Tuesday - Both Taylor & Sammie's updates, and Our update as well

From Taylor for Mrs. Cunningham's Class:

Everything has been fun here including seeing all the kids smiles. Today we finished up with the church and they gave us a bunch of beautiful handmade gifts. With the kids today we made crosses with pipe cleaners and I took tons of pictures of the children. Tomorrow we are going to Akagara Game Lodge to go on a Safari. I am looking forward to it and I'll take a lot of pictures of the animals to show you.
See you soon, Taylor

From Sammie for Mrs. Howie's Class:
Today I got to sleep in and normally I have to be there at 8:15. Everybody else went to the Genocide Memorial. A Genocide is like a war where a lot of people get killed. I slept in until 9:15. I swallowed my Maleria pills on my first try both times. After lunch at the Bourbon Cafe we went to teach to kids about Jesus and do a craft with them, like making a cross. My Mom played a game where it made it sound like it was raining and then it really DID start to rain. It started raining very hard after we helped the kids. It rained so hard that we had to go in the van! We saw this kid by the trunk and when it started pouring the little boy was still there, he looked drenched! And then we got to in the church and it was all dry. In the Church we got to sing a song, and the Pastor said goodbye and gave my sister and I little purses, and gave my Dad a beautiful carved wood with two praying hands, and they gave my Mom a basket. And at the end, everyone shaked hands and we all said goodbye and hugged each other very hard. If you had blond hair, like me, your hair would be touched a million times. After Church we went to pick up Caroline and Jade and then we went to a place called "New Cactus" for dinner. And they mostly serve pizza there. Then we went back to the hotel called "The Impala." Tomorrow we are going to the Akagara Hotel and there will be lots of animals there and a pool there. We might get to go in the pool, but it might be too dirty! The End. Sammie

The Final Day in Kigali...


As you can imagine today was very emotional, and action packed. It only takes a second to see from the updates the girls provided that we did a great many things.

The morning started with our group going to the Genocide Memorial to see how this city has remembered the 100 days of Genocide in Rwanda in 1994. It was a moving experience for the adults where the pictures of the victims on the walls, look very much like the people we've encountered during our time here. It also brought home the realization that there is an age gap very apparent here with the lack of teenagers. We also found out that 300,000 orphans were left behind in this country and many families that we met are not only raising their own children but many of these orphans as well.

After lunch we were able to do our final VBS (Vacation Bible School) with the children of the church. It was an action packed hour of songs, stories and crafts. From the end of the hour hugs and smiles it was apparent that they loved our time with them as much as we loved being there.

The children were they ushered away so Amanda and I could meet with the Women of the church (they are considered women because they are married). Eric attended this one hour meeting with us to show support, while John waited out the rainstorm in the van with our children. The women asked us what advice we had for them because they felt many burdens. We did our best to encourage them as women, not as Rwandan women. We counselled them to really try and talk with their husbands, create a partnership were responsibilities for child-rearing were shared, where they prayed about their needs, and continued to be loving to their families. Our message must have really struck a cord because at the end of the hour the women were crying and hugging us over and over. They made Amanda and I a traditional smock to wear as a thank you gift. It was an emotional hour to say the least, but one I will never forget. I don't feel like any sort of expert. My world is so different from there's. The only differences I felt were in distance because their needs emotionally are the same as mine. They put us on a pedestal that felt so overwhelming...

Lastly, Pastor Osee held a special church service to say thank you to our families. There was singing, dancing, praying, and many tears. Pastor Osee was a difficult man to read, however it was obvious today that we were an answered prayer to him. He cried very hard, and hugged us closely. This is NOT typical for a Rwandan man. I don't think I've ever felt so appreciated in my life, and in my mind all I did was show up! Maybe that's the lesson in this whole experience, showing up in another person's life may be exactly the blessing they need. In the bible it says you will be blessed to be a blessing to others. This certainly is how I feel. Many gifts were exchanged at the end of the service, many hugs and joyful tears. Words barely suffice to explain how I feel today.

At dinner John, Amanda, Eric and I recapped our time of Mission with the church and relaxed a bit. We laughed so hard thinking of all the obstacles we overcame along the way to Rwanda, but they didn't stop us from getting here. Tomorrow we shall travel to the Akagera Game Lodge to write our report for Saddleback, go on a few "game drives" to see the African animals, and soak in this experience.

Thank you for following us on our journey. Talk to you tomorrow!

Kelly