Random Thoughts of a Geek in Rwanda

Why? Today I had lunch with a man who buried 26 immediate family members in his front yard, but he genuinely forgave each murderer, and today lives a joyful life. His precious wife was giving birth in Kigali in a hospital during the Genocide in May 1994, the same month and year my son Nathan was born.

Yesterday I visited a man in prison who's wife was killed with a machete 10 meters away from him, a few minutes after his daddy was also killed because he was protecting a certain ethnic group from sure death. When I showed him a photo of his wife, he broke down and cried.

Wednesday this week, I held a dear friend in my arms while he wept like a baby. His breathing was very irregular. I held him tight… afraid he was going to die from emotional pain. His painful grip on my arms brought intensity to my fear, then his whole body went limp, and his crying stopped. His eyes glossed over, and he rocked himself. He kept saying “I could not save them, there was nothing I could do!” (speaking of his older sisters) Then he told me that his wife was poisoned in 2000 because she had witnessed the men who had killed her family, she was the mother of his first 2 children. He told me that he is afraid each time he leaves his new wife and two additional children to come work here in Kigali. I asked him if he knew the people who killed his wife. He said yes, but he forgave them.

It is amazing how true the saying “Out of sight, Out of mind” is.

I spoke with a man who works for me who tried to hide in a hospital guarded by UN officers in 1994. While he was hiding, a rocket struck the hospital, killing 46 people right next to him. He was weeping while he told me the story.

My son Michael said to me the other day, “Dad, what could possibly ever make a human do these horrible things to another human being?”

I met a woman with a 2 year old boy begging in the streets of Kigali on Tuesday. I was looking for a new water filter system for our home. I was parked and as she approached me, she was desperately rubbing her belly and the belly of her son. I tried to wave her off, and ignore her, but she was very persistent. She even waved her hand in front of my windshield, almost saying “come on Mr., you know you could help me!” With hand motions she said they both stay awake at night because of empty stomachs. I saw a woman with bananas on her head, selling them along side the street. I asked her to come over and was ready to purchase them for the lady. The beggar looked at me confused. I asked her if she had been eating too many bananas. She said yes. I asked her if she had money for food right then, what would she buy. She said rice, beans, potatoes, sugar, cooking oil, and eggs. I told her to wait in front of the store while we drove to a market to find her these special request items. I bought 5kg of rice, 5 kg of potatoes, some beans, sugar, green peppers, cooking oil, charcoal, and onions. I was so excited. When I came back she was gone. We asked where she went; people said she did not believe we would come back. I prayed God, please help me find her. Just as we were leaving town, she ran up to my truck…I said “Where did you go?” The food was so heavy; I could not lift it out the window to her. Her eyes got as big as saucers. I said this was directly from Jesus to her, and that he had not forgotten her name. I left her there, while she stood in shock, bags of food around her feet.

A close friend of mine had a baby boy back in Romeoville…I wish I could share his excitement and hold little Braham.

A recent hire at GFR told me that he had been tied to a tree and told he was about to be killed in ’94, and when he escaped; that the flight out of Kigali left horrific images in his memory. A stranger’s generosity in the form of a cup of porridge drives him to this day serve the poor.

I was shocked to see the news on Fox News.Com about Israel and Lebanon.

I made home made chocolate chip pancakes for lunch today. We actually had Baking Powder and Chocolate Chips!

This month, 3 NEW HOMES will be started for widows and orphans thanks to several GFR sponsors…

When I was shopping for a new Water Filter, a 1 liter Rubbermaid water container caught my eye…it was more like a personal container than the 1 gallon I have here. I asked the store owner how much…He said $57.00 dollars…I said ummmm….huh….no thanks. He came down to $52.00. I walked out.