Apr 25
Just remember: everything is a phase. Everything is a phase – the mantra of parenthood. The last phase was pretty good, and decently long too. It was characterized by funny new words and cute phrases – Munchkin’s experimentation with languages – as well as the development of his first significant friendships. This new phase, which is full of threenage angst, can’t end soon enough.
Flanking the busy road to Jinja, Mabira is a swath of dense rainforest that is not to be missed if one is a nature enthusiast. Hundreds of different bird species call this pristine corner of Uganda home, and Mabira is also one of the only places on Earth to see Old World mangabey monkeys.
Munchkin’s two-week-long spring break just ended, which means we’re back to carpooling – and back to listening to Munchkin and his friend jibber-jabber at each other at breakneck pace in the backseat.
Apr 14
Hope and denial – two powerful sides of the same coin. Until the very end, D held onto the slim possibility that he wouldn’t have to make the flight he knew, in the depth of his heart, was inevitable. As the weeks and months dragged on, it was possible to refuse to acknowledge his parents’ increasingly dire reports and to hope against hope that D’s grandma would hang on a few more months, that he would get to see her again this summer, that she’d live long enough to meet her third great-grandchild.
At first they don’t do much and you root for them to learn how to roll over, sit up, and crawl. And as soon as they do, you realize how good you had had it up until that point. Years fly by in a constant battle of wits as you try to stay one step ahead of your child’s curiosity and propensity to injure him- or herself. No matter how much you baby-proof the house, it’s a given that, even at one or two years old, your child will outsmart you and figure out how to inflict some self-damage. Three years into our so-called suicide watch with Munchkin, he’s just upped the ante.
After a miserably wet but ultimately successful outing in Mabamba Swamp, D headed to nearby Mpanga Forest to dry out and stretch his legs.
Apr 3
We planned to wait right up to S’s due date to start explaining to Munchkin that he was about to become a big brother. The little man put those plans to rest with his usual mix of cheerful guilelessness and unanticipated perspicacity, sparking a series of hilarious conversations in the process.
The rainy season has brought a dash of brilliant colors to the countryside, which we’re hastening to enjoy before a somber cloud envelops Rwanda next week.
Mar 30
Disjointed thoughts about life, passion, travel, and the pursuit of happiness crawled lethargically through D’s mind as he stood, shoulders hunched against the tempest, in the crudely constructed canoe. The murky waters of the Mabamba Swamp undulated languidly while the leaden skies above dumped sheets of water and lightning flashed ominously in the distance. Not for the first time since D first packed his backpack at the end of high school and set off to explore a new part of the world did the nagging thought, “What am I doing here and why?” cross his mind.
With S in the United States and a full weekend at his disposal, D decided to make good on what he’s long thought about doing: take Munchkin on his first camping trip.
