Its Like Hollywood, Except this is My Life

I was flipping through my African Adventure Journal the other day (I don't really call it that... that's just for dramatic flair) and came across this little story that I have to share.  I wish I had a video camera rolling that day, because I don't know if I can quite convey the epic feeling of this experience.  But I'll try.

Let's use some photos as a guide for your imagination:

Imagine you're just riding along in a matatu like this:

 

On a day that looks like this:

And you've been driving on roads like this:

And you're just chugging along like this:

But you've been on the bus awhile, so you kinda feel like this:

 But then you pass some school kids on the side of the road like this:

And as they're on their way to school, they start running after your van.

This was a pretty normal occurrence when we went on excursions, driving through the bush in the middle of the day.  Kids would yell "mzungu" and wave, and we would get them riled up and wave and hang out the windows.  But this time was unlike anything else.

We were on our way to Kitgum and we were passing school after school.  Most of the time, probably because it was midday and the schools were taking afternoon breaks from classes, there were kids on the roads and in the big fields outside their classroom buildings.  They would see the mzungus driving by, and the younger ones would begin to race after our matatus.

It was no secret that I liked to put on my iPod during these long drives, queue my Africa playlist, and pretend like I was starring in a made-for-TV, coming-of-age movie (and I wasn't the only one, by the way... I'm not a total weirdo), but this takes the cake.  I was sitting in the back of the van, waving to the kids and watching them run by, and I noticed one boy in particular.  He saw us pass and fell into a drop-dead sprint.  He broke away from the rest of his friends and ran with all the speed he could muster with one hand waving free, beckoning to us.  We rounded an easy curve in the road and I lost sight of all the other kids, all except this one.  The stark contrast of his bright white uniform against the red earth and green bush made for a beautiful sight, and then we steadily gained distance and he eventually fell away and out of sight.

It was the perfect movie moment.
The perfect metaphor for the west always racing ahead of the developing world.
The perfect image for expressing simple beauties I've seen that are hard to describe in words.





 "It is not down in any map; true places never are." - Herman Melville