Tag Archives: girls education

Morning Commute

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The pre-dawn in Kampala is alive. Hours before the sun peaks over the horizon, government workers, students and other commuters are on the move.

The headlamps on cars, matatus and boda-bodas shine weakly on the already-crowded streets. Young girls, with orange blouses and white socks, set out for class along the side of the road, rehashing homework facts before the day’s lessons begin.

The only concession to urgency is the fact that they have left home early. The pace is relaxed. Like their peers in the West, they have appointments on their schedules. What they don’t have are private cars to school, public school buses, or the angst of trying to get somewhere on time.

This is a weekday morning in Africa. I am on my way to the airport to collect my baggage which is two days late from London. I’m thinking about how I can collect the luggage, then get through security in time to make my already-delayed flight to Bwindi.

As we speed past traffic toward our destination, the shadowy figures and vehicles move with a purpose but with patience. We will get there when we get there.

Worlds apart: an uneven place

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From my western perspective, the world is not such a big place. You can travel anywhere in a matter of hours, then get instant communications with loved ones half way around the world. Time and space on the globe get compressed. News travels fast, but not all of us are on the same page.

I recently flew 10,000 miles to spend a couple of weeks in the Sub-Saharan Africa wilderness of South Sudan. It was my first opportunity to see life across the Atlantic Ocean. There were no flat screens, flush toilets, or books, which are pillars for life back home. Nevertheless, at the compound at which we stayed, we had niceties, such as electricity and filtered water. Yes, I managed well without air conditioning, thank you.

Because of the video production I was doing, I brought equipment with me. It wasn’t lost on me or the Dinka tribespeople with whom we resided that I came from the land of plenty. In typical western excess, I had seven cameras at my disposal. All of us on our team had phones.

Here in the remote savannah, legions lack the simplest things: water, electricity, books. Life is simpler and slower, which made it kind of attractive to this visitor. People are welcoming, they smile, they’re joyous. Relationships are the key here. People want to know about you and your family not your status. There’s something to be said for simplicity.

Students at the Hope and Resurrection Secondary School in Atiaba are determined in their studies. They want to learn. They’ll ride or walk 90 minutes or more each way to get to school. But when they go home, there are no lights, desks or computers. They manage as best they can, in between chores, with lanterns and endurance. Tomorrow brings another day and a step closer to a trained mind. The challenges are bigger. Existence is on the line.

In the middle of this place, remote and beautiful, the world is bigger.