Turi Kumwe!!!
July 31st, 2009 by Abby PetersonIn Kinyarwanda Turi Kumwe means “we are all together” and it has kind of been our slogan here. I’m very sorry that I havn’t updated in so long but I have just been so busy! I will try to sum up the last week. Ashley my roommate went home this last Tuesday and on Monday all the volunteers went to visit her orphanage ( E.D.D.) because they had a big going away setup for her. We got there in the afternoon and they played a game of football, or soccer back home, which was the students against staff and they named it the ashley cupp. It was awesome to watch! Plus I had a really strong connection with the kids at e.d.d and fell in love with them immediatley so I had an awesome time watching the game with them! Overall it was an amazing night and I’m lucky to have met the staff and children at e.d.d and hopefully will find time to visit them as soon as possible! Wednesday Janna had some of her students come over and hangout at the house and one of the girls really hit me hard. Her name is Jean Vierre, she is fourteen and has aids. Her mother was raped during the genocide and because of aids died a few years back, so now Jean Vierre is struggling with her disease and living alone. She asked Kevin and I to pray over her, so of course we did and she just started crying afterwards and I held her for the longest time while she cried and she kept asking if she was going to be ok. It was no doubt the hardest thing I have ever had to experience, and knowing that after these two weeks here I will never be able to hear from her again kills me. It’s the first time I have felt that I would give anything to help this girl but I can’t and it just tears me apart! I know that I can pray for her and spend time with her now but hopefully I will find a way to do more. Enough sad stuff! I have been going into work early to help the kids peel potatoes which I love! They get a huge kick out of a mazungu peeling potatoes but they love it too! A monkey ran through the orphanage the other day which was a new fun experience! I have also found a few shops and resteraunts that are little hole in the wall places which are fun to go to in my spare time. Other than that we are getting five or six new volunteers the next couple of days so I’m sure it will bring some new experiences as well, but I have four minutes left online so I better get going. I promise to update soon!
ps. if willing please pray for Jean Vierre!
Imana Iguhe Umugisha! (may god bless you)

