Monday, February 16, 2009

Red Hot Pepper Jump roping

Cynthia!
















Uwezo!
















more pictures if I can figure out how to load them







































Warmly welcomed at an Anglican student center







Writing to her sponsor - have you written to your sponsored child lately?




Mosquito net - provided by Compassion's Complementary Intervention Program








Playing with preschoolers on playground








Monday Feb 16 - Remembrance

On our last day in Rwanda (Sat. 14, Valentine's Day), we went to another student center, and at this one we did a craft project. We did the craft in 3 shifts with 3 different age groups. It was a lot of fun. The kids caught on to the craft really quickly. They all wanted to practice English. Funny but the kids can't distinguish the question "how are you" from "how old are you" and if you ask the latter they will say "I am fine, how are you?" So you have to ask them, how many years do you have.

We had a wonderful farewell lunch at the Novotel (a Valentine's banquet), and Eugene came at the end to say good-bye. His wife was still in the hospital and she was improving, but not all the way better. He had been home taking care of their baby since Wednesday. He was a bit frazzled but seemed relieved that she was improving. John did an admirable job taking over with our tour even though he had expected to be only assisting all week. We made sure we thanked them, and our bus driver, Mupenze. We got to relax at the hotel until time to go to the airport. We had a chance to share some experiences and talk through some guided questions. The topic of the genocide came up again, and it struck me how the roots of the Rwandan genocide started with the pre-WWI German influence; how our country was built on Christian principles... and the genocide of the native Americans; and how easily humans perpetrate evil on each other and justify it to themselves.

I don't want to ever forget the things I learned in Rwanda. I learned how love can cross all rational racial, ethnic, and political boundaries; I learned how I can be content with very few possessions; I learned the spiritual need to combat materialism wherever I find it in my life; and how from a pragmatic standpoint combating materialism can let me provide for someone who has so much less than myself. I cannot change all the poverty of Africa or Rwanda, but I have certainly made a difference in the life of one -and now two - children and their families. God has richly blessed me. I am a rich world citizen. From whom much has been given, much will be required. I am ready, now more than ever, to give.

If you would like to sponsor a child, please click on http://www.compassion.com/sponsor_a_child/default.htm?referer=43458. You CAN make a difference in the life of a child.

Friday, February 13, 2009

Day 6 - Friday - Echoes of the Genocide

I did not sleep well last night. I just kept reliving the day yesterday with Uwezo. I don’t feel sad, just empty, like when one of my children is away from home. It really does feel like he is a part of my family now more than ever. Now, when I think of him, I can imagine his voice, see his shy smile, and remember this amazing time we had together. Finally I got up and went out on the balcony to pray a bit and found myself crying again. Amazing how someone gets into your heart in such a short amount of time.
We started our day today being true American materialists, by shopping at an artesan market and a mall supermarket where many people got coffee. I spent all my money at the artesan shops and got lots of cool stuff to show to you all!
This afternoon we went to the genocide memorial here in Kigali. It is not like the ones Jay saw 8 years ago. This is a burial ground outdoors with some amazing intentional gardens to focus contemplation on genocide and restoration. There were Rwandans and westerners and some Asians too at the memorial. The inside portion was an amazing chronicle of genocides that have occurred in the last 150 years or so – I had no idea there were so many. Of course we all think of the WW2 Holocaust, but did you know about the Armenians in WW1, and did you remember about the Bosnians and the Cambodians, and there was even another African race that I had forgotten about that was virtually wiped out. They did not mention native Americans but they fit the category. This portion of the memorial also explored the causes of genocide and the possibility of prevention. It stated that all genocides were premeditated and well orchestrated. This level included a children’s memorial, with larger-than-life photos of children ranging in age from 9 months to 12 years, who were targeted in the genocide and killed by torture, clubbing, machete, gunfire, or beaten against a wall. The captions told about what the children’s personalities were like, what they liked to do, favorite foods, and then ended with how they were killed.
The lower level of the memorial was dedicated entirely to Rwanda, and it was extremely candid and explicit about the severity of the genocide. It depicted the roots of the Rwandan genocide dating back to 1962. But really the 1994 genocide began in 1990 with smaller “test massacres” that let the interhamwe practice their organization and preparation for a mass genocide. If the international community had been paying attention, or if they had even acted when it began, it could have been stopped.
I walked through the mass graves – there are a bunch of them, and one that looks to still be opened. The recorded tour said that bodies and mass graves are still being found and the bodies brought here for burial. The gardens feature elephant sculptures – you’ve heard the phrase, “an elephant never forgets”? The elephant is a symbol of never forgetting what happened so that it will never be repeated. The gardens were sculpted with a lot of thought and artistry, and they are beautiful and peaceful. I thought the memorial was a perfect tribute, mixing brutal honesty and hope through beauty. I did cry when going through it.
We had dinner tonight with the leadership development students – LDP. Compassion Rwanda just started LDP with their first class this past January. They have 35 students, and 4 of them joined us for dinner – Egibe, Peter, Esther, and Emmanuel. I mention them because they were striking in how they have overcome poverty and a language barrier – university is now taught in English – to enter college. Egibe is a genocide survivor – both parents were killed in the genocide. He did not go into details – you could tell by the look on his face that he remembered – but he survived by being placed with an aunt who took him in and raised him. I have no idea how she hid him. Esther’s family took in an orphan of the genocide. And we found out that John, who has been with us all week, as our tour specialist, was affected by the genocide. He was exiled in Uganda at the time of the genocide, because his father had fled in the 60’s. But his entire extended family who were in Rwanda at the time of the genocide were killed. So it’s amazing the widespread impact on people. And I just kept wondering, where was the US? Why didn’t we do anything? We sponsored Uwezo in response to the genocide. Not a global solution. But it was a start. And after meeting him, I realize it was a very good investment.
This is my last blog while in Rwanda – we have one more visit to a student center tomorrow morning, because Saturday is usually the day when the programs are in operation, so it will actually be the best day to see it. Then we come back, relax at the hotel, and head to the airport at 6pm for our 9pm flight. It will be a long trip home, but I will post pictures and finish blogging on Monday when I get home.
This has been an amazing journey with lots of unexpected blessings and lessons. God is good. See you all soon.

