week 2

Well week two @ CRO was incredible. I went on their camp to Kalangala island with 105 street children which was definitely one of the most challenging & rewarding things I have ever done. The opportunity to connect with these children on the camp was so great. I believe by going on the camp I have connections that I would not have otherwise. The journey was quite remarkable as all the children were loaded in a local transport truck to endure quite the long haul. At first I was concerned about their safety & then it occurred to me the reality the face every day is much more dangerous. They were so excited to be going on the camp & they had the chance to be children again. We arrived to the camp i.e. Ssese farm school to face some adversity as it was quite late & there was no water on site. The team was incredible & the older children pitched in to help feed the masses. The first night was a difficult one & there was a savage fight between two boys. The nurse operated on the one boy who took a club to the head for many hours & she was able to stop the bleeding. Again I was amazed at the resourcefulness & skill of the workers. On the camp the children were able to sing, dance, play football & not have to worry about food, shelter or the harsh conditions of the street. Even the group of children that take drugs had a few days clean. I really made an effort to connect with these children as they are difficult to reach & as it is my speciality in Canada I thought I would give it a try. The language barrier is great as most of these children cannot speak any English as they have not been in school, so good thing I can connect in creative ways. I found the boys playing poker in the jungle so I pulled out a deck of cards & started to play cards with them a bit risky yet successful. While we were there one of the boys spotted a monkey which was a great chance for a photo shot so I showed a few of them how to use the camera. The oldest really enjoyed it & asked to use it on other occasions. I knew I could trust him, yet it was still a risk as if we were back in Masaka he could fetch a fair price for my camera. (I did have a moment of clarity & was glad the boy had not used drugs that day or he might have acted differently.) We went to the beach one day which was so amazing to see the children filled with excitement & happiness. They played on the playground, in the sand, swam & went for a canoe ride. Beach day was definitely the highlight of the trip. The next day there was a football game between the CRO team and the local village team (which was hardly fair as they were men & CRO were boys) Despite the challenges i.e. no shoes & facing the giants, they played quite well. Each group performed a presentation on the finally night which was so incredible. They sang, acted, and performed so well. Some children wrote songs & poems & despite not understanding the language as it was all in Luganda I really appreciated the chance to be there & felt honoured & inspired by their lives. I contributed with my group & did some very bad dance moves which everyone loved & laughed needless to say I heard a lot of dance Mazongoo dance after that. The last day was a relief for some children & a sad time for others to be going back to the streets. One boy ran away after getting of the ferry. I ran after him & thought to myself what I can do I don’t speak Luganda & he does not speak English. However after calling his name several times & luring back with candy & a hug he got back on the bus. We arrived home safe & exhausted, yet the camp was totally worth every minute & hopefully lives were changed & the children have hope for their future & if not then even a small break from their painful harsh lives was worth the effort. Yet I can’t help feeling overwhelmed & sadden by the harshness of the lives these children have had to face. They have definitely taught me even in the toughest of places there is still hope. I am looking forward to building the connections I have made on this camp & hope that I can make some difference even it is only a drop in the bucket as with every drop there is a ripple effect. Stay tuned...

Michelle