Riding with the mail...

Well we left Matoke Inn on Friday October 21 at 6:00a.m. Lawrence, the taxi man, came to pick us up. Surprisingly it is VERY busy at 6 a.m. in Kampala, still dark too. We arrived at the post office around 7 and waited for about 30 minutes for the actual post bus to come.

What’s a post bus you ask? Well, let me inform you. In Africa people used to ride along with the mail carrier because it was a safer way to travel so they made it into a full out travel option. The Post Bus is like a charter bus that carries mail and people.

Beautiful landscape of Africa land!

Matoke- looks like a banana, tastes like potato!

It was 12000 shillings ($4 US) for a 4.5 hour drive, pretty cheap! It started out pretty bare on our bus but we picked up people along the way, dropped some off, and delivered mail. They played some very interesting music videos as well, including Michael Jackson.

Some tips for riding the Post Bus: 1. Get your ticket ahead of time so you don’t have to worry about it. 2. Be early to get your bag inspected. 3. DON’T put anything in the compartment above your head on the bus, people will probably steal it. 4. If you aren’t used to African food, I wouldn’t suggest eating from vendors off the street, the ride will get pretty rough for you. Well that’s all I can think of, none of  these are from personal experience, just tips that have been passed down to me:)

Beginning of the Nile!

Roadside chicken on a stick! (i haven't tried it yet)

While riding the bus I was very anxious to see more of African land. BEAUTIFUL, as you can see! It is much greener than I had expected, less mountains but beautiful rolling hills. I love the African trees, flat topped ones, rice fields, sugar cane fields, tea fields, and villages. Africa is very interesting in the way the cities are structured because at one point you will have houses made of concrete, and then a hut village not to far down the road. Similar to the states where you might have a wealthier community and then 3 blocks over is Section 8 housing.

In all, we had a lovely ride from Kampala to Tororo! It was very funny to be dropped off at the Post Office, haha!

Hut Village during the drive

I believe these are rice fields! We eat LOTS of rice here:)

I'm in Africa....How did I get here?

Psalms 32:8- I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you

During orientation we did an activity of drawing a picture to explain our story of how we got to Africa! Very fun exercise! So like I did with our class I will explain my drawing of how I got to Africa!

-Psalms 32:8 has been a verse I've held close to for the past 2.5 years during my search of what to do with my life and where to go next.
-The Cup of Mocha! I heard about an organization in 2005 called Mocha Club, they support different parts of Africa through helping women, children, AIDS, education, water, etc. It was so interesting to me and I always thought it would be great to go on a trip with them but for the short amount of time the cost is so high. I put the idea in the back of my head and though that would be a someday thing.
-The Scribble Book. School. I continued to finish my four year degree at NDSU (go BISON) in Music and Business Administration.
-Heart for kids- Through college and after my heart grew bigger for kids and teens. I had worked with kids tutoring in high school, a camp counselor, youth group leader, mentor, etc. I realized my career needed to be with teens.
- Door. God closed many doors including my position as a Youth Outreach Specialist at TreeHouse, this was really heart breaking for me. I was lost, confused, and didn't know where to begin to look for a job school etc.
-God's Words- The Lord spoke to me through my coworkers friend Jessica, who lives in Montana, we had a great conversation and she prayed for me. She felt that she was hearing Africa for me and said I'm not sure what that means but I feel its for you. So I prayed about Africa, talked with my friends to hear what they thought it would look like, how this could happen etc. (Thanks for all your support friends!!)
-Opened My Eyes- After the Lord spoke through Jessica my eyes were opened to Africa. I heard it, saw it on tv, in fyers, in the paper, EVERYWHERE!!! A good friend, Rose, told me about AIM (Africa Inland Mission) and so I looked them up and the rest is history. It all happened within 8 months. God spoke in March, I pursued it and now I am here in Africa.

For those wondering....I will be back in June and have applied to grad school to be a high school counselor, hoping I get accepted while I'm gone. I intend on going to school next fall!! However, I wouldn't be surprised if it changes.

Below is the verse God led me to for this journey in Africa:
1 Peter 4:10-11- Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be raised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power or ever and ever. Amen.

How do you say that?

 We spent one day in orientation, and 3 days learning the language of Lugandan, which is the language most people in Kampala speak. Since no one from our team was actually going to be speaking Lugandan, we learned the skills to learn a new language. It is definitely different than the academic style I have learned before. We used tape recorders and spent a lot of time listening instead of writing anything down. It works much better for me! Wish I had done that in Spanish! We learned how to say hello, how are you, good morning, good afternoon, thank you, bye, and a few other simple words.

Language Learner Class and instructors- minus Katie who's taking the picture!

On our way to town to practice our Lugandan speaking!

Cute little one Carolyn and I met while talking on the street

Each day we spent an hour in town walking up and down streets saying hello to people. It was very interesting. What a difference it made to greet someone in their own language. I felt that a lot of people I approached (all women) had very somber faces but when we said hello in Lugandan, bam their face lit up, they smiled and greeted us back!

