Making new Ugandan friends
Rajab Bosaga, age 14, from Nakisenyi, Iganga, Uganda and Maria Moreau, age 11½, a sixth grader at NYA.
I went in to Spirit of Uganda not knowing what to expect, and left wanting to dance and sing forever. The performance sent a sort energy around the whole auditorium, transfixing everybody with beautiful native songs and dancing from Uganda. The loud melodic sound of the drums and other native Ugandan instruments made everything even more lovely. It is definitely something I would like to see again and again.
Then came the community supper. I had waited about three weeks in suspense to meet the kids from Spirit of Uganda. But as soon as their bus came in sight, I was all nervous and scared. As they filed neatly from the bus and I shook some of their hands, I was suddenly struck by how nice, polite, and dignified they were.
The community supper was fabulous! The food was a amazing and talking to the Spirit of Uganda troupe was awesome. Daniel, Rajab, and Peter were just a few of the members I talked to while eating. I also met David Katende who lives in Maine but is from Uganda. They were kind and very open to make new friends. It was very nice.
[Editor’s note: also see Tom Ayres’s impressions of the evening.]
Tom Morgan says:
I too was at the Spirit of Uganda performance. It was great and a good example of the grace and vitality of Africa. To see more of that African grace and vitality in Maine I would recommend that you visit the Museum of African Culture at 13 Brown St. in Portland. Or you can check out the website at : http://www.museumafricanculture.org.
Tom
Alyssa Barker says:
I had such a great time at the Spirit of Uganda as did my two Sudanese foster daughters. They don’t remember much about being in Africa but were very enlightened and proud of their ‘neighbors’. I applaud all of those who were involved in making it happen because it’s so important to know about different cultures. My thoughts and prayers are with those delightful students as they travel and bring joy to so many others. I hope to see them all again soon. Alyssa
Andrew Shuttleworth says:
Thanks for your blog entry, Maria. I was very happy about the community supper, too – people are too often mean but everybody there just got along. I agree; it was very nice.