Thursday, June 25, 2015
Headed back to America!
Please pray for safe journeys! We are headed home and should touch down in Washington Friday morning around 8:45!!!!
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
Kigali Genocide Memorial
Yesterday brought back a lot of the memories I had specifically of the genocide in Nyamata and in the church there, however the Kigali Memorial reminded me of the way we honor people in the states. This memorial was more of a story and explained a lot more about how the genocide started in Rwanda and how today people transformed their way of thinking. Rwandans are proud and confident in themselves and finding a new pride in this country.
As I sit reflecting in the hotel this morning I hear the sound of birds chirping but they are overloaded by the sound of construction and progress. Our time in Rwanda is coming to a close soon and I realize I am not done here. We are near the end of this trip, but I can't wait to be back and continue to see the change and progress this country holds.
We had dinner with Robin and John this evening and as we walked into the restaurant I feel like I am back in America. The lighting and atmosphere was beautiful! I feel the transition starting. It was so nice to be with them one last time and John had a specific question for me. I am going to help him design his memorial for the genocide along the Kagera River to remember the lives that were taken there and thrown into the river. I am so honored to help and my mind is already flowing with ideas. My time in Rwanda will only continue!
As I sit reflecting in the hotel this morning I hear the sound of birds chirping but they are overloaded by the sound of construction and progress. Our time in Rwanda is coming to a close soon and I realize I am not done here. We are near the end of this trip, but I can't wait to be back and continue to see the change and progress this country holds.
We had dinner with Robin and John this evening and as we walked into the restaurant I feel like I am back in America. The lighting and atmosphere was beautiful! I feel the transition starting. It was so nice to be with them one last time and John had a specific question for me. I am going to help him design his memorial for the genocide along the Kagera River to remember the lives that were taken there and thrown into the river. I am so honored to help and my mind is already flowing with ideas. My time in Rwanda will only continue!
Hebrews 12:1
~ We have all these great people around us as examples. Their lives tell us what faith means. So we, too, should run the race that is before us and never quit! We should remove from our lives anything that would slow us down and the sin that so often makes us fall.
Tuesday, June 23, 2015
How many Lutherans does it take to build a shelf?
Our project today at Rwamagana Lutheran School; Annie, Pastor Joe, Pastor Annabelle, Gary and myself are tasked with building a shelf to store school supplies in the storage container. Jean was tasked with documenting all the school supplies that we brought with us for the school (microscopes and goggles for the science classes), and Lola was in the library organizing the books and repairing damaged ones. After located the wood for shelves we start to look for tools. I soon begin to realize that power tools are a luxury for us!
We started sawing boards to make the shelves and after two hours of sawing boards we finally had one half done before lunch!
We started sawing boards to make the shelves and after two hours of sawing boards we finally had one half done before lunch!
After lunch we continued our task of building the shelving unit, and at some point there was doubt that we would finish in time, but right before the clocked struck 4, we nailed the final piece of wood and the finished product was absolutely amazing!
Completing the shelf was a physical accomplishment to help the school and Robin was simply overjoyed that we completed the task; but the relationships with the kids are what was most important while being at the school for two days. I finally was able to meet Shukulu, who is 19 and the student that we at Muhlenburg sponsor! Such an amazing and bright student! She hopes to apply to go to school in Michigan or Boston in the fall of 2016 and wants to study law.
As we left the school today I think we were all in tears. The smiles and stories of the kids we met in the past two days have changed our lives and I can't wait to see them as they progress in their schooling. Such a joy to meet them all!
Jesus said, "Let the children come to me."
Welcome to Rwamaganda Lutheran School
At last we have made it to the Rwamaganda Lutheran School! After a nice morning stroll to the school, we find ourselves on a tour. I have to say I am quite amazed at the progress. Jean mentioned that the last time she was on campus there was only one building which is still the main classroom building and administration offices.
Today they have a cafeteria, girl's dorm, and a newly completed science building! Also on the campus is a chicken coop with about 20 or so chickens and every day the students collect the eggs and clean the coops. There are also two cows and two calves who roam the school property.
It was interesting to know that most of the kids stay on campus for the year (January through the end of October) and then move to the next grade level. The boys dorm is located about a half a mile from the campus and they walk to school every day. The grades start at Senior 1 (equivalent to 7th grade) and go up to Senior 6 (which are high school seniors). The first graduating class will be in August of this year!