Once we told them we were out practicing their language they seemed very appreciative and wanted to help us learn more so they would continue speaking Lugandan but we would have to stop them and say “No no, that is all we know.” It was a fun experience to see how much a little effort can break the barrier between cultures.

More cute little kids (the one of the bottom left is King- he followed us!)

We were each blessed by a language teacher. Each of them were nationals to from Kampala. We used audio recorders to record the words and then were able to listen on our own to repeat and learn how to say it correctly. My language teacher’s name is Jessica. She is about my age. She has such a sweet spirit and she was SO patient with me! Lugandan is not easy. A couple cool things happened while working with Jessica. She has two boys and she said they were sick with a terrible cough. So we prayed  for them and the next day she said they were better because they went to school!! Then the last day I prayed for Jessica that God would provide her with a job and within two minutes a staff member at AIM asked her to be their language teacher on a regular basis! God is good!

My Language Teacher Jessica!

Rhona and I! She is wonderful, and helped us get around Kampala!

Finally in Africa!!

Welcome to Matoke Inn!!

We landed in Entebbe Friday morning around 6:45 a.m. After we all got our luggage, (out of 8 people no one’s luggage was lost!) we found our taxi man Lawrence and went to Matoke Inn, in Kampala (about a 25 min ride).  We were able to relax all of friday. We played games, ate, and talked to stay awake so we could adjust to the time change quicker, it definitely helped.

Front of Matoke Inn! A wonderful place!

Saturday half of our group went into town. The rest of us, me included, stayed back at the Inn and relaxed. It was a great day to read, talk, eat, and meet some of the staff here. Sunday the other half, me included, went to church with Rhona, one of the office staff. Church was so great! It was outside under a large tent, the pastor was really great! This community of people has such a heart for prayer and loads of faith. So inspiring!

Backyard at Matoke Inn...so beautiful. There were even monkeys!

 After church she took us to a mall like area with a food court for lunch. It was different than a food court in the U.S. because when we sat down a person from each restaurant came up to you with their menu in hopes that you would choose their food. We then went to exchange our money and then to an area where there were many craft booths. They have beautiful jewelry, bags, baskets, paintings, and much more that I was so tempted to purchase! From there we went to the taxi park. This was quite amazing because there were probably 100 taxi buses (like mini vans) in an area where you could barely walk between them, I’m not sure how they get out of there.

My room at Matoke! Mosquito nets :)

Kampala is the capitol of Uganda. It is a very busy, congested, lively, fun, and beautiful place. We stayed on a hill and as we walked down you could see over the city. Houses all along hills in between so much greenery. Africa is so beautiful!

Road heading down the hill..on the outside of the city

Tea Time

Me, Katie, Marie, Trey- Orientation group headed to Uganda!

 We made it through our flight to London! When we arrived in London we had a 10 hour layover so we decided to go to Windsor for a few hours. We had our carry on luggage stored at the airport, got on a bus and went to Windsor to see Windsor Castle! I didn’t think we’d have this much time in London, so I was so excited to find out we had time to see some of Europe since I’ve never been!

 London is a fun and unique city. The buildings are so beautiful and have lots of character. There are shops, restaurants, etc in every spot possible in London, on the streets and in the alley ways. We had lunch at a cute little restaurant called The Drury House, it is Windsor’s oldest established restaurant for over 100 years!! We ate outside in the sun in London, it was a beautiful day.

Inside Windsor Castle

Windsor Castle Courtyard, they are doing construction

 We then toured the Windsor Castle! What an amazing piece of art! It was so surreal to be there. As a little girl growing I always read stories and watched the movies of the princesses, princes, queens, kings, etc. at their castles and having parties. It was almost as if I was viewing it from their perspective. The architecture is so magnificent, especially for that time period! Touring through the buildings, seeing the open court yard, the regular guards, and everything else inside was so fun to know that Queen Elizabeth still resides there on most weekends and uses it for special occasions. I felt very honored to have been there. It is a culture and place so foreign to me.

Trey and I by one of the guards

Snakes...

Well, I'm done with orientation and we are leaving tonight and will be in London for most the day tomorrow and in Africa Friday!!! How crazy is that?! So wonderful.
This has been such a great experience so far and I'm really only 3 days in. The preparation in the last several months has been stressful, time consuming and overwhelming. It was sad to leave my family and friends but to be honest I feel so much better now that this has really started! All of the paperwork for Africa, and wrapping up everything that needs to be done in my personal life before I go was STRESSFUL!! Who ever thought there was so much to do before you leave the country for several months! Not to hinder anyone who is wanting to go out of the country! haha.

