Through New Eyes

During the four weeks Henry has been in the United States, I have learned to see daily life through new eyes.  It is so easy to take for granted many aspects of life in the developed world.  Henry was amazed by how good the roads were once he landed on January 26^th – “they are all tarmac and almost no potholes.”  Equally confounding to him was the fact that drivers operated their cars in an “orderly fashion,” obeying traffic signals and staying in their lanes.  Having driven in Uganda during the six months I lived there in 2012, I knew what he meant about how different driving in both locations could be.

“Magic” is what he declared my garage door opener, and “Is the power always on?” is the question that soon followed.  Henry’s family first acquired electricity (one socket) in 2014, and continual flow of electricity is unusual.  One of the surprises he had was that there weren’t flying cars crowding the sky, as is supposed by many Ugandans living in the rural areas.

After Henry was released from prison in May of 2010, he enrolled in Bob Goff’s Restore Leadership Academy in Gulu, Uganda.  During his two years there, he got to know Bob fairly well due to Bob’s periodic visits.  Accordingly, our first outing on Henry’s second day was a trip to San Diego to see Bob.  As you can see from the photo, there is never a dull moment with Bob.

Of course Bob Goff has a ball pit in his office

Also in San Diego, Henry got to experience the ocean for the first time, though it took some convincing that he wouldn’t be swept out to sea when the waves retreated.

Soon thereafter, we visited the happiest place on earth, which is still Henry’s favorite place he has visited thus far.

Hey Disney, we have a story for you

Over the course of his first full week in Southern California, we did a live radio show, a screening of the REMAND documentary that features his story, and he attended school with Jessica at Pepperdine and with Joshua at Oaks Christian High School.  At each school, he was asked to address the classes about his medical school studies in Uganda and how stark the difference was in educational resources.  His favorite part of the school visits were the chances to use the microscopes, which are shared by ten students in Uganda.

Henry and I also had a chance to accompany Jessica to the juvenile prison where she volunteers as a tutor.  We told them our story about meeting each other when Henry was in prison in Uganda.  They initially refused to believe the conditions of Henry’s confinement as he shared with them the fact that he had no electricity, no running water, no flush toilets, and no bed.  Henry told them that if there were beds, electricity, running water, flush toilets, books, computers, teachers, and adults who cared about them, Ugandan kids would be committing crimes in order to be admitted to such prisons.

At Camp David Gonzales Juvenile Detention Center

Our first adventure outside California was to Memphis, Tennessee, where we had the opportunity to speak to students at Harding Academy – arranged by JP and Jennifer Webber, who are good friends from our Abilene Christian days.

Harding Academy Chapel in Memphis

We also got a lengthy tour of the surgery center at the Toyos Eye Clinic, which is owned and operated by Rolando Toyos, a high school friend from my Santa Rosa days.  Unsurprisingly, Henry had never seen the kind of high-end equipment used for corrective eye surgery in the United States – Uganda has yet to take this technological leap.  Henry was quite intrigued by this area of medicine, but still remains committed to cardiology for now.

Toyos Eye Clinic in Memphis

On the way from Memphis to Nashville, we pulled over in the snow for Henry’s first experience with frozen water falling from the sky.  Shortly after Henry had landed in LA, I asked him when he had been the coldest in his life.  “I have never been cold” was his answer because Uganda rests on the equator and never gets below about 70 degrees.  To prepare him for our travels, I walked him into the refrigerated area at Costco and told him where we were going was colder than this.  “Ahhh.  I will freeze to death,” he exclaimed.  Soon thereafter, we bought him the gloves and down jacket he wore during his first encounter with snow.

The next morning, while staying with our dear friends the Williamsons in Nashville, Henry had his first sled ride down a snow-covered hill.  Ten minutes later, he solemnly declared, “We must go inside now, as my hands are no longer functional.”  Henry was thrilled to meet the publishing team at Worthy for Divine Collision.

With Senior Members of Worthy Publishing Team

We also had the privilege in Nashville of sharing our story with elementary, middle school, and high school students at Lipscomb Academy, and with university students at Lipscomb University and Belmont University.

Lipscomb Academy (elementary)

Lipscomb Academy Jr. High/High School

We also screened REMAND and met with multiple print media folks who are writing articles and book reviews about Divine Collision.

After a one-night return trip to Los Angeles in order to attend Pepperdine’s annual law school dinner, we got back on the road, this time with my wife Joline joining us.  Our first stop was in Norfolk, Virginia, where we were privileged to film two television shows for the Christian Broadcasting network, both of which were aired that day.  The links are here:

http://700clubinteractive.cbn.com/lawyer-defends-man-wrongfully-accused-murder-twice

http://www1.cbn.com/video/winning-a-fight-for-freedom-and-reform-in-uganda?show=700club

We then drove up to Washington, DC for a few days where we taped a BBC radio show that will air shortly around the world, screened REMAND at two different locations, and met with other members of the press.  We enjoyed the chance to catch up numerous dear friends who live in DC.  We also had a great behind-the-scenes tour of the US Supreme Court, and got to show Henry numerous important monuments.

Post-Screening Q & A in DC

We knocked, but no one was home

At Supreme Court, with flags at half mast

Along the way, I recorded another radio interview with Faith Radio Network, linked here.

We concluded our East Coast tour with a one-hour live interview in the Empire State Building on the Eric Metaxas Show (Salem Radio in 200 markets) (podcast here), and a video interview with Guideposts Magazine, which will be publishing an article in May about our story.

With Eric Metaxas

At Guideposts HQ

A highlight of this visit was showing Henry the Statue of Liberty, which took on added significance as we stood together gazing upon this symbol of something Henry lacked for nearly two years.

The Statue of Liberty took on new meaning as we gazed at it

As I write this, we are on our way to Texas, where we will be appearing on a live radio show to 340 markets, speaking at three Baylor chapel sessions to a combined audience of more than 3,000 and showing REMAND in Waco, Dallas, and Houston.

So far, we are pleased and honored by the warm reception Divine Collision has received by both media and general audiences.  If you have read the book, we would be grateful for reviews on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and elsewhere.