So Long, Rwanda...for now

As we depart from Rwanda tomorrow, a surge of images swirl in my head. The beautiful rolling hills; the electric city streets of Kigali; but, mostly, the people. Like more Westerners, what we know of Rwanda is mostly dictated by the stories of the 1994 genocide. To this day, many countries who have suffered tragic events find it hard to show the world another side. Let's face it, it's hard to think of Vietnam without the images of the North-South war of the late 60s/early 70s. 

Nevertheless, Rwanda has emerged from the ashes of 15-years ago and is moving in a direction that is being closely watched by the international community. The path to forgiveness and reconciliation is being carved by the Rwandese people; and you can feel it. If anything I've learned on this trip is that you surely cannot believe you know a country and its people by simply watching TV or by viewing the move "Hotel Rwanda". This is the real deal and its people are at the heart of its rise to dignity.

In this photo, I share a moment with my new friend, Rodrigues. Thank-you, Rwanda. So long, for now.

Yo Yo Yo

In spending time with World Vision Canada in Rwanda, I've come to realize that life is full of ups and downs. The key seems to be living in the moment; being in the now. Our choices in life are directly related to our level of awareness. And as many people in Rwanda are living their daily lives in survivor-mode, the importance of those choices are truly magnified.

Here, I am enjoying the now by showing one of our sponsored children how to use a Yo-Yo. Another simple pleasure and beautiful moment to appreciate how lucky we are to live in Canada.

Joy to the World

How infectious is a smile? How simple and pure is it to share a tiny moment with another human being who understands your language without using words. How many times do we honestly try to make this connection in our daily lives? In Canada, we are so fortunate and blessed to bathe in abundance and opportunity; health, peace, security, education. Yet, at times, we may feel we are "struggling" to get by; to get through the day. We live in the future; always concerned about the things that we were taught to be important, when deep down, the genuine desire for peace-of-mind and connection pulls at our actual being.

Too deep? Maybe. But in visiting Rwanda and meeting some of its most vulnerable citizens, it has reminded me of the simple pleasures that I so take for granted. A smile; a laugh; a gesture of kindness; a connection with my humanity. How can that be a bad thing?

In this photo, Renuka makes one of those connections with Patrick (right) one of the sponsored children, and his big brother Eric. Can you feel it? 

Rock of Ages

There is no doubt in my mind that my good friend, Garth, will have quite the laugh at this photo! Today, we were assisting a sponsored family in the construction of their new home; a home that was paid for by World Vision Canada. We met the woman who would be living in the home and her story is unfortunately very familiar in the Nyamata area of Rwanda. She is a widow with three children; the fourth child just passed on July 26th of this year. Incredible strength and courage. 

As for me, moving around large rocks that will be used for the foundation and making mud bricks was all labour intensive and humbling. I've said it before: we have won the birth lottery in Canada! Freedom; resources; opportunity; safety; we have it all and more. I'd like to encourage you to start every day by simply asking yourself: "What am I grateful for?" I promise you, if you live in Canada, breathing fresh air, and taking a shower, then start with that.

Emotional Rescue

As a musician and big fan of the Rolling Stones, I'm certain that even Mick Jagger would have a tough time understanding the compassion and forgiveness that I personally witnessed while in Rwanda. In this photo with me is Narcisse (left) and Pascal (right). Both of these men are part of a reconciliation program administered by Rwanda Partners (www.rwandapartners.org) where victims and perpetrators of the 1994 genocide are brought together to reconcile and forgive so that the country can move forward with healing and live in peace. 

Narcisse was the man who murdered Pascal's pregnant wife during the killings of 1994. Through the long process of reconciliation and forgiveness, they have since become great friends and now spend much time together with each other and their families. I did not know how I was going to feel while sitting in the presence of Narcisse when I first learned of his story. It's hard to explain but I came to see him more as a human being like me than like a cold-blooded killer. Believe me, I am still struggling to understand. That's another part of the Journey to Rwanda.

This week we start building a new house for one of the sponsored families.

Love Beauty

Michael Beckwith describes God as "Love Beauty". He must have travelled to Rwanda. Another amazing day filled with sights and sounds that only the Land of A Thousand Hills can provide. We visited a local family effected by HIV-AIDS and their home that was built by generous Canadians. We experienced "A Day In The Life" of this family and participated in the daily activities that must happen in order to survive. After collecting firewood, fetching water, gathering feed for livestock, and preparing a meal, we learned very quickly how challenging it is to provide the necessities what we would call "the basics" in Canada. We truly are blessed to live in our great country!

