More than I can ask or imagine

I have arrived in Bujumbura, Burundi where I am staying with Bridget and her husband Zachee and son Tim. Yesterday we went to the beach on Lake Tanganyika. I felt like I had a bit of a holiday after the busy first week. I sat on the beach alone for awhile, soaking in the mountains and water. Buju is stunningly gorgeous and incredibly humid. We had supper at the hotel on the beach and then listened to some music. I also had the opportunity to meet some folks from Mennonite Central Committee. It was a lovely evening.

This morning we have met as a team to brief me on my time here. It now looks like I will indeed be here until mid-February. I have a good idea of what is expected of me. I will be assisting in many different ways with the workings of CAPI as well as giving sessions on grieving.

While I have a few minutes I do want to share my experience of going to Bulengo Camp while I was in Goma. The road to the camp is winding and full of potholes. We had already passed three other IDP camps en route. Some of CAPI's partners are involved with this particular one. As we made our way through the forested area near the camp, someone mentioned that the mounds of dirts were graves for people who had died in the camp. They pay a modest amount and then can bury their dead in this wooded area. From there we entered the camp and were greeted by children and adults. We made our way to a tent where we sat and were briefed on how the programs that the partners were assisting with were going. The programs were having some success but when people do not eat for days, it is difficult to keep focus. One woman was in charge of the rape trauma centre within the camp. She spoke of how the woman and girls were raped as they went in search of firewood. It is a story I am familiar with because of the paper that I had done on Darfur last year but now I was hearing it firsthand. Another man spoke of a carpentry program; a woman of a sewing program. Small successes in the context of huge hurdles.

I could not help but think of my work with the St. Ignatius refugee committee and how this experience has made it all the more real. To see miles of tents and shacks, a myriad of NGOs set up to assist the suffering people, and to hear the stories touched my heart. I can only now comprehend more fully what the families shared with our committee. The images will definitely remain with me and I believe there is a plan for me to return later this month or early February, perhaps to talk to the rape victims and see the other programs more.

This afternoon I go to Gitega with Elizabeth and then onto South Kivu. I had not expected to see so much of the countryside and the programs that CAPI is involved with but feedback from previous interns has allowed for some changes and I can see that this experience will be more than I have asked or imagined.

peace,

Suzanne

Keep those prayers coming!

Jambo! Salut! Hello! The languages here are varied. Kiswahili (which I am learning more of), French (which I am stumbling along in) and English (which I am grateful for).

I have been in Africa less than a week but it seems like a lifetime. The trip has been a whirlwind since I last logged on. I write from Kigali, Rwanda but the journey began in a crazy dash to Nairobi airport where we just made our flight. After clearing security we ran out to the runway but there was no one there to show us which plane to get on of the 15 or so parked. We chose one but it was on its way to Mombassa (an ocean city in Eastern Kenya). I joked to Elizabeth as we hurried back to the terminal that destination would not have been so bad and asked if she had packed her bathing suit. We did finally find the plane, parked around the corner and arrived in Kigali without futher incident.

From Kigali we headed to Goma, DRC for a few days where I was able to meet some of CAPI's partners. Goma has had huge destruction from a volcanic eruption and continues to rebuild. I also had the opportunity to visit an internally displaced person's camp near Goma. There are several and I will talk more about this heartwrenching experience in a later blog....suffice it to say in these six days I have seen hundreds of images of poverty and yet this one touched me most deeply, probably because of my time volunteering with refugees in Winnipeg.

We had a crazy time crossing the border into DRC as they had changed the rules about visas January 1 so we had a bit of a wait to say the least. However, I think your prayers are working so keep them coming!!! We did indeed get in, do some good work and I will live with these memories for a very long while. I was asked to lead a workshop to a group of partners on grieving--I cannot imagine that I had anything to say to these experts on that topic!!

I returned to Kigali last night and today I went to the Rwanda Memorial Centre. Most guidebooks and websites show a photo of the room where the skulls and bones of the victims of the genocide are kept. What I found even more heartwrenching was the room that held photos of the children who died--the skulls have no identity but these pictures tugged at my heart. Each photo is accompanied by some information about the child. The room has a caption "They could have been our national heroes." Each photo also explains how each child was murdered but I will spare you those details. After this I attended a women's forum follow up with some very dynamic women who are trying to bring healing to survivors of the genocide. Very fitting.

Tomorrow I fly to Bujumbura, Burundi with Elizabeth and Jacinta where we will meet Bridget, the third member of the CAPI team. From there I will go to South Kivu in the DRC. Can you tell that I am having the experience of a lifetime that many of you predicted? I am grateful....and as I said keep those prayers coming--I will need them.

peace,

Suzanne

Be Careful!! Asante!

