a more pristine, natural, secluded beauty of Murchison Falls National Park (with quiet crater lakes and the dirty, chaotic commotion of Kampala thrown in along the way).