Here's an update from my friends Josh, Tiff & Nate from Uganda today. As I prepare to head back in 10 days, I am reminded of the daily doses of joy and pain awaiting me...
"joy and pain walk hand in hand"
We have stories from the last month here with Come Let's Dance that have drastically impacted our lives, stories that will rest in our minds forever, experiences that we have yet to process, but yesterday was a day that opened my eyes to the inevitable connection between joy and pain.
Today (January 27th) we started the day as usual, breakfast together and time to talk about the day. There was 8 of us so we decided to split into two groups of 4. The first group went to Thread of Life (TOL), our sew shop project that helps destitute women with training so they can have a skill to provide for their families. Currently they are making all of the school uniforms for the kids house, Solomon (the shop manager) asked if we could come over and help sew buttons. The other group decided to go visit people at Mulago hospital in the Children's Cancer Ward, the same place we had gone on Christmas day.
We arrived at Mulago around noon, the doctors were still doing there rounds so we promised to stay out of their way so they could get work done. We spread out, all taking time to meet different children, some of which were smiling because of the visitors others were laying in bed with blank stares across their face. One boy had a tumor on his jaw the size of a volleyball, we learned that 2 weeks prior he had no sign of sickness. Another child we recognized from Christmas, he sat in the same bed crying in the same way he had on Christmas day, his mother said they had been there for two months. His mother told us they failed to find money for the treatment, "He needed six treatments and they were 22,000 schillings each ($11USD)." One woman, Mama Daniel, had been in the hospital for 3 weeks with Stomach Cancer, her 2 boys Kenneth (10) and Daniel (4) were staying with neighbors because they have no family in Kampala. She is afraid that she will pass away soon but the doctors haven't given her a clear answer so she in not sure what to do with her boys. They won't be attending school this year because her sickness has taken all of their money and they have nothing left to pay school fees. She told us all of this through her hunger pains because she had nothing to buy food for the day.
After many conversations and prayers with some of the patients I heard a loud weeping coming from two beds away, slowly I made my way to the bed to see a girl named Solanche shaking and foaming from the mouth, the mother could not handle watching and left the room while a relative called for the nurses. There was a cold silence in the room as everyone tried not to stare but could notice the looks of helplessness even in the eyes of the doctors. As the seconds rushed by, the mood shifted, fewer eyes focused on Solanche and more eyes began to bow in prayer. The doctors tried switching her I.V., for 5 minutes nothing was working. Finally she stopped, I looked at her but she laid there still, her arms that were once shaking now rested limp. As her eyes rolled back I thought to myself, "Is she dead, is that really it, just like that? No effort, no heart monitors, no CPR?" I wanted to do something pick her up, yell her name...do something. Understanding my absolute lack of knowledge in anything medical I did the first thing that came to my mind, I went outside to console the mother. As she stood there gasping, trying to catch her breath I stood there like an idiot saying the same old cliche, "It's going to be okay." I had no idea if it would be okay, I didn't even know if she understood me, but I thought that maybe it could help. After a few minutes I left her and went back inside, as I approached the bed I heard a terrible noise, it sounded like a gurgled hissing. To my surprise it was Solanche, she was now laying back breathing again, not easily but she was breathing. As she laid there panting I could see that the doctor had left, the sister had gone outside to tell the mother that she was still alive, there was one woman standing by her side. Mike (one of the other volunteers here at CLD) and I asked the woman if we could pray for her, the woman agreed and we prayed. And we prayed, and we prayed, and prayed some more. As I prayed I continuously thought about all the times Jesus had healed people, I remembered the disciples healing people, I desperately pleaded with God to give me the faith to bring comfort to this girl. Earlier we learned that 2 days before this same girl had been at home cooking with her mother, and here she was laying in a hospital bed in severe pain, I asked God to let her cook again. After 30 minutes, the nurses had returned to adjust her 3 I.V.s and check her heart rate. We stepped back and watched helplessly, wondering what kind of suffering this girl was experiencing. As the family gathered around we moved out of the way to let them have time with their daughter. They hired a man to come and take pictures of them with the girl fearing that she would soon be gone. It is about a 15 minute walk from Mulago Hospital to Thread of Life, during the walk Mike and I exchanged thoughts on the situation, and I wondered what is the mother going through? What does it feel like to watch you daughter in that situation?
