I Sense Gulu

I See…

- the sun’s red, orange and yellow hues as it rises  at 6:47 in the morning

- a herd of cattle being escorted across a main road

- blue, white, red, pink, yellow, and white uniforms donned on children of all shapes, sizes and ages as they walk or bike to and from school

- a flash in the sky, once, twice, no - more than ten times repeatedly as the heat lightening illuminates the night

- joy on the faces of Gulu residents ambling, biking, or  boda-ing by

I Hear…

- Luo, the local language, being spoken in different tones, volumes, and speeds by the masses

- children… giggling, suckling, crying, babbling, screaming “MUNU!”

- propaganda for the upcoming Uganda Gospel Crusade Jubilee being spewed from massive speakers atop a massive truck as it puts down a dirt road

- a bell ring at 3:30 in the morning and the roosters begin to crow shortly thereafter

- bodas rev their engines from every direction

- laughter… the belly achin, side splitting, deep down from the depths of your soul laughter

- music blaring from a local establishment every night of the week until the wee hours of the morning

- rolling thunder post heat lightening

- a deep ribbiting that sounds more like UFO’s than a frog’s vocal chords that can only be heard, not seen

I Smell…

- maize roasting atop of hand mined charcoal by a row of women on every street

- body odor in sporadic whiffs; I am unprepared each and every time

- pleasant floral scents of a species unrecognizable to my nostrils

- putrid sewage again in sporadic whiffs which again, I am unprepared for each and every time

- fires burning garbage, wood, meat, maize, posho, bricks…

I Taste…

- deliciously fresh and ripe pineapples and mangoes from the local market

- beans cooked to perfection in taste and texture

- a Stoney, for the first time, after the cool glass bottle touches my lips, a type of ginger soda that lingers, seconds after is slides down my throat

- warm chapatti, covered in the perfect ratio of cinnamon to sugar, with a side of scrambled eggs and veggies, to kick off the day

- the bland, bulky posho that adds sustenance to ours and students lunch daily

- boo, an amazing combination of cooked greens and ground sim sim paste

I Feel…

- the sheer mosquito netting around my bed as I lift it up to lie down

- children’s skin as they reach out an authentic ‘lil hand of acceptance in return for a high/low five

- the metallic bar behind my rump on a boda boda as I clench on for dear life to and from a destination

- the warm hands of colleagues and friends as we greet each with sincerity and a long, nearly choreographed handshake

- each and every pothole in the road as the boda attempts to drive over it

- an ever changing red earth beneath my feet as I run through a now very familiar town

- dust, from head to toe, in places I didn’t even know existed

 I sense Gulu today, everyday, with all of my senses and all of my heart.

Children, Children, everywhere!

Cattle crossing!

Central Gulu town (pic compliments Jeff Shimabuku)

Gulu running club... at the beginning... it's pretty much just me and occasionally Jane now:)