I found some really awesome comfort the other night. There are a few things I've been a little fearful of in going to Africa. 1. Snakes ( I never want to see one...ever) 2. Home sickness are a couple. But, I was reading in Luke for part of a workbook we are to complete and in Luke 10:19 it says "I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you." Talk about affirmation, encouragement, and confidence building! Because I have the Lord in my heart and am walking with Him....HE gives ME authority to trample snakes!!! WOW!!!! And not just that but all authority in Heaven and on Earth has been given to Him so that too, is given to ME!!! WOW!!! This blows my mind and is hard to comprehend! 

Please take some time to think about that thought! What power and authority the Lord has He is doing that through us!!

Be encouraged today! :)

Georgia here I am!

Woke up at 4 a.m. It's now 2:50 pm and I'm in Atlanta, Georgia!!! Yep I made it and with all of my luggage!! I had such a great send off, Mom and Dad of course and Rebekah came to give me one last hug..thanks:)
Some tips I used while packing:
-roll your clothes...saves tons of room:)
-ziploc bags vacuum seal anything and everything
-get a sleep sac....a sheet like sleeping bag to use at hotels or wherever to prevent bed bugs
-remove packaging from items also saves weight and space

I had a great weekend spending time with family, an awesome send off from church, and good byes to the grandparents and siblings = lots of tears...happy tears.

It is so weird that this is ACTUALLY happening. The anticipation for the past 8ish months and its finally here! Well I'll keep you posted!!

Thank you all again for the support, donations, etc.!!

Life will be different

View from path in Minneapolis!

The past couple weeks have been busy, emotional, exciting and many other emotions. I've never felt so emotional in my entire life! As I have been preparing to leave I've been meeting with a good friend/mentor Tammy who has been helping me through the thoughts and expectations I have about going to a new culture/country etc. What will it look like? How will I react? What is my goal? What is my purpose in going? Many questions trying to remind myself of why I am going and what I will be doing. As I've been told it will be overwhelming to see all the different needs and the urge to fulfill all of them will be great, which is not possible from one person. If I tried I would just drain out and not be able to serve the full length of time
We then talked about the return to the states. How different my life will be when I come back?! What the grieving process might look like the many stages of processing the return. It is intense, to say the least. As I'm thinking of all these questions in preparation to leave and about my return home. It doesn't make me not want to go but...this WILL change my life. Stop. Think about that statement......What would that look like for you?


That statement is kind of intimidating. The unknown of it. And if you like control I'm sure you'd agree! The only other decision I've made that has changed my life was following Jesus. It's been an amazing journey full of joy, love, humbling moments, excitement, laughter, fun, and a deeper meaning to the life I live.
So, as I'm packing to leave in 3 days the excitement, anticipation, nerves and bittersweet feelings are all quite high. It almost feels like I'm standing in front of a brick wall. It's so high that I can't see over it or through it. But I know that one brick at a time it will come down and I will cross to other side never looking back at what was, knowing things will be different here on out

View from path in Minneapolis!

Family Time!

Family, minus my brother-in-law Leo!

Lemon, dill, baked Halibut

As I'm gearing up to leave in only 1 week, it worked out that Natalie was home for a few days before she moved to TX!! We didn't even plan this! It has been such a good time hanging out with them! They surprised me with birthday candles, since I'll be gone for my 25th birthday!! I am so blessed by all of them, these goodbyes are tough.


We had a really good meal Friday night. Natalie and I cooked dinner. We made Halibut, squash, rice, salad, and cheesecake! So good! Natalie did most of the work with the fish....she's a good cook! I'll be coming to San Antonio for sure:)

We Did IT!!!!

This is how excited I am!!! :)

For those of you who haven't noticed WE REACHED THE FINANCIAL GOAL!!!!

God is SO stinkin good!! Since the moment I said ok Lord I will go to Africa, He has provided in all areas of this trip!! I'm asking for continuing provision over my travels to Africa!

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!

There are not enough times I can say THANK YOU, or describe out grateful and blessed I am to have the support, encouragement, prayers, and financial gifts for this journey! You've all helped make it an easier transition to leave.

A reminder to everyone....Where do the funds go??
All the funds are in an individual account for me. It pays for my housing, food, transportation, medical bills (for shots and malaria medicine), a few gifts for missionaries and kids at Smile. So...pretty much my entire trip and stay in Africa!!

What happens with the extra money??
Well the extra funds give me more freedom to help out. It could possibly go towards needed supplies, extra medical attention for a child at Smile, and at the end of my stay I can designate who I chose the remaining fund go towards! So if you feel you still want to donate that sounds awesome!! Go to the link below!!

1) Follow the link to donate online;

https://giving.wesupport.org/gift2/gift.php?GUID=B259EAB9-5D37-46C5-A37B-C5089310A397&i=1102&c=A-Catalog&dt=1

when you get to the link follow these steps:
    - Search Leah Kent in the upper left- hit search (Be sure to put amount in for Leah Kent, otherwise it is a general fund donation)
    - Then, under kent, leah- support type in the amount you'd like to partner and add to cart
    - Finally complete transaction like a regular online purchase.