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Day 5, Thursday - Indescribable

How can I begin to describe this day to you. I have waited for this day for 12 years. Tears. Lots of tears. Happy and sad.

The bus arrived to pick us up to go to the park, and we didn’t know it but there were already children on the bus. I looked into the bus and in the back row were four young people who looked like they might be our translators. One of them burst into a grin and started waving madly. Yup, it was Uwezo Jean Paul. I was about the third one on the bus and had to squeeze my way to the back, and grabbed that young man – he clung to me just like I clung to him. The first words I could get out were, “I love you,” and he responded right back, “I love you, too!” Guess what – he can speak a lot of English. Of course we needed a translator for any big concepts, but his English was pretty good in words and phrases.
We got to the park and he wanted to sit by the pool – he has never been swimming in a pool. He was all dressed up in a suit coat and white shirt, pants, and these amazing retro shoes – I hope I got a picture of them and will post them later. We sat under an umbrella and talked and talked. He also had Devotee, the student center health worker, with him. She was pretty quiet but would answer questions and was very helpful. Uwezo, however, once we got started, was quite talkative and told me much about his life and asked me lots of questions, too. He has actually stopped studying mechanics (a trade school program) to return to secondary school. He is in the equivalent of 8th grade. After 9th they have to take the national exam and then if they pass into high school he chooses a course of study. He wants to study linguistics and learn English. He already has a good start! So I pulled out my English-Kinyarwanda “dictionary” I got off the internet, and the French-English dictionaries and Bibles. We looked through the Bible together and he read me Psalm 123, and I read him Psalm 27, explaining that it was Amalia’s favorite Psalm. He was so pleased. He loves Bible class and reading the Bible. I learned he is actually younger than I thought – he says he is 18, and I have to believe him because he would know!
Uwezo has a very gentle, deep baritone voice and he is very sweet. I loved listening to him talk, and looking at his rich dark skin tone. He thought my white skin was pretty interesting and he (and others) were most fascinated with my hair! By the end of the day we were petting each other’s heads. Funny. The translator, Gloria, had to pet my head too. That’s what got the whole thing started – her fellow university student translators asked her if she had touched my hair because they all liked it. Uwezo asked all about Amalia and Dylan and Jay, and I showed him all the pictures I took from all over Columbus and explained what we do in our daily lives. He was genuinely fascinated. He told me all about his family. Neither of his parents are working right now. I can’t imagine the hardship. He is 5th of 7 children, and 2 of his older sisters are married and he has 3 nieces and nephews. There are still 5 children at home. I didn’t ask a lot about their situation economically – I wanted to encourage him, not have him recount to me all the things that make his life difficult. We spent a fair amount of time conversing in English, too, and there were times he would understand what I said before Gloria translated.
There were some kiddie rides at the park, and we rode the chain swings (what are those things called?) and something like the fair’s helicopter ride, only it was fighter jets that made shooting noises! Uwezo had never ridden any kind of fair ride before, so he didn’t mind that they were a bit juvenile for him. Not sure what he would have done with a real roller coaster.
Lunch was a buffet with lots of meat, and spaghetti, and rice, and potatoes, and starchy baked bananas (plantains?). At Uwezo’s request I tried some of the Akabanga hot sauce – like Tabasco sauce! And burned my throat for about 5 minutes. It was awesome. (Hilarious). After lunch they told us we were about out of time – so we needed to give gifts. Uwezo had already given me his gift of a banana-fiber art plaque – I will have to post the picture. Also greeting cards, and one of the famous peace baskets. All will look like familiar African artifacts when you see them, so I will have to post pictures. They are great.
