Resting in the midst of unrest

A pretty road to sad memorials.

Bpeace took a day off . . .Richard went to church. Susan led a retail therapy expedition. Steve, Kate, Pat and her daughter Julie ran into Constance and her son Jason whose art talents continue to grow. Shopping ensued. Family holidays will be all Rwanda.

The afternoon brought the team to Nyamata and Ntarama, genocide memorial sites which provoke so much emotion that we leave it to our mind's eye and heart's beat to hold. We met a young man who was one of four survivors. He was nine years old and alone for many days in a church with thousands of his dead neighbors. What he witnessed and experienced is too much to be able to share. Today he lives with his grandmother and cousin and will attend University next year. He says telling his story gives him release. We hope he finds joy.

Readers may wonder why we do not mention the Congo conflict which rages a few hours from here . . . so politically complex and so emotional for Rwandans and Congolese that is is difficult to know where to begin. War-time horror is happening so near, while Kigali goes about its day to day life. But ethnic differences continue to fuel conflict in this region of the world. For many in the border regions reconciliation remains only a dream. Rwandans warily hope the country does not get drawn in. And toward that aim Bpeace continues our work. It's the only way we can do our part.

Steve and Kate tried to answer the call for a couples photo after a restorative evening at Indian Kazana. But the results were too vivid and we feared they would frighten future Bpeace visitors off. We think we will wait a few days when the fullness of our hearts will fill out the road wear wrinkles of 12 hour days.