By Caitlin Taylor
It has been a true blessing to be able to journey back to Uganda this year. When I came here two summers ago, I never thought I would be back in this wonderful country, so to be here again is truly awesome! I remember on my last trip that Mike was still in the planning process of the Fields of Dreams Uganda organization. It is amazing to see how much progress has been made and how much of an impact it has on these kids.
I never realized how much of an impact it would have on me too. While working with these beautiful children one-on-one for the D.R.E.A.M.S. Plans, it started to hit me that I am helping them plan out their future goals and dreams, which will allow them to live their lives to the fullest - which is an incredible feeling. I never thought that I could play such a role in a child's life. Although it was tough to get them to fully understand what we were doing in the beginning, they slowly started to realize that this is for them and their dreams and their futures. I hope that each and every child we work with is able to keep up their passion, hard work, and determination to reach these goals they have set for themselves (although I have complete faith they will go above and beyond that).
The passion these children have for soccer is phenomenal! I never had a chance to watch the kids play soccer the last time I was in Uganda, so being able to see full on what this organization is centered on and the children's love for this sport is amazing. I think being at the tournament watching these kids play was one of my favorite moments this week. I got to see kids being kids. There was true happiness and joy, as well as incredible sportsmanship. Although a team may have lost, they kept their heads held high and cheered for the rest of their teams in the tournament. I find that extremely admirable. I cannot express enough how truly blessed I feel to experience all of this.
Another thing that I really enjoyed was how relaxed everything seemed to be. Some of our team members and I were talking about how rushed we feel all the time back in the U.S. and how we are constantly trying to find ways to keep ourselves busy. It was wonderful to be able to just sit down with someone and have a true conversation without feeling like there is something else I should be doing. I felt like I connected with the children a lot more because I was able to just sit down and talk. It was the same way last time I journeyed here, too. I was overjoyed when we went back to New Kabaale Busega and some of the children I met last time actually remembered me and were calling me by name. I really feel like I impacted those children more than I thought because we took the time to get to know one another. That was a powerful moment that I will never forget. These children have stolen my heart and will forever remain in my thoughts and prayers. I can only hope to continue to travel back to Uganda and continue to impact and be impacted by these amazing children.
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