The Lady in the Avocado Dress

One morning I woke up and like every other day in Rwanda I got ready to go to ‘work’ outside of Kigali in a town called Kimihurura. Work was pretty non traditional since I was serving on an 11 month mission trip. It happened that this month we had two main jobs. One, to teach English to the local community and two, to go door to door meeting the people of the community, getting to know them praying with them and inviting them to the local church for fellowship and community. My job for the day was to go into to community. I was with two team mates and a local Pastor. We went into a few homes and then we turned down a street with lots of banana trees and red dust everywhere.

We started talking to the woman of the house and her elderly neighbor. I was instantly intrigued by the elderly woman, she looked at me so intensely and in her eyes you could see so much hope and so much hurt. She invited in and wanted to share with us her story. She started asking us what we knew about Rwanda and Rwandan history. She then described the horrific history of events and how the Rwandan genocide left family incomplete. She lost her home, her parents, her husband and some of her children. She was left a single mom with no job, no hope and no future. Prior to the Rwandan genocide she had been a believer but because of the tragedy and loss she experienced she began to wonder is God really real? How could he let this happen to our country, to our family? She began every angry and resentful and tried to write the idea of God off all together in her mind.

She started drinking to try to numb the pain, the drinking turned into alcoholism and the alcoholism into neglect of her children and her own health. She would often times hear an audible voice say “better things are coming, just trust me” but how could she trust this voice of the Lord considering her past and her present situation. She listened and she ignored. It would happen again. One day she decided to trust and told the Lord, if you haven’t abandoned me then show me. Then a job opportunity came up, then again she heard “better things are coming, just trust me” she again trusted and soon had the funds to send her kids back to school.

Moment by moment she rebuilt her life because she believed in something greater than herself. She trusted the still small whisper of God’s voice when she had every reason to turn away. Today she is a grandmother. She showed us pictures of her children her grand children and all sorts of her life events. She bragged about all of the blessings the Lord has provided her with.

I’ve never heard the audible voice of the Lord, but I do believe she has. Through her story I’ve learned a valuable lesson about trust, forgiveness and persevering even when life is cruel and broken.

Every one has a story. She at first glance was the lady in the avocado dress with deep eyes and my favorite food on her clothing. I didn’t know her name, I didn’t know her story. Now I do and it’s powerful. Get to know to the people who are placed in your path, they are there for a purpose and their story, like hers  can change your perspective and change your life.