Baskets.

There is a basket making factory here who makes thousands upon thousands of baskets for Macy's. They are actually called Baskets of Hope. You can read more about them in the NY Times Article: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/11/garden/11rwanda.html?_r=4&oref=slogin&oref=slogin&oref=slogin&oref=slogin
You can also check them out at Macy's website: http://www1.macys.com/campaign/rwanda/index.jsp



Anyways, so a group of us went today to see the women and buy baskets. I have read a few articles about the project, but never fully understood the process until today.



When I walked into the room, I was blown away by how many women were there working. I mean, I guess it should not have shocked me considering Macy's has the women making about 500,000 baskets a year and each basket takes between 1 week to 4 weeks to make!



Yet, still I was shocked to see so many women just sitting in a room, on a floor, just weaving baskets. They seemed to be really enjoying themselves too. When we walked in they all had big smiles on their faces and gave us a big wave.



I also noticed as I walked through MANY of the women were paraplegic. There were crutches laying everywhere. It could bring tears to your eyes thinking about all the women who would not be able to find jobs anywhere else because of their disability.



How beautiful it is that these women can, despite their disabilities, sit on the floor with other women and make just enough money for them to support themselves and their families.



There are certain parts of Rwanda that have taken some time to warm up to, to get use to. There are many cultural differences and some racial stereotypes that are hard to fully embrace. Yet, today encountering those women, seeing their smiling faces, and feeling their warmth is definitely something I want to continue to get use to.




These women were so beautiful to me today and literally all they did was sit there in their element and be themselves. I love Rwandan people and specifically women here for that very reason.

Kibuye.

A few of my closest friend and I decided it was about time to take a vacation and so we packed up our things over the Thanksgiving holiday and headed west. We went to a little place here in Rwanda called Kibuye. It is the kind of place, situated right on the water, where you can just relax, read, watch movies, or whatever you want.
... and that is exactly what we did. We sat around and did nothing but those things. With Kibuye being right on the Lake Kivu you can also rent a boat for the day and go to a few of the islands there.
My friend Maggie and I, being the girls that we are, did not manage to get up in time, so the others, Justin, Amy, and Myal, headed out early one morning and went to "Bat" Island. It definitely lived up to its name.

On our way home from our relaxing weekend in Kibuye we ran into some instrument playing kids. They were not only crazy, but hilarious. They were very persistent about us playing their handmade instruments. Maggie and I gave it a try.

YL Coming to Rwanda.

Many people seem to want to help Rwanda. There is just something very attractive about coming to Rwanda, therefore many people come and go with some to few who actually stay long term. There for a little while it was up in the air whether or not Young Life would come to Rwanda because of so many people and NGO's involvement already. Yet, there is literally NOTHING for the youth here. Thank you though, through the holy spirits leading and proding I am happy to say there are many steps being taken towards it being so. The needs of the youth here in Rwanda are simply just not being met. More importantly there are few who are actually telling them about the love of Jesus and letting them know they are valued and loved. Witnessing that day in and day out is painful to see. Yet, I am thankful and can stand here today with great praise in my heart because Young Life will and is coming to Rwanda!!

Learning.

A few of my sweet friends here in Kigali and I decided we should take the weekend and go to this place called Kibuye. It is about three hours away and is found snuggled up next to Lake Kivu. Lake Kivu is beautiful and greeted us each morning all dressed in a glimmering bluish green. It is a beautiful place, Kibuye. Definitely a place you want to go to find rest and just sit in the beauty of God's creation and goodness, which is exactly what us friends did. We spent the weekend just hanging out together, taking boat rides, watching movies, reading, journaling, praying together, learning about one another, and just reflecting on the lives God has laid out before us. Through my dear friends and the conversations we were able to have I continue to learn. I continue to learn God is placing themes in my life and is always at work on me. Recently, I have been learning that in life whether I realize it or not, I some times say yes to Satan and some of the lies he whispers in my ears. As Christians, we try so hard to focus on truth, to pray, and to find ourselves literally on our knees before God, yet some times missing that some of our pains, our struggles, and insecurities have come from saying yes to those dark, fleeting, and insecure thoughts we think and feel in our weakest moments. For me, this weekend I began to realize and God began to shed some light on some of these "yes' " in my life. One of the biggest things I have said yes to is the feeling of I am not good enough. Not good enough to lead, not good enough to be in the presence of certain people, not good enough to be pursued, not good enough to be where I am doing the work I am called to do. We all experience these moments. Some times, like my one friend this past week, we experience them in our weakest moments where we are sick or physically run down. Thankfully, there is hope. Thankfully, even in our weaknesses and in those moments where we have began to believe those defeating thoughts, God has a BIGGER yes for us. Thankfully, God takes those moments where he has given us the wisdom to realize these weaknesses and says get up again, lets attack this together. Thankfully God allows light to be shed and these "yes' " to come to surface so he can continue to take us from where we are today to the place he wants us to be tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day. God does not give up on us, God does no give up on me, God does not give up on the people of Rwanda. God does not believe those lies we often believe and/or think about ourselves. He absolutely sees us as beautiful and a work in progress. He sees us as his child. Praise Jesus, we can live for a God who sees exactly how we are, as we want to be seen. He sees us in his image. Praise Jesus, we can live for a creator who loves us and has a greater life and plan for us then we have for ourselves. I am so thankful for these things. I am so thankful we can come to God and ask for strength, ask for courage. Our past does not have to be our future. As one of my friends shared with me... "may I be as confident as I am about my past as I am about my future because Christ has already written it." I pray for you and I pray for me, that God would give us the strength and courage to not believe those lies, but to believe the truth about who He says we are. I pray God will continue to shed light on our lives and turn us into people who are full of freedom, joy, and a desire to just live for Him and Him alone.

