endings in Rwanda

Ah, first, my apologies that I have been so absent from updating lately. I have done a few things here and there – visited my housemates nursery school again, some quick odd-jobs for my other housemate, another day out helping to build the house in Ngenda (this time I helped carry chopped down eucalyptus trees!)

Also went out to see Gisenyi and Musanze with my housemate – it was really beautiful (minus the altitude sickness!) We stayed at a little place run by some Franciscan nuns right on Lake Kivu, across from the Congo. We even saw one of the volcanoes glowing through the clouds at night!! I’ve added it to my bucket list to go see a volcano before I die! It was really beautiful and I’m glad I got to explore a little more of Rwanda.

I also went out again with REACH to another village where they have previously run their reconciliation/empowerment workshop. The participants were able to get together again after a year, and share what they had been doing with what they learned since they went through the workshop. I didn’t get to hear much, since they speak in Kinyarwanda, but what I did hear was so beautiful. These people are so proactive and dedicated to improving not only their own life, but the lives of others. It’s really awesome to see. For example, one woman shared that her husband had been put in prison (and has since died) for being a genocide offender, but through the training, she was able to reconcile and find friendship with a woman whose husband has been killed during the genocide – what a powerful testament to how beautiful the human spirit can be, even in the wake of it’s ugliness! Hearing about some of the training made me stop and realise that if these people can cling to such forgiveness for something so huge, that I should be more willing to forgive in my own life, because the things that have been done to me, are not even close to what these women have witnessed. I hope that you too will take a moment to stop and think about how our small hurts, and even our big hurts, are chances for forgiveness – if these people can find forgiveness in something so huge as a national genocide, we too can forgive people in our life. It has been an honour to meet the people of Rwanda.

Unfortunately, I have gotten myself sick! I have an amoeba in my intestines.. I think it’s in my intestines.. ha. It’s pretty common for foreigners here – it’s a microscopic parasite of sorts that is found in certain foods and water. Basically any time you eat outside of your own home, you’re at risk to get one, so no huge drama, but a bit miserable being stuck in bed feeling nauseated for a few days! Luckily my lovely fill-in Aussie mum offered to take me to the doctor to figure it out and get some pills. And my housemate has had something similar before, so she’s been really helpful also. So, as much as it is never fun to be sick away from home, I’m blessed to have the people I do around me.

Now, comes the biggie. Ha. I have decided to leave Rwanda a few weeks earlier than originally planned. I have been thinking and praying over this for so long, and I think I have finally found my answer. It didn’t come in big flashing lights like I had been praying for, I mean how often does God really ever give it to us that easily ;) but I have come to an answer, and I feel peace about that. I’ve also been having issues getting my Visa extended – I’m technically meant to be leaving the country by tomorrow, which is confirming in and of itself. It feels good to finally know – I have had so much anxiety over this situation lately. It’s been so draining. So, I will probably be leaving in about a week, and heading to my sister’s house in Australia (the plan was always to go to Australia, but now I’m just going a few weeks earlier).

I’m sure I’ll have plenty more to reflect on this situation in the next week or so, and maybe some more explanation, which I do feel I owe to everyone who has supported me throughout this trip. But, that will come with time – I don’t want to speak too soon.

So, as always, I thank you for reading, I thank you for supporting, praying, encouraging, for any little thought you have even given to me. I have been truly blessed by the amount of people I have felt come around me during this time. A lot of people say that stuff like this shows who your true friends are, but that phrase usually is associated with finding you have less friends than you thought – I think I have had the opposite experience. The number of people who may not have been my closest or best friends, but who have reached out to encourage me or just send well wishes has been truly beautiful. I feel so supported by each and every one of you. So I thank you. And ask for your continued support as I:

1. Transition out of Rwanda back to Australia.
2. As I then head off for India in February for another 3 months of who-knows-what!

Ok, signing off. Thanks again.

Much love,

Bronte.

YWAM & REACH

long time no type!

after finishing up some admin work for the school/preschool at YWAM for their Closing Day, i was then invited to attend a seminar at YWAM. it is a course on healing and care for children in crisis/trauma, taught by a professional counselor from the UK. some of the information was a bit repetitive for me, given my social work degree and work with children, etc. but it's been a good refresher course given i will be going to work with girls experiencing severe trauma in february.

it was a lovely surprise when on the first morning of the seminar, the australian woman whose family goes to the church i go to here was also taking the seminar! it's so nice to have other aussies around! ;)

this then allowed me to go out in the field (out into the "villages" of rwanda) with her husband, who works for REACH, which is a reconciliation/trauma/counseling based organisation. they hold seminars to talk people through the history of rwanda, the build up to the genocide, and then counsel people through the trauma of the genocide, which must be powerful beyond words. at the end of the seminar, the participants have the opportunity to continue working together in some way. for example, one group we visited, decided to make and sell soap as a group. another group (the group i visited for most of the day) decided to help one of their fellow members by building a house. she is just 19, and her mother died a year ago. she now has to raise her three siblings - age 3, 6, and 9. after learning that they were not living in adequate housing, the team decided they'd all build a house together for her and her siblings and her grandmother also. so today, i was able to help them make mud bricks! they dig a whole out of dirt, poor in water, and then stomp through it like you see people doing to make wine! then they take the mud, and put it into a frame to form the shape of the brick. they then take a few days to dry, and voile! all the members are very young - teens-early 20s. it's pretty impressive to see them all lend their time, energy, and hard work to this girl. some of them have given their lives to Christ, so we got to hear (through a translator) some of the things they are reading about and learning in the Bible.

so tomorrow is the last day of the seminar, have some fun things planned for the weekend (my housemate decided the whole week was her birthday week, so we've had something fun planned each night since monday ha!), then monday brings another trip to immigration to see if i can get my visa extended.

thanks, as always, for reading!

much love

-Bronte.