"SMALL, SMALL"

We have noticed that there are certain words that are repeated for emphasis in Uganda

 such as "small, small".   

This majestic tree is actually 2 trees that grow at the top of a hill beside the highway.

You can compare its size to a human who is on a boda along the road.

"Behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; ....And the Lord God doth work by [small] means to bring about his great and eternal purposes...." Alma 37: 6-7

Sunday, October 6 - Saturday, October 11, 2025

Since President Bell is interested in knowing more about the group who meets each week on Sunday at Calvin's school in Aminomir, we planned a trip to the school on Sunday, October 6. We wanted  to observe their Sunday Services and were asked to give talks.  When we arrived there were 19 children and 4 adults that were not members of the church. Rain kept several people from attending.  Since everyone has to walk long distances it's understandable that they chose to not walk along the highway in the rain.  

Seeing all of those children Sister Kaiser asked Calvin if he expected her to teach Primary, class for the little children.  He replied, "Of course!"  She not knowing that there was a second block of time for Primary after the talks scrambled to create a quick talk for the children before giving her prepared talk.  It was hasty and not well thought out.  After the talks, closing song and prayer everyone was dismissed to different areas of the school or school yard for classes.  WHAT!!! Suddenly Sister Kaiser was left with all of the children and no lesson or plan!  She knew things like this might happen.  With no access to Primary resources on the LDS Library app she remembered what the Come Follow Me themes were for that week and thought about ancestors. Talking about ancestors and their stories was a flop, the children had nothing to contribute. We turned to talking about animals that Jesus created to fill the earth.  

Primary Class 

They wouldn't smile by request but they sure can giggle 

when I say something odd or funny to them.

Here is the list of animals that the children came up with: cow, goat, chicken, dog, cat, duck, pig. That's it.  They live in a farming community and the extent of their personal knowledge about the world beyond their community is very limited. They liked making animal sounds but especially liked how Sister Kaiser made animal sounds with them.  Ha Ha!  

She found out that they have dogs as a pets then showed them a picture of "grand dog, Estes Bark," who is a golden doodle.  They liked that very much.  The dogs here have short straight hair, Estes has curly hair. They thought it was hilarious that in America some people let their dogs sleep with them in bed.  It was even funnier to them that Americans let their cats sleep with them.  From what Sister Kaiser could gather cats are mostly on their own to forage for food and are not really pets. She continued to show them photos of animals on her phone of moose, American bison, horses (nope they don't have horses in Uganda), chipmunks and marmots. When Primary was over we all had something to think about. She challenged the children to ask their parents and grandparents questions about what it was like for them when they were children, what were their chores, did they go to school, what games did they play etc.  

This little boy stays at the school Calvin and Eunice own.  He made his own car with resources that he could find.  A soda bottle for a body, soda caps for wheels, sticks for axels and random things inside for weight, a string to pull it with.

On Saturday and Sunday, October 4 and 5 at 7pm, Uganda time, we were able to watch the Saturday and Sunday Morning Sessions of General Conference before going to bed.  

We forgot to take a photo of those moments but this photo was taken during the Memorial for President Russell M. Nelson who passed away.  

This is how we watched General Conference as well.

Before we went inside on Sunday to eat dinner and watch General Conference we spent time with the neighbors. Sister Kaiser told the story of Queen Ester from the Bible and Elder Kaiser told about Moses and the Fiery Serpent. 

Sister Kaiser visited with Mary, she is in her late 60s and the grandmother to many or all of the children we tell stories too.  She laughs at how Sister Kaiser pronounces words in Acholi.  It's okay.

We had planned to drive to a waterfall on Monday, Oct. 6, our preparation day, but looking at the weather forecast made us nervous to take the drive so we stayed in Gulu so we went grocery shopping.  While at the main market Elder Kaiser started looking at soccer/football jerseys and then without any warning the rain came in a torrential downpour!  It kept up for the rest of the day with a few short breaks.  We finished our shopping and were glad that we had an umbrella and a rain coat to protect us.  The gutters on the paved road were small rivers of flowing red/orange water. Residents huddled in overhangs of buildings waiting for the rain to pass but it hardly let up for the rest of the night. Later Elder Kaiser went to rescue 3 Elders who needed to get back to their apartment in the dark, in the rain. 

Side note: Missionaries here have an early curfew. The sister missionaries are to be in at 6:30pm and the elders at 7pm.  There is good reason for this.  1. Health: The mosquitos who carry the malaria virus, feed at dusk and dawn.  2. Light Safety: There is no Daylight Savings time, it gets dark early and fast! It's really hard to see well at night unless you turn on the cars high beams. The street lamps, when there are any are dim. The people cross the road anywhere. Bodas don't always have head lamps or their headlamps are weak. People dress in dark clothes and are hard to see which is a huge safety issue.  The people go out to socialize every night so the vendors along the roads stay out too. 3. Driving Safety: The paved and dirt roads all have pot holes, some are very big and deep. For those in vehicles the potholes could cause serious damage.

Pray for scripture CD's to be found!

