Last Days in Uganda

Nothing beats ushering in the Sabbath bride like singing "Shalom Aleichem" on a balcony overlooking the Nile!  After a delicious Shabbat dinner at the Paraa Lodge in Murchison Falls, we had an intimate Shabbat service (complete with a heckler from another hotel room) under the stars of the ink-black sky.  We turned in early so we could awake before the sun.  We watched it rise, a golden-pink orb, behind the palm trees.  After a quick breakfast we headed out for a morning game drive.  We were not disappointed!  Between our morning drive and the one we had in the late afternoon, we saw just about every animal we could have imagined -- including baboons, giraffes, elephants, warthogs, water buffalo, more hippos and crocs, crown- crested cranes, and, wait for it...a lion that Zac Brown's eagle eyes spotted under a bush!

A pair of crown-crested cranes (the national bird)

Baboons travel in "troops"

Did you know that giraffes have the largest eyes of any mammals?

Look at this beauty - a heartebeast!

Lioness.  We heard that there were two cubs hidden in the brush.

A flock of red-breasted bee eaters.

Warthog crossing!

Water buffalo

Naure is truly miraculous!  That all of these amazing animals live in a brilliantly interwoven system is just simply overwhelming!

Between our game drives, we had a wonderful group text study over Shabbat lunch.  We discussed Maimonides' Ladder of Tzedakah, in which the Medieval Spanish, Jewish philosopher teaches that lending money is a higher form of tzedakah than giving it outright.  Higher still is going into partnership with another person.  In the classic tradition of "teaching a man to fish," Maimonides emphasizes that the best forms of tzedakah make the recipient self-sufficient.  It was great to hear the different perspectives the group had to offer on this classic text.  Mount Zion bulletin recipients will see some of our specific comments in the February bulletin's "Take Hold of Torah" page (and anyone who wants to can find this page at www.mzion.org beginning on February 1).

We left the beautiful Murchison Falls early on Sunday morning so we could try to get into The Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary.  Once again we found ourselves trekking through tall grass, following a guide, and being "vewy, vewy quiet" so we could try to spot some of the dozen rhinos that are being raised and reproducing to repopulate the rhino population lost to poaching.  One of the rhinos, the first born in Uganda in 30 years, is named Obama because he was born to a Kenyan father and an American mother!  

Have we mentioned how much each of the rangers knows about the animals?  They speak so lovingly of the creatures as they describe their habits, qualities, and quirks.

Baby Rhino "Laloyo"

After visiting the rhinos, we drove to Kampala for our last couple of hours in Uganda.  We stopped by the beautifully peaceful Baha'i Temple -- one of seven Baha'i Temples in the world.  


We returned to the States on Monday afternoon, and everyone I see asks, "How was your trip?"  I kid you not when I tell you I get goosebumps every time I attempt to answer.  There is just no quick or simple way to sum it all up.  So it will come out over time, through stories and photo-sharing, and through the new perspectives we gained from a remarkable, tiny community living a vibrant Jewish life in the middle of Africa.  

If you are interested, some of us will share more photos & stories on 
Friday, March 15, 6:15-7:15 p.m. at Mount Zion.

Baruch Atah Adonai Eloheinu Melech ha'olam, borei atzei v'samim.  

Praise to You Adonai our God, Sovereign of the universe, for trees and their fragrance.

As we left Uganda, what remained with us is the fragrance of the trees, the earth, the just-picked fruits, and the people.  We cling to the scent of our time there -- lingering, we hope, like the spices of Havdalah after Shabbat has ended.

--Rachel Stock Spilker

Acacia Tree