Onward to Gikomero!

We bounced up the mountain taking one precarious turn after another on a road that would test the axles on the best suburban SUV.  The views were breathtaking—literally, you didn’t want to look too far down the hillside that lacked any litigious-minded country’s guardrails.  Gasps of fear were quickly replaced with shouts of “Muraho” out to the window to women carrying water containers or stacks of firewood on their head with the elegance of runway models.  They would just as quickly break into big, beautiful, toothy smiles and waves back as we sped by.  The children were even more fascinated and stunned to see a vanful of ‘mizungus’ or white folk bouncing up the dirt road with the Bishop riding shotgun.  Ford quickly adopted the two-handed wave and would shout greetings out the back window with a big smile to delighted kids. 

While the day was packed with everything from climbing up a somewhat steep hillside to get to the mouth of the spring that is the source of the parish’s water project, to greeting hundreds of primary and secondary school children at the school next to the church, to dining in the home of Gikomero’s new pastor—my highlight was getting to spend time with women from the Mother’s Union.  I’d been looking forward to this chance to meet this group of women who are the hands and feet of ministry at this female dominated parish.

The women were a mix of young mothers, widows and grandmothers.   Their faces looked far younger than their years and it was hard to determine ages.  We sat down in the small chapel and pulled up benches to be able to just talk intimately with these lovely women.  We shared that we represent an equally diverse group of women from Raleigh who want to know what life is like for our sisters in Gikomero.  Through the effortless translation of the diocese administrator, Eugenie, we were able to share our hearts with one another with amazing ease.  Apart from the language barrier, it was as if we could have been any bible study group of women sharing testimonies of God’s faithfulness through the loss of a spouse, infertility, or struggle with depression.  All that was missing was the coffee.

Before we ended, Susan prayed for the group.  Then, we shared your gift of bags.  Their eyes lit up and smiles all around.  They were delighted that our church thought of them in this kind way.  We now have visible remdinders of the women we pray for in Gikomero—and when we return, we’ll share their photos and their stories with you in person.  For now, know that there are women on the top of a mountain in Rwanda!