TIA

Man, oh man... My 30 hour adventure was just that.. An adventure. My flight out of Alexandria was delayed/cancelled, and they said I wouldn't make it to my Atlanta flight. So, my dear, sweet mother drove me to Lafayette, just to find out that that flight was delayed. After about an hour of looking at different opportunities, most of which meant getting there a day late, the departure of my first flight moved up some! Seriously y'all, prayer is powerful! I sprinted through the airport to make my flight to Amsterdam, only to find out that it was delayed too! I completely forgot how absolutely miserable and long those flights are! Driving through the city and seeing all my friends made those 30 hours worth it. :)

This morning Sarah and I stayed behind and went to the "Deaf school" here. (http://www.deaflinkuganda.org/). The second we walked up, we were bombarded by lots of hugs and smiles! Thats the place to be if you're ever having a bad day. These kids make up their own signs too because a lot of them lived in villages or were homeless on the streets, so no one taught them to sign appropriately. (If you have a disability of any sort here, your family either disowns you or you never really get out of the house).  -- I have been contemplating taking a sign language class at Lighthouse for the Blind for awhile now. Now I really want to take it! 

We ended up walking back over there today and bringing a frisbee. It was so great! I'm starting to pick up on some signs too! Those kids absolutely love visitors .. Really anyone who will give them the time of day. The people here really do see joy in the smallest things. 

Sarah and I were talking on the drive to the house about how it feels we never left! I felt like I was pulling up to my own driveway last night. When we got here, we were so ready to take a shower after traveling, and ... There was no running water. TIA. :) so... Bucket bath it was! 

Tomorrow we go to the children's home/hospital/school! I'm sooo excited!

Praise The Lord!

Auntie Brooke 

Laissez les bon temps rouler!

The last two weeks have been a complete whirlwind! That whole "letting go and letting God take care of it" had to be in full force! I couldn't focus any of my energy on my trip, but on the drive to my parents house, I finally got to take a deep breath and REALLY get excited! Yayyyy! I'm going to my happy place! And seeing some of my favorite friends!

I couldn't have asked for a better send off either! Wednesday night I hung out with some new friends who have graciously and lovingly open their hearts and accepted me as part of their family. What a blessing they have been. I've only been hanging out with them for 2 weeks, and they laid hands on me and prayed for my trip. Talk about a humbling and awesome experience! What an awesome group of people! (Check 'em out! http://antiochbr.com/) 

 

Then, Thursday night the Baton Rouge Dream Center youth laid hands on the leaders that are going to Africa this summer. Love this group so, so much! Here are some pictures of those beautiful people!

While I'm gone please keep this beautiful woman and my dad in your prayers. They have been nothing but supportive with everything I do.. Even when they probably think I'm crazy! 

Keep praying for everyone we will be becoming in contact with! And for our safety and health. 

And I'm off! 

Praise The Lord!

Auntie Brooke 

Trust is ...

I've been contemplating this blog for quite sometime, and I'm still not sure the direction that this blog is supposed to take, but here we go.. 

       The last 6-8 months have been a whirlwind, and I could not be more thankful for that. I've always thought I knew what it meant to trust. I've always really struggled with it, but I knew what it took. I hated it because it requires me to vulnerable. (Let's be real here... it's not something I enjoy, but at least I don't hate it anymore). I'm not good at trusting because that means I have to be vulnerable, which = chance of being hurt, if I'm being honest (see what I did there..). I've even told my new, totally God sent friend Nikeidra (get ready... This is huge)... That I build walls and don't open up well, so she has to hold me accountable. Yep.. I, Brooke Stewart, told someone NEW in my life to make me open up. Jesus does work miracles. :) 

       With that being said, the last few months I've had no choice. I've had to be vulnerable with God and those closest to me because I got to the point that I couldn't do life on my own.  I didn't hit rock bottom, but life was just too much to handle.  It's been rough, but oh so beautiful. I've had the privilege of learning even more what trust truly means.  Just when I thought I knew where I (keyword there: I) wanted to be, God laughed and said, "Try again, Brooke. I have completely different plans." I had to trust that His plan was ultimate, which is MUCH harder said than done.  (Thank goodness He's in control.. can't imagine my life how I had it planned.. sheesh!). I had to completely let go.. And trust. (Yikes! Scary!) Trust His timing. Trust His plan. Trust His love for me.  Trust that He is constant and consistent. When everything else around me is chaos, which it has been, He is constant. He is peace.

 So... Trust. Theme of my life recently. Some of you may be thinking, "Uhhh, Brooke. This is new to you?" The idea isn't new, but the acting it out sure is. Ask my dear friend Melissa. She pinpointed it right away in me has been a huge blessing in this beautiful journey. 

