Mimi and I returned to Rwanda on Oct. 23 from 6 weeks in the U.S. – very refreshed and ready to get back in the saddle. It was a great time of sharing the lives of our children and grandchildren – now divided between Grand Rapids, Michigan and Colorado Springs, Colo. We tried to keep the conferences and speaking to a minimum to be able to spend more time with family and friends; Mimi had one ladies retreat over a weekend, and Cal had about three presentations at the medical schools in Denver, but that was it. We entered Rwanda with 6 pieces of luggage for the two of us – some new clothes to accommodate our weight loss, lots of chocolate chips and other food items not available here, a rechargeable drill and bits for orthopedic surgery in one of the district hospitals, and a bunch of soccer balls donated by a friend who knew how much they meant to the young village boys here!
You may have noticed on Facebook that while we were in the U.S., another 2 couples from our church family, Dan and Rochelle Van Ryn and Jim and Carol Matthews, were taking our place in Rwanda. We spent a full day listening to their stories when we returned – stories of taking in Rwandans and expats alike, stories of amazing survival during the genocide, and stories of tragedy, like a young boy suffering from the consequences of severe burns on his face and chest several years earlier. We came back to a house that was squeaky clean, with new lights installed in the kitchen, everything working beautifully, and a very contented household staff. We could not express enough gratitude for their sacrificial work while we were gone!
As the Van Ryns and Matthews have commented, the intensity and pace of relationships here is almost dizzying. Just a few highlights:
- We just finished hosting a visiting Danish Family Physician for a week, who was very interested in setting up a program in Denmark to recruit Danish family physicians to help with the teaching here. He was delighted with absolutely everything, encouraged us unceasingly, and generally won over everyone with whom he met. We have no idea where this will lead, but his enthusiasm was well worth the visit!
- John, a 19 year old orphan that has helped with the housework, gardening, and ironing to earn some money for his rent and food, had been given a government merit scholarship to attend university, where he wants to study computer technology. However, he has to pay his own room and board in a town distant from Kigali. When he was asked how he might do this, he said that he had decided he could offer to cut hair for the students, at $0.54 per haircut. Already thinking of business marketing, he wanted to buy not only electric hair clippers, but a radio which would draw in the students, and a chair for them to sit on. A local friend working for a U.S. non-profit donated the $180 for the first semester room and board, we provided some funds to purchase the hair clippers, radio, and chair, and Mimi provided a sheet to drape around the clients neck for the haircut. We just sent him off to University 2 days ago.
- Theo, our 24 year old gardener who is also an orphan, has been thinking seriously about looking for a wife. He has been developing a relationship with a beautiful fellow university student (both study evenings), and asked if he could bring her over for us for “Mommi and “Daddi” to “look her over”! Mimi set up a light tea with her best china and tablecloth on a small table in our garden, and Theo formally presented a very nervous but delightful Monica. Theo opened the conversation very directly – “This is Monica; do you think I should marry her?” After some conversation and finding her to not only be very capable but a woman of faith as well, we were able to affirm that they appeared to be very well matched. Neither could get the grins off their faces! The one sticking point appears to now be the bride price – Monica’s family is asking Theo for 3 cows, while Theo has estimated that it will take him a year to be able to purchase just the first cow! Stay tuned – will love win out over the cows???
- We were at the airport yesterday to pick up a very long-standing friend and colleague and his wife visiting from Albuquerque, NM. While we were waiting, a woman who operates a home for abandoned and orphaned children here (and for whom Cal had done some medical consultation a few years back) greeted us. She had been trying to go home to the U.S. for the holidays, but had been denied passage at immigration because her visa had unknowingly expired 6 months before. Mimi immediately invited her to stay with us in Kigali while she got this sorted out, and this has become a memorable experience. She is a retired electronics worker and teacher who is now 80 years old, has 15 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren, and has single-handedly carved out a home for 44 children in the Rwandan countryside over the past several years. She had built a primary school for her children and the surrounding community, is currently developing a water system that will also serve the surrounding community, and is obviously thriving here!
Well, that’s all the news from Lake Kivu, where all the men are strong, the women even stronger, and the children definitely above average, at least in the adorable category!
Our Rwandan House Staff (Courtesty of Rochelle Van Ryn!)
