Sangala Sangala

Yesterday was a heck of a day at the high school! We played two games of “netball,” which is like basketball but when you have the ball, you cannot move, so there is some ultimate Frisbee incorporated, too, if you’re familiar with that. After the first game, we had some manzani, which are like fried balls of dough (not quite as sweet as donuts) and tea, and then rested until another game came around. Usually, the girls play netball and the boys play soccer, and the girls really get in to netball. They were pretty competitive, but any time the other team got to their goal, I was down there with my hands up, and prevented most of the shots. When you shoot in netball, you can’t jump, and Ugandans do not usually get to be very tall, so… it wasn’t hard for me, at 5’10 to be good on defense J

(me, talking to the primary kids after lunch, before scouting)

Then we had lunch, which was posho and beans, again. I wonder if they get tired of it, but I know that at the very least they are fed every day, Monday through Friday. I didn’t quite finish mine, which would be very rude in Ugandan culture, but at the school, with this meal, it is acceptable (I learned this because Gladys, our Ugandan host who goes with the team who goes to school, never finishes her posho at the school).

Afterward, we learned what “scouting” is. It’s a game theatre kids would love! You stand in a circle, and one person starts a traditional Ugandan song or one they all know, and then does movements the rest of the group follows. Sometimes the dance moves go with the songs, other times they are ambiguous, but it was always funny when the mzungus did it!! There was one song where I was the one in the circle, but since I don’t know their songs, someone else sang, and I had to dance!! It was so much fun, because they pulled two of the other mzungus in as well, and I know we were entertaining. Afterward I took some pictures with the high school kids and the street kids that had come out to see what was going on.

I loved how the culture radiated through this activity, and how I felt more connected to these kids. The Ugandan culture is very interesting: I knew handshakes were important, but greetings are vital, and long. And I knew they liked to talk, and to give, and are great hosts, because Jeremiah, our leader, informed us of such, but it’s really true, and to a larger extent than I imagined. They value people very much, and I think there is something to gain from that.

"Sangala Sangala, nowukeni yena asangala."

This is a song that means, "when the host is happy, everyone is happy!" This is so true of Ugandan culture, too! They really live this out as hosts to us. They serve in almost everything they do.