31 October 2009
The last Saturday of every month, communities throughout Rwanda dedicate the morning to coming together and working on a development project. So today, while most of my friends at home were either still drinking or just passing out from another night of Halloween celebrations, I was one of 35 Americans, that I know of, spending Halloween helping to build a school in Africa.
There were maybe 400 people this morning, there to help build the "ishuri". It's hard to say if the Umuganda turn out is usually that large or if it was especially crowded today as many people may have come just to watch the Muzungus do some manual labor.
Goodness though, the group was pretty unbelievable.
Men wearing pin-stripe pants and suit jackets, prisoners dressed in their blue uniforms, military men carrying machine guns decked out in cameo, elderly men with canes, children with their Salvation Army t's, women sporting fancy shoes while others worked wearing long skirts, scarves around their heads and babies on their backs (babies on their backs!) - all working together, side by side this morning, to build a school for their children, and their children's children. To build a school for Rwanda's future plans, ensuring that every child gets 9 years of free, public school, education.
How is it that a country is able to get its citizens off their butts and outside to make change happen? Could you imagine if Obama started a program like Umuganda in the States? If one Saturday a month community members came together to build something or participate in some kind of development/clean-up project? While I think it could be really incredible (and some individuals do participate in volunteer programs), and could tighten the bonds of neighbors, I find it impossible to imagine. Why? Shoot, how many people never even leave their homes to vote on election day? How many Americans think that they are above doing some heavy lifting? How many Americans would even consider working side by side with prisoners to achieve a common goal? It's like how we walk down the street as if we're the only ones there. I am starting to see that Americans are so individually driven, that we often forget that we are actually a part of something much larger than ourselves. A community, a culture, a country.
That was exactly what I needed. I needed to wear my flannel and my rolled up jeans. I needed to get dirty and sweat and move Earth. I needed to learn how to carry a basket on my head and exhaust my swollen fingers carrying rice sacks and broken water jugs full of that red clay. I needed to do that because I COULD do that. I contributed to something today, I helped with something. My language teacher, Abel (I had a 2.5 hour private lesson with him yesterday) said to me "Nicole, you are strong. I see today that you are strong" - let me tell ya, that feels really good to hear for a person who has been feeling incredibly weak lately. Today gave me purpose. I know I have a purpose here (but it is often lost in the frustration of Kinyarwanda classes), but today, seeing the immediate results of our work, it made me feel good. It was a tangible, positive impact. It was awesome.
Now I am exhausted, but I know that after lunch today I have loads (literally) of laundry I will need to wash by hand, then hopefully I have a nap on my mattress that is all too thin coming my way and tonight - tonight we're bring a bit of American culture to Nyanza. Halloween 2009. I know it's a real stretch, but I think I'm going to be a hippie. Ha. I even have the hairy legs to make it extra authentic :)
Peace Out, Boy Scout.
ps if you write me or send anything (thank you in advance a million times over!!) but please be sure to keep those shipping suggestions in mind - pictures of Jesus on the box, excerpts from the bible, plant a "Sister" there in front of my name, don't say what's really in the package, maybe "religious books and magazines" would be a good alternative. All that jazz. Thanks again, so so much! <3
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