Always Look On the Bright Side of Life!

Apparently there are 2 types of people in this world: Glass half empty people and glass half full people. If you’re not sure which type you are then come to Uganda and it will no doubt become quickly apparent!

We are trying our best to be the latter, although this does, at times, take a bit of conditioning! One thing is clear, the longer we are here the better we are at looking on the lighter side of every challenge!

For example:

(1) Some might complain about having a very limited power supply. We say “hoorah” for our monthly electricity bill of only 6 pounds!

(2) Some might see a flooded football pitch as a serious obstacle to football excellence. We however welcome the opportunity for developing Masaka’s very first water sports project (and we played a competitive football match on it anyway)!

(3) Some (Sarah) might find the infestation of (killer) grasshoppers in our house a bit too much to bear. Others (Tim) see it as an opportunity to test their stalking prowess and lightning reactions, not to mention a tasty snack at the end!

(4) Some might find the idea of spending two solid days washing dirty football kits a bind.  We welcome the sense of fulfillment, and the silky smooth hands!

There are some situations where a silver lining may be hard to see. For example, our friend spent the night in a prison cell for having failed to upgrade/downgrade (you decide!) his UK driving license to a Ugandan license. We suspect his wife struggled to see the positive side, especially since he was not given a phone call, so simply didn't come home one evening, leaving her fretting all night. However, perhaps in his situation, we might see a good opportunity to practice our Luganda? And, of course, it's a great story to tell the grandchildren! Still, best get on with sorting out our driving licenses, eh?

So if you need a place to hone your sense of optimism, you are most welcome to join us in Masaka! To quote “The Life of Brian” (who, let us be clear is NOT the Messiah, but a very naughty boy), “Always look on the Bright Side of Life! Do do, do do do do do do!”