Back in Mundri! Day One

A car on the airstrip as we are landing, snakes, heat…the familiar things of daily life in Mundri.

After a week in Uganda, I arrived back in Mundri safely on Tuesday morning. I was the only passenger on the MAF flight, but several of the seats were filled with my luggage along with most of the Massos luggage. The cargo area was filled with water project supplies, curriculum for the kids, etc.

On the first flight from Kajjansi to Arua I started listening to audio book, but once we climbed to the cruising altitude I put on my jacket and I was out. After waking up early for the flight, the thin air put me right to sleep.

After the plane refueled in Arua, I managed to stay awake during the second flight. As we were descending I saw a large spot on the airstrip. At first I thought it was a cow and I’m hoping someone from my team is there already to have the herder move it quickly. As I look up the airstrip I don’t see our team car in the left corner where we usually park. Then I notice the spot is moving QUICKLY straight down the airstrip. Turns out the spot was our team car! We usually drive down the airstrip to clear any debris before a plane lands, but they were still on the airstrip as we were landing. They cleared out of the way just in time. When I stepped off the plane I was greeted by the Massos, Scott, and our friend James. I stepped down onto the familiar red dirt airstrip, and the kids proceeded to tell me all about the excitement from their perspective riding on the car. Praise God for safe travels all the way to Mundri!

Somehow while I Uganda I had convinced myself that Africa wasn’t as hot as I remembered it. When I tell Ugandans that I live in Sudan, they almost always comment that Sudan is HOT. I thought that since the rains in Mundri had started it wouldn’t be that hot, but after one minute moving cargo on the airstrip I was very sad that I couldn’t find a hair tie to get my hair off my back. The reality is that the past two days have not been that hot in comparison to the dry season in Mundri, but I’m readjusting the heat and falling back into old habits like always carrying a sweat rag with me.

When we got to the compound I stepped into my familiar little house to find the curtains drawn and light pouring the windows. It was remarkably clean! The Massos had passed on the kindness that Scott showed them by cleaning out the entire house including Larissa’s room. They evicted a rat and cleaned all the rat droppings. They dusted the ceiling and walls. They mopped the floors with bleach. They found my sheets in a trunk and washed them. They washed my mosquito net. They put a mattress out in the sun to get rid of the musty smell and made my bed for me. They went above and beyond to welcome me to a clean house, and I am so thankful!

I spent the rest of the day unpacking, cleaning, and organizing. I fell back into the daily living tasks of life in Mundri. Even the hydrating process was comfortable and familiar as I poured myself a glass of water from the fridge, then refilled the pitcher from the water filter, then filled the water filter from the tap.

In the afternoon I stepped back into my room ready to tackle another trunk and out of the corner of my eye I saw another unwelcome visitor. There was a three foot long skinny green snake slithering on my window seat which then retreated to under my desk as jumped back out the door. Michael came to the rescue again and killed the second snake I have found in my room. The snake incident last year was a lot scarier, but I am still looking around a little more carefully when I walk in a room and flashing my headlamp on all the walls and checking behind the door in our shower before stepping forward.

At the end of the day after taking a shower and drying off smelling the familiar scent of a towel washed in Omo and dried in hot African sun, I crawled into to my bed, tucked in my mosquito net, turned on my new solar reading lamp, and read a few chapters of The Mysterious Benedict Society, a children's book recommended by a friend. On a side note, the solar lamp said it would require 10-12 hours of direct sunlight to charge, but after three hours of late afternoon sun in Sudan at just 5 degrees north of the equator, the lamp was charged.

At the end of day one back in Mundri I was looking forward to the next few days as I greet friends, see the water project, and visit Mundri Secondary School.

I am thankful that God brought me back to Mundri for this season of my life and for all the familiar things of daily life in Mundri.