On January 18,2017 CRO Mbale staff and children were privileged to be part of the team that was taken through the May Coach program.

The coaching program is designed to help individuals achieve their best in life and be at peace with themselves and with God. It introduced them to the various moments we go through which comprise of the past, future and present and the staff learnt what is comprised in each time. The coaching program was an opener into the lives of most staff and it has impacted their lives and the work with children and the community in different ways. Below is a summary of what the staff said about the May Coach program.

• I had never had time to sit down and analyze my past. But during the training I learnt that there are some bad things that happened to me in the past, and I need to move on because I cannot change the past. It is already gone. These thoughts have helped me to be optimistic about the present and the future. As I work with the children and the community members I am encouraging them not to dwell in the past, but to learn to move forward and expect better things in the future.
• For me focusing on realizing my dream was important. Many times we do dream, but we never realize those dreams. I learnt that it is possible to focus on your dream and also achieve it. Through self- reflection I was able to know what I can and cannot achieve and to know that my dream is an expression of my present moment.
• I loved the deep breathing exercise through which I was able to observe my thoughts. This exercise has helped me in recollecting myself and in decision making. This has also helped me to handle difficult cases of the children.
• I learnt during the coaching exercise that by allowing myself to dream, I do take a major step towards a brighter future. In my work with the children, I now allow them to express their dreams and share what they would like to become in the future. I tell them that in order to achieve their dreams they do not try but do it.
•  Personally what touched me most was that I should focus on the present moment than to worry about the future. Throughout my life I have been worrying about the future and I could find on peace. But now I know that my future depends on my present. It is I to make the future I want.
•  What I learnt most was how to recognize the things that comprise of the small world which include: loneliness, drugs, feeling of no value, feeling victimized, and eating disorders, which can only cause pain, fear and anxiety. My life was full of anger, shame, guilt, fear, bitterness, and sorrow. I need to move out of the comfort zone and get rid of the things that are there in the small world. Step by step I am getting there, finding my value and gifts in life. I want to live in the big world which has endless opportunities for me.

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to May and her colleague Maria for the great effort they put in to provide this timely training to CRO staff. The staff appreciated the training because it opened their eyes to see the things that blind them, that hold them back so that they cannot perform to their fullest. It was a time to reflect on their lives, and draw more energy to improve the work.

We realize that unless we ourselves are healed from our past, we cannot help the children to heal from the hurt and trauma that they are suffering. We are trying to use the lessons learnt to improve ourselves and to help the children as well.