A Senior Citizen Finds a Friend in Whisper

 
Whisper met Emmanuel (80) earlier this week as part of our work concerning our successful Jigger Free Community Programme.

Emmanuel lives alone in a house that his neighbour built for him; he rarely has any visitors, so he was grateful when we asked him if we could come in for a chat. Despite having very little, Emmanuel was extremely welcoming, this is something we see a lot but it never fails to warm our hearts. He showed us his home as he boiled some water for tea, on a stove he had erected himself in the centre of the room.

 

We talked for a while and Emmanuel entertained us with stories from his youth; he had lived in the village all his life, he’d worked as a labourer as a teenager all the way through to his retirement. It transpired that he’d helped build many of the houses that existed here today, which is why, upon hearing that he had nowhere else to go, a neighbour thought it only right that he should return the favour and build a home for Emmanuel.

Emmanuel told us that he’d met his wife Joy, in his early twenties and that they’d married soon after, they were happy together for many years but due to his wife’s recurrent poor health, they had never had any children. She passed away 11 years ago from Septicaemia - a blood poisoning brought on by the complications of a severe Jigger infestation. Emmanuel has now fallen victim to a similar infestation and confided that he fears for his own health as a result. We asked whether he had anyone to look after him to which, Emmanuel replied that he has a sister who visits occasionally to bring him food and a niece and nephew from whom he is estranged. There is a huge social stigma attached to Jigger infestations and unfortunately those affected often become social pariahs of their communities.

Emmanuel’s story is one that resonated with us as it illustrates the true impact of the Jigger epidemic in Uganda and illustrates just how completely it can destroy the lives of thousands. We bathed Emmanuel’s wounds and fumigated his home. We will be back in the following weeks to resume his treatment and hold him to that lovely cup of tea he promised!