I gave him the duffel bag with housewares, school supplies, and some clothing items first, and he loved them all. When I showed him the key chain from Cummins and the notebook from IUPUC, he loved them, but he especially loved the verse from Psalms that Amalia calligraphied for him. I had some things for his family, too, and he loved them all. But when I got to the CD player he just about cried with joy and threw his arms around me. And when I gave him the computer… he was absolutely speechless. He took a step back and just stared. He finally said that he had never dreamed of owning anything like that. In fact I guess it is so rare for an individual to own a computer, that all the wait staff came up and peered over his shoulder while I gave him the quickest tutorial in history. He said they had computers at his student center, but I had to show him how to use the mouse. Reminded me of when Amalia was 5 and taught me to use a mouse! How different his world is from ours.
We said good-bye, and we both started crying and just clinging to each other, and he got on the bus… and then they told him to get back off again! They were taking the bus in 2 shifts, and he was in the second shift. So we got to spend an extra hour and 15 minutes together. We walked back by the pool and took off our shoes and put our feet in – it was quite warm at this point – and that’s when he told me he had never swam in a pool before. I told him that if he wasn’t all dressed up, I would push him in. He responded, “yes.” : ) We talked a little bit about theology – that was fun. We went back up to the big pavilion, and while we were waiting for the bus, I taught him how to play uno. I think he liked it. But even better was at the end when I taught him how to build a house of cards. (I do have some skills.) He was fascinated. I bet he tries that again.
So then we said good-bye again, and hugged and cried some more, then they told me that I was getting on the bus too and riding back into Kigali with him! We didn’t have the translator that time so we just did our best in English, which wasn’t too bad. Greg Birgy sat in the back of the bus, and his young man that he met (formerly sponsored child, now graduated from Compassion’s program) had already left but he showed us the pictures and notes he got from him, and was nearly crying with joy, and sadness because the day was over. I turned to Uwezo and said, “you see how we sponsors are.” He said “yes” again in his rich baritone and then turned his face away from me. Pretty soon I saw he was wiping at his eyes. I didn’t want to turn and look at him, so I asked Greg, ”Is he having a moment?” Yes, was his answer, so I put my arm around Uwezo and pretty soon we had our heads on each other’s shoulders and were crying again. Kleenex was passed and we survived, only to start sobbing again as we pulled into the hotel to drop us off. He got off the bus too, because they were going to take a taxi, and I swear it was 5 minutes we stood there hugging and crying and telling each other we loved each other and that we hoped we could meet again soon. He told me he feels that we are like his parents in a far away place (exactly what we are) and I told him I felt like he was very much a part of our family.
There is no greater feeling than being able to impact someone’s life this way. I know I am forever changed by this day, and I would think he was, too. I hope this day gave him hope that one day his dreams will be fulfilled. God has plans to prosper, not to harm this young man. Poverty has tried to beat him down and keep those plans from coming to fullness. I will do everything in my power to be God’s hands and feet to see that God’s plans are fulfilled in his life.

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Days 3 and 4 - Tuesday and Wednesday - out in the countryside!

