I Saw…

I saw this video for the first time today, and its such a perfect song for me to say goodbye to Rwanda.  Yes, after one full year, tomorrow I get on a bus and leave the Land of a Thousand Hills.  And as the song portrays, I have seen, felt, learnt, appreciated and loved so much in the past year.  I’m struggling to pinpoint my feelings and emotions of this goodbye.  The last year of my life has been one of immense joy, happiness, sorrow, frustration and humility.  If you have talked to me recently, you know that I am indeed happy to leave, happy to open the next chapter.  At the same time, it is always difficult to say goodbye; difficult to know that you will never see a person who you have loved ever again.  This place, these people and the last year will hold a special place in my heart for the rest of my life.

I’ll save the rest of the sentiment for my journal.  Tomorrow   evening I get on a bus headed for Nairobi, where I will fly to meet a friend in Ethiopia, and then a friend in Tanzania, and hopefully I’ll continue to make friends and have new places to visit.  I have a backpack, a guidebook, a new pair of shoes and a terrible bout of wanderlust.  I hope Africa is as ready as I am.

Gatenga Olympics 2010

After both Chris and I received very generous donations and gifts from our friends and family at home, we decided that we needed a way to best use these things.  With the semester ending, I was brought back to the end of the school year at home to what was always my favorite day of the year – field day.

Chris and I spent an afternoon racking our brains and planning out games and events for our foyer boys.  Along with some friends at the center (and Chris’ brother, a first grade teacher) we organized a pretty fun day.  Maybe its because I have such fond memories of field day myself, but watching the boys enjoying themselves on our planned day will be one of my best memories of Rwanda.

We planned six events and had the boys split into six groups, but, as with everything here, we had to change the day, the time and   the number of events and teams.  So we were left with a soccer-juggling competition, basketball hot-shot, flag tag and Aerobe distance throw.  We also had a footrace and water balloon toss.

The boys had never seen an Aerobe before we handed it to them and asked them to compete with this foreign object.  While most didn’t really get the hang of it, the winners were throwing it past midfield on the soccer field.

This is our improvised flag tag game.  They are actually flag football belts, but they worked great for our improvised tag game.  Most contests ended with two boys dancing around each other in a circle going for the last flag on each others belt.Fidel is an actual FIFA referee, as well as a teacher here at our center.  He took his job of running the soccer juggle competition very seriously.  The winner juggled for 1 minute 36.45 seconds.  Exactly.When I was at Saber basketball camp in DeWitt in high school I never thought that the skills and games I was learning there would someday be useful in Africa, but I guess that’s how life works.  They caught on pretty quickly to the game and got very competitive.  I was the only one, however, to knock down the 15-point half-court shot.

The first annual Gatenga Banana Run was a huge success.  After we spent 15 minutes discussing the course, rules and procedures, we got under way.  Many still did not understand the “there and back” concept, and many more got tired and walked, but we had a couple good close finishes.

Put a Frisbee through the tire and win a piece of candy!

This was by far my favorite part of the day.  Again, after much explanation and discussion we got under way.  Having never seen or touched a water balloon makes it very difficult to throw and catch, but hilarious to watch!

THE BEN AND MEDDY ON THE RUN!!!

For all my vigilant, law-abiding friends on the other side of the Atlantic, I am sending you a plea on behalf of all Rwandans.  Deliever The Ben and Meddy back to us!

The solo-artist pop stars, who are the craze and all the rage in Rwanda recently went on a government-sponsored trip to Washington and mysteriously disappeared.  Rumors are circulated the two duo are trying to secure an international record deal and were searching in Boston before escaping to Canada.  Just to be safe, if they are still in the US, I need your help.

If you see either of these two uniform-looking men singing a song sounding something like “A karam ata” or something similar, please notify your local law enforcement agency.  They have likely not changed their appearance, as every Rwandan man has the same hair and dress style.  Furthermore, they can likely be heard saying some Kinyarwanda-English slang words awkwardly in public, such  as “Fresh” (pronounced Fresh-EE), “Power” (pronounced POW-A) and “V.I.P.” (prnounced Vee-Pee).

I have fond memories of both of these men, as I have sang along and danced at many events where they have performed.  I just know Rwanda won’t be the same without them.  Please, help us.

Article from the New Times:

http://newtimes.co.rw/index.php?issue=14341&article=32059

Family Vacation

After a month of spending much time with my family I have finally caught up on my work and have gotten back into the blog scene.

The first order of business is to say THANK YOU!  I was astonished how quickly the Amazon wish list filled up, and couldn’t believe all the stuff that my family brought me when they visited last month.  These things are helpful in so many ways, and we will never know the impact that one basketball, for example, can have on the lives of children, but I promise this diversion from poverty and street life is invaluable.