The kids are so polite! I'm amazed at how much the joy in their faces pop when we came to visit them today! Our tour guide Patrick, who is in Senior 4 (sophmore) knew all about "mama jean." It's so wonderful how Jean is known by so many kids here. She told me today that she didn't know Patrick and she wondered how he knew so much about her. I told Jean that it was awesome that even though this is her first trip back to Rwanda in 5 years, she is still inspiring and touching the lives of the students every day!
Today they have a cafeteria, girl's dorm, and a newly completed science building! Also on the campus is a chicken coop with about 20 or so chickens and every day the students collect the eggs and clean the coops. There are also two cows and two calves who roam the school property.
It was interesting to know that most of the kids stay on campus for the year (January through the end of October) and then move to the next grade level. The boys dorm is located about a half a mile from the campus and they walk to school every day. The grades start at Senior 1 (equivalent to 7th grade) and go up to Senior 6 (which are high school seniors). The first graduating class will be in August of this year!
The kids are so polite! I'm amazed at how much the joy in their faces pop when we came to visit them today! Our tour guide Patrick, who is in Senior 4 (sophmore) knew all about "mama jean." It's so wonderful how Jean is known by so many kids here. She told me today that she didn't know Patrick and she wondered how he knew so much about her. I told Jean that it was awesome that even though this is her first trip back to Rwanda in 5 years, she is still inspiring and touching the lives of the students every day!
I had the opportunity to sit in on one of Robin's classes today in the main building teaching about family planning and also in the science building for a biology class. The students are very smart and I find myself suddenly amazed at how much I have forgotten since high school!
Lutheran Worship in Kibungo
Life, energy, dancing, singing, praying and drums! What a beautiful worship service that we attended in the village of Kibungo at the Lutheran Church! The children got up in front of the small congregation and praised the Lord with their amazing music and dancing! It was so hard to sit still and even though the whole service was spoken in Rwandan, we still found a great connection with all the words being spoken.
I think we were all moved at how people here are so passionate about worship. It was such a wonderful blessing.
We felt that way after the service; but on the way from the convent en route to the church God had a different plan for us. I don't know if the green machine had had enough of the group of us singing the songs from The Sound of Music or not but we were in store for a fun experience! About a mile out from the church the green machine got a flat tire and we were the talk of the village. Everyone in the area that could see what had happened decided to walk over and see if we needed help! The hospitality in this country is simply amazing. Everyone helps each other out and there is no hesitation of it!
After church we were invited into the home of one of the church members for a traditional Rwandan meal. What a blessing to be welcomed by everyone and we sat together and shared stories about life and faith.
After dinner we had an amazing treat to see a traditional Rwandan Dance group! We ended up going to the Rwamaganda Lutheran School and what an talented group of people! Kids, adults and teens coming together to share a bit of their culture with us!
Psalm 105
Sing to him, sing praises to him, Tell him about the amazing things he has done.
Psalm 149
Let them praise him by dancing and playing their tambourines and harps.
Safari!
I have much to update you all on! Saturday we took off from Kigali early in the "green machine," which is Pastor John and Robin's green toyota land cruiser to Akagera National Park in the eastern part of Rwanda. Me, being the park ranger in the group; I was stoked to see how parks are run here in Rwanda! We started off our adventure at the visitor center and grabbed a tour guide to come along with us on our tour. Immediately we were all introduced to a quite aggressive, biting, annoying fly which by the end I think we killed over 100 Tsetse flies! The whole safari it felt like we were being attacked by these little buggers and every time Robin stopped the car to look at a bird we were all in the back fighting for our skin not to be bitten to death!
I must say this was awesome! I've been on the typical Safari ride at Animal Kingdom in Disneyworld and hands down this was the real deal! We saw all kinds of amazing birds, zebras, Impalas, a giraffe, and after praying for several days for seeing an elephant we finally spotted one near the last leg of the trip!!!
It's amazing to see the diverse wildlife that Rwanda has to offer and of course I had to get a ranger's perspective on a different countries National Park! I must say I'm very impressed although you would never see me in a campground here! Instead of worrying about bears in the states I think there's an even bigger worry about pesky baboons coming out to steal your food!
After a long day on safari we spent the night in a beautiful convent in Kibungo. I instantly thought of the Sound of Music and Pastor Annabelle and I started singing the songs from the movie! A quiet place for the evening it was nice to settle into our accommodations and get a much deserved sleep for the night!
Genesis 1:20
~ And God said, Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.
Genesis 1:21
~ And God created the great sea-monsters, and every living creature that moveth, wherewith the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind; and God saw that it was good.
Friday, June 19, 2015
Poverty
What is poverty?