Hello all! Tonight it’s all good news! OUR LUGGAGE HAS ARRIVED!!! ALL OF IT! All 6 people who had bags lost or taken off the carousel have now received them! So I have my gifts for Uwezo Jean Paul in time for tomorrow. I am just so thankful and thanking God, and all of those who have been praying for me.
While my luggage has been having adventures in Brussels, I have been wandering around the Rwandan countryside! Yesterday morning we had a gorgeous drive through the countryside (and a rainstorm and fog) out to a village near the Ugandan border. This place is very near the national park where you can go to see the famous silverback gorillas. We found out it is $500 US to go there, so it would be a bit out of my league anyway. So instead we went to a Compassion Student Center at an Anglican church. This church was like no other church I’ve ever seen, though. Placed at the foot of the park with its 3 volcanoes, this church had a floor of dirt – and volcanic rock. Quite a challenge to walk over for us. But the kids DANCED on it! They did these amazing traditional dances in costumes. These very young kids were so very talented with song and dance, and they welcomed us so warmly. We heard how malaria, AIDS, genocide, and malnutrition affect this area too, but all the Compassion kids were healthy, happy, and really quite enthusiastic about our visit! We feel like rock stars. We got to do a home visit again, and this 12 year old boy wants to be a clothing designer. His mother takes in alterations so I am sure that had an influence on him. He had taken paper and folded it into tiny fans and hung them from the ceiling to decorate the home for our visit. One of the greatest privileges on these visits is to pray for the child and family. You realize their prayers are for things not that much different than ours – health, having needs met, safety and education of their children, and spiritual growth. And you realize when you look around that they ask amidst much more challenging circumstances than we face. And when they receive their answers, they know that all they have comes from the hand of God.
We had a unique chance to visit The Cottages, a unique program within Compassion for “total orphans” – children who have lost both parents. Some parents were lost in the genocide. These are not orphanages, but more like group homes, with a “mother” who has committed to caring for the children until they are grown; so it is much more like a family situation. We visited one of the homes yesterday, and one today, and had a simple lunch at the one today of hard-boiled eggs, bananas, apple juice, and a sweet bread that tasted like it had banana in it. We were told the children chose the menu from among their favorite foods. We heard brief summaries of their lives before coming to the cottage – some were alone, some in groups of 2 or 3 siblings, some living on the street and begging, some living in a home about to collapse and trying any way they could to stay in school and yet work to make a living (as a child!). As a result, some of them are late teenagers just finishing primary school. They are committed to staying in school as long as they can. They sang for us and welcomed us warmly, though we really were invading their home (how would YOU like to be an orphan and have to re-live the early horrible years of your life with random white visitors?). The kids do understand that sharing their stories may help other kids like themselves to get help. Some of them even said they counsel other orphans to have hope in their difficult situations. One of the house mothers was an orphan herself and is now giving back to help others like her. She was amazing and had so much wisdom. We asked her how to care for such a large number of teenagers, and she said it wasn’t easy! But she talked about teaching them to reconcile differences, listening to them and learning what they wanted and what their unique personalities were, modeling and teaching them love.
Last night we stayed at an Anglican retreat center near the national park. Most guests were there to go to the park – it’s really more of a hotel. I pictured dormitory style accommodations, but we had larger beds and down comforters. Apparently the altitude was really high and it was very cold at night, so we needed them. Beautiful views. Pictures to follow.
We went to another student center this morning, this one nearer Kigali. And, Jay, you are probably not surprised, but I sponsored another child there! Her name is Cynthia, and she is 8 years old. She is sweet and shy, and LOVED the simple bag and a few gifts I gave her (including a Colts t-shirt!). She kept holding it up by her face whenever we took a picture. It was a short but wonderful visit, and at the end, although she had said barely 2 words to me, told me she loved me and promised to write.
There was ethnic dancing at this center, too, and I will post some videos when I get home! These kids are really talented. It’s amazing what you can learn to do when you don’t have video games.
We got back to the hotel, and I got to shower and put on ALL CLEAN CLOTHES and my contacts, and I feel like a new person! After a relaxing dinner we put all our bags and gifts together for the big day tomorrow when I get to meet Jean Paul! I will be giving him this computer, but hopefully I will be able to post on someone else’s laptop in order to keep up the blog and let you know how the day went. I am excited and nervous, and I imagine he is feeling the same right now. Hope we can all sleep!
Love to all,
Brenda

