The stereotype of Africa being a large single country and not a continent of different socio-economic conditions, education, and lifestyle is not a new one. The viewpoint of poverty, hardship, struggle, corruption, and basic living conditions is still strong.  Anyone who has never been there could easily picture a savannah with an elephant, a child with a bulging belly who is hungry, or a political conflict with riots in the street and injured people.  Yes, Africa has many hard things, but this project looks beyond it to show the spirit, joy, and playfulnes of a place and its people.  It focuses on Uganda and Liberia, both post-conflict zones and countries recovering from wars of various magnitudes.  They say to have joy and true happiness, one has to know difficult things.  One has to be able to appreciate to really feel gratitude.  The Africans I know are ones of immense humor, joking, sharing, curiosity, laughter, and fun.  This project aims to explore the elements that helps our spirits prosper to recover from difficulties and to stay positive for the future.