Rwanda: Land of a Thousand Hills. A very fitting name for this beautiful country that is literally full of endless rolling hills scattered throughout.
One of the first things my team and I did together to learn about Rwanda was visit the Genocide Memorial Museum. It was powerful. I had heard of the Rwanda Genocide a few times, but didn’t know how deep the scars run. Seeing the pictures firsthand, watching videos and reading the newspapers from that time was heavy. The lies that were told, the manipulation and deceitfulness that was so present…I don’t have words to describe how it feels to be an outsider reading the pain of one’s past – that same pain that continues to affect lives.
Yet, despite all of the past suffering, this country, these people, they continue to fight on. They continue to be bonded together by the wounds of their past and use that unification to work towards a better future. Kigali, the capital of Rwanda, is one of the most developed cities in Africa, has the world’s highest representation of women in parliament (64%), and is leading the digital revolution in Africa. What this country has achieved in the short time since the Genocide is astounding. It’s easy to see that Rwanda is not letting it’s past define it’s future.
“There are times in our lives when we have to realize our past is precisely what it is, and we cannot change it. But we can change the story we tell ourselves about it, and by doing that, we can change the future.” – Eleanor Brown
Oh, and the title of the blog is “Land of a Thousand Hills” in French, one of the official languages in Rwanda.
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This month in Rwanda, the community we developed in Gisenyi became our ministry. It was so unexpected and I completely loved it! I am still working on changing my mindset to see that you don’t have to work at a nonprofit for your work to be considered “ministry.” My mind, attitude and behavior is daily being changed by the Lord to become ministry. Ministry is no longer something I “seek” to go and find. I seek the Lord, and by seeking Him ministry naturally becomes my life.
While we were staying with the Webb’s earlier this month in Kigali, they connected us with their paddle boarding employee named Gratien. He is a great guy who is a believer and enjoys sharing his love for older pop music, such as Taylor Swift (who he calls Swift Taylor), Colbie Calliat, Celine Dion etc. We had many opportunities to spend time with him and encourage him in seeking the Lord and building community. He took us to see hot springs, kayaking and even came to see us before we left to give each of us a personalized gift.
A fifteen minute walk from the hostel we were staying at in Gisenyi is a coffee shop called Calafia. Let me just say real quick that Calafia is probably the best coffee shop in Rwanda. Wait, I take that back – Calafia IS the best coffee shop in Rwanda. The first day at Calafia we met the owners, Nat and Helen, and had one of the best conversations about spiritual encouragement I’ve ever had. Nat shared his story with us and really challenged us in pressing into God over the next nine months until it becomes a lifestyle. I was also blessed to help serve at the coffee shop every few days with making drinks, cleaning and delivering food to customers.
Two of the employees at Calafia that I built good relationships with are Aimable and Nehemiah. Both are incredible baristas – I always looked forward to the latte art they crafted on my mochas (my weakness is chocolate y’all). As I spent time with them, both opened up to me about their families, how they were affected by the genocide and where they are in life now. Christie and I went to their church on a Friday evening and we had no idea that both were so involved until Nehemiah started preaching and than Aimable was asked to pray for the congregation after introducing us. It was so cool seeing their dedication to serving the church body and to pray over them in their personal struggles they shared with us. I think it also shocked them to see a foreigner washing dishes, haha. My first day at Calafia, Nehemiah was looking at my book and taking pictures of it so he could buy it for himself one day. When I saw how interested he was in learning more about living from a place of being loved, I decided to give him the book. He was so happy to receive this unexpected gift!
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Another friend we made is Tina, who is the founder of Hope for Tomorrow. She is from New York and has lived in Rwanda for about 5 years. When the Rwandan government shut down all the orphanages a few years ago, she was inspired to help and adopted 4 children ranging in ages 5 – 22. Her organization helps families in poverty and also has a sponsorship program to help provide food, clothes, medical needs and education for the children. They also have literacy classes every Friday. We were so excited when Tina invited us to do home visits with her for two days. Even though the hike was tough, it was so worth it to see the families she works with and to hear their stories. It was incredible to pray with each of the families and to see the hope they have to continue working for a better life despite the circumstances they face daily. Below is a picture of one of the mom’s escorting us through the village.
Lastly, we were connected with the Ubumwe Community Center in Gisenyi. They serve children and adults with disabilities with music therapy, vocational classes, education and counseling. We spent a few days volunteering at Jessie’s Place, an extension of Ubumwe. We played games, sang songs and danced til my feet hurt with the adults who attend Jessie’s Place. Here is a picture of a group of deaf students who perform traditional Rwandan dances. They learn the routines by feeling the vibrations from the beats of the drum. It was so inspiring to see these students dancing together and knowing when to do each move by sensing each beat.
Thank you to everyone who has supported me on this journey and I pray that my updates are encouraging to you in your walk with the Lord. Please let me know if you have any prayer requests. I am continuing to fundraise and am $2,856 away from being fully funded. You can donate online by clicking the orange donate button above. Thank you for taking the time to read my blog!
