Agnes is one of the most beautiful Ugandan women I’ve met. This woman worked all day long to be sure all the pastors and I were well fed, clean, and comfortable during our four-night stay at her home. She toted little Emmanuel on her back while hunting down the various chicken nests to provide eggs for breakfast. She made sure I had a fork at every meal even when we were at the church (the lone fork, everyone else used their natural forks). She made sure I had toilet paper (the lone role). She boiled water so I could have a warm “bath” every evening and morning. (To be honest, I wasn’t too sure what I was supposed to do with a bath in the morning after having one the night before but she went to so much trouble…I just washed all over again.) She swept the floor of my mud hut every morning. She did my laundry. She cared for her children. She fetched water. And the she showed up at the conference and, along with some other ladies, did all the cooking and cleaning for more than 100 participants plus all the women and children in the area.
Related to bathing, the previous post showing the bed I slept on also shows the basin and cup that were my bath. One basin of hot water meant figuring out some order of operations. Let’s just say it’s better to brush your teeth before washing your feet. This grass thatched three-sided closet was really quite perfect for bathing. I wedged my flashlight into the walls, balanced my little toilet kit on a tiny rock, flopped my clothing over the top edge, and prayed like mad that no one would see through the door and that the flashlight didn’t cast shadows.
God prompted me to bring this beautiful blanket my sister made as a gift to someone in Lira. I ended up needing to use the blanket as the nights are cool in Lira and blankets were not part of my fancy bedding. But the morning of our departure resulted in gifting this snuggly, fancy, made with love, blanket to Agnes as a thank you for her tireless work. I’m sad not to have a photo of this gift but we left at 5:00 in the morning and it was too dark. Plus, there’s something funky about “here’s a present, let me take your picture.”
Agnes is the perfect model of a godly women serving God’s people with her whole heart.