Another World

On September 9 we flew from Uganda to Canada for family time… and when we reflect on our life experiences we realise how different our two ‘homes’ are.  We have close friends in both places, but Canada is where family is.  And now that parents are aging, we want to spend time helping with the transitions that need to take place and enjoying the relationships. 

    (With Karl’s parents at the coast)

Because we have family both at the coast and in Edmonton, we always travel the 1100 kilometres between these places and give our car a good work out!

(Karl helping Arleen’s mom with her garden fall clean up in Edmonton)

It has been several years since we have enjoyed the beautiful fall colours in Canada, something we miss in Uganda.  The seasons in Uganda are defined by the rains more than by temperature.  It is either rainy season or dry season and the sun appears for at least part of every day.  Here in Canada, there is much more variety in the seasons, particularly in Edmonton where warm and sunny fall days can give way to snow in a matter of a day or two as temperatures plummet. 

It is a privilege to live in both worlds and enjoy the rich variety that God has displayed in the beauty of creation.  Here we see moose and bears as we drive through the mountains, rather than the elephants and hippos we have come to be so familiar with in Uganda when we visit the game parks.  All are amazing to see.

We have also been able to use the past few weeks to collect resources (books, seeds, gadgets and goodies) to bring back for our work in Uganda.  Some very helpful meetings at Pacific Academy, Trinity Western University and our home church that generously supports our work have taken place as well.   Now that much of Arleen’s work is more ‘portable’ (teacher training course preparation work that can be done on computer and via email, marking of teachers’ assignments that can be carried anywhere) she has been able to keep on top of some of this work while in Canada.  As all teachers know, marking never goes away…no matter which world you find yourself in!