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Beneath the Surface

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Title: Beneath the Surface Medium: Microscope photograph of human thumb. This image is a magnification of the micro landscape of my thumbprint, revealing a world beyond what the naked eye can perceive. What I thought I knew so intimately“my own skin”becomes foreign, strange, even unsettling when viewed up close. The openings, ridges, and textures visible under magnification tell stories I’ve never fully seen, challenging my understanding of myself. How well do we truly know ourselves? We walk through life with the assumption of self-awareness, yet our perception is shaped by the tools through which we view. Mirrors, those everyday instruments of recognition, show us only a filtered version of who we are ,an image distorted by angles, light, and familiarity. But what happens when we look closer, beyond what is comfortable? The comfortable is the version of ourselves we think we are ,the identity we’ve grown used to, shaped by societal expectations, routines, and our own assumptions. The...
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"Banandaba batya”

For the longest time, I’ve been trying to understand mental health and well-being in a way that feels meaningful and relatable. Recently, I started thinking about how to approach these ideas in a more grounded, everyday way, free from complex terms and theories. So, today, let’s talk about some of the simplest, most obvious things in life. Just recently, I took a boda-boda (a common two-wheeled taxi here in Uganda). As soon as I sat down, the rider looked at me and, out of nowhere, shared something deeply personal: "Omukazi yazadde, silina yade ekikumi, namusindise wa maamawe". Roughly translated, it means, “My wife gave birth, and I don’t have a penny to support her, so I sent her to her mother.” I could feel his relief just from saying it out loud. It wasn’t about whether I could help him financially— I think, just sharing his struggle lifted a small weight off his shoulders. It struck me how easily he could open up, without worrying about “how others might see him” (“banan...
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Traversing Through Acholi Quarter

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Today, I wandered through the winding paths of Banda Zone One, an area on the outskirts of Kampala known as the Acholi Quarter. Named after its Acholi community, it carries the layered history of people displaced by the war in Northern Uganda from 1986 to 2006, who found refuge here, thanks to the Kabaka. Now, decades later, the area has become a bustling community, every narrow path brimming with life and stories. Walking through, I saw how every inch of land was ingeniously used. Homes overlap and interweave, forming a labyrinth of narrow walkways. Each turn holds an unexpected scene, from vegetable gardens flourishing in small plots to open-air kitchens, and even distilleries where locals gather for a drink. Everyday life is open and communal—even washrooms, often only chest-high, are casually set among shared spaces. It’s a place of resourcefulness, where life thrives against all odds. Along my walk, a small metallic structure with an improvised sound system caught my eye. Drawn by...
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