From wikipedia ~ is general scarcity or dearth, or the state of one who lacks a certain amount of material possessions or money.
This was the topic of our day. Poverty in american terms means material possessions, lack of money, and lack of food or water.
When taken into the context of someone suffering from poverty it means that they are embarrassed to be in society, are not of social and economic status; and they feel ashamed in the community.
Today we went to the community of Nyange where Pastor John has been working on helping the people to communicate better to figure out their needs. The biggest need this small village has is the need to build new roofs on approximately 30 homes. Together they have learned how to make clay tiles that will go on the rooftops of the homes. It takes approximately 2,500 tiles to build the roofs. To make the tiles, clay will go onto a board and then flattened out. Once flattened it will go on the mold of the banana leaf to be made into a tile. Once formed it will sit in the sun approximately 3 to 4 days to dry. The next process is for it to be fired in the oven.
The community has completed 1 roof so far, and are continuing to move on with the next until all 30 have been completed! They are excited and confident!
What a wonderful sight to be shown the finished product and the process of how to make the tiles!
From wikipedia ~ is general scarcity or dearth, or the state of one who lacks a certain amount of material possessions or money.
This was the topic of our day. Poverty in american terms means material possessions, lack of money, and lack of food or water.
When taken into the context of someone suffering from poverty it means that they are embarrassed to be in society, are not of social and economic status; and they feel ashamed in the community.
Today we went to the community of Nyange where Pastor John has been working on helping the people to communicate better to figure out their needs. The biggest need this small village has is the need to build new roofs on approximately 30 homes. Together they have learned how to make clay tiles that will go on the rooftops of the homes. It takes approximately 2,500 tiles to build the roofs. To make the tiles, clay will go onto a board and then flattened out. Once flattened it will go on the mold of the banana leaf to be made into a tile. Once formed it will sit in the sun approximately 3 to 4 days to dry. The next process is for it to be fired in the oven.
The community has completed 1 roof so far, and are continuing to move on with the next until all 30 have been completed! They are excited and confident!
What a wonderful sight to be shown the finished product and the process of how to make the tiles!
A day in the life.....
Good Evening from a very tired girl! In the past two days I feel like I have been transformed from sadness and disgust to very amazed and surprised at how a country 21 years ago was filled with no hope and devastation to today becoming a community that is developing and progressing everyday! They are proud and confident in everything they do. Also they have pride in their country again, and everyone has smiles on their faces. Rwanda is a beautiful country filled with amazing people who inspire so many!
Yesterday we went to an organization called Aziz Life and met women of the "Twivane mubkene" (struggling from poverty) co op who welcomed us into their homes with open arms! They greeted us with song and dancing when we arrived at their homes. Together we began our day preparing our lunch which consisted of peeling and boiling sweet potatoes, cooking beans over their stone stove, and shelling more beans.
After preparing for the meal, Pastor Joe, Pastor Annabel and I were taken to the garden to harvest sweet potatoes! I think we may have actually harvested 4 whole potatoes. The rest we cut in half in the ground but the women still are able to cook them within the next few days. The sweet potato crop is amazing; it will reproduce again by just planting the leaves back into the ground. I find it funny that one of the women noticed I was "single" and said to me that I was a hard worker. Although I would love to come back to Rwanda, I'm not ready to be married off just yet to a son of hers!
Harvesting and replanting potatoes is not an easy task but the neat part of the co op is that these women work together to produce an amazing meal for their families every single day. After working in the garden it was time to take the hike to get water. I would consider myself to be in decent shape; however I am beyond impressed by the women of the co op who hike down a mountain to get water and without dropping it, hike back up with a full jug on their heads! I was able to keep a small jug on my head down to the water and was pretty impressed with myself until I found out I was carrying a jug that kids start to carry around age 5!
We continued our day cutting grasses to feed cows, and then we sat down for probably one of the best meals that I have ever had. The community around us eating together and sharing stories was amazing! Fresh avocados, beans, and boiled sweet potatoes was very healthy and very delicious!
The last part of our day was spent weaving with the women. I was paired up with a woman named Eugenie, who helped me weave a set of earrings and also a bracelet out of banana leaves. It was an amazing day and I am so thankful to have gone through a day in the life of a Rwandan woman. It opened my eyes to the things that we take for granted everyday. I have the luxury of running water and driving to the grocery store to get food any time I want. I can also go out and grab a meal quickly if I don't feel like cooking.
Proverbs 18:23
~the poor useth entreaties; but the rich answereth roughly
Matthew 25
Psalm 113:7
~He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth the needy out of the dunghill
Yesterday we went to an organization called Aziz Life and met women of the "Twivane mubkene" (struggling from poverty) co op who welcomed us into their homes with open arms! They greeted us with song and dancing when we arrived at their homes. Together we began our day preparing our lunch which consisted of peeling and boiling sweet potatoes, cooking beans over their stone stove, and shelling more beans.
After preparing for the meal, Pastor Joe, Pastor Annabel and I were taken to the garden to harvest sweet potatoes! I think we may have actually harvested 4 whole potatoes. The rest we cut in half in the ground but the women still are able to cook them within the next few days. The sweet potato crop is amazing; it will reproduce again by just planting the leaves back into the ground. I find it funny that one of the women noticed I was "single" and said to me that I was a hard worker. Although I would love to come back to Rwanda, I'm not ready to be married off just yet to a son of hers!
Harvesting and replanting potatoes is not an easy task but the neat part of the co op is that these women work together to produce an amazing meal for their families every single day. After working in the garden it was time to take the hike to get water. I would consider myself to be in decent shape; however I am beyond impressed by the women of the co op who hike down a mountain to get water and without dropping it, hike back up with a full jug on their heads! I was able to keep a small jug on my head down to the water and was pretty impressed with myself until I found out I was carrying a jug that kids start to carry around age 5!
We continued our day cutting grasses to feed cows, and then we sat down for probably one of the best meals that I have ever had. The community around us eating together and sharing stories was amazing! Fresh avocados, beans, and boiled sweet potatoes was very healthy and very delicious!
The last part of our day was spent weaving with the women. I was paired up with a woman named Eugenie, who helped me weave a set of earrings and also a bracelet out of banana leaves. It was an amazing day and I am so thankful to have gone through a day in the life of a Rwandan woman. It opened my eyes to the things that we take for granted everyday. I have the luxury of running water and driving to the grocery store to get food any time I want. I can also go out and grab a meal quickly if I don't feel like cooking.
Proverbs 18:23
~the poor useth entreaties; but the rich answereth roughly
Matthew 25
Psalm 113:7
~He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth the needy out of the dunghill
Wednesday, June 17, 2015
from sadness to relaxation
Good Evening,
It's been a long day of emotions! The morning was a very moving experience and this afternoon we found a really nice bookstore with a coffee shop to relax in.
This evening we were able to meet up with Robin Strickler and Pastor John for dinner at a Rwandan Mexican Restaurant. The food was very yummy and reminded me a lot of Qudoba or Chipotle.
Off to bed we go to get up around 5:30 to immerse ourselves in "a day in the life." We will be shadowing a Rwandan Villager for the day and we will be working with them. Stay tuned for a post Friday evening as we will be out of wifi and communication for a few days!
Proverbs 24; verse 27
~Prepare thy work without, and make it fit for thyself in the field; and afterwards build thine house.
God Bless you all!
Kelly :)
It's been a long day of emotions! The morning was a very moving experience and this afternoon we found a really nice bookstore with a coffee shop to relax in.
This evening we were able to meet up with Robin Strickler and Pastor John for dinner at a Rwandan Mexican Restaurant. The food was very yummy and reminded me a lot of Qudoba or Chipotle.
Off to bed we go to get up around 5:30 to immerse ourselves in "a day in the life." We will be shadowing a Rwandan Villager for the day and we will be working with them. Stay tuned for a post Friday evening as we will be out of wifi and communication for a few days!
Proverbs 24; verse 27
~Prepare thy work without, and make it fit for thyself in the field; and afterwards build thine house.
God Bless you all!
Kelly :)
I'm different, you're different, everyone's different
Today I am in awe. There are so many emotions running through my head right now as I sit here and reflect what I have seen today. You hear about WWII and the holocaust and think; I can't even imagine what it would have been like to be taken away from my family and put in a camp to die or be tortured. I learned about it in school and I have yet to go to the museum in D.C. which is only a few hours drive.
Sad, depressing, horrible, torturous, homicide, murder ...... genocide.
What does the word genocide mean? As defined by wikipedia Genocide is defined as: systematic elimination of all or a significant part of a racial, ethnic, religious, or national group.
In April 1994 this became real in Rwanda. The government decided who was acceptable in the country and based on your status, hutu or tutsi would decide if you would live or be massively slaughtered. If you were a Hutu, most likely you were part of the killing spree and if you were Tutsi...you were killed. I will not go into much detail on this on how people were killed or tortured, but please take it upon yourself to read up on it.