This photo was taken by Renuka while we were visiting a farming cooperative. Yes, indeed, a picture is worth a thousand words.

Friendly Rwanda

Another full day of travelling around the Nyamata area of Rwanda visiting a number of newly sponsored children. We also had the opportunity to visit a couple of local businesses that have succeeded due the strong support of World Vision's micro-financing program. These success stories are proof that most people, including Rwandans, want a hand-up and not a hand-out.

While visiting the area where the small businesses are located, a local Rwandan girl could not get enough of Renuka and shadowed her throughout the afternoon. We first met her two days ago while visiting to the same area to meet one of the sponsored children. It was really amazing to see her light-up when she saw Renuka jump out of the van! We cannot say enough about the spirit and energy of the Rwandese!

Tomorrow, we spend the day experiencing "a day in the life" of one of the local families. We will also be visiting more of our sponsored children. Life truly is best spent in the "now".

Incredible Moment

Renuka and I travelled to meet our sponsored child, Gaudence, today. What an incredible moment! She's just so awesome. Her grandmother cares for her as the Mom passed 9-months ago while giving birth to Gaudence's baby sister. The grandmother also cares for Gaudence's 7-yr old brother. No word on the Dad.

The family was so unbelievably thankful for the sponsorship and more importantly for the personal visit. We've not been more humbled in our lives to think that we can create such joy and gratitude in another human being. It moves you beyond words.

We also been meeting other sponsored children and capturing the experience on video for our generous sponsors back in Canada. We promise you all that your funding has a life-changing effect on the families and communities.

The Rwanda people are just incredible in spirit. With each simple smile and hand-wave, their faces light up with beautiful smiles and gracious welcomes. We feel so fortunate to have these experiences instead of relying on media reports and hear-say to determine our opinions. The message is clear: don't believe everything you see or hear. Go out and live life and make up your own mind!

IF GOD EXISTS - HE/SHE SLEEPS IN RWANDA

What an unbelievable first day in Rwanda! The land of a thousand hills is also the land of a million smiles. We spent our first day in the rural area of Nyamata visiting several of our sponsored children with World Vision Canada. For those who have sponsored children in conjunction with our Journey to Rwanda, your generous involvement has truly changed lives; and it is simply magic to see it in person. We hope to meet each child in person and bring to you personal video to share the experience. So far, the only word I can find is "WOW"!

I also had the incredible experience of speaking with a local World Vision representative who shared her experience with me about the loss of her mother during the genocide in 1994. She spoke of how her neighbour, who knew the family very well, decide to participate by killing her Mom. She has since forgiven her perpetrator and goes on to tell that she chose to forgive so that she good live again in peace. Simply unbelievable. I plan to share these and other stories upon our return.

Tomorrow, we visit our sponsored child, Gaudence. This should prove emotional.

In this photo, I share a moment with Augustin and Claude who were both excited to have a visitor from Canada to connect on behalf of their sponsor. Their parents were just so thankful and happy to know that their children not only have a future, but now have hope. Can there be a better feeling?

Chat with you again, tomorrow!

ARRIVED IN RWANDA!

Renuka and I made it safely to Kigali after 26-hours of travel. VERY tired right now and off to bed. We will be in the field on Monday meeting some of the sponsored children with World Vision Canada.

Pictures and video to come soon!

For the record, we are 8-hours ahead of Calgary time (MTN).

SportsChek Got Balls!

Thanks to Chris and the guys at SportsChek in SE Calgary for purchasing 5 soccer balls and donating them for our trip to Rwanda with World Vision Canada.

We really appreciate your support and will be sure to get pictures & video of the boys in Rwanda kickin' it!

Thanks to Staples in Calgary

Thanks to Amanda Lee, Sales Manager with Staples at 130th Ave SE in Calgary, for donating coloured pencils for all the sponsored children that we will be meeting on our trip to Rwanda in August. We really appreciate the kind gesture. The kids will love them!

RED TV will be traveling to Rwanda with World Vision Canada in support of child-sponsorship.

Learