Stephen.

Stephen and I had a date today. We’re working through stuff in our relationship, as he’s got major dad issues and is often reserved and lacks confidence. I’ve found a way to rile him up though. He finds it funny when I fake yell at him, so at one point today I said, “Stephen, you can NOT keep batting those brown eyes at me unless you clearly state where this relationship is going!” This sent him running around the house screaming. Stephen also likes when I blow on his wrist. For whatever reason, it throws him into a hysterical bout of laughter. So we did this for a while too. It was pouring rain, so we decided to catch raindrops for a few minutes, but the weakness of his immune system makes wetness an avoided aim, if possible. He was okay with that—quickly distracted by our next date to-do’s, including Legos, Veggie Tales and eating bananas in our kitchen.

Stephen has autism. His mom died in childbirth and his dad was put in prison for fishing without a license when Stephen was one. When released from jail, he came to pick him up and findings of the disease were explained. He said he didn’t want him. There are little to no care facilities for the special needs population in Africa. I actually walked by Jinja’s “Lame Compound” yesterday, where people are basically dropped off and left to until they die.” Stephen will stay at Amani until he is six and then be passed on to another orphanage. He will remain a physically and psychologically orphaned for the rest of his life.

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Food.

Eating is pretty basic and organic over here, meaning it’s rare to move beyond things grown from the ground, picked from a tree, or torn from an animal. There are a few Indian run markets in town, and two days a week an outdoor one. Most anything you want can be purchased here, as long as you’re not picky about its taste, brand, or limited number of choices (i.e., there’s not a cereal aisle; there’s Cornflakes). And keep in mind, most every food in this entry should be put in quotations of some sort, as things don’t ever taste quite the same as we’re accustomed to.

We are in charge of our breakfast and dinner, so only my lunch is authentically “Ugandan,” but a typical day for me might include:
Breakfast—eggs, oatmeal, bananas & avocados, rice bread with peanut-butter and bananas, mango, nuts, apples, raisins, papaya, tea and honey…
Lunch (at Amani, cooked by Mama Cook J)—posho (mashed corn), cassava (mashed bananas), maize, baked beans, chipoties, peanut sauce, rice, sweet potatoes, regular potatoes, meat occasionally (once a week maybe)…
Dinner—soup, rice, tuna fish, meat, vegetables (eggplant/tomato/cucumber/pepper), avocado, cereal, peanut butter (and whatever)…
Snacks—lots of nuts and seeds, fruit, peanut butter (and whatever)…

Granted, I’m allergic to wheat and dairy, so that a normal diet could add a further spectrum of bread/milk/cheese/yogurt/ice cream groups, too. Desserts don’t seem too common (due to the expense of sugar, probably), but we always have brownies, cookies, candy and the likes around the Volunteer House. Meals are typically cooked plain, or with sunflower oil and there’s not a lot of spicing, or buttering, which we of the “Weak Stomach’s Club” appreciate. Meat is expensive, so for the natives, a rarity. Since protein is a little tough to come by, I’ll opt for meats whenever given the chance. I’ve yet to see cooked chicken or fish outside our home. That’s not true—Ethiopian Air served me baked cod. Pretty good, too. Water is completely parasite infested, so that even Ugandan’s don’t drink it unboiled. Unpeeled fruits and vegetables must be bleached, or boiled. Okay, writing about food made me hungry. Off to eat.

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Sophia.

Sophia is the most high maintenance two and a half year old I’ve ever met. She will only wear certain colors on certain days and must have her nails painted. She prefers “puff balls” to braids and insists on her food being completely pureed before she’ll touch them. She’s good at puzzles and can beat you in a game of hide-and-seek any day of the week.

Sophia has AIDS. She was diagnosed with HIV at birth and has recently been confirmed with the full-fledged syndrome. Sophia will never be adopted. In Uganda, at least, regulation does not prohibit the adoption of a child with AIDS, but since health-care and insurance are not covered, it would take a billionaire to fund even a decade of one of these victim’s lives.

As you can imagine, every kid here has a heart-wrenching a story—every person does, really. 30% of the kids at Amani are un-adoptable due to illness, or a situation of their parent being unable to keep them (but with the intention of hopefully soon taking them back). By default, they will remain institutionalized for the rest of their time on earth.