Today we visited a church in Nyamata which is now a memorial that stands as a reminder of the genocide and a place where people can come to lay flowers for loved ones killed. I think of my church (Muhlenburg Lutheran) as a safe haven. A place where community is built, worship is present, and I feel very comfortable. The people that came to the church here I could only imagine thought the same; when the Hutus took over the church as a place to kill I can only imagine the fear and devastation. People were killed here in mass amounts, somewhere around 10,000 just in this area to be exact. The emptiness, sadness and overwhelming devastation that I felt as I looked inside the church at piles of clothing laid out on the pews around the sanctuary is nothing like I have ever felt before. Blood splatters of where children were hit against walls, a child's shirt laid across a pew, bullet holes all over the walls, and a pair of leg braces. The virgin Mary on the wall still white and pristine with only a dot of blood on her. Down below the sanctuary floor are a display of skulls found at the site with marks of machetes, clubs and bullets that killed innocent Tutsis; and a woman in a coffin with a stick speared through her.
In the back of the church on the grounds is a memorial covered with flowers to remember the dead; and beneath the floor are shelves of bones, skulls and even some coffins filled with bodies. I could only walk down to the floor level and immediately took one look in each direction. I couldn't handle it.
This is genocide, it was real here in this country in April 1994 to July 1994.
The Lord works in mysterious ways; as I find myself completing the tour of the memorial I look towards a school yard next door and see smiling faces of children waving at me and excited to see me! Immediately I smile and wave back at them. They call us "umuzungu" which literally means rich white person. It was such a blessing to see a ray of light from God in a morning of complete disgust. This country is so impressive. In the past 21 years since the genocide they are moving forward everyday. People are no longer divided by their status; instead of Hutus and Tutsis, they are now all Rwandans. They hold their heads proudly high and are gaining confidence back in their country. There is much development across the city and the surrounding villages.
Romans 8:28
~ And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Psalm 88
~ This is too long to post, but a very interesting Psalm for the day
Ezekial 37: 1-14 Valley of the bones.
Sad, depressing, horrible, torturous, homicide, murder ...... genocide.
What does the word genocide mean? As defined by wikipedia Genocide is defined as: systematic elimination of all or a significant part of a racial, ethnic, religious, or national group.
In April 1994 this became real in Rwanda. The government decided who was acceptable in the country and based on your status, hutu or tutsi would decide if you would live or be massively slaughtered. If you were a Hutu, most likely you were part of the killing spree and if you were Tutsi...you were killed. I will not go into much detail on this on how people were killed or tortured, but please take it upon yourself to read up on it.
Today we visited a church in Nyamata which is now a memorial that stands as a reminder of the genocide and a place where people can come to lay flowers for loved ones killed. I think of my church (Muhlenburg Lutheran) as a safe haven. A place where community is built, worship is present, and I feel very comfortable. The people that came to the church here I could only imagine thought the same; when the Hutus took over the church as a place to kill I can only imagine the fear and devastation. People were killed here in mass amounts, somewhere around 10,000 just in this area to be exact. The emptiness, sadness and overwhelming devastation that I felt as I looked inside the church at piles of clothing laid out on the pews around the sanctuary is nothing like I have ever felt before. Blood splatters of where children were hit against walls, a child's shirt laid across a pew, bullet holes all over the walls, and a pair of leg braces. The virgin Mary on the wall still white and pristine with only a dot of blood on her. Down below the sanctuary floor are a display of skulls found at the site with marks of machetes, clubs and bullets that killed innocent Tutsis; and a woman in a coffin with a stick speared through her.
In the back of the church on the grounds is a memorial covered with flowers to remember the dead; and beneath the floor are shelves of bones, skulls and even some coffins filled with bodies. I could only walk down to the floor level and immediately took one look in each direction. I couldn't handle it.
This is genocide, it was real here in this country in April 1994 to July 1994.
The Lord works in mysterious ways; as I find myself completing the tour of the memorial I look towards a school yard next door and see smiling faces of children waving at me and excited to see me! Immediately I smile and wave back at them. They call us "umuzungu" which literally means rich white person. It was such a blessing to see a ray of light from God in a morning of complete disgust. This country is so impressive. In the past 21 years since the genocide they are moving forward everyday. People are no longer divided by their status; instead of Hutus and Tutsis, they are now all Rwandans. They hold their heads proudly high and are gaining confidence back in their country. There is much development across the city and the surrounding villages.
Romans 8:28
~ And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Psalm 88
~ This is too long to post, but a very interesting Psalm for the day
Ezekial 37: 1-14 Valley of the bones.
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