6.24.2005 RWANDA

Ok, I am going to try to be as descriptive as possible without actually knowing what happened today. I haven’t been feeling well the last two days but today I finally got the results… Mantazuma’s revenge, or wait. Maybe it should be Mazungu’s revenge!

Before I start this entry, I must talk about all of the food I plan on eating when I get home in 2 days. That seems so shallow… but I can’t stop fantasizing about cheese. The cheese here is so bad. It is goat cheese and never oozes. And there is definitely nothing yellow. Angela and I have been talking about nachos… oh man, what I wouldn’t do for Chili’s all you can eat chips and salsa. I feel really bad for writing this! I don’t know why! And then today, I was online and the yahoo front page said that “Batman Begins” is out. Holy Cow! It burst through my mind like a freight train! I can’t wait to see a movie. I feel so far away from the reality of television, movies, all-you-can-eat food and decent cheese. OK, I just have to say that what they call pizza here is ridiculous. It starts out promising with a nice 4” round bread but the tomato “sauce” is the first thing out of line. And then there are these slices of meat that comes from who knows where. But the finale is that abominable cheese. OK! Chicago, here I come.

Anyway, as far as the actual day was, I feel really sad looking through the pictures. I am feeling more than robbed, I feel left out. It was not anyone’s fault, I made the decision to stay home (which I am so glad I did). There are some raw emotions I feel when I look at all of the families together with out me. Frustration, anger, and even jealousy. But I also can’t help but feel appreciation and admiration of all our team that pulled it together without us. Even Ben was noticeably missing from some of the photos. Let me explain.

Most of the team went to visit with the Mayor of Kisaro (the district we serve in) this morning. The politician was interested in us implementing a half million dollar project to serve the district. OK – reality check. That actually makes me laugh considering our current resources. But I understand that we have entered his district and began to help some families, how could he know that we aren’t at that level? Well, apparently he has a MUCH better idea of what we are doing. But the politics involved, yikes. I just hate that side of this stuff. I mean, I step into this arena with the intention of feeding a few people and before I know it I have men in suits making proposals… problem is, handling it without diplomacy can only bring trouble later. I really HATE it. I am not the type to play games and talk sweet words… The fact is I am mad that in general politicians are wealthy and their people are dying. Basically, words were exchanged and reports will be given, but it will be reviewed by our board first. I guess I can leave the responsibility up to them!

After that, Ben was scheduled to meet with the American Consulate to discuss one of our friend’s asylum case which is may be held up here in Rwanda. And we were planning on having a large group meeting with our families on Saturday, but they found out that roads are being shut down tomorrow. So the big meeting with the our families had to be today. But Ben could not be in the same place at the same time. So Tim said, “Why don’t Ben and I go to the consulate and then Jake, Angela, Brian and Kim go to the other meeting. We’ll catch up with the team when we are done.” So, off went Ben and Tim. Jake and the rest went the opposite direction.

Both meetings were good. The consulate was very informative and was going to start investigating things right away to see what the hold up was, and the large meeting was filled with good explanations about our purpose and vision, guidelines we expect our families to follow, the gospel message and a few more interviews that Angela covered. Everyone pulled more than their weight. I am so proud of all them. I think it would be very scary to have that kind of responsibility with little preparation. And they never even thought twice about it. They just got things together and went. I feel like a mother who watched her children leave the house for the first day of school. Nervous and excited at the same time. I missed out on the celebration and thank-you songs and dances. Bummer.

Ben and Tim arrived just in time for Ben to charge the families to use the sponsor money according to our guidelines, and Tim read a passage the Bible and they all held hands and prayed. It was an awesome moment. It was Holy ground.

After seeing how the team filled in when we could not be everywhere, Ben said it was so amazing to know that if God called us home to heaven, that it was so wonderful to know that GFR could go on even with out our involvement. Praise God.

As a last note, I need to write a miraculous circumstance I was only able to witness via photos. Earlier this week I came across a woman who came up to me with a very sick 2 year old child. Her name was Felicity. She had a concerned look on her face and I was able to surmise from our talk that her son was very ill. His left leg had an old piece of torn cloth wrapped loosely around it. She pulled it off and pulled my hand towards it. First the son cried weakly and then I carefully rested my fingertips on the inside of the very swollen knee. It was absolutely burning. The leg was swelled up three times the size. She also had me feel under his armpit and he indeed had a fever. The child was laying limp in her arms and he could not stand at all. She also told me that he had not eaten in days (she kept trying to nurse him but he would cry and pull away). This is not something you want to be seeing on top of a mountain with no doctor in sight. What drives me nuts is knowing that everyone in Rwanda has access to insurance. There is total coverage for an entire family for only $17.00 for one full year. This child could see a doctor, get medication, or even go to the hospital for what it costs me to go to the movies once with Ben. The whole team prayed for him and GFR also provided her the money she needed to get insurance.

Today when I was looking through the pictures, I saw Felicity’s happy face and right below her was the cutest little boy clapping his hands! This was the sick little boy?? He was standing on his own. His smile warmed me like the sun. Of course, no one recognized him so no one knew the miracle that was standing before their very eyes. He is healed! Felicity is one of our unsponsored widows. We are still seeking a sponsor for her. But it brings me so much joy to know that she must feel an incredible amount of hope! It was a fantastic end to a wonderful journey.