Visit to Bishop Salimo

Paul's sister, Mary, cousin, Julie, and brother's wife, Vanessa

Bishop Salimo and wife, Zelda, receiving microscope from Paul

Paul's work on boreholes for the Ngenge villages is done under the auspices of the Church of Uganda (Anglican). We have enjoyed getting to know the clergy with whom he has worked and have great respect for them and their commitment to helping the people in the area.

Last Wednesday, while Paul's family was here, we all visited the villages to check on the progress of borehole repairs. Bishop Salimo invited us to come for dinner afterward. To tell the truth, by the time the long day was over in the villages we were all worn out and I don't think any of us was excited about the dinner. However, we knew it was gracious of the Bishop to have invited us and so we went, hot, dirty, thirsty, and hungry.

There were nine of us in our group, including Rev. David, who had spent the day with us, and our driver, Ojoko. There were probably another five guests already there, plus the Bishop and his wife, Zelda. We sat in their living room, which was large compared to others I've been in. The t.v. was tuned to news and it was hard not to look at it. A young woman brought around a tub and pitcher, and we washed our hands. Meanwhile, Steve, Paul's cousin-in-law, had been outside trying to rearrange the group's flight schedule (their flight home was canceled due to the British Airways strike). He walked back in just when it was his turn for hand-washing. The girl had set the tub on the floor for a moment. Steve had only seen tubs used for foot-washing ceremonies at churches, so he was just about to step into the tub when he caught on that it was only for hands. We got a good laugh afterward thinking about what a surprise he would have given the Ugandans.

Zelda brought out pot after pot of food: matooke, rice, and potatoes, which are standard Ugandan starches, stewed chicken (Mary noticed it was all the parts of the chicken), chappatis (a common flatbread), soup, and fried cabbage. It was quite a feast and generally familiar and tasty. As seems typical, Zelda sat the food on the large coffee tables in the center of the room, and we sat on couches along the walls to eat.

After dinner we exchanged gifts. Paul's family had brought lots of great little things from the States, things like keychains, pocket knives, and post cards, so we handed those out. Paul also gave the Bishop a microscope which had been donated by OSU and which we passed along to the girls' school that the diocese supports. The Bishop and Zelda gave us two large bunches of bananas, and lots of local coffee, both whole beans and ground.

Karen