Broken Hand.

Only a few weeks ago my boys team played our KICS school team. The game went well with my boys team coming out with the win. I think it was 5-1. The game was on Tuesday and I did not see the boys until the following Saturday. It was part way through the day before I noticed John Pierre, one my boys, had his hand wrapped and kept holding it as if he was in pain. I called him over and took at look at what was going on. To my surprise his hand was obviously broken leaving the bone right behind his pinky finger bowing upwards. He winced in pain any time I touched it. We went straight to King Fiscal Hospital, the main local hospital in Kigali. Being it is the main hospital in Kigali they actually do have an emergency room. Now it is nothing like an emergency room in America, but at least they take emergencies and try to provide some form of help. We sat in the ER for a good long while.
Finally after about two or so hours he got an x-ray, which just confirmed even more so his hand was broken. The doctor then informed us, unlike in America, we should return in a few days, on monday for surgery. So... John Pierre had to wait two more days for help. The surgery he was suppose to have would require them putting him under anesthesia and would take about one hour where they would straighten the bone and put a pin in his hand. So, monday came and I showed up at the hospital after school around 3:30. JP was suppose to have had surgery around 10, but he was no where to be found. After searching for him, I finally found him outside where he told me the doctor had said they only do emergency surgeries on monday. My mouth dropped because in my head I had thought a broken hand was an emergency, but I guess not. He was then suppose to return on Wednesday for his surgery. So... John Pierre had to wait two more days for help. Wednesday arrived and JP was suppose to have surgery around noon. Once again, I arrived after school to check on him and to see how he was doing and once again I found him outside. This time the hospital staff had forgotten to inform us he was not suppose to eat the whole day before his surgery. NO ONE told us this. This time we were to return thursday for his surgery. So.... John Pierre had to wait one more day for help. Thursday arrived and I was pretty confident this time all would go well and his hand would be taken care of. With great confidence I showed up at the hospital like usual at 3:30 to see how JP was doing. This time unlike the two times before I found JP sitting on a hospital bed in the adolescent in his jeans and t-shirt.

I asked him what was going on and he said he did not know. I then went and found a nurse who informed me that I had to sign a second of kin consent form in order for JP to have surgery performed on him. At this point, you are probably where are his parents in all of this and why they were not there to sign off for his surgery. Well, the short story is that JP's dad died in the genocide about fourteen years ago. JP's mom got pregnant with him right before the death of his father and she survived the war. John Pierre fourteen years old, the genocide happened fourteen years ago. Now JP lives with his mom and mom alone. I have never talked to nor seen his mom. She did not even one try to contact me or show up at the hospital therefore making me the second of kin guardian to John Pierre and able to sign in her place for his surgery. So... once again, John Pierre because of not having the right paper work signed had to wait one more day for help. Finally, on Friday, I showed up ready for one more hang up in the process and found that JP was finally in surgery. I found his sweet friend and one of my best players sammy sitting by his bed waiting for JP to come out of surgery. After about an hour, he finally did. We spent the next few hours just sitting beside and with JP as he recovered. To pass the time together I set up the movie X-Men on my labtop. About three hours after surgery John Pierre was finally released, cast and all. Now two weeks after the surgery, JP and I will go this Tuesday to have the cast removed and to see how his hand is healing. He is doing great, but misses being able to fully play soccer all the time without Momma Jenny telling him to be careful or having him sit out.

Saturday Morning Camp

A group of us have created a SATURDAY MORNING SOCCER CAMP for about 100 Rwandan boys from ages 4-24. The camp since then has been thriving and we are seeing a lot of growth. Us leaders are also spending more time together and starting to really just enjoy one another's presence. We have a great group of leaders who are all just so fun and have heart's for children, youth, and the game of soccer.

We are also just falling in love with the kids and seeing the fruit of consistent coaching. My friend George after ever camp has nothing but positive things to say. He has been one of the main founders of the camp and one of the main guys who first started working with this particular group of boys. Every time we get together as leaders to discuss how the day went George continues to remind us of how far we have come.


Its amazing to see the boys grow from not wanting to play with one another and fighting all the time to what it is now. Now, unlike before, they actually enjoy playing together and the arguing has literally stopped!


I think George is right, if there is anything we have encouraged or done right, we have helped a group of boys who come from diverse families, backgrounds, and racial segregation stop fighting! Now that is worth celebrating and in a sense worth fighting for!

Live, Love, Learn...

Its amazing to me how a simple game of futbal can bring a group of people together.