 Praise The Lord that He knows what's going on! It's such a freeing feeling to just let go.. Like really let everything go. I've never felt so much peace and lived such a stress free life. Hallelujah!

So, I'm going to Uganda in  2 WEEKS!: 

The last few years God and I have been working on being intentional.. Intentional with my time, my words, my actions, my faith.. And the list goes on and on.  For example, one of my biggest things is texting/emailing/calling/FBing friends when I see something that reminds me of them or when God puts them on my heart.  So, being intentional is huge and is going to look so different in my life now. But with that, being intentional in Uganda is going to look so much different. I can't plan (yikes! I'm a planner!) because I don't really know what all we're doing yet, and if I did, things never go as planned.. it's Uganda, So.. Prayer request #1.

#2- People we're coming in contact with. Sarah and I really want some hands on medical action. Pray that we can shine Jesus wherever we are, while also being good servants with the talents God has given us.

#3 safety.. Some of you may remember what happened last time I was there. If not, just scroll down a few posts. God is sovereign. With that, my parents seem pretty together about everything right now, but give it time. Pray for peace for them. :)

There will be and are more, but this week, that can be our prayer focuses. Thank you for taking another journey with me and praying me (and my parents!) through this and through the last year of my life.  Y'all are rock stars!

Praise The Lord!

Auntie Brooke 

Round 2

Surprise! I'm headed back to Uganda for a quick trip this summer! You're probably just as surprised as I am. It was a complete and total spontaneous decision. As many of you know, I've been ready to get back since I stepped foot on the airplane home in 2010.  My friend, Sarah, that I met in Uganda posted on Facebook that she wanted a traveling buddy. I instantly told her to give me details, but all the while in the back of my head I knew that I needed to look for a job.  So, after lots of prayer and talking to some people, I decided that this is the last time I'll be able to do this in a long time, so I need to let my adventurous side run wild! We leave on June 16th, spend some time in Uganda and then fly to Rome for a few days before heading home. I am completely and totally excited! I'm going to try and keep this blog up while I'm there, but no promises. :) I'm not sure what kind of computer I'll be bringing, so pictures may or may not be an option. I'll have to see.

Please be praying that God will use me in the few short weeks that I'm there. Much to my family's dismay, be praying that I will find places where my skills as an OT can be used in the future.  I would love to use the talent God has placed in my life to better that country in some way.

Maybe one day I will find the time to update y'all on how much God has blessed me recently, especially the last 6 months. It's simply blown me away. He is so good and faithful .. and CONSISTENT! It's amazing.

PS. I'm taking my national board certification in MAY! Be praying for that NOW! seriously though. . that's a big step! :) God is good though .. He will make everything happen like it's supposed to.

PRAISE THE LORD!
Auntie Brooke

Bringing it Home ...

Greetings from the Red Stick!

Not a day goes by that my heart doesn't long to be in Africa loving on those beautiful children and doing what I can to help take care of them and make sure they know that their Heavenly Father loves them. It's hard to be here in a holding pattern waiting for the next step in my life knowing that there is so much heartbreak in Uganda.

There are some days that I just pray for God to let me be here whole-heartedly while doing what I can to help my friends in Uganda. A great opportunity arose when one of my friends contacted me and asked me if I would help her sell necklaces to help her send her brothers and sisters to school. Her name is Lilian, and she attends school because of Invisible Children (www.invisiblechildren.com). You can see part of what she is doing here: http://vimeo.com/15999005. She is in charge of raising her brothers and sisters, so as part of the culture, it is her responsibility to make sure they attend school. She will be building a chicken coop with the money that she raises with these necklaces. A chicken coop in Africa is a great, great way to make money. The problem is that most people don't have the money to start one. The money raised from the chicken coop will be used to send her brothers and sisters to school. With that being said, here are pictures and prices of the necklaces that I am selling. If you don't live in Baton Rouge or Alexandria, I can mail them to you for a $1.50 extra charge.

The necklaces are paper-beads. All of the larger beads are made from recycled paper. They are beautiful and make GREAT Christmas presents!

I also have bracelets that are made of the paper beads. I just do not have a picture of them at this time.



close up view so that you can see what the beads look like


another close up of the larger beads


The longer necklaces are $20 and the one with the large beads is $15


close up of the solid colored necklaces


These are $15 and have a metal twist clasp


This is a close up of the 2 necklaces that are different from all the other ones


Both of these are $15


close up of the necklaces with the larger beads


I really like these. They are $15, and they also have metal clasps


close up of the long necklaces


The long necklace is $20, and the shorter solid colored one is $15.

If you have questions or would like more pictures of a certain necklace, please don't hesitate to call or e-mail me (bstewa9@tigers.lsu.edu).

Peace,
Brooke

Picture Post!

