Bonfire

After arriving here in Kampala, I had the honor of meeting a special group of young men called "The Famous Friends". They're a group of acrobats of varying ages and backgrounds that perform locally. One of the pictures I included is of us at an Indian restaraunt. The guys had never eaten at a restaraunt, much less an Indian one, so we thought it would be fun to take them. They loved the Indian food, but they tried to cut the meat with a fork and spoon, so we had to do a little knife lesson while we were there.

One of the group's regular performances is at a weekly event called Bonfire at The National Theater in Kampala. A man who calls himself Ugly--which stands for yoU Gotta Love Yourself--runs this simple outdoor open mic night with little more than a small sound system and a few lights. The night begins with riddles and folktales, followed by poetry, music, dance, and finally rap. There are several bars set up inside and outside of the theater, and people just sit around and either participate or just observe. It's very relaxed, and anyone can come up and show whatever talent they have. One original poem by a student was called "Cry for Africa, I Will Try" and yes, I did. 

Earlier that day, the acrobats as well as some of my teacher friends and I went to Ntinda Primary School for the Deaf, which is down the street from where I'm staying. The children there were either born that way, or have lost their hearing for reasons like malaria, measles, or mumps; and still others have learning disablities and therefore can not speak. It's a government school, and it was interesting to see how they teach these students. I gathered that during the first two years of school, the kids learn as much English Sign Language as they can. Then, they continue to teach them more signing while teaching the core subjects. They also teach the little ones skills like jewelry making and crafts so that they'll be able to support themselves if they don't go on to secondary school. My new friend Ibrahim is an artist who comes in and teaches the kids how to make earrings. He then sells the earrings and gives the school the profits. I've already bought four pair to give as gifts when I get home.

The acrobats did a great job performing for the kids, who instead of clapping, shook their hands in the air to show their excitement. After the show, the kids came up to us and were signing like crazy, pulling and grabbing at us and eachother in order to get our attention. I felt terrible because I couldn't understand them, so I took out a notebook and wrote, "I'm sorry I do not know sign language." One of the boys grabbed my pen and wrote, "My name is Gabriel," then handed me the pen, pointed to me, then pointed to the notebook, suggesting that I write my name. So, I did, and then everyone else followed suit. After we all wrote our names, they taught us how to sign "My Name Is" then they gave each of us a name. My name means singer, because I guess to them I look like a singer (go figure). Other names were Beard, Hair, Silly, and Fair. Some of them cried when I left, so I promised them I'd come back soon with some books for their library, the only one I've seen in any of the schools I've been to so far. Later at bonfire, after the acrobats performed, they talked to the audience about the deaf school and showed everyone how to say their sign names. 

Next week, I'm going to some secondary schools, Kampala University, and Nkumbusa University. Not only will I be teaching at these schools, but also observing as research for my Master's degree. I'm a bit nervous about teaching at the college level, but I expect my career to lead me there eventually, so this will be good practice for the future. I'll let you all know how it goes, and pray that I don't sound like an ignorant American.

Keep in touch,

T