Geoffrey has a tender spot in our hearts.  He is full of faith but also sad at the disconnect from his children.  When we went to see him on Tuesday, October 7, young boys were shaving each other's heads on Geoffrey's porch with electric hair clippers.  We were glad to discover that there is electricity in Geoffrey's dwelling.  We want to try to find him Old and New Testament and Book of Mormon CD's that he can listen to on a CD player.  The CD player would probably need to be plugged in. We are checking with the church distribution center in Kampala but our hopes aren't high, they are searching but CD's are out of date with smartphone technology and since the Church Library App is loaded with a complete amount of content our chances are slim at finding old technology.  There is no internet/wifi where Geoffrey stays.  

Two of Geoffrey's nephews who had some cooked maze for a snack. 

Crazy fact: Geoffrey is the third son of 7 sons, no sisters, and of those brothers there are 23 children, so far, and only 4 are girls!!!  Many of them are very recently baptized members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints.   We taught Geoffrey and some of the boys the incredible story of faith - Ammon and King Lamoni in the Book of Mormon. Since Geoffrey can't read a book with his disability and the boys are not literate or can only barely identify their ABC's they haven't read the Book of Mormon.   We need to tell more faith promoting stories from the Book of Mormon.

Zone Conference and Puppies

That night we met up with President and Sister Bell who arrived in town for Zone Conference.  We had a good visit about our assignments. Sister Kaiser shared a cake with the Bells that she has made for years from a recipe from her friend LaVon Wilson who shared it with her from her mother.  The Bells liked it and asked for the recipe.  She needs to let LaVon know that her mother's recipe has traveled to Uganda and eventually it will make it to South Africa where the Bells are from.

Sister Bell and  Sister Kaiser looked up over the building and saw the moon.  It was a moment worth noting. Neither had seen the moon in weeks, probably not since before arriving in Uganda. There are several reasons for this, usually we are inside by the time it gets dark, the trees are tall and thick and cloud covering comes and goes.

Elder Mutombo, the current Zone Leader, gave his departing testimony at Zone Conference.  He was also presented with this scarf Ugandan colors on one side and Democratic Republic of the Congo on the other.  

Wednesday, Oct 8 was devoted to Zone Conference.  We met at the Bardege Building at 8:30 am, the meeting started at 9 am. and training went until 2pm with a couple of breaks.  The discussions and presentations were well planned and appropriate.  We don't add anything to the meeting, it's not necessary, but we like being with the young Elders and Sisters.

We went to Churchil Courts Hotel (not a typo) for lunch and the socializing began!  The missionaries sure love to visit with each other and they know how to eat. It's fun to watch.

Sister Bell was the hero of the day without knowing it. She bought church picture books from the distribution center for us, at our request, and also went shopping for reading books. It helps that she is a Grade 1 Teacher, she knows how to pick good age appropriate books.  Yayyy!!! When we got back from dropping 6 elders off at their apartment, along with scraps of food for the neighbors' 11 puppies, Mildred met us at the gate. We told her that would come read with her and the other children. They were  wowed at the books and very content to listen to the stories and look at the pictures.  Thanks Sister Bell!

Mildred said she would be our teacher.  

She read an illustrated scripture story book to us with commentary.

Sister Kaiser read a story from "50 Magical Stories"

The girl next to me was whisper reading with her. Ha! Ha!

We look forward to Thursdays and literacy class with the women.  They are proud to show us the letters and words that they practice as homework. On that day, Oct 9, we had a guest attendee, 6 year old girl who came with her aunt Evelyn.   She participated in some of the learning.  We never know who will show up.  On that day we had 4 women, one who we have not met yet, 2 helpers and a little girl. They worked hard and we made it all the way through a lesson and were able to sit and enjoy being together at the end of class. They always have snacks, that day it was grape soda, bottled water and pre-packaged shortbread biscuits (cookies).  We dropped 3 of them off at the market on our way back to our place. Fun to see the Relief Society Sisters getting things done together in a social way.

Lilly is a curious learner.  Always peeking ahead at the lessons.  

When we practiced writing the words, "I am a _________" Lilly put, "I am a girl dancing." and drew herself dancing in her green dress.

Our quiet little extra student. 

We all filled in a word that describes ourselves at the end of "I am a__________". 

These women really liked this practice and activity.  They were giggling at their own drawings and the drawings of others.  

Stake Center Construction Underway!

We saw that there was a new sign up by the location for the future Gulu Stake Center.  So exciting!!!  We were glad to stop and take a photo.  Later President Orombi posted a similar photo on the Gulu District WhatsApp link.

Ugandan's Independence Day

We got distracted on our way home.  October 9 is Ugandan's Independence Day.  In a large field there were tents and vendors set up. We decided to stop.  The food smelled good but we can't take any chances with food not prepared in our own kitchen or by a recommended restaurant.  There were a lot of clothing vendors and other crafts and artwork.  We ended up buying a hand carved African nativity from the artist.  We are happy that we have something appropriate to decorate with for Christmas.

This is the craftsman, Dradri Yazid, that carved the nativity set that we purchased.  

He had the items wrapped and boxed for us.

