Untitled
on Um Zayd wa Atheer (Uganda), 15/Jul/2010 18:30, 34 days ago
HOME THOUGHTS ABOUT ABROADWritten 16th June 2010When my VSO placement came to an end and I returned to the UK on the 19th December I thought I had posted the last of the BLOG stories telling of my experiences in Miirya. Thousands of miles away I had dreamt of being in the UK with my family and friends, walking in the countryside, enjoying views of the River Severn, moving and communicating freely. All that has happened and I have enjoyed home comforts, above all hot water, electricity and the softness of my pillow.And yet after 6 months I still do not feel settled. It has not been as easy as I thought to pick up the threads of an English life. The threads are there but tangled and weakened by their self-made knots. Unravelling becomes difficult when the beginning and the end cannot be seen. The opportunity has come for me to put the confusion to one side, not to abandon it but to let it rest for a while.On Friday the 18th June I'm returning to Miirya for 2 months. As I left Uganda, some tasks were left unfinished. I ran out of precious time. One of these was putting together a Village Volunteer Training Manuel. As VSO look for another Community Nurse to replace me and others are going to other areas of Uganda to replicate the Miirya Project the Manuel has been asked for. Whilst back in Miirya the villages, villagers and village volunteers can be visited and supported, the Miirya Project nurtured a little bit more. It is still in its infancy. Reports suggest that the volunteers are working well and that there is less malaria. Only a visit will confirm this and how well Stephen, whom I left behind as the Miirya Project Co-ordinator, is working.I have also recently been asked to join a new VSO/WHO initiative, which is concerned with Infection Control in Africa. They are setting up a programme linking Uganda with a hospital in Chester. It's early days but exciting and while I am in Uganda I will begin to make contacts. Infection Control is very relevant to the Miirya Project as we try educate people to think about the spread of disease from hand to hand to mouth.The bags are packed, my home not abandoned this time but waiting silently for my return. Who knows what the next 8 weeks will hold? I eagerly look forward to seeing old friends but I'm still anxious that all will be as it was before. Maybe that is not possible.