A Letter From My Sickbed
-by Jessica
All right, all right, the title is crass clickbait. But now I have your attention and I promise you that your time won’t be wasted.
I actually am sick - it’s just a hazard of travel to Africa. Half of the team experienced GI issues while in Uganda, and three of us have been pretty ill on return. That last pizza meal in Kampala was probably where we went wrong. The other meal I won’t try again is gas station samosas! I’m just glad that I don’t have malaria, a disease for which over 90% of Ugandans are at risk.
Reflections upon my return can be difficult, because life is just so different here and I quickly forget the hardships that my friends in Uganda experience daily, as I sip my cold Powerade, enjoying air conditioning in a bed without mosquito nets. That bacon that my son cooked in the air fryer is turning my stomach, but Ugandans simply don’t have access to many meats and they are subsisting on a starchy banana mush called matoke for their dinner. And the doctor I visited yesterday? My friends don’t have health insurance or access to medical care without paying up front.
You might think that our H3 team goes to Africa to fix the hardships, because we have enough resources to spare. You might think that instead of dancing around the edge of GI issues, it would be easier to just send money. You might think of what we do as third-world tourism, a twisted way to experience the hardships short-term and then come home with a good story. But H3 doesn’t embody any of these motives. We know we can’t fix the hardships and so we pick and choose the things our Ugandan partners say they need the most. We do send money, but we send a team once a year to jumpstart the mission of the Ugandans on the ground with new patients and new contacts. As for the tourism piece, I challenge you to come and experience the 12 hour clinics and tell me that you’re there for the sights!
This is my second trip with the team, and this second time I figured out why I should go. It’s not the sights, it’s not the humanitarian aid, it’s not the pizza… it’s the relationships. I go because I know Phionah is waiting for me, excited to graduate from her caregiver program and attempt the impossible - a full-time job. I want to see where sweet servant-hearted 17-year-old Dennis will end up, homeless and abandoned by his parents. I want to hear the parenting wisdom that Vicky will give me, always the right word in the right circumstance. I want to see hospital director Charity worshiping at New City as a result of her interaction with the clinics. I want to invite myself over to Prossy’s house and laugh hysterically about the mispronunciation of Lugandan words. I even want to mourn in silence with my dear friend Robert as he stands over the grave of his wife.
The depth of relationship is what makes it possible for H3 to keep. coming. back. We’ve been building these friendships for over ten years, and the longevity of the relationship and our singular focus on our partner gospel organizations makes it possible for mission to flourish. We've been told that most ministries flame out in Uganda, because they are focused on one man-in-charge, or they’re about making money, or they just don’t have a continuing presence in the country. H3 is uniquely gospel- (not personality-) focused and I love that. It makes me proud to be a part, even if it's the weak-stomached part.
So I’ll eat a few saltines, I’ll be good and swig my Nyquil, and I’ll think about my friends and make my plans to go back.
Think of us once a month!
We know that not everyone is able to go with H3 to Uganda and work at the medical clinics. But you can serve an important role in supporting H3 with a monthly gift. Your consistent support helps H3 plan and budget for the year ahead.
A monthly pledge of as little as $20 could help with the cost for salaries of Ugandan staff, medicines, scholarships for education, etc. And starting next month, we will post names of students, staff, and patients and their stories so that you could support specific people for scholarships, salary, or medical care!
For more information about how you can support H3 with your monthly gift, go to theH3 website, or contactMike McDonald to sign up or for more information.