Things that make me smile

So men here that are good friends (of all ages) will often walk along holding hands.  As an American male (from Texas no less) that is always a bit startling to see – particularly when it’s two 20 something guys that look like they could play football for UT.  Anyway, I know I’m now a local in Rwanda, but to my two business partners, Dano and Carter, if you are reading this – I’m not ready.

Dano and Jennifer recently welcomed (two months back) their new adopted Rwandan son, Nathanael, into their family and the larger Karisimbi Partners clan.  Last month they had a traditional Rwandan naming ceremony celebration at their house and it spontaneously turned into a dance party with the local neighborhood kids who had been invited to attend.  Here’s a snippet of us getting down..

Neighborhood Dance Party

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It was a great time and its exciting to know that one of the many orphans now has a great home and family.  Kristen continues to go twice a week to the orphanage here in town (Home of Hope) to volunteer and spend time playing with the kids.  As a family we go out to a branch of the orphanage (Home of Joy) that is about two hours outside of Kigali towards Tanzania, to spend time with the special boys that we have gotten to know over the past many months and who were moved from the Kigali orphanage out to this one in Kibungo.  According to the Sisters there, we are pretty much the only visitors that come out there, so we love the opportunity to hang out with the kids and just play.  Our own kids have their special guys they link up with and always want to just pile them in the car and bring them on home with us.  We were out there yesterday and all the boys were lined up getting their heads shaved.  It was pretty amusing.

Closer to home, there are three orphan girls that are regular visitors at our house as they live just down the road in a shanty town.  The girls come several times a week and lay down outside the wall so they can yell “Kristina!!” over and over under the gate until Kristen comes to let them in. For whatever reason they just can’t say Kristen – it has to be “Kristina” so at this point we just go with it. 

Simbi (2) Chantal (12) and Dina (4)

 They are looked after by their aunt, who has HIV and is rarely able to find work.  It is a very, very difficult situation and Kristen has gone to see them where they stay.  It is a mud wall room about the size of a large closet with no windows.  The girls, Chantal (12), Dina (4), and Simbi (2) stay there with the aunt and the aunt’s uncle who is also very sick and unemployed.  They sleep five in a row on the floor.  When Kristen was there, the older uncle asked Chantal (who speaks passable English due to an NGO American school that used to be in the area) to translate for Kristen to “ take Chantal home with us to America, as they didn’t want her and couldn’t feed here anymore”.  Imagine being told to deliver that message about yourself. 

Kristen let them know that we live here and were not going back to America, and that Chantal was a bright and special girl that had a great future ahead if she continued to go to school.  We have been able to help cover Chantal’s school fees and uniform costs, etc to ensure she could continue to attend school, and we are very proud of her.  She is very smart and ranked second in her class. 

She likes to read with Kristen and our kids, and one of the books Kristen provides is a children’s picture bible.  When Kristen asked Chantal which story she would like to read, Chantal slowly looked through the book and finally stopped at the story of Leah, which was titled – The Girl No One Wanted.  Heartbreaking.

The girls come by to play, and read, and sometimes for food when they have none at home, and the aunt has come by for medicine when too sick to work.  It is a hard life – particularly for Chantal who is responsible for caring for the younger ones too.  Recently they were over at the house when I came home from a client meeting and little Simbi was running naked around the courtyard with one of our dishrags around her waist (when she wasn’t waving it over her head or leaving it behind on the ground).  Apparently they decided to wash her clothes in a tub and it turned into a full bath session.  I remember driving into the scene thinking – Is this legal??? I’ve got these random kids running naked around my house!!

Another funny pastime we’ve picked up is tracking the T-shirts on folks around Rwanda.  Countless second-hand clothes are donated to Africa and we enjoy seeing the funny scenarios that result.  When you are in one of the poorest countries in the world, you really understand that clothes are necessity and not luxury items, and of course, T-shirts from America mean nothing to many of the people here who don’t speak English.  So, here are some of my recent favorites:

• 18 year old guy wearing “World’s Best Grandma”
• Another Rwandan guy wearing “Kiss me I’m Irish”
• Roadside fruit vendor with a basket of avocados on her head wearing “Professional Princess”
• Another middle-aged man sporting “I Shop Til I Drop”

Last weekend we decided to head south with the Crocketts and Magruders to explore Kibuye, a small town on the shores of Lake Kivu.  It was spectacular.  It’s about two hours from Kigali and the views are amazing all along the drive.  As always the switchbacks and lack of guardrails around curves with steep drop offs are a bit scary – more so when cars try to pass on blind turns and you come around a corner facing a bus, etc…  We’ve seen some pretty awful accidents on these trips out of town.  But, we made it without incident and spent a great couple days swimming in the Lake and exploring the islands.  Here are a few pics that will give a feel for the area.  It feels really remote and untouched, and is like paradise. 

