By teaching the trade of shoemaking to some we can change the lives of many.

Have you ever seen a complete transformation of a person in under an hour?  Meet Diana.  She came as part of the jigger removal in Mbulamuti, Uganda.  She was one of the extreme cases.  The parasites had not only invaded her feet, but her mind (Jiggers feed on ones blood, causing to low blood circulation in the body. This in turn causes lack of enough oxygen in the brain).  You could see the pain in her eyes and the way she moved her body.
Sole Hope team member Erin did all she could to comfort Diana as one jigger after another after another was removed from her tiny feet.

After almost an hour of two nurses removing jiggers Diana was done… she received a pair of shoes to keep her feet off of the infested ground.  Her whole countenance started to change, then the Women of Destiny group did something else.  They gave new clothing to the children…  Diana received a dress.

Can you believe that THIS is the same girl just an hour after we first met her?  True transformation! omulungi! (beautiful)

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As I sit reflecting on the weeks with the team in Jinja, Uganda and surrounding areas I find myself amazed at the orchestration and timing of everything that has happened. Let me just say this first…. We were not supposed to be here.

We had been planning for months the trip to Zambia. Zambia was the focus. All the details about the trip were coming together nicely. Logistics of where we would stay, what we would eat, what we would do everyday, and how we would interact with the people were all laid out. Then it all changed. There were some occurrences in Zambia well beyond our control involving the safety of the team and we had to seek counsel to make the hard decision to cancel the trip to Zambia altogether.

The tickets were NOT refundable. We chose to change the location of the trip just a week before we were to depart. With some previous connections in Uganda we had some of the basics of the week laid out, but to say that we were stepping out in faith to see what God had in store for us is an understatement. We were relying on daily direction to arrange appointments and set our path. My prayer daily was “God, what do you want us to do today?”

We were surprised and challenged several times a day.

With the help of some new friends we were able to arrange and participate in two foot washing and jigger removal clinics many hours travel from each other where we learned so much more about the massive need for relief and education around this horrible problem.

We engaged in many meals, conversations, and cups of tea with both muzungus (white people) and Ugandans about what they thought the solution to jiggers is and things they have learned from living with jiggers all of their lives.

We were able to visit several other ministries working in different areas and varying focuses. There is so much to be learned from those that have already paved the way.

We played, danced, laughed, and sang with many children.

We also held hands, embraced, comforted, and cried with others.

We were heartbroken by the seemingly insurmountable problems in Uganda and at the same time filled with joy at the HOPE that we saw being cultivated in so many areas. True change is possible.

We learned of the importance of relationships and we have a new understanding about what the word “poor” really means. (Hint: it’s not about material wealth)

I will attempt to tell some of the stories on this blog in the upcoming weeks.

The need is great. The HOPE is strong. True change is possible.

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