Mandela Secondary School

Last week we went for our first small group time at Mandela Secondary School. The school system here in Uganda is totally different from what we’re used to in the States. Even publicly-supported schools are not free; all students must pay school fees before they can begin attending the 3 terms each year. The first term officially began about 3 weeks ago, but classes started last week and this week. (It takes a while for all the students to report, because they are trying to get their school fees together.) Even after students report, if their accounts are found to be short, they may be forced to leave until they can bring the full amount. (As a teacher who dealt with what I considered overly-transient students in the US, I can’t imagine trying to teach with such an unsettled classroom situation.) Students go on a month-long break in April and September, and another round of school fees is due when they return. Most schools are strictly for boarders, so some students live on campus from the time they are 12 or 13 years old, even though home may be close enough to walk to school each day; there are few secondary schools that accept day students in addition to the standard boarders.

We were pleasantly surprised by the large group of girls who joined us for our first True Love Waits small group; we had 34 girls who showed up. (No boys, though… I wonder if the thought of talking about sex with 2 white women was a little much for them.) They were very open and had lots of questions for us... “How can I find a good husband?” (If I only knew!!!) “How can I find good friends?” “How can I stay away from bad friends?” “How many boyfriends should we have?” … which opened up a great discussion on what the “purpose” of a boyfriend is in the first place. The girls were amazingly honest in saying that they wanted boyfriends so they wouldn’t feel lonely. I was able to share that another person, who is probably also lonely, will never be able to fill that emptiness—only Jesus can. And He wants to. He wants us to turn to Him when we are sad, or lonely, or wondering. He wants that kind of relationship with us, where we know we can depend on Him to fill the emptiness inside of us. I’m not sure they all “got me,” (Ugandan for “understood what I was saying”) but I did see some lightbulbs start to come on.

I’ve been on the Mandela campus several times now, and one thing keeps catching my attention… and making me laugh. All over campus, the administration has placed signs to “encourage” students to make wise choices. The signs are a good reminder of just how big a deal the AIDS crisis is here, and how it has to be addressed more openly and matter-of-factly than at home. But the signs, especially to a Westerner, are just funny. Seeing them plastered around a school campus, even when they are addressing a potentially deadly issue, just makes you laugh. Under your breath. To other Westerners.

Check out some of the signs we saw this week:
~ Respect and listen to your teachers and parents
~ Avoid HIV/AIDS- live up right
~ Remember condoms are not 100% safe
~ Avoid dark places
~ Remember life is precious and costly
~ Avoid early marriage
~ Don’t die young
~ Say no to sex
~ Say no to gifts for sex
~ Virginity is healthy