Saying Goodbye

I'm now back in Georgia. I'm as surprised as most of you. It was not planned but because of some health issues, this is what I needed to do. It was so difficult to tell my family and the farm workers goodbye, eventhough I hope to see them soon.

I left on Friday so on Thursday night, I got together with the farm workers and my family. I had a little party with the farm workers and told all of them that I would be going home for a bit.

They were very surprised and 2 of them ran off and bought me a gift.

The hardest part was the goodbye to the girls in my family.

I was a bit teary eyed. I tried not to be too serious and have a good night. Family time lasted an extra hour as we said our goodbyes. I went around and told all the girls what "gifts" each of them gave to me in our time together. I have to say that I learned so much from them and that night it helped me to realize all those gifts.

My New Friends

I walked to the farm and found a mommy and 3 baby goats. I asked Salomon where they came from and he told me that he got them for me. I have been talking for months about how I want to have my own goats....what a wonderful surprise!!! They're so cute.

Attack of the Parasites...again

I started to feel bad on Wednesday. I know my body well enough that I can tell if something is wrong. I thought maybe I had amoebas again. On Thursday, I went to get a poop test at the clinic in the local village. The technician was able to find the results pretty fast. I don't have amoebas but 3 other types of parasites. The nurse at ASYV told me that I have a farm growing in my stomach with all types of plants and animals. So now I'm talking some pretty strong medicines to try and kill everything that's trying to invade my stomach...hopefully a healthy stomach will pervail!

While I was at the local clinic, I had a situation that made me think and question my role as a western living in Rwanda. I still don't know that best way to handle the situation. Even after living in Rwanda for a year, I'm always sure how to best deal with tough questions. Poverty is something that troubles many people here. I even have close friends that struggle with the hardships. I'm very thankful to ASYV for helping some of the poorest of the poor living in the local community to get jobs that allow their families to eat everyday and provide education for their children. The students at ASYV are not the only success story of the village...it's also the workers and the people they support. I've become close to the farm workers. Many of them are like family to me. I can see the positive impact the village has had on them and it makes me happy. To give a man a job, I have learned is one of the best things that you can do!

So now back to my encounter at the local clinic. I was paying for the parasite test when I was approached by a woman. The test costs the equivilent of less than a dollar. For me, this is something that I can easily pay. The woman took me to the side and began to speak to me in Kinyarwanda. I knew gist of what she was saying, but asked my friend who's the director of the clinic. She was explaining that she's poor and wants helping paying medical bills. I'm constantly asked for money. I never know how to react. I want to give to everyone but know it's not possible. I know that I can't solve all the problems in the world but I would like to try. I know this is just not possible. I struggle with the fact that I was born in a way that allows me to eat when I want and get the best medical attention when I need it. This is not the reality for some of my neighbors living in Rubona. How do you react to this? What's the best thing to do?

Happenings these Days

Here are somethings tha I have been doing these days:

Team Rwanda made it to the final for under 17 boys soccer. I went to the final with Burkina Faso with some friends and had a great time. We sat with the Rwandan fans and cheered so much. Unfortunetly they lost 2-1.

I attended a seminar where we were mapping the value chain for the poultry industry in Rwanda led by the UN's Food and Agriculure Organization. It was a great 2 days and I had the opportunity to meet all the leaders in Rwanda involved in chicken businesses.

I love spending time with the girls in my family. This was a great Sunday afternoon spent hanging out.

Mango Madness

These days, the girls in my family have been very stressed and have been experiencing some difficulties in our family. I'm been trying to spend some quality time with the girls and help them through this difficult time. Yesterday was Heroes Day in Rwanda. It's a national holiday in Rwanda when everyone remembers the heroes in their life. For Heroes Day, each family was to choose the student in the family that's the hero of the family. The goal of the morning was for each family to choose the person that they see as the best leader in the family and why. I decided to do something a little different with the girls in my family. We have no counselor and my house mother needed to take care of something. I took them on a walk.

I met up with the girls in my family after breakfast. We then moved to the flag pole behind the dining hall. There we talked about the plan for the walk. Before we left, I taught them a song in hebrew...Hine ma Tov. The meaning to the song is how good is it for us to be able to sit together. I thought that this was very signifigant for the family. They really enjoyed the song. We sang it with clapping and some sang na na. We then continued to walk. They walked in groups discussing first what it means to be a leader and then they talked about someone in their lives that's a good leader and a hero for them. Our walked ended at the secret mango trees behind the school. Everyone ate sooooo many mangos! It was awesome and the girls were so happy. Everyone had beautiful mango smiles will the mango strings stuck in their teeth!

The Power of the Sun

The village is installing solar powered lights! The most exciting part is that it’s generating lots of questions. As you know, my 2 favorite things to do are hanging out with my kids and spending time on the farm with the farm workers. I was working in the amashaza (my new favorite Kinyarwanda word which is peas) with 5 of the farm workers. They just installed one of the solar lights at the farm. As we were working, they asked many questions. They were asking if the light cost money. I explained that it is a onetime cost for the light but it doesn’t cost anything to run it. I explained to them how solar power works (thanks to my job at Teva!) and the power of the sun. I told them that the sun doesn’t ask us for any money and they thought it was funny. They asked if also use them in the United States. I explained about many of the technologies that are being used as alternatives to power plants. I talked about solar, hydroelectric, and windmills. The conversation turned to many other things. They had so many questions and were very interested to learn about these things. I told them about cars that are powered by vegetable oil. I told them that I have friends that go to restaurants, take the used oil from making french fries, and then turn it into something that can be used for fuel. It’s amazing how installing one light led to some many questions and such a great conversation. I think this is one of the best ways to learn by experiencing and then asking questions. Goooooo...SUN!!!!

Family Senghol with the Solar Panels

The Good Things in Life

These days I've been spending much of my time on the computer finishing reports from last year. I'm very close to finishing those reports and finally spending some good time on the farm. Yesterday was a fun day at the farm. I was taking the peas from their outer shell. It's a very theraputic task. I also spent some time in the chicken house. Today we're going to weigh 150 of the chickens. This should be interesting...I'm sure some funny pictures/movies will come out of it! Last Friday night we had a party with the farm workers...I think these nights will definitely be some of my best memories.
At the Farm Worker Dance Party
It's been so great to come back and be with the girls in my family. The counselor from my family is no longer here so I've been taking a larger role in my family. They are thinking so much more maturely this year. Last year in a family debate, they decided that there was no need for a student government. Now, they're wanting more of a voice in the village and keep coming up with great ideas.