First of all, let me apologize that there are no pictures to go with this blog. I'm not much of a reader, so pictures go a long way for me. Please enjoy anyway.
There are 3 things you can count on when being white in Uganda. 1. You will get ripped off wherever you go(Unless you realize how much something should cost and it then becomes an enjoyable game of haggling.) 2. You will walk faster than everyone else, and 3. You will be invited to events or functions you have no business being at. There have been a couple of instances in the past few weeks that are perfect examples of this. The first one is that I was asked to speak on a radio show by someone I had just met, and the radio show was in a few hours. It would have been handy to know a couple of things before going on the air. The first would be the format of how the radio show should go and what would be expected of me. All I knew was that they would be talking about what it looks like to live like a Christian. The second bit of information that would have been helpful is that the radio show was not in English. Didn’t find that one out until we were on air. By the first sentence into the show I wanted to get up and walk out, but I was afraid I would have made too much noise gathering my stuff. I thought maybe I could leave at the first commercial break, but I knew that would be awkward as well because then they could stop me while no one was on air. They told me to not worry and that they would point to me when it was my turn to go on. The first commercial break ended, they talked for a bit in the local language and then pointed to me. I went with my speech I prepared as we were in the ‘green room’ waiting to go on air. I talked about Romans 12 and how we shouldn’t fit so comfortably into our culture that our lives look no different from everyone else and to do this we must fix our attention on God so that we can be transformed. They asked me one question, and my 5 minutes of fame which felt like 15 was done. I found it interesting that there were listeners that called in just like back home, and even though I had no idea what they were saying, I couldn't help but wonder if it went something like 'I'm a first time caller, long time listener. Why is there a Mzungu on this Radio program?' In the end I guess it wasn’t all for nothing. The next day the director of the ministry we are designing some buildings for asked me if it was me he heard on the radio. If I knew people I was working for were listening, I think I would have been better prepared. I go on air again the first week of July if anyone is interested. I’m not sure if it we will be streaming live on the net or not. I’m thinking probably not.
The second event I had no business being at was a wedding for people I didn’t really know. Now, I am not above crashing a wedding, and I have done it in the states, but you stand out a lot more when you’re one of the only white people at the wedding. Even though it wasn’t really a true ‘crash’ because I ran into the groom in town a couple of days before the wedding and that is when he invited me, it sure felt that way since I only somewhat knew him from church and I had no idea who his bride was or even what her name was. When I went to write them something in the card I was going to give them, I wasn’t sure if addressing it ‘To the both of you’ or ‘To Francis and his bride’ was appropriate. So I just wrote congrats. That didn’t solve the problem of writing the names on the envelope though, so I just brought a pen with me to the ceremony and wrote the brides name on the envelope after seeing what it was on the church bulletin. An interesting side note is that at the end of the ceremony when they are pronounced man and wife they don’t kiss, but just a simple hug seals the deal.
If there are any lessons to be learned in these two situations I guess one would be to be prepared in all seasons, and if not, just go with it. Also, I am convinced I will never stop asking myself in most situations, 'what the heck am I doing here?'
