The OF Chronicles

Turkey Day Brainstorming

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 09:10:21 -0600

Andy Warhol coined the expression “15 Minutes of Fame” to describe the momentary celebrity that everyone experiences at some point in their lives. Sitting in the fistula ward of Kagando Hospital, I experienced a phenomenon that I describe as “5 Seconds of Fame.”

As my slideshow flashed pictures of each woman up for around 5 seconds each, I could feel different sections of the ward erupt with wails of laughter and clapping. I sat next to the projector and every time I looked back into the crowd, someone shot me a thumbs up or a big smile-and-clap.

From hiking to the top of Africa to running the streets of Pamplona, I have had some magnificent experiences in my life, but nothing compares to movie night at Kagando. The joy pulsating through the long, thin fistula ward had a tangible intensity that wrapped itself around you like a big, happy blanket.

After the show, the women made a human tunnel clapping and singing as we packed up the gear. Frank and I ran through this electric cave carrying all our AV equipment and when we finished loading the truck, we returned for more singing. The level of excitement and emotion was unlike anything I have ever seen in my life and I count this movie night as one of my most treasured experiences.

Epilogue: Most of these woman have never seen television and certainly have never seen themselves on television. Most of us in the US or Europe are so condition to TV that we forget the massive sensory overload that coordinated flashing lights and music first created in us. Furthermore, being the subject of that sensory rich construct adds another dimension to the experience. Of course I didn’t think of any of this until well after the end of our movie night. I was far too busy taking it all in.

Our New Office

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 09:09:18 -0600

Officially a Non-Profit

Sun, 9 Nov 2008 09:26:02 -0600

Meeting Alice Emasu

Mon, 28 Jul 2008 07:24:27 -0500

African Doctor Cowboy

Sat, 26 Jul 2008 07:21:44 -0500

Instead of taking the bus back to Kampala, Dr. Frank drove me. About halfway between Kagando and Kampala is Frank’s family ranch, packed full of Ankole cattle. While cowboying is a bit different than where I grew up in central Texas, there is still a corral and I found it interesting how Dr. Frank got his cows out of it. There is not “cracking of the whip,” but instead a ‘swinging of the stick.”

There is also no auction. Frank struck a deal on his cow in person, using the calculator on his cellphone to calculate his profit on the transaction.