Please, don’t be humble and let me know what you ordered from the wish list, I would very much like to thank you personally, these small purchases have been very moving for me.

As mentioned, my family was recently visiting Africa.  Chad and I spent two weeks between hiking volcanoes in Rwanda and trying our hand at rafting the Nile River in Uganda.  Turns out both of these were fairly challenging tasks, but I’ll assert that we prevailed.  Between these we also spent quite a bit of time around the center doing a little bit of farm work, traveling to Lake Muhazi with the boys and schooling some kids in basketball (after we put the new nets on the rims Chad decided the court was worthy for his presence).  To speak for him I think he enjoyed his experience and learned quite a bit, including a very important crash course in African English.

My parents then arrived to finally unite the Lincolns after a 9 month separation.  After the jubilation of reuniting with their sons, we got to work exploring Rwanda, visiting a rustic lake house and hiking to a waterfall, a couple genocide memorials, Kigali, and hiking in Rwanda’s rain forest.  We had some problems with bathroom facilities, modes of transportation and an absence of Diet Coke, but I think the Primus beer, brochette snacks and eat-with-your-hands tilapia made it an overall wash.

After doing everything we could in a week in Rwanda we flew into Kenya for an amazing safari.  We visited three parks (Masai Mara, Nakuru, Amboseli) and saw simply amazing wildlife.  I won’t name everything we saw, but some of the highlights include; giraffe, lion, zebra, wildebeest, buffalo, cheetah, white rhino, hyena, flamingo, elephant, gazelle, antelope, topi, various monkeys, baboon, hippo and scores of other birds and animals.  Chad and I didn’t see our goal of a lion taking down a zebra, but we did see a pride of lionesses stalking a lone wildebeest (the wildebeest escaped) and a cheetah eating a wildebeest (although we didn’t see the kill).

Please forgive me for not having better pictures, and in fact incomplete pictures (Rwanda isn’t included) because I was letting my mother and amateur photographer take most of the photos with her flashy new camera (pun intended).  But don’t worry, I know she is already planning occasions to show off these pictures!

 

This is one of the 3000 elephants who reside in Amboseli.  He kindly posed in front of Mt. Kilimanjaro for me for this photo.

A parliament of giraffes in Maasai Mara.  Yes, two or more giraffes is technically a parliament, my new favorite thing about giraffes.

A heard of wildebeest making their annual migration from Tanzania to Kenya.

A pride of lions with three adult females and their 12 cubs, seen here playing in the road.

The African Buffalo.  Yes, he’s just as ugly as he looks in the photo.

 

So I look forward to personally sharing all my photos with my friends and family when I get home!  Which by the way, is getting nearer by the moment and I’m having one of those “oh crap where has the time gone? moments.  I’m leaving Rwanda in less than two months.  Not only are we leaving but the whole community is changing so there is very much a “pack it in” attitude at the center that I’m fighting hard to resist (its harder now that I have a date that our two “replacement” volunteers are coming in August).  But its still easy and satisfying for me to work and to be with the youth of the center – the reason I am here – so I’m soaking up every minute of my time with them!

A link/request from Uncle Tom

Uncle Tom is helping to organize a project to help get stuff to me in Rwanda. Here is a short message from him!

To the many friends and family of Mitch Lincoln:

Chad will soon be traveling to Rwanda to visit Mitch, and if interested, this is an opportunity for you to send Mitch care package items. The cost to send items via mail is very expensive but sending via checked luggage is reasonable, and delivery is more certain. I know many of you would like to support Mitch and this is your chance to do so without shipping costs (I will pay for any luggage charges). Below is a link to an Amazon.com wish list that contains items that Mitch has requested for himself and the center. You are welcomed and encouraged to forward this note to anybody who might be interested. Any item you purchase from the list will automatically be sent to my house. A group on facebook called “Let’s help Mitch’ has also been created. Ideally, items need to be ordered this week to allow for shipping time. Let’s show Mitch how much we care!

Peace and Love

Uncle Tom

The wishlist at Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/wishlist/1BHJC7YPTL74J

Foyer Life

For the genocide memorial week, Rwanda and notably Kigali, are pretty dull.  We took the opportunity to visit the Salesians’ lake house at Lake Muhazi and had an amazing time.  It was a much-needed vacation and I enjoyed much sleep, reading, eating and daily swimming.

We spent one day challenging nature (taking a break from the daily bags tournament) and had to both swim across the lake and also climb the giant hill by the house.  This is the view from the peak!