Hello Everyone!

Thank you so much for the many messages. I am using someone else's internet card so this will be another short post. I have disconnected from the internet as I type and I hope this will work. I am still learning my way around this technology. I cannot respond to everyone right now and the blog will be the easiest way to stay in touch. Do know that I appreciate the messages though. Also know that I am quite happy to NOT be in -41 weather!!

I am fairly rested although this morning I awoke at 2:30 am and had some trouble falling asleep. I am sure my internal clock will readjust eventually. Everyone here is so gracious and I have been welcomed generously. Asante is thank you and Karibu is welcome. I have heard both phrases often here and I am sure I will become a more gracious person by the end of my time here. I find myself saying asante many times in a day.

I have been lucky enough to get to mass yesterday and today--the mass is at 7:00 am and is only a short walk from the Catholic Guest House (Tumaini House). Today the pastor's message was on the Gospel of Mark 6:45-52 and seemed so pertinent to my journey as I prepare to leave for the IDP camp. The reading is the feeding of the fishes and loaves (my friend Liz in MPLS called me a fisher of people when I saw her) and I got a new spin on it from the homily. The priest talked about how the people were being organized into groups of 50s and 100s and when we organize we must be careful. We must make sure that we do not only want to give but that we are ready to receive as well. That everyone has something to give and everyone has something to receive and in this way we are all blessed. How beautiful. I will be careful in this regard--not that I don't realize that I have much to receive from this experience.

A funny story: yesterday I tried to take a shower but could only get ice cold water....oh, well, since it is not 40 below here I dived under and braved the cold! Later I found out there is a switch that turns the hot water on so this morning I relished the warmth. Live and learn. It won't be the last lesson I have.

Yesterday the staff oriented me to the work that they do. They have many good projects of which I will write more about as I see them. The staff prayed with me yesterday and I feel well protected in that regard. Elizabeth not only works for CAPI but she is a pastor and I think she can move mountains with her words.

The next four weeks will be a French immersion for me. Hopefully I manage somewhat. I have found out that I will be returning to Nairobi January 31 so that is earlier than I had expected.

CAPI is part of a gated compound that has a school so as I sit here I hear the laughter of many children as they are on break. Apparently one of the women who works elsewhere within the compound has some ties to one of the Deaf Schools. I will meet her upon my return in February. I will have much more to say but for now I should end since I do not want to use too much time here on this card.

Asante for your prayers, thoughts and good wishes. I can already tell that this will indeed be the experience of a lifetime.

peace,

Suzanne

Safe Arrival

Hello everyone,

I have arrived safely here in Nairobi and have been treated graciously by the CAPI staff and all that I have met. I am sitting in the trailer where CAPI has their office, well-rested and a little hot (well, sweating, actually--sorry Winnipegers!). Tomorrow night we fly to Kigali, Rwanda and then the next day head to Goma, DRC to an internally displaced persons camp and to visit some projects there. On January 12 I go to Bujumbura, Burundi and will probably have time to say more there.

peace,

Suzanne

Be the Change

It is hard to believe that in 24 hours I will be in Minneapolis, the first leg of the journey. Three fabulous friends will be spending part of the lay over with me, women who have helped to shape me and who are associated with my days in St. Paul, MN when I trained to be an ASL-English interpreter. I cannot wait to see them and think it is a terrific way to start my journey.

I have lots to be thankful for as I leave. I have listened to Josh Groban's Thankful several times in preparation for my departure. The words are powerful and part of it must be from Gandhi's famous quote and that is what I take with me:

It's up to us to be the change
And even though we all can still do more
There's so much to be thankful for.

Yesterday 2009 began and I found a few moments in the day to be still. To sit, for perhaps a final time this season, in front of the Christmas tree and come before the baby Jesus. I imagined holding the baby in my arms and as I sat in meditation with this image, I saw the faces of Africans: a boy with a fly on his forehead, a woman wrapped in colourful apparel, a rebel, a peacekeeper, a soldier in fatigues. I realized that Christ is in all these humans and I will encounter Him in a variety of people as I journey. Maybe that is what Groban means in this verse:

Even with our differences
There is a place we're all connected
Each of us can find each other's light

The latest that I know is still the same as the other post with these additions. One of the CAPI staff will meet me at the airport on Sunday night and bring me to the guest house where I will recover from jet lag. We will leave for Goma, DRC for a brief stay and make our way, via Rwanda, to Bujumbura, Burundi by January 12th where I will be for a few weeks.

