week 1 at Amecet

So the first week of my new adventure has begun, I am now living in the town if Soroti (still in Uganda) and working at Amecet n'ainapakin (shelter of peace), Amecet is a children’s home primarily for HIV affected and infected children. There are currently about 20 children ranging from just a few weeks old to about 14 years. In the last 10 years of Amecet over 400 children have come through the doors. Amecet takes in those who need a safe place, medical attention and care. Often the aim is to restore children so they can be returned to their families or villages, although where that is no possible, the children are either adopted out or stay on a longer term basis.

My life in Soroti started after a very bumpy 6 hour journey, I am staying in Amecet’s staff house, there are currently 18 staff that work here. My first shift was last Sunday, I was working an A shift which is from 7am-3pm. The morning shift consists of Bathing, changing and feeding the Babies, the playing out of the veranda with the 1-2 year olds, the older children go off to school. The babies have to be regularly fed and changed so as you can imagine in the past week I have learned how to fold, change and clean cloth dypers, I have changed 45 nappies in the past week and fed 14 bottles, without killing anyone!!! (good start)

The second shift is the B shift, this is from 1pm-9pm and the routine is similar, meal times are crazy but so much fun and after eating the children gather around an African drum for a time of worship, with much dancing which is so much fun! I spent some time with the older children during my b shifts this week, and had great fun jumping on the trampoline with Christine 2. (Where more than one child had the same name they are numbered)

We saw the first rain in a long long time this week and the kids were loving it!! All out on the veranda with their hands out in the rain, excitement really was in the air!

The great thing about working with children you don’t ever have to grow up, you get to play and do all those things you’re meant to but never really grow out of, and it’s perfectly acceptable to dance round like an idiot!!

Friday is my day off so I went over to the sports fields for a walk, I watched some football games (boys and girls) saw the Ugandan version of the walk of witness and almost got charged at by a bull (I was generally scared for my life)

Unfortunately my Saturday morning shift started with some rather upsetting news that baby Jabeth dies during the night,  he was only 6 weeks old, he wasn’t sick and it’s all a bit of a mystery however we know that he is safe in heaven now. Jabeth was wrapped up in the way they do here then he was put into a coffin which was carried out by some of the older children (precious) and then he was returned to his village for burial. The power was out (maybe in sympathy) and some of the children were very frightened by it, as you can imagine when a perfectly healthy baby dies how much that scares a HIV infected child! So your prayer are so much needed for here right now.

Tonight I work my first night shift, 7pm-8am, I have no idea how I am going to stay awake but it’s all part of the adventure!

If you want to know more about life at Amecet you can check out the Amecet blog:

http://amecet-soroti.blogspot.com/