We’ve spent the last few days in Jinja at Amani Baby Cottage cuddling babies, which is always a good way to spent some time. We also went out and visited Serving His Children, a program for malnourished children which allows mothers to live with their babies as they are nursed back to health.

I’m heading home early so that I’m not missing the first couple of weeks of uni, which means my trip is at its end. I’ve visited a bunch of projects this time around, got gifts out to my compassion kids and spent a lot of time with kids and babies. We were also able to give some money to Our Own Home, the home for kids with HIV. Treating over 60 kids with HIV is a big, big job and I for one am grateful for the work they do and the difference they make in the lives of these children. They run month-to-month, never knowing where the funding they need will come from.

I’m sitting in a backpackers in Entebbe, watching Aljazeera as they report on the drought here in East Africa as hundreds of thousands of people head to Kenya in search of food, people and their animals dying along the way. More than 2 million people will be affected, and it’s heartbreaking. It is being suggested that those countries that are most responsible for climate change open their borders to those most affected by that change, rather than sending aid and waiting for the next humanitarian crisis to hit these same lands. It’s something to think about.

I’ll be home on Wednesday. Back to the tension of being where I am meant to be, but not where my heart wants to be.

We’ve just arrived back in Jinja after a few days in Gulu. Even though we were only there for a short time it was well worth the six hour bus trip each way.

We got to have a tour of the Invisible children office with Charlie’s friend Nikki, who is working there for six months. The work they’re doing is pretty great. My favourite is the network of radio towers they are setting up in remote villages in the Democratic Republic of Congo to allow for advanced warnings of impending rebel attacks, potentially saving hundreds of lives. There are also programs in Uganda helping vulnerable children get through school and a community saving program very similar to the one I saw being run by AEE Rwanda. It’s all very encouraging and wonderful to see what was a war stricken area making such a great recovery.

We also got to go and visit Invisible Children’s MEND program, providing employment and a safe community for women who were abducted by the LRA during the war. They make these great bags which are then sold in the USA.

After that we went to Krochet Kids, another employment generating venture. It was lovely to see so many women sitting around crocheting beanies and talking and laughing, their kids playing at their feet.