Quotables

Lois (11): Auntie Katie, what did you eat for lunch?
Me: Chapattis and avocado.
Lois: You ate Abigail?!
Me: A-vo-ca-do.

Lois

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As I am walking up the hill with the nursery school children at the end of the day, one of them holds my water bottle for me.

Nathanial: I want some water! Share with us, Auntie Katie.

Me: No, the water is only for me.

Manuela: But I want water! You need to give us some.

Thomas: Yeah, Auntie Katie, you need to share!

Me: Trust me, I’m not saying this because I don’t love you. I want you to stay healthy. I can’t share with you.

Thomas (5): Agh… God is going to punish you for not sharing.

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As I am working on my computer on my verandah, Christy (8) sits down next to me and watches what I am doing. She then says, slightly confused, “Auntie Katie, I didn’t know your second name was MacBook.”

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A few minutes after I send Manessa away to go to the bathroom, he comes back into my house.

Thomas: Ah! Manessa didn’t wash his hands! They’re dry! Auntie Katie, he’s going to give us all Ebola!

Nathaniel & Thomas

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Thomas: Here comes Mr. Jesse!

Jesse: Here comes Mr. Jimmy!

Christy: Here comes Mr. Auntie Katie!

Me: Christy, am I a mister?

Christy: Yes.

Me: I don’t think so. Are you a mister?

Christy: No.

Me: What are you?

Christy: A cow.

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Tessa (5) and I finish a Winnie-the-Pooh themed puzzle with a picture of Rabbit on it.

Me: Great job, Tessa! Do you know who that is in the picture?

Tessa: Rabbit!

Me: And what kind of animal is rabbit?

Tessa: A kangaroo!

Tessa

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While the children are combing my hair:

“Auntie Katie, how do you get your hair to be like this?”

“I don’t know. It just grows that way.”

“Did you plant seeds?”

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Boda driver: Hello hello hello!

Me: Hello.

Boda driver: Morning morning morning!

Me: Good morning.

Boda driver: I love you!

Me: (keep running and look straight ahead)

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“Tim plus Amos equals seven. Is that right, Auntie Katie?”

“Um…”

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As I leave the children’s home, one of the toddlers runs outside.

“Auntie Katie!” he yells. I look back and he is standing with his arms stretched out to each side as far as they can go.

“What?”

“Auntie Katie, I want a biiiiiiiiiiig hug!”

He knew what he wanted. Good for him.

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While playing Old Maid with Angel and Martha, I shuffle the cards and do a bridge. Their eyes get huge.

Angel (9): Auntie Katie… you’re magic!

Angel

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Leah (10): (poking me in the side) Last time you came you were thin. Now you are very fat. Auntie Katie, you’re turning into a hippopotamus.

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One afternoon I was preparing a holiday craft in my house. As I cut and glued paper for a piñata, a few children gathered on my front steps and watched silently for a few minutes.

Manuela (6): (with a wistful sigh) I wish I was Auntie Katie so I could be doing that… but then I wouldn’t know how to wash my stockings.

(For the full story on this quote, read my recent post: I Know My Stockings Are Dirty)

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Lois: Did you get food in Kampala when you picked the babies?

Me: No, we only got babies.

Lois: Why?

Me: Because it would be too hard to hold the food in one hand and a baby in the other hand.

Lois: No! All you have to do is put the babies in a suitcase! … No wait… that’s not right…

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Isaac (5): I like your face… Everyday I like your face.

Isaac. I like his face too.

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Angel and Sarah come running up to me. Sarah shows me a cross-stitch kit.

Sarah: Auntie Katie, do you know how to do this?

Me: I think so. It’s been a long time but I used to do them.

Sarah: Can you help me?

Me: Sure, I can try.

Angel: (to Sarah) See, I told you Americans know how to do that.

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Lois: Auntie Katie, your skin is getting darker.

Me: Yeah, that’s what happens to mzungu skin when it’s in the sun a lot.

Lois: (thinks for a moment) When you came, you were a mzungu. Now you are half-caste. If you stay until Christmas, you’ll be as dark as me!  

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Over the holidays we did a relay race around the compound. As part of the preparation, I filled balloons with peanuts and hung them with pegs from my clothesline. When I finished, I turned around to find a confused girl behind me.

Dorothy (6): Auntie Katie, why did you wash your balloons?

Dorothy

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While introducing Pin the Tail on the Donkey to the nursery school children:

Teacher Harriet: What animal is this?

Children: A donkey!

Teacher Harriet: Yes, it is a donkey. What is it missing?

At least five children: Mary!

These children know their Bible stories. They are not so good at their animals… not one person noticed the donkey was tailless.