Rwanda: Days 1 and 2

For me, visiting East Africa is like going home. The landscape of Rwanda was possibly even more beautiful than that of Uganda. Stepping off the plane onto the runway my lungs were filled with that sweet, warm air. It's a place that feels familiar... the red dirt, the waving children that run alongside your car, the beautiful faces of the people.  Being crammed in the back of a car and bouncing along the unpaved roads suddenly becomes an adventure. Rwanda felt like a place of joy, where a simple wave out the window would lead to broad smiles and cheers from those standing alongside the road.

Rwanda, however, has a broken past, filled with hate and murder and terror. Our first day in Rwanda we visited the genocide museum. My heart broke as I looked at the faces of the children who were brutally murdered, who were sliced and stabbed and beaten. I read the stories of those that tried to help and those that stood back and did nothing. I can't help but feel that we, the rest of the world, is nearly as guilty as those holding the machetes, because we knew yet stood back and did nothing. If you don't know anything about this part of Rwanda's history I would encourage you to go learn about.

The museum was a heavy place to begin our time in Rwanda, but it created context to the place and the people that we were stepping into. But the people were a people of joy, who are learning to work together for the betterment of their country. Our second day was spent at World Relief Rwanda where we learned from the staff the roles that they had in the community. There was Mobilization for Life, where teaching to youth and families was done on the value of faithfulness and HIV prevention. There was the Orphan and Vulnerable Children (OVC) programs where volunteers in the community partner alongside those children and families. And there was the Savings Group where men and women in the community come together to save their money, creating small loans and spurring each other forward to move up out of the poverty they've been in for so long.  More to come on all these things.

It is a privilege to be a part of a church that partners with such an organization!

*Photos will be added upon my return... unfortunately I am unable to upload any of them while traveling* 

Jinja

After two amazing weeks in Rwanda with my team from Bethany, I ventured off on my own a few days ago and made my way to Jinja, Uganda. My journey started off in a tiny little airplane so small that it was powered by propellers, which sent me into a full blown panic attack, yet I somehow managed to survive the journey. That followed by a short stay at a backpackers hostel that decided lining the floors with contact paper was a good idea. I then made the hour long journey to Kampala where I was planning on catching a taxi to Jinja. Instead I ended up crammed into a huge coaster bus with herds of people, though I somehow managed to bargain my way into paying even less than the locals, which I'm pretty sure was the first time in the history of Uganda for such a deal to happen.

Anyway, I arrived safely in Jinja and settled into a house with a couple other girls. I still have yet to figure out what i'll be doing here, but I've happily been visiting with dear friends and enjoying some of my favorite Ugandan treats.

More updates to come on my time in Rwanda after I've had a little more time to sit down and process....

A brief overview

We’ve been in Rwanda and Uganda for 10 days now (or at least I think… to be honest, I’ve lost all track of time here and literally have no idea what day it actually is). Internet is spotty here and it turns out that writing a blog post on your phone is actually much harder than one would imagine.  There are so many stories to tell, and I wish I’d been able to write them as they happened, but I’ve needed both time to process as well as slightly more reliable internet. Even now as I’m sitting down in an attempt to write something about our time here, I’m looking at the clock and realizing that I am supposed to head to dinner is 7 minutes… but I promise, many more stories to come as soon as my team heads home (tomorrow!) and I settle in to Uganda.

An incredibly brief overview of our time…

We’ve spent time learning about World Relief and their work in Rwanda.

We’ve visited the homes of families affected by the amazing staff at World Relief.

We met a girl names Josephine and her goat, whom she was incredibly proud of.

We have danced up a storm (literally… the dust cloud was huge) in a mud and stick church.

We’ve bathed in swamp water while learning about the lack of water sources in Uganda.

We’ve heard the stories of pastors who have devoted their lives to bringing together local churches to better the lives of their community.

We’ve eaten multiple forms of potatoes for every single meal for the past week and a half.

I have so many stories that I cannot wait to tell here, but alas, it is time for more potatoes, so I must sign off for now. 

Post Card

So, I had great intentions to have this made in to fun little postcards to send to all of you so you could keep this on your fridge, but obviously that didn't happen and I leave in 4 days and don't anticipate that happening before I go. But at least I have the digital version for you, right? Thanks for all you prayers and encouragement... I can't wait to update you all on the happenings of the next couple months!