When we returned home vacation was immediately over, with school beginning and the student returning to live at the center.  Our director, Father Frans, suggested that we all take a stint living with the boys in the Foyer to see how life is there.  (You must pronounce foyer with a French accent to get the full effect, “foy-ay”).  I started in the room with the younger boys, aged around 10-15, and Chris started with the older guys, 15 and up.  The kids have a busy schedule, waking up at 5:30 and a day full of studying, school, study halls, manual work, sports and prayer.  By the time the lights are off at 9:45 I’m normally asleep before they are, and haven’t done half of what they have!

Being in the foyer has been a great experience so far (I have since moved upstairs with the older guys).  The kids love seeing us around and are often surprised to learn that we wanted to come live with them.  They can’t really understand why we would give up our comfortable living conditions and good meals to come live in a crammed room with 60 other people and eat the same thing for every meal.  But this type of experience, hanging out and trying to be a good friend/role model/guy to the boys is exactly why I came here, and I’m enjoying it greatly!

A table of the little guys at dinner.

Jean Bosco chowing down.  Most of the little kids eat more than I can at dinner, yet all of them are super skinny.

 

“Kahunga na Ibishimbo” (Corn meal and beans) is the staple at Gatenga.  Its not bad, but eating it for every meal gets a little old.  On Sunday and Wednesday nights they boys get rice instead of kahunga (a great improvement) and Friday night is the real treat with the “Matoke” (bland banana) substitution.  It is best eaten with the fingers, but sometimes I do slip a spoon in my pocket.

The boys, especially the smaller ones, crave male attention, and, as all young boys, prefer this attention in the form of fighting, laughing, throwing and spinning.

In the Salesian tradition, every night before bed the boys get an evening talk, or a “goodnight.”  I have been put into the rotation and give the goodnight every couple weeks.  Last week I let the boys style my hair (they are fascinated by it) and incorporated a moral lesson.  Octavian on my right is translating my English and attempted French into Kinrywanda.

I Have Seen the Bodies

Last week was Genocide Memorial Week in Rwanda, commemorating the nearly one million people killed here in 1994.  Normally when I think about the genocide it is in terms of how it affects life here today, like how a child with no parents has a poor chance at going to school, or how the government uses the genocide for political means.  Genocide is part of history, and a fact of life that one can become callous to, if not careful.  Occasionally, however, I am reminded of the personal tragedy of genocide,  meeting a boy who has seen his parents killed, or talking with a friend who has literally, no family.  Another such instance is when I visit a genocide memorial.  There is a particularly strong memorial outside Kigali where thousands were killed in a church.  They have the bones on display and the clothing of all the victims is hung from the rafters, giving genocide a very personal touch.   Another such memorial is in Murambi, in the southern part of Rwanda.  I visited this memorial in February and have decided to share my journal entry for that day.  I’ve debated whether or not to do this, but I feel I can share some of my most private thoughts and emotions for the sake of demonstrating the horrors of genocide.  Be warned, this post was written in a time of strong emotion and contains some vulgar subject matter and some of my most pessimistic thoughts.  It is titled:

“I Have Seen the Bodies”

February 21, 2010

The only thing I want to write is the phrase that keeps running through my head “we’re all fucked up, we’re all fucked up…”   Today I visited the Murambi Memorial Site.  This is where the French Army set up a base in 1994 and where 50,000 Rwandans fled to for protection.  Then the French Army left, leaving sitting targets of 50,000 people to die.

FIFTY THOUSAND PEOPLE

The particularly unique part of this memorial is that they have calcified some of the bodies to preserve them.  Today I actually saw the bodies.

I have read stories, talked with survivors, seen the graves and even bones on display… but the bodies.  This was new.  Seeing small children’s bodies, I could see the small children who I greet on the walk to school every morning.  I could also identify the elderly women I sit behind in church every Sunday.  Literally putting faces on the victims, as expected, evoked strong emotions: sadness, pity, guilt… Mostly though, I am angry.  Angry at the individual who could kill an infant, angry at the French and the rest of the world who bailed out, angry at a social-political system that could allow this situation to develop, angry at humanity.  What kind of fucking animals are we?

I like to believe that human beings are good, but today may have totally fucked my view on humanity.  I got queasy killing a cow last week and they have the stomach (and the balls) to kill 50,000 people?  I understand killing in a moment of rage, killing an individual who has wronged you or killing in defense.  But killing a race?    Killing for days?  What’s it like to take a lunch break from killing people with machetes?  Killing babies?  Killing elderly women?

I’m absolutely mortified that a member of my own race, someone with a similar DNA pattern to mine, can hack off the head of a small child that they have never seen before.  Does this ability exist in the darkest depths of my own self and every human?

Politics, sociology or psychology aside, I’m afraid for humanity.

We’re all fucked up.