A Reflection of My Life after living in Uganda as a U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

My little friend Maggie

My good friend Gertrude is the secretary of the school I live at. She has 4 wonderful children and I am close with their family. The youngest is 7 month old *(Lugandan name I forget) Margret Amanda. Maggie, as they call her, and I have been friends since birth where I visited her in the hospital.

Most babies and young children in Uganda are terrified of white people and usually scream bloody murder when you look at them. This may partly be due to the fact that their parents scare them by telling them we are ghosts with our white skin or by saying, "If you don't behave the mzungu (white person) is going to eat you." Because I have known Maggie since she was a day old and I see her on a daily basis, she has never been afraid of me. She is even at the point where she recognizes me and her gladdness shows on her face when I come near.

We are now on school break and Gertrude has not been around with Maggie. Last week she stopped by for the first time in several weeks and I was so excited to see Maggie. Maggie, on the other hand, was terrified of me and began to cry when I came near. I was heartbroken. This week Gertrude came by once again with Maggie and this time Maggie began kicking her legs, smiling, and holding her arms out for me to hold her. Gertrude says she had just woken up from a nap the time before and she was too groggy. Now, she knows and wants me once again. Life is good.

1 comment:

  1. That picture of you and Maggie is the cutest! How adorable is that face?

    Love you! xoxo

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