Drama and Music Competitions (Wrapping up the term!)

The second term is deemed the arts term and I got to participate with the girls in the district competitions.  THEY WERE AMAZING! Our girls have so much talent it is unbelievable. We are the reigning national champions of the past 5 or so years and you can tell! I feel bad for the schools that have to compete with us in district, because they don’t have a chance! The competitions are based on 10 categories and last all day. (Typical Ugandan style!) They are: play, speech, poem, choir song, traditional song, traditional music, western song and dance, interpretive song and something like a seeing song or something. (I didn’t see that one by accident.)

We of course dominated every category but unfortunately my camera died half way through the day. I was not able to take as many pictures and videos as I would have liked but I made some awesome memory moments! Again, our girls are so talented! The theme was Eastern Africa and the girls clearly portrayed it in every category. Their poem gave me goose bumps and my heart race. I almost cried at the end. And they wanted nothing more than feedback when they were done with each event. And I gladly gave them more and more positive feedback, which got them so excited that a teacher outside the department was there to cheer them on! (I am really trying to take advantage of my time here and get my nose into every thing that girls do to really connect and bond with them and experience everything I can!) There collaboration of the western dance and song was AMAZING as well! Both of those things brought tears to your eyes. At the end of the competitions when they announced the winner the girls back at school could hear us cheering! (We were in Bushenyi town and my school is up on a hill away from the school.) We brought so much excitement back to the school that half the girls were up and waiting for us at the gate! I am positive none of the girls slept that night!

I really love this country and everything it has to offer. I am so appreciative that I am placed at my school and with my girls! They are amazing in every aspect and I feel so close to them every day that passes!

Overall it was awesome first term that I spent at school attempting to teach. I have more respect than ever for teachers, especially the adolescent teachers! Some things don’t change, no matter what country you are in! There were a lot of ups and downs like a rollercoaster, but I made it through my first six months with a smile! I knew it was going to be a challenge coming here, but I believe it is only making me stronger, more passionate and tolerant. Spending my secondary project with the girls is making them more vocal about their rights and is slowly giving them confidence and strength in themselves that they deserve. I have learned from my mistakes and look forward to next term to make things even better while teaching.

The term is now over and I’ll be off for a fun August holiday break filled with IST (in-service training), all volunteer conference, BUT filled in between with rafting and hiking! Stay tuned for some awesome pictures of travels!

Thanks for all the love and warm strength building words that I have gotten from everyone! I can’t be more appreciative from the packages that I have been receiving; it is really helping to keep me strong and motivated. (Let alone keeping me healthy with all the food!) I will try to keep everyone posted more often and sorry the last posts were all in a row! I finally had access to internet! And again, if there are any questions or suggestions for some pictures or good ideas post them and I will get back to you as soon as possible!