I do have lots to be thankful for....especially to those of you reading this who have promised to pray for me and who have been so supportive over the past few months as I have prepared to depart.

blessings upon 2009,

Suzanne

The Angel's Promise

"You will find Him" promises the angel to the shepherds. These words from a Christmas meditation rang in my heart. I will find Him; this I know is true. On this African adventure, I will encounter Christ, but like the shepherds, I must be ready and awake. I must be ready to see the extraordinary in the ordinary.

Christmas is over for another year. I hardly shopped and I felt quite out of sync with that part of the season. However, I did receive much more than I imagined. People in my life have been exceedingly generous with gifts and prayers and I am grateful to the point of being overwhelmed with emotion at times. Sometimes it is simply the gift of a kind word of encouragement, like today after mass, when one of the women who attends regularly, whose name I do not even know, came to speak a blessing on my journey. I feel so fortunate.

I have discovered a little about my itinerary. I will have January 5 to recover from my jet lag at the guest house near the CAPI office. On January 6, two of the CAPI staff and I will make our way to Goma, DRC, via Kigali, Rwanda. CAPI works with internally displaced people in camps and assists with monitoring and supporting women-specific activities in the Goma Relief and Conflict Transformation program, including bereavement training and counseling. They also have a training program entitled Alternatives to Violence (AVP) for community members there. CAPI works with prisoners, demobilized youth, and ex-combatants. I am so impressed with all the programs that CAPI participates in and cannot wait to see how they run when I am there.

From Goma, we return to Rwanda and then on to Burundi where I will remain to assist in setting up a new CAPI extension office in Bujumbura. I have been communicating with a man named Lucky who is involved in the Deaf Community there and who (lucky for me) speaks English. He will introduce me to the Executive Director of the Deaf Community in Burundi. I also have some connections to the Deaf Community in Nairobi which will also be fabulous. Lucky sent me an email in response to asking him what he loved most about Bujumbura. He says that the area is very flat (so I should feel at home!) and on beautiful Lake Kivu. He does not like the weather which he complains is too hot. Well, even though Winnipeg is no longer -50 with a windchill, I am still thrilled to be going somewhere that has no snow and has more Suzanne-friendly temperatures.

Hope your holiday celebrations went well. For those who looked, I hope that you found Him this Christmas.

Peace to each of you.

Suzanne

Sunday of Joy

Today is the third Sunday of Advent--a day which marks great joy. We light the pink candle today on the Advent wreath. As I draw nearer to my departure date of January 3, I am filled with great joy and anticipation. There is lots to do between now and then and it will be easy to be distracted from those emotions. I am hoping that won't be the case.

I have been doing some nightly Advent readings. Friday night I read these words of L'Arche founder and wisdom speaker, Jean Vanier: "Celebration is a cry of joy, an acknowledgement that our lives are woven together; it is the joyful recognition that we are bonded together with one another as part of the same body....Celebration is a manifestation and a recalling of our deepest and most important values; it holds up and honours all those things in life that call us to unity and to love." Yesterday I was missioned by my pastor in the presence of my family, friends and fellow parishioners in such a celebration. I know some people are nervous about my trip and I thought it might help them to know that I would be sent off with God's and the church's blessing--blessings for peace, joy, grace, and protection. Yesterday also happened to be St. Lucy's feast day and I can only pray that this saint whose story involves light and vision would teach me to see with the eyes of Christ and to keep my sights on how the Light of Christ permeates this world, even in situations of great darkness.

I also felt it was important to be missioned to recognize the role that the church has had in my life. In the pews of St. Ignatius, I have been shaped and moulded. I heard the call of service and discerned that I should respond to the international beckonings of my heart. Catholics don't normally mission our parishioners; our Protestant brothers and sisters do this much better. However, I felt that a simple ceremony would bless not only me, but those who came. I turned out to be right. I have felt great peace and much joy in these last 24 hours. I also know that those who came were touched by what they experienced. They have begun this journey, which God has placed before us, with me.

I have just finished reading a novel entitled, "This Voice in My Heart: A Genocide Survivor's Story of Escape, Faith , and Forgiveness" by Gilbert Tuhabonye. Gilbert was the lone survivor of an attack by the Hutus on a secondary school in Burundi. He was beaten and badly burned as he hid under the corpses of his classmates as the school was torched. He survived the ordeal by escaping through a window and running away. He went on to compete for the Olympics. I am not sure how many people like Gilbert I will meet but I am sure that my heart will be touched by each story of survival that I do hear. One of the lines from the blessing yesterday was When you go out, may you see the face of Jesus in everyone you meet. I pray this is true. I hope I listen to each story and see in each one, the face of Christ.

Suzanne

The above photo taken by Barb Fawcett is from my missioning service. I am wearing a gift knit by our prayer shawl ministry.