Tropical rainstorm, the smell of wet, red earth, power cut. These are three things that stand out to me from my childhood. Tropical rainstorms here in Uganda don't last long, but they're violent. When I was very small, I'd hid in my parents' bed, because that felt like the safest place in the house. Now, I love falling asleep to the sound of rain on a tile roof. I love the smell of rain soak ground. Its so distinct. Many countries in Africa have the red earth, from the rust in the ground, but there are legends that say that the colour comes from all the blood that's been shed over the land. Uganda's seen its fair share of bloodshed over the last fifty odd years. Despite now having three hydroelectric dams running we still get our fair share of power cuts. Back in my childhood, we only had one dam, Owen Falls, which was opened by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II (back in the 1950s, I think). During the course of my life, the second and, just recently, a third have been opened.
It hit me this morning, that you can take me out of Africa, but you can't take Africa out of me, you can't take Uganda out of my heart. Its buried under my skin now. I was born a Ugandan, and even though I don't carry Ugandan citizenship, I'm a white Ugandan and I'm proud of that. As I write this, as I sit in another international airport, I realised again, just how much I love Uganda. Yes, London is my home now, but a part of my heart will stay in Uganda, always.