Monday, February 9, 2009

Day 2: Good news/Bad News

Good News: My luggage is found and will be in Kigali tomorrow.
Bad News: I won’t be in Kigali tomorrow. I will be up in the mountains at an Anglican retreat center! So I will get my luggage Wed. evening. More bad news: others’ luggage, including Sue’s, has not been found. That baffles me because her luggage was with mine all the way. We are hoping it will come too. I feel worse for someone in our group whose bag was swapped on the carousel, and the other person who took their bag has not yet returned it to the airport. They may never see it again. 6 of us out of the group of 19 do not yet have our bags, but of those, I am the one who packed the least amount of clothes in my carry-on. Never again… I am shopping for a suitcase that fits the maximum carry-on specifications as soon as I get home, so I will have it for next time! I am learning what it means to have to rely on others when you can’t supply your own needs/wants. Another lesson about poverty.
Another good day in Rwanda! The weather here is perfect – like late May at home, and the rain generally comes overnight. The national people are all bundled up here – it is the cold season for them. I am comfortable in short sleeves.
We visited Compassion Rwanda’s office today and had devotions with the 61 staff members – in a tent outside the office, because it is apparently the most practical way for them to all meet together in the same place during the rainy season. It would be like having Cornerstone every day! Afterward we met with the senior staff and talked about how things are going in Rwanda. The program opened here in 1980, and before the genocide there were 11,000 children in Compassion’s program in 49 student centers. When the genocide happened, some children were killed, others were exiled, and still others were orphaned. Compassion had to close operations and flee the country like everyone else. In June 1994, before the genocide was even over, Compassion sent delegates via Uganda into Rwanda to begin finding the children. They began an orphanage right away to care for the children they found. In 1995 the surviving Compassion staff met with pastors from partner churches and re-established the program. Over the course of the next 3 years, only 5,000 of the original 11,000 children were found. Now, there are 48,000 children and 182 student centers all over Rwanda. And, they began the college scholarship program, Leadership Development, just this year and they are in the process of selection for the first class of 35. Quite a ways to come in 15 years. The staff feel that, although the church played a role in the genocide, the church also played a significant role in beginning the restoration process. Compassion had quite a hand in that. Wess Stafford, Compassion’s President, came to Rwanda soon after the genocide to meet with the pastors of partner churches. At that conference, pastors stood and confessed what they had done, and others embraced them with forgiveness.
We also visited a Compassion student center in Kigali that was heavily affected by the genocide. After meeting some preschool kids who were sponsored – and absolutely adorable – we got to play with the entire group of preschoolers, which also included children who weren’t sponsored. Just try to teach London Bridge to a 3 year old who doesn’t speak English and who is a little intimidated by white skin! The older teenage girls came out too and did red-hot-pepper jump roping – amazing! After that we went in the program office and heard how genocide, AIDS, malaria, and lack of educational opportunities have affected this area, and how Compassion’s Complementary Intervention Programs (CIP’s) are making such a great difference. In addition to child sponsorship, Compassion’s CIPs assist children and families to have what they need so that the children can develop as they ought. Here that means food and medicine, but also malaria intervention (Bite Back campaign mosquito nets, $10 each) and AIDS victim assistance. Here at this project there are 3 kids with AIDS, and 31 parents with AIDS. I can’t say that about my kid’s school. CIPs are really important and effective here in Rwanda, as there are so many angles to the poverty here that one would hardly know where to start. Compassion is engaging in consistent, strategized, long-term warfare against poverty.
We visited the home of a young man who attends this student center. He is 20 and started in Compassion when he was 5. If you do the math you will realize he started in the program right after the genocide. It wasn’t until the end of the visit that we found out that his dad was dead – his mother said, “killed during the war” and Eugene, in his translation, in a hushed voice told us, “killed in the genocide.” How evil. The father had worked for the UN as a driver and photographer; with his death, the mother was left with 3 children ages 5 and under and was plunged into immediate poverty. She has raised those kids and kept that family together and in school. She has done a remarkable job. Their home is stick-and-mud with a tin roof and dirt floor, but has 4 airy rooms with some windows (not always the case) and a cooking pit and chicken coop out back. The 20 year old just finished high school (normal for here) and is waiting to hear the results of his college entrance exams. The best of the best get state assisted scholarships. The lucky 35 that get LDP scholarships can also go to college. Everyone else can go to college – if they can pay $1200/yr. Inexpensive by our standards. Not doable for a family that lives off their chickens’ eggs, what they can grow on a farm plot, and what they make from selling excess vegetables in the market. So we will pray that our young man did well on his exams. We asked them what Compassion had done for them, and they went on and on – Eugene could hardly get in a word to translate – and they (the whole family, not just the sponsored boy) received medicines, food, soaps, the chickens, and – the mosquito nets. We got to see the fruits of the Bite Back campaign in the 3 nets hanging in their house.
Tomorrow we will be visiting a student center in the northwestern part of the country, and also one of The Cottages, a group home for orphans. I will be out of internet contact tomorrow but hopefully I can get in touch on Wednesday evening! Thanks for your prayers, and love to you all –

