eyes wide open

i haven't been doing much thinking lately.  but i've been doing much observing and learning and calculating the difference between shillings and dollars.  i've been listening to different accents- the beautiful sounds of the foreign english tongue- and to different languages- variations of the bantu languages- lugandan, lougbara, lousoga.  all those soft sounds swimming around me and the endless bird songs.

today we took the boys into kampala.  it was their first trip in daylight outside of the campus where we live.  their first time to see a new world- to have their eyes wide open.

they did great.  buying furniture off the side of the road in the red dirt. 

i think their eyes were tired, and their minds- looking at the differences and finding the similarities.  taking it in.  processing.

in some ways being here is like going back in time. 

last night while writing this, the power went out, and stayed out.  so we cooked by candle light because we haven't bought a kerosene lantern yet, and ate by candle light and did dishes and baked cookies by candle light and everyone went to bed early.  and there was something about it that was calming and settling and unifying.  life has to slow down when technology is not around to keep things going when the dark comes.  it feels natural and rhythmed and it happens here every other night- the odd nights are the black out nights- and then there are some not scheduled ones. 

the sun sets here at the same time each night- around 7.  and it takes with it the warmth and the sounds of the day.  the darkness comes and brings so, so many stars and new sounds, night sounds. can you feel it?