A little Northern Ugandan History:  The northern Ugandans (where we are serving) migrated from South Sudan over 3 centuries ago.  Their symbol is the Elephant, embodying pride, strength, gentleness and calm. During the colonial period the Northern Ugandans provided much of the manual labor nationally and service in the military  Through persecution they maintained their dignity and strength. The country of Uganda became a country in 1962 on October 9. 

We marvel at the accurateness of the description of the Acholi people and how perfect their symbol, the Elephant, is because we see evidence of it all around. The people are strong, and fit and work extremely hard to simply live. They chop wood, carry babies on their backs, carry huge cans of water to their homes, work at their craft from early in the morning to well after the sun goes down. They plant seeds, weed and harvest manually without animal or machine help, just to feed their family or create produce for sale. They are extremely soft spoken and very calm people.

It was surprising to us to see yoked oxen dragging a wooden plow through a field.  

The whole family was involved in the process. The mother was at the end of the row giving instructions.

Temple Preparation Classes

The first Temple Preparation Class started on Thursday.  We are encouraging more of these classes to start happening in all of the branches after our training.  We were happy to support the Pece Branch as they had their first class.

Prospective Missionary

Every Tuesday and Friday morning from 11-12 we have a Zoom class with Sister and Elder Ence who are training us to take over a responsibility of theirs.  They have been tasked in keeping track of the progress prospective missionaries are making toward their final interviews with the Branch President and the Mission President. The Ence's are like a stake clerk who is making sure all of the documents are in order and done on time for each prospective missionary before they can interview and submit their mission papers and receive their mission call.  This occurs for all the missionaries in Uganda that are living in a District.  (See the note below for added information).  Its an important job and the Ence's leave their mission November 3. Since Sister and Elder Kaiser will be the only remaining senior missionary couple serving in Uganda until May 2026 the baton for this responsibility passes to us.  Pray that President Bell can call a computer savvy local Service Missionary or a senior missionary couple or individual that can be sent to Uganda for this exact assignment.

Side note: The Mission President is the Presiding Priesthood Authority over Districts.  When a stake is organized he is no longer the presiding authority because a stake president is called.  Say a prayer for President Bell who is the presiding priesthood authority for 7 districts in Uganda.  All missionary and temple interviews are his responsibility along with leading the mission with the numbers increasing every transfer!  

Temple Prep Fast Track

Later on Friday we taught a Temple Preparation lesson to Nancy.  She is getting ready to go to the temple but she's on a fast track.  Temple preparation wasn't available earlier but her branch president wants her to have the lessons before the next scheduled trip to the temple in Nirobi Kenya that she is planning to go on. We are happy to help and Nancy was easy to teach and talk to.

Nancy

Time for a check up!!! 

There was a group of angels who scheduled a Dental Clinic in Gulu on Saturday, October 11 from 9 am - 5 pm.  The sister and elder missionaries young and old were needed for support.  Sister Kaiser signed people in and kept them in numerical cues so that they could officially sign in and let dental volunteers know their needs.  Elder Kaiser was inside the building in the clinic area moving patients from the waiting area to dentists who were ready for the next patient.  We were on our feet in the heat all day, Elder Kaiser had ceiling fans at least!  The people from the clinic raise money for these much needed clinics by running a high quality safari tour group which the organizer started as a business just for the purpose of funding his passion to help people. He and his wife use a portion of of the money they earn from the tours to be able to fund these dental clinics.  

In front in the white shirt and tie is District President Patrick Orombi, next to him on one side is a local dentist, Geoffrey, who is a member of the Gulu branch and on the other side are Matthew and Linda Jensen from Dental Outreach Relief Foundation.  With them are other dentists and oral surgeons, local dental students and support crew.  One volunteer couple finished their mission last week in Africa and joined the dental volunteers on tour before going home to America.

President Patrick Opiyo, 1st counselor in the District Presidency and his baby boy.

We can't hold the babies but we sure do like looking at them and tickling their cheeks.

Children playing in the church yard.  The water tank behind them services the property.

Our friend, Beatrice, the other teacher from Thursday's Literacy Class, came to 

the dental clinic with a friend. She had to walk a long way or get a boda.

There were 162 people served on Saturday.  Many came back to Sister Kaiser to report on the outcome of their dental visit.  Almost all reported happy results.  Some were disappointed since some equipment wasn't working properly so cavities couldn't be filled.  One 17 yr old volunteer with the group sterilized equipment over and over to keep the dentists stocked with tools.  The volunteers also brought boxes of clothes, white shirts and ties for boys and men and dresses for the girls and women.  The clothes came from youth in Arizona who did some fund raising to make the clothing purchases.  The clothes were very much appreciated by the members of the Gulu District.  

Clothing donated by the youth in Arizona

"I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; ...that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God." Mosiah 2 :17

Sister and Elder Kaiser were super wiped out at the end of the day and were glad we had our talks prepared for the next day in the Bardege 2 Branch.  We can't imagine how the Dental volunteers felt.  They were back the next morning at 9 am for church then were headed to the next city for another clinic stop.

Maybe you thought we forgot to include a baby goat photo, naaaaa!