Brenda

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Day 1: Learning to be Low Maintenance

I wish I could post pictures… The one thing so striking about Rwanda, specifically the city of Kigali, is how beautiful it is. The roads are in great condition, some paved and some hand-laid brick; there are beautiful garden roundabouts with statues and sculptures in the center; there are buildings with modern architecture; and there is no garbage to be seen along the main streets. I learned today from both Compassion staff and from our missionary friend, Simon Nziramakenga, that this is all from government initiatives since the genocide. The government is making great effort to use post-genocide international aid to good effect. We toured the government and embassy district, and saw that many of the buildings are new; our Compassion Sponsor Relations Manager Eugene tells us that all the buildings were flattened during the genocide and war. And many areas that were not developed at all are now being developed into housing, some government sponsored. The government has been reorganized and there is now a social security administration. Some of the new laws, like no plastic bags allowed (like grocery bags) and all those who own property with frontage on paved streets must grow flower gardens, really help beautify the country. And it shows. While you might think this is a cosmetic band-aid approach to recovery from the war and genocide, it is not, because think about it: beauty inspires hope. And what this country really needed was hope. Another change is the identicards that all citizens used to carry identifying your ethnicity; Eugene showed us his new one, and all cards now say “Rwandan.”
But I get ahead of myself a bit. The first thing we did today was attend church at a church that holds a Compassion project. It sure changed my image of what a Compassion project might look like. The Zion Temple Church is a 3,500-member church that is 10 years old, has started churches all over Africa, Europe, and the US (yes, they send missionaries to America!). They are located in a poor area and take care of 306 Compassion children. While the project was not in session today, we did get to see the church and the office where they hold the program. The church was really nice – about the size of my church but add to that a balcony all the way around that about doubles the sitting space. They have 3 services. The service we attended was an aerobic experience – the church is Pentecostal, so if you combine a Pentecostal service from the states, and add African love of movement, you will get the picture. I was expecting African type music, but what we got was a contemporary style but music I had never heard before and sung in Kinyarwanda. There was a great bongo backbeat, too. There were 50 people in the worship team, and the services are 2 hours long, and there are 3 services – I think the worship team does all 3 because they were starting the same music for the second service with the same songs. The pastor preached in French with a woman translating into Kinyarwanda. It was fantastic to watch them – they moved together like they had been doing this for a while. When the pastor paced, the woman matched his every step and gesture without even looking at him. Someone sat down with us and started to interpret to English so we could understand, and when others in the service caught on, they began to pull over others who could interpret. By the end we had an interpreter for every one or two of us. The pastor touched on Esther – specifically Mordecai – and how God can change your history. Particularly poignant because of Mordecai’s role in preventing a genocide. What if there had been a Mordecai in Rwanda. Another interesting moment – a church plant team from Butare sang about if you have God’s love in your life, you will love your neighbor; God forgave us, so we should forgive our neighbor. I was thinking it was a sweet sentiment until it hit me where I was sitting, and what forgiving your neighbor would mean to someone who had survived a genocide, one where neighbor killed neighbor.
Afterward, we got to meet Chantal, the project director, who told us about the program. They have a special need for helping children with health problems – some with AIDS, some with malnutrition and all the other diseases that can go with that. Dave and Candy Heldt got to meet Yvette, their sponsored child, because this was her project; and her aunt, Irene who she lives with.
We had some time to take a long walk this afternoon; good to stretch our legs. Also, I got to meet up with Simon Nziramakenga and take a quick tour of their church grounds – turns out to be less than 2 kilometers from here. I got to hear his take on why and how Rwanda has recovered so fast; he says, “no question, it was the Lord.” Meaning, the reconciliation has been nothing short of miraculous and people were ready and repentant. He does worry that the government is changing things too fast and it does have its downside: new construction codes (and lack of donations, probably in part due to global economic depression) have made it impossible to finish their church building at Good Shepherd Church. It stands with only the structural framework; they are paying as they go; and the government will no longer allow them to meet in their tent, deeming it unsafe. Their codes are becoming as stringent as in the USA, but without the funds to make building under those conditions possible. So they are meeting outdoors, and when it rains, “it’s bad,” per Simon.
Still no luggage for me and others; we will try again tomorrow. In the meantime, I am fine! I am actually amazed at how fine I am. I have all the essentials and am borrowing what I don’t have. I don’t feel sleep deprived, I have no headache or neck ache or back ache or stomach ache that can accompany travel. I am getting a little tired now but think that just means I can sleep tonight. We just finished dinner; all you in Indiana are probably just finished with lunch. I am praying that my luggage comes soon, especially the gifts, but in the meantime, I am learning to be low maintenance

