Watoto Came to Eden Today

Watoto Children's Choir, Eden

The Watoto Children's Choir, all the way from Uganda, came to sing at the Eden Marine High School Hall tonight.  I didn't know what to expect, but it sounded interesting so we went.  The evening opened with songs from a local choir and some of the high school kids.  Pastor Ozzie Cruze did the Welcome to Land address, which is his usual role as the representative of the Aboriginal people here (and by default the rest of us, I guess), and then Watoto burst into action Wow!  These are kids, from about ages 8 to 15, and the amount of energy they put into the show was astounding.  The African dancing was great, and the singing was very good too.  The audience had a chance to join in with both, and that was fun.  There were also video clips of the Watoto Childrens' Village, and verbal and video accounts of their lives in Uganda.  The Watoto Childeren are all orphans, having lost their parents to Aids or war.  Watoto is a Christian organization which aims to bring healing to these children, especially to ones traumatized by their experiences as child soldiers, and to bring them up as responsible Christians and future leaders.  If these kids are any example, the future of Uganda is bright indeed!
The songs were all about Jesus. The Watoto group was equally intent on expressing their enthusiasm about Jesus and getting the audience to accept Jesus too.  I can understand that religion has helped them and that the Christian Watoto group has been good to them, but as an escapee from religion, I hadn't bargained on being preached to!  It was funny to realize that after all these decades of the West sending missionaries to Africa, Africa had now turned around and sent these missionaries to us!
After the show there were bags and beads and other unique trinkets to buy, all made by the women of the Watoto Villages, and there was also the opportunity to sponsor a child, baby or woman.  If you want to check out their website go to http://www.watoto.com, it is a worthy cause.
I learned a lot about the situation in Uganda and life there, and I felt greatful in a way that these kids (and their carers) had come all the way to Eden to share their story.
(Apologies for the poor photo, it was the best my mobile phone could do under those conditions.  I wish I had brought my "real" camera, then I could have got some photos of the dancing.  The background was so nice!)