Week 8

This weekend brought quite a surprise to Sara and I. We walked to a nearby field to watch the kids play football. We weren't even there for five minutes before the kids ran to us with puppies that they had found abandoned in a bush. Their eyes weren't opened yet, so they were very young, not to mention starving and tired, so Sara and I decided to take them home with us! The kids all think that we are crazy (most of them are scared of the dogs because they aren't used to seeing them as pets), but the kids are adjusting to them quite nicely. Unfortunately, one of the puppies passed away lastnight, but two remain - Gift and Patience. :)
The kids are beginning to realize that I am leaving next Friday and it has been rough. Hard to tell them that it's okay and need to just enjoy the time that we have left. Hard to convince them that they have made a huge impact on my life and I will not forget them. Hard because I want to ignore that the time is approaching. Hard because some of them have already started to distance themselves.
There are about six kids that I have gotten super close to and I have started writing letters that I will leave with them when I go. It's difficult to put feelings and memories into words, but it is important that they realize how much I love them and how much I have learned about love because of them. It's unbelievable how, despite the language/culture/age barriers, they have loved me and cared for me more unconditionally than many other friends that I have had in my lifetime. I have learned from them what it means to really love others more than yourself. I am hoping that I can implement that kind of love into my daily life when I return so other can experience a piece of what I have experienced here.
I just finished reading "Through Painted Deserts" by Donald Miller, in which he leaves home and travels the U.S. in a van with a friend. In it, he says "It feels again like we are leaving, like we are leaving who we were and moving into the people we will become." That is how I feel. I am not quite sure who I am becoming, but I know that I am definitely different than the person I was before I left home.
This is the last update I will make from Uganda, because I have only one week remaining and want to spend as much time as possible with the kids. I will update when I arrive back home to tell you about my last week, as well as the joys of culture shock and jet lag.
Thank you all for your prayers and support. LOVE.