So, for some reason my pictures aren't showing up on my blog post until I publish it, so Im going to have to explain all of them at the bottom.
Picture 1 - Melissa, Kristin, and I right before we board the plane in Africa
Picture 2- mmmmm . pineapple! Boy am I going to miss it!
Picture 3 - us attempting to walk back across the Nile after a few of us were soaked
Picture 4 - woooH! we made it to Mile 0 of the Nile!
Picture 5- Lilian! My friend from Invsible Children that I met in the states
Picture 6 - sweet neighborhood kids
Picture 7 - pretty girls that we played with when we were at the house
Picture 8 - our very clean well that flows and doesn't clog!
Picture 9 - in the process of cleaning up the well
Picture 10 - the before picture of the well
Picture 11 - burning the "rubbish"
Picture 12 - this is the beautiful sunset that we saw in our backyard every day
Picture 13 - yes, the cows are eating out of bathtubs
Picture 14 - me and Lizzy!
Picture 15 - signs like this for the World Cup were all over Kampala
Picture 16 - this is the Rugby field, one of the bombing sites
Picture 17 - little girl from Remand Home that got rescued before she was child sacrificed
Picture 18 - Daddy Douglas and his stick, making sure kids are listening
Picture 19 - one of the MSTs got all of the kids at Remand Home some shoes. Very few of them were barefoot last Thursday, and usually they are all barefoot
Picture 20 - My sweet friend Kristi that flew all the way from Dallas to Africa with me. She is so sweet!
Picture 21 - Me and some sweet little kids at Victory
Picture 22 - group shot!
Picture 23 - So, ganja is weed in Luganda. One of the Ugandan bands named themselves "The Republic of Uganja," and they drive around this big bus playing their music.
Picture 24 -another world cup sign
Picture 25 - sweet kids at Victory getting their porridge

Fun Facts:
-I went to drive my car yesterday, and I walked to the wrong side to get in.
- In Uganda, there used to be a lot of dogs in downtown Kampala, but the cops poisoned them all. Here's why: There are lots of street kids whose parents send them out to the streets during the day to beg for money. Well, the kids got smart and trained the dogs to act like they were going to attack someone. So, the dogs would chase after a woman, who would then get scared and throw her purse and take off running. The kids, obviously, would go grab the purse. The cops try and do everything in their power to make people on the streets stop begging. They thought that if they got rid of all of the dogs, it would help end street begging.
PRAISE THE LORD!
-Auntie Brooke

One More Time..

Well, it looks like this will be my last blog entry. (I say that, but I may be making a post about the culture shock that I'm already experiencing). I am writing this on my plane ride to Dallas, but by the time I post it, I will be at home with my parents. HOOOORAY! I just looked at my Africa pictures and tried to organize them and see which ones I wanted to print, etc., and I think everyone around me must have thought I was really weird because I could not stop smiling. What an amazing 5 weeks it has been. If you are looking for a place in Africa to go, I would highly recommend Empower a Child. They also have a program in Kenya that just got started.

I just have no idea how I should summarize or end my blog. I have been staring at the computer screen for about 15 minutes. I'm sure part of it is the extreme lack of sleep because of traveling and the roosters that lived in our backyard, but still .. Either way, I am just completely at a lack of words (surprising, I know .. ). The last 5 weeks have changed my life in so many ways, and I know for sure that kids' lives were changed and are still being impacted because of the work that Empower a Child has done. So, thank you for your prayers and encouragment. Y'all are wonderful!

I'll post some pictures from the last few days soon. If any certain project that we did interested you at all, I have plenty more pictures and stories to share. Our main projects were the village, secondary schools, feeding programs at the primary schools, Remand (juvenile) home, Katalemwa (hospital for disabled kids), Kids in Need (home for street boys), and the babies homes. Also, if you're interested in sponsoring a child through Empower a Child, please contact me (bstewa9@tigers.lsu.edu). I saw so many lives changed by that program while I was there. We did home visits to the children that are spnsored, so I got to see first hand what was done through the sponsorship program and how it changed lives. Some MSTs with Empower a Child brought their sponsor children over after going shopping, and I've never seen smiles so big in my life. Please be in prayer about that. It's only $30 a month unless you want to sponsor a special needs child, and it's $40 a month. The special needs program is just beginning. EAC started it after we met a special needs boy in the village and fell in love with him. - I would love to talk to you in more specifics about my trip. :) I know i mentioned this in one of my lasts posts, but if you want to receive my final letter to offically end my trip, just e-mail me your address. I would love to send you one.

Fun Facts:

- The grandparents usually name the kid.

- The bars never close in Kampala. They tried to make the 2 a.m. rule, but it didn't happen. Therefore, we saw lots of crazy drunks on our drive to the airport.

- I don't really think that majority of the people at the airport knew what was going on. We were told the wrong thing about our luggage so many times.

PRAISE THE LORD!

-Auntie Brooke