Kibuye, Rwanda Lake Kivu

On the water, Lake Kivu

We visited Napolean’s Hat Island, home to thousands and thousands of giant fruit bats.  We hiked up into the trees where they literally “hang out” and scared them into flight – it was an amazing spectacle.

Bats - BIG bats

Bats on Napolean's Hat Is. looking back at Kibuye

Bats getting closer

Dive bombers....

The lake was ours...

Ella and Marcet on Amahoro Island

Staple Rwandan cuisine - Brochette

Ava at Amahoro Island

Helping Weston lay claim to "Westonia" Island

King(s) of the Hill... all 30 ft of it.

Millipedes in Africa - watch where you step!

Carter and I traveled to Nairobi for a few days research earlier this month, talking with experts in the leather processing industry in Kenya.  I’m now informed enough to be dangerous with terms like “crust”, “wet blue” ”retanning” and “beamhouse.”  It was an interesting trip and will help us wrap on a major project we have undertaken related to a business here in Rwanda.  

Back in Kigali, work has been a series of ups and downs, highs and lows.  We were partners in a Rwandan Investment Forum put on by the Commonwealth this month as well, and that was another good opportunity to connect with businesses and leaders that have a real impact in the country.  We have some great work and projects going on, and then others that are consistently unpredictable.    In particular, we have had a disappointing time making progress with a tomato paste company that supports thousands of farmers throughout the country.  We’ve extended ourselves in every way we can to help this company restart on a new path, but it seems the investment and financing needed are not going to arrive soon enough to allow us to capitalize on the final and critical growing season this year.  It’s a tough blow after all the effort we’ve put into it, and more importantly, given the impact it has on so many people.  But, if there is one thing I’ve learned about life here and God’s timing – expect the unexpected.  So we’ll see! 

In some ways, we can already see how this could be a blessing, given that our work load and available time are in conflict, so perhaps this will allow us to stay balanced.     To that end, we have had a young 2008 Pepperdine business graduate, Travis Noland, join us here in Kigali, raising his own support to be here, and serving in the role of Business Analyst for Karisimbi Partners.  He will be a huge help to us managing all the research required in working with our various clients in many different sectors. 

Kristen ran in a 5K fun run today as a kick-off to the Kigali 1/2 and full Peace Marathon.  As usual, the event was on “Africa time”, and the runners stood in the sun at the starting line for over an hour past the start time…  But she had a good time running with a friend and we husbands cheered them across the finish line.  Then Kristen and I realized we were stuck with the Landcruiser inside the race barrier and had to drive (the only car to do so) in the middle of the marathoners to get ourselves out of the course.  Embarrassing to say the least!

Speaking of cars – the lastest adventure involved getting rear-ended by a big dump truck with Ella and Ava  in the back.  Fortunately the guy braked and it was relatively minor damage – just had to replace the spare tire cover.  Just another normal day  

I’m struck, as always, by how much (actually little) we really need - to be content and fulfilled.  One of the greatest things for me about being in Rwanda, is how important relationships are, how much joy is really tied to serving others, and how little importance “things” really have to happiness or fulfillment.  A young woman, Katie Davis, living and working in Uganda, who has adopted 15 girls herself, challenged readers of her blog to listen to a sermon series called “Radical” delivered by a pastor in Birmingham, AL named David Platt.  As a Christian they are really convicting and inspiring messages, and I highly recommend them.  They in turn remind me of several quotes by C.S. Lewis, one of my favorite authors, “God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.”  Also, “Nothing that you have not given away will ever be really yours.”  And lastly, “You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” 

All the best from Rwanda!  – G