My adventure has begun. The adventure of a lifetime. Washington D.C. - London, England - Uganda, Africa. I’m sitting in a C&J bus on my way to Logan International Airport where I will depart for Reagan International in Washington D.C. There I will be handed off for the Schools for Schools trip at 4:30 pm. I’ll be meeting the 14 other girls and 5 guys that have also been anxiously awaiting this day. The day we will meet, TODAY! Today, June 21st, the day we descend upon Washington D.C. armed with our passion and persistence. We will see the war in Uganda come to an end - this IS how it ends! June 22-23 thousands of us are raising our voices. I don’t know if I can even put into words the pure excitement that is racing through my veins, it’s so exhilarating. I have no idea what to expect, there’s so much I will learn, so much I will experience. It’s daunting to go on this trip, many think I’m crazy for going - but it’s something I need to see for myself. We’ve been working to build schools for the past 3 years for children half a world away - the fact that I’m traveling half a world away is crazy! I never thought it would happen, but it is, and it’s incredibly surreal. It hasn’t quite hit me yet. I don’t really know when it will. Maybe when I take my first step on Ugandan soul? Maybe when I get on the plane - destination: Uganda? Who knows?! It’s such an unreal thing.
I’m sitting here, thinking of all these things - of the next 18 days, of how crazy this all is. The Cosby Show is playing on the bus’ televisions as no one watches, my Father sits quietly researching itouches and my Mom is reading articles on Uganda and Lobby Days. The driver announces the amenities provided as the less than interested passengers stay in their own little worlds. I am sitting, knees up, crouched over in my seat. I’m listening to my ipod playing the good old Beatles. The song, “Come Together” a song played in the Hippie years when power to the people was hailed. When the youth took a stand - the youth came together. The youth are coming together now, today, for peace in northern Uganda, peace in the Congo, an end to Joseph Kony’s terrors. We want justice! We fight peacefully for the rights of those we have not met, because their lives mean just as much as outs. We’re all human - we all lead lives we perceive to be meaningful, so we must value the lives of others! We must think of more than ourselves - we must open our eyes to our similarities and not our differences - to our rights, our hopes, our dreams. I see a passion in my generation and I feel lucky to be able to spend two and a half weeks with those individuals who stand out amidst the rest.
I’ve arrived at the airport! We’ve gone through security, assembled all our things, and taken deep breaths. I’ve eaten half a banana nut muffin and 3/4 of some mozzerella/tomato sandwich (it was delicious). I’m sitting diagonal from the door I will enter just before 10:05, the door that will lead me to the plane that will take me to Washington D.C.! My mom is still reading articles, and my Dad is still surfing the web, though he is sitting across the way so he can charge his laptop. my Mom just took a break from reading her articles to steal my phone and text Julie.
We’re being called for our flight!
I’m on the plane now, it’s extremely tiny. The row on the left only has one seat while the row on the right has two small seats placed as close together as possible. The pilot just finished reading and explaining safety protocol and we’re moving at last. I will not be returning for 18 days! The engines are revving, the turbines turning, my mind is racing. This is actually happening?! It can’t be?! But it is, it is! I’m going to D.C.! I’m going to London! I’m going to Uganda! This is real! It’s reality!
We have taken off. We are in the air. We are in the sky. My ears are popping. Up, up, up we go! The fog that surrounds us leaves no visibility, the sun reflecting off the fog blinds us. It’s like this bright light enveloping our plane. An older woman and young struggling journalist sit behind me talking of life, youth, and education. My Mom takes out her articles (she’s reading again!).
We’ve begun our descent to D.C. and my ears are completely blocked/ I have my ipod turned up quite loud, yet my music is stifled by the loud engines and cabin pressure beating against my ears. An old familiar song plays, “I Believe in a Thing Called Love”. This song reminds me of Lobby Days past - bowling at George Washington University, a room filled with young activists singing in unison having the greatest time of their lives, while changing the world! I’m going back to Lobby Days, but this is How it ENDS. We should never come back to lobby for northern Uganda, for we desperately need this situation to end, support must be given. If we’re back hopefully it’s for a different cause, or in celebration of a victory. But these next two days we come to tell congress, we come to tell Washington, tell the world, that 23 years too long have these people been suffering. This is how it ENDS, this is our cry.
We’re landing in D.C.... and the adventure begins!
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