Saturday, February 7, 2009

ps to Dylan

Are we in Corellia yet? ; )

We are here!

Finally! It has taken me about an hour to connect with the internet and figure that out. The instructions are in French... where is Laura Andrews when I need her? We got to Kigali just fine, but my roommate Sue and I, both traveling from Indy, after some baggage drama at JFK, did not get our bags. The folks in Brussels say they were scanned which means they were found and if all goes well we will have them tomorrow. I will borrow some clothes and get along just fine till then, but I am really hoping the gifts arrive by Thursday! Anyway I have to pay by the minute so I won't be blogging for long and after emailing Sue's husband I won't be checking my email at all - too expensive ! But I will try to get on and share the highlights. Kigali's airport was small, friendly, and dark - the power keeps flashing off. Didn't see much of the city but it is comfortably warm here and just the right amount of humidity. I am a bit wound up because my body thinks it is the middle of the afternoon. But I am going to bed now and try to sleep. More tomorrow!

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Itinerary

It's getting really close! Here's what I will be doing:
Friday Feb. 6 and Sat. Feb. 7 - Leaving Indianapolis 11am, flying to JFK - Arrival 1:13 pm, Delta 6256. Meet the group and fly on American Airlines 172 to Brussels, leaving 6:15 pm and arriving 7:40 am (that's 1:40 am Indiana time). It's a 7 hr flight. Leaving Brussels at 10:40 am, Brussels Airlines #465, and arriving Kigali, Rwanda at 7:50 pm (12:50 pm Indiana time). 8 hour flight. Meet country staff. Arrive at Novotel Hotel.
Sun. 2/8 - Worship at Zion Temple Church, Gatenga Student Centre RW 280 project visit, city tour of Kigali. I might get to spend time with the Nziramakenga family, missionaries I know!
Mon. 2/9 - Visit Compassion Country Offices, visit Gasave Student Center, RW 334. Home visits with the children.
Tues 2/10 - Drive 2 1/2 hours to visit 2 projects, one is RW 822 and the other is RW 256, The Cottages, which are Compassion-run orphanages for children from the genocide, AIDS, and other reasons. Stay at the Anglican Church Guest House (I won't have internet this night)
Wed 2/11 - Visit RW 625, Maranyundo Student Center, back to Novotel in the evening
Thurs 2/12 THE BIG DAY! SPONSORED CHILDREN MEET US AT BAMBINO CHILDREN'S PARK!!!
Fri 2/13 Visit RW 144 Student Center; visit Genocide Memorial; Dinner with Leadership Development Candidates (Compassion is starting its first class of LDP students in Rwanda!)
Sat 2/14 Visit RW 621 Remera Student Center, shopping time. Airport - flight departs 8:50 pm (Brussels Airlines #465), that's 1:50 pm Indiana time; arrive Brussels at 6:10 am. Leave Brussels on American 171 at 10:05 am and arrive JFK at 12:40 pm, 8 hour flight. Depart on Delta 6165 at 6:59 pm, arrive Indpls 9:59 pm.
Sorry for all the flight info - my relatives will want to track me so thought I'd add that!