You are Welcome

After two hours of driving, we finally began to close in on Tabiro. Little did we know that the whole community had been alerted about our arrival. As soon as we turned off the main road, kids started waving at us and jumping up and down to get our attention. Though I knew Ugandan culture is less reserved than Canadian culture in matters of welcoming and hospitality, I was still incredibly overwhelmed by how happy they were to see us. We got out of the van in Tabiro to an audience of about 150 people, mostly children. As soon as we disembarked, the children reached out to grab our hands, and each time said, "You are welcome."

The adults and older children entertained us with a few traditional dances, and the welcome turned into a dance party that lasted about an hour. I didn't take photos or video, but I do have a video of a small welcome for one of our party that arrived late. I think it captures the spirit of Ugandan welcomes very well.



I felt conflicting emotions about being so adored by the children. On the one hand, it was a wonderful feeling to have so many people like me, but on the other I felt unworthy to be viewed as so...magical. Though I was glad that they were happy to see me, I almost preferred when I had to coax the few younger ones not to be afraid; it seemed like those children had a better idea of who I really was. This is not meant to be self-deprecating; I'm only saying that I'm uncomfortable when people view me as something I am not. Most of the Ugandans viewed the team as special and I struggled with that a lot while I was there.