Good morning all. How are you or “Oliotia” as they say here in Uganda? It’s 6am here and the troops (Lorna, Heather and Buchan) are reluctantly lifting their pretty little heads from their pillows. Partly tiredness and partly physical exhaustion keeps them resting. Don’t feel sorry for us…it’s good exhaustion! Singing from sunrise to sunset with fifty excitable Ugandan children does that to you. So first of all let me introduce the team and what it is that we’re actually doing over here:
The project: Dwelling Places is a home for children who have been rescued from the streets. It is a safe place. It really is a beautiful home and they have welcomed us with open arms into their (very big) family. I will tell you more about the home itself and the work of the organisation but that really is an entry (or two) of its own. The vision Rita Nkemba (the director) and her staff have for this place is huge and we are only a small (but hopefully valuable) part of it. So we’re putting on a show. It’s called “Peace Child”. The children tell the story of two tribes: The Wannapeepees (yes seriously. I have found this name a great source of amusement much to the bemusement of the children. They are obviously much more mature than I am) and the Sopongis. The tribes are separated by a ferocious river and years of hatred. Then the unexpected arrival of a Western TV crew disturbs their primitive demise and the tribes are forced to reconcile their differences. I won’t spoil the ending for you but yes a child is involved and the two tribes come together. We’ll film it (or you never know God’s big plans for this project. I’ve got a feeling it won’t stop here!) and you can see just how talented these children really are. I’m sure they created the definition of the word rhythm.
The team:
Stage Manager: Lorna Main. Many of you know her and those of you who don’t I am sure you will be very familiar with the legend that is Miss Lorna Main or Morna Lain as I call her by the end of this year, if you’re keeping up with the blog that is. She is the talented one who composes the beautiful poems while I prattle on! Lorna answers to most things but “Auntie Lorna” is the most recent addition to her signature strip. What can I say about this gorgeous lady apart from that she is a complete inspiration to me and that it is my absolute privilege to be travelling the world with her. Some of you will know that Lorna and I originally met in Peru on a Vine Trust work party. I don’t know if sharing a mosquito net and living in the jungle with each other for two weeks was really adequate preparation for this monumental trip but it certainly helped and God has done the rest. She is my best friend, a constant (and I mean 24/7) support and encouragement to me. Lorna has amazing faith and her wisdom compliments my “kookiness” (yes you know who said that!). Anyway enough bumming this girl up- you get the idea, she’s bloomin’ wonderful! So Lorna’s official role on the team in stage manager (poor soul), which means she has all of the responsibility of organising lighting, sound, costumes, props and well yeah…staging. So basically Lorna does all of the difficult chasing of Ugandans. If you can try to imagine having to organise all of these things in Scotland where you know the currency, you know where (roughly) you would find these things and where you would have people to help. Then take all of those factors away and you have her job! Stressful but she is walking (or should I say marching: she’s such a wee warrior) in faith and so lets all just pray she gets these things done with minimal stress. Of course we will all help her and the team at Dwelling Places are helping, not to mention the children who are unbelievably talented and have already amazed us with their ability to sew and create aswell as sing, dance and act. I should really thank you in advance on behalf of the team for your generous donations towards costumes and all of these things. We want the production to be as professional as possible and these children really do deserve to have the opportunity to shine. Yes they have come from the streets but they are no longer there and they shouldn’t look, or feel, as if they are! If you haven’t already contributed then please go back to the main World Without Walls Website and get a contact for St Andrew’s church or phone the office (01506 825803).
Ok back to the team. Big B, Uncle Buchan, real name Buchan Lennon. He is something else. His official title is Artistic Director. He works incredibly hard coaching the children and encouraging them to be more theatrical. If anyone is capable of doing this it’s Big B. If you thought I was hyper…you haven’t seen anything yet. Infact I think he has done such a professional job that we now have children wondering around the home convinced that they are actually Wannapeepees. One young man, Sam, is convinced that he is actually the chief of this tribe and has taken to shouting at the smaller children and is permanently positioned on his “throne” with his head in the air. I know it is slightly concerning but hey if it makes the show look good who am I to correct him.
Heather Lennon (Buc’s big sis). Aka “Auntie Heva”. What a sweetie and boy can she boogie!? Heather is choreographer with hips that do not lie! I’m sure Lorna’s timetable goes into a little more detail about how much time we actually spend dancing in the baking hot sun but just incase she hasn’t I think I should add that this girl has energy and a set of lungs to match. She is doing a fantastic job drilling the kids of their dances. Many of them had been started before we arrived and so Heather has embraced what they had aswell as the children’s natural love and ability to dance; where we have no ideas they always come up with something! She has also injected a hip-hop flavour into the show and I know that she is creating some of the most exciting, original and innovative dance displays Uganda has ever seen. I am enjoying being taught by her just as much as the children!
Ok last but not least (I hope) Moi! “Auntie Erica”. I am musical director (Eliza please try not to laugh when you read this!) Basically I torture the children by making them sing the same songs over and over again. They adore singing and are very good at it but it pains them to have to stand or sit still while singing; they find it hard not to tap or wiggle as soon as they hear the beat but they are learning…slowly. I am pleased to report that they are getting used to my confusing directions for dynamics and their pronunciations of some of the song lyrics are now more Scottish than Ugandan, which is just great! We’ve also introduced (or sorry Gillian reinforced) the importance of vocal exercises and warm up routines. At the beginning these simply consisted of name games and some singing and dancing but with the show fast approaching everything is becoming a little fraught, to say the least, and the poor souls are being subjected to scales, vocal breathing exercise (Eliza Bonnar style) and gruelling stretches. So my job is pretty fab- anyone who knows me knows that I love singing and doing it all day everyday with children who can harmonise naturally is a dream come true!
I hope you’re exhausted reading this. We are pretty much knackered doing it but seriously we would not have it any other way. We still have an awful lot of work to do but I know that God has not saved these children (literally off the streets) for any mean feat. They are supper talented and he has big plans for them. As for us we just continue to pray every day that we are doing as much for the children as they are doing for us. They bless us every morning with their smiles and are so appreciative of our help. Their faces light up when we talk about home and tell them about you guys rooting for them. So thank you. Thank you for being part of this project and as they say, “I hope you enjoy the show”!
Lots of love and then some Erica xxx
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