God's Fingerprints

Hello Everyone! One of my favorite subjects to photograph is people, and the kids here love to have their picture taken. Therefore, since I have an abundance of pictures of little faces, I will be doing a series of blog posts containing pictures and stories of God's fingerprints from Obule. Each individual has a unique story. Some will make you laugh, some will encourage you, and some will be heart breaking. 

People here live in clans. This means that all the little boys pictured above are cousins. There is always someone to play with. You will usually see little boys walking around in little groups. 

Meet Emeru Stephen! This young boy is full of personality and energy. He loves to play with Makai. He recently had hernia surgery and pictured below are some drawings he did during recovery in the hospital. The beautiful part of the story is that his dad needed the same surgery, but only had money for one of them. His dad chose to spend the money for Stephen to have the surgery instead of him; what selfless love! 

This is Makai's little buddy and Stephen's little brother, Omonging Melvin. Makai and Melvin were born around the same time. Melvin is very quiet around adults and is intimidated by Makai. Even though he doesn't say much, he loves to play and smiles whenever there is a ball or bike involved. 

Ojokwan Abraham is an energetic, exciting boy. He loves to play with Luka, whether it's soccer, football, or basketball. He likes to challenge our language learning by speaking primarily in Ateso (the language spoken here). 

Esiku Samuel is incredibly fast. He is so little, but runs so fast. He loves to spend time at his grandparents house with his cousins. His dad recently became the youth leader for our church. 

Meet Okello Jared! Jared grew up with his grandma because his mother was unmarried and had several men in her life. Even though some of them claimed to be his father, they remained uninvolved and uninterested in Jared. Jared loves spending time with Luka and my dad because they simply acknowledge and include him; he desires a father-figure. Jared's grandma is very impoverished and struggles to provide for Jared and his step-siblings. Despite the hardships in his life, Jared is one of the most happy little boys in the village. He LOVES to have his picture taken! 

Pictured above, in the red, and below is one of Jared's half brothers. Opio rotates between his mom's house in another village and his grandma's house in our village. Opio doesn't speak much English and is usually quiet. Still, he just wants to feel noticed and loved. 

                A local soccer ball, made of old bags and pieces of mosquito netting.

(Photo credits to a friend.)

The little boy, wearing the red shirt in the picture above, recently moved to our village to live with one of the pastors. His name is Ocan Denis. His parents are inmates and he spent some of his life with a grandma who couldn't walk. He is a bright little boy and speaks good English. He loves to ask a lot of questions. The two girls standing with him are the daughter and the grand-daughter of the family he lives with.