Bisoke, Pyrethrum and other wonders

Burera pictures

1. My kitchen

2. My yellow house

3. My house and mosque

4. Christine at the lake

5. the lake

I have some small moments to share.

Indahekana is a Kinya word that does not easily translate to English. It means “when the elder baby can’t hold her/his sister/brother because there is a very short time between them.” This is the case with Bernard, my caring colleague whose wife, also a colleague, just had her third child last weekend. The baby girl is a perfect as a baby can be and she will be named at the Kwita Izina (naming ceremony) in a few weeks. Her three year old brother, Prince, was absolutely terrified of me the first time he saw me and wouldn’t even enter the same room as me. On my most recent visit, he did an elaborate dance of avoiding me until I pulled out my ultimate weapon: cookies. Then he did an elaborate dance of pure happiness. He told me, “thank you and God bless you.” Those were the first words he’d said to me. Prince has big, beautiful eyes that seem older than his body. He was wearing a Chicago Bulls jersey.

On our hike on Saturday, some men greeted me in French and Christine said, “ah, they don’t know that you are Rwandese.”

new times

I finally went to visit my neighbors. I’d been playing tic-tac-toe all morning with the kids. The mother was a tough woman, the kind whose respect you must earn. I appreciated that about it. A dirt poor widow because she feeds four on a teacher’s salary, she still went out and bought me a Coke. Then opened it with her teeth. Tough as nails, that one. You should’ve seen what the caffeine and sugar did to the quiet, bashful five year old. It made me realize how much caffeine and sugar American children have in their diet everyday.
I’ve been in my new home for a few days now. I have felt comfortable from the get go but I have taken my time getting to know people and the area. I guess I just enjoy the solitude of the New Year in a new place. People up north are different than the people from the southern province, especially in their greetings and how they treat strangers. My Kinyarwanda is coming along but I have to admit, I love my novice level because there is nothing I love more than sitting and observing. Under the guise of non-comprehension, I can do that for hours when visit people. There is no pressure to talk but absolute receptiveness when I do. Especially when I say something funny like “I’m not a drunkard.”
Burera district is part of a terracing demonstration project so every umudugudu (or small town) has it’s own “agasozi ndatwa”, which is a demonstration project of how to properly terrace the steep hills of the North. It took us a long time to translate agasozi ndatwa but I’m glad we did. I like the idea. The north is very mountainous, cold, beautiful and somewhat forested. Our hike last weekend to Lake Burera was up and down, up and down and then up some more.
More to come. No teaching yet. Lots of cooking. If you have ideas for “one pot recipes”, send ‘em my way!
New address:
E.S. Kirambo
B.P. 219
Ruhengeri
Rwanda