Peace Corps Goal Three

I have had some of the best work partners during my time in Uganda.  While an intern, I worked with an amazing woman who fiercely advocated for her clients and truly cared for her work.  As an administrator at an international school, I worked with a sassy, vivacious woman who was almost always making me laugh.  And, for most of my Peace Corps service, I have been paired with one of the most hardworking, perseverant women in the social services field.  Her name is Akello Lillian and she has, more or less, been vital to my current success as a Peace Corps volunteer.  Although we do not work so closely together anymore, she was my assigned counterpart and has been there for me since I was a Peace Corps baby. 

Lillian amazes me.  Life is tough, but she does not let it knock her down without getting back up.  We got along well from the start because she was always inviting me to go into the field with her even though I really didn’t add much to the experience.  Lillian was always doing the work, I was usually sitting nearby listening to her; wherever you saw one of us, it was likely that you would also see the other.  It was during these community visits that we learned more about one another and I knew that Lillian would be a good working partner for my Peace Corps service.  In fact, she started out as a field officer at my placement site, but was so good at her job that they promoted her to the project coordinator and supervisor of field officers.  Her promotion, and her decision to go back to university, have made it more difficult for us to work as much as we did that first year together, but she has still managed to be a good friend and I still manage to make her laugh whenever I get the chance.

Lillian is just a bit older than me, but has two small children.  The first time I met her daughter, she could not even sit in the same room with me alone without covering her eyes to keep from looking at me.  Her son is also shy, but is much freer with me than his younger sister and both are ridiculously cute.  If you are not amazed yet:  Lillian is pregnant with her third child, is still enrolled at university, and continues her work in the office.  Many working women with families and interested in pursuing higher education are like my friend Lillian and I commend their determination to do well for themselves and their families.

I like to call Lillian, Lillian, but her “first” name is actually Akello.  The Acholi do not technically have first and last names the way we do in the States, but their Acholi name acts like the way a first name is taken in America.  And it is the Acholi name that typically has more meaning attached to it.  First, similar to any place, there are different names for boys and girls.  In Acholi, boys are given names primarily beginning with the letter “o” and girls are given names beginning with the letter “a”.  There are some exceptions to this but this is mostly the case.  Second, a child is often given a name based on the child, the family, or the circumstance in which the child was born.  For example, Lillian was born immediately following twins; therefore, her name, Akello, represents this family structure and I know, before even talking to her, that her immediate older siblings are twins.  I’m sure I could write so much more about Acholi names and their significance, but I hope that you have the basic concept of the great meaning that go into each Acholi name.

A few months ago, I asked Lillian a “Peace Corps Goal Three” question:  What do you wish Americans could know about Uganda?  (Or what do you love most about Uganda?)  I share bits and pieces here and there for you from my experiences to gain some perspective, but it means much more when a host country national can tell you about his/her own country.  It was important for me to share to you about Lillian, so that you could get an idea of who she has been to me and who she is as a person, but now I’d like for her to share with you about her country.  I have transcribed what she told me about Uganda and edited it for clarity:

“I love Ugandan food because we have varieties of foods.  We have these local foods, like malakwang and kwan kal.  The reason I love Uganda food is there are some foods that are healthy for the body, like the millet makes the bones strong.  It is a belief in the traditional culture about the food. 

But what I don’t like about Uganda is the education and the way education is not taken too serious.  We have not been trained on the practical work; it is mostly theory and not enough practical experience so I do not feel comfortable in my work.  And the issue of corruption – it is still so common and it is so serious.  It is something that I cannot keep quiet about.  It is not good.  Sometimes money is diverted and people [those in the community] who are supposed to benefit from money do not get it.  If that can also be changed, then Uganda would be a good and loving place to stay in.  We have good leaders, though most of them are money minded.  They talk to the community and they give a lot of promises, but when they get up there (in power) they tend to forget…leaving the people who had given them votes to suffer.  Then again when another term comes, they come to get their votes and disappear.

Also, another thing about Uganda: the way people take music is so passionate.  They feel it when they sing it.  There is some music that is really educational and one makes to learn out of it.  And when you look at most of Ugandan music it talks about something…someone has gone through that experience, then later the person composes a song.  Whenever someone is singing, you feel really touched and you learn a lot.  And there’s some music when you listen to them, when they are signing, you can just feel at peace.  When you have problems, you feel like your problems are being settled from just listening to such music.  Take for example Bosmic, he sings about the Acholi…he feels like the northern region is forgotten and that’s why it’s not too developed like the central region.  So a lot of his songs talk about these issues.

Yes, people should come to Uganda.  We have so many places whereby people can have good times!”

One the greatest gifts we can bestow onto another person is allowing them to tell us their story.  I am privileged enough to have some type of voice in this space, one that is sometimes well developed and other times in need of improvement.  And I do try my hardest not to make my experiences THE experience for all Americans living in Uganda.  Yet there is power in allowing people the freedom to share about their own home country and sharing their ideas with others; it is something that we do far too little of, myself included.  I hope that whenever you are traveling to places unfamiliar to your own home, whether it is within your same country or outside of its borders, that you would take the time to ask people about what they love about their home or nationality.  Maybe you don’t have to share it on the web, but you can keep it in your heart and share it with the people you meet along the way.

Xoxo,

Emilia

DISCLAIMER: The contents of this website are mind personally and do not reflect any position of the U.S. government or the Peace Corps.