As we arrived to TOL we saw smiling faces, the whole time everyone had been happily sewing buttons. In the sewing room 10 Ugandan women, some that had at one time been prostitutes, now sat on sewing machines working on the uniforms as their healthy children ran around playing at their feet. They are getting paid per uniform and will use the money to buy food and medicine for their children. The uniforms they are working on are for the kids at Mercy Childcare who 6 years ago had no hope of ever going to school. As Solomon instructed them on the importance of the quality of the uniforms I saw a 22 year old man completely in his element, leading people with love, providing for them a way of life. In the other room there were 4 Americans in their early 20's, 4 people who at one time were completely self-centered and oblivious to the reality of life across the world. These people sat there joyfully sewing buttons, joyfully understanding the process, joyfully working with Ugandans to bring hope to this small part of the world. On the taxi ride home I thought about why that girl had not been healed, I thought about all the answers that have been fed to me about suffering in the world, and then I realized that while I had seen pain that day I had seen even more joy. I realized that we don't have to feel joyful about Solanche's pain, but that we do have to continue to work our butts off to bring hope to people - to ourselves. I realized that because of TOL many women will have the opportunity to treat their sick children and to raise up out of poverty. I realized that all those children who are now attending school will grow up to be doctors and leaders that will bring more healing to this place. I realized that there is a generation of people refusing to live only for themselves, refusing to be lazy, refusing to quit, and always willing to learn from mistakes.
As I finish this blog it is now the end of January 28th, I wish I could say that today was easier, but it wasn't. We returned to Mulago for a quick visit, as I glanced across the room I saw that Solanche was still there, alive but in pain. I stopped to say hello to Mama Daniel, she said it had been a rough day and that they had lost many lives, I turned to see which beds were empty but that they had already been filled up with new faces. These days aren't easy but we refuse to quit, we refuse to forget that joy and pain walk hand in hand.
Love you all...
I have an email group that I send updates to every month, mostly to have some prayer support behind what I'm up to as I believe deeply in that need! I thought I would share this with everyone as the year begins to give you all in blog-land an understanding of what's next for me.
My role with Come, Let's Dance is as a volunteer, so I do request financial support if anyone feels inclined. Please understand that I know there are many other people and organizations worth supporting right now in the world, especially in Haiti, and I highly encourage you to look into those opportunities! I believe in supporting one another to create a better world, and right now I'm one of those heading out in hopes of doing that - and I need your support, there's no way around that. I do look forward to another season when I can be on the giving end as well financially, but until then, thanks for your thoughts, your time and your support.
Happy New Year!!!
2010 seemed a long way off about 20 years ago…and here we are. Have you looked back to a decade ago, 2000, and reminisced about the journey you’ve been on since then? I find such comfort in looking back over the years, noticing the ebb and flow of joys and sorrows. I realize that I now have called Denver ‘home’ for 8 years, am blessed by an amazing community of friends and family around the world, have traveled near and far, and feel more deeply at peace and at rest in my own skin than ever in my life. To find myself here, now, gives me great hope in the coming years as well.
Looking ahead, I have much to be thankful for and look forward to! At the top of my list is my fiancé, Mark Cloherty! Yes, I’m engaged – we’re hoping to have the wedding in Denver at the end of July/beginning of August. I met Mark this past June through Medair while I was in Uganda. He is working with Medair in DR Congo right now. Mark is from Manchester, UK, where we hope to land for a while after the wedding, waiting to see where God might lead us next. It’s been an exciting journey already experiencing God’s grace and hand in bringing us together over the past few months. We feel tremendously blessed and happy, excited for our future together!
In February, I’m headed back to Uganda to work a few more months with Come, Let’s Dance. As I said in previous updates, I feel the relationships and projects I’ve invested in have much more potential, I don’t think its time to say goodbye just yet! My project from the fall of writing and compiling manuals has only just begun as we are trying to begin an internship program in fall of 2010. Thread of Life continues to be looking for a permanent location and there is the ever-present need of a sustainable market within Uganda. I believe the empowerment of these women is a huge need that I desire to keep supporting. I’ll also be helping to host volunteer groups as they come and go, experiencing Uganda and learning what CLD is all about.
My financial support for September through December was above and beyond what I had hoped for! Thank you all for your prayers and contributions. When I left Uganda, $1200 of my surplus support was made available to be used on our projects in January, when donations are often low. What a huge praise!!!
Would you pray with me over these needs?
~ I’ve recently been diagnosed with Mono. :( Though I’ve already dealt with the majority of the symptoms, I’m very tired most days and need to spend this time in Denver resting and hopefully getting healthy! Pray for healing and that I would truly rest this weary body.
~ Mark and I are planning our wedding from afar and apart from one another. Please pray for the communication we have available to sustain us and that even from afar we will continue to be prepared for our coming marriage.
~ Mark is working in a fairly insecure area in DR Congo. Currently there have been a few attacks by the rebel group, the LRA, which continues to wreak havoc and displace many people in that area. Pray for safety and protection over Mark, the Medair team, and especially those most vulnerable: the Congolese who are suffering from trauma and fear in their own land. If you’d like to learn more about Mark’s work there and the situation, you can visit his blog: www.markcloherty.blogspot.com
~ Over the next month I need to begin raising $3500 in financial support for my next 4 months in Uganda. Please pray with me for this provision during tough economic times. I am looking for contributions of $25 per month, such as an auto-giving commitment, from February through May, as well as one-time donations. If you feel you would like to commit to this or know someone who may be interested, please see the specific information below.
Thanks for your continued support!
Look forward to hearing from you,
Jennie
Three easy ways to financially support Jennie’s service with Come, Let’s Dance:
- For tax-deductible donations, please make checks payable to “Come, Let’s Dance”, with Jennie Otte in the memo and send to: (email jennie for the specific address, thanks!)
- For auto-withdrawal, email jennie for the form and instructions.
- For NON-tax-deductible contributions through paypal, click on the “Donate” button on the right of this screen.
I have returned to Dungu after spending Christmas with the Medair team in Bunia. Christmas was a pretty quiet affair this year, I spent New Years Eve at the MONUC (UN) house with some Medair teammates, UN peacekeepers from Morocco and the Guatemalan special forces. Different definately!The local population in Dungu were fearing the worst over Christmas. In Dec 2008, the LRA launched a series of horrific attacks in the town. LRA activity had intensified at the end of this last year, creating a lot of concern in and around Dungu. Security remained calm over the festivities, but has continued to intensify since my return in early January. Why? Well certainly the LRA seem to have reorganised in Congo. The Congolese military presence has been reduced dramatically, as the government tries to fight a new rebellion in the Equateur Province. There are also elections in South Sudan in April, followed by more elections in Congo and Uganda in 2011. All mitigating factors maybe, and the LRA seem to be making the most of their opportunity, with attacks happening all over NE Congo.Anzway, im doing fine. Medair and all the NGOs are working as much as possible to help as many people as possible affected by this ongoing crisis. Please pray for the work of Medair and those affected in the DR Congo.
The big news has finally made it to the blog: I'm engaged!!! Mark and I are happily looking forward to 2010 to begin our life together. Already we've been amazed by God's amazing provision for us and all the love and support of our family and friends. We found out yesterday some good news that means we don't need to go through a bunch of immigration hoops we thought necessary to marry in the states (since he's British). Here's what Mark had to say on his blog...
I am very happy to say that Jennie and I announced are engagement just a couple of days ago. I spoke to Jennie's father and asked for his permission to marry his amazing daughter. We are both very excited about what the future holds. God has opened up so much for us in the last few months, and we are excited to see what adventures he holds in store for us over the next few years. We plan to be married at the end of July, in Denver USA. This obviously means that I will not be extending my Medair contract at the end of May.
From now until the end of May I will be living and working in the DR Congo. Jennie will be working in Kampala. I will be able to see Jennie on my visits to Uganda for holiday, but please pray for protection over us as we will sadly have to spend some time apart over the the next few months.
Please continue to pray for us as we prepare to get married and spend our lives us together, that the Lord will bless us, continue to guide us and show us exactly where he wants us to be. Please pray that God will always be at the centre of our relationship and that he continues to work so actively in our lives.
So much has changed in so little time and I can't imagine it any other way! Would love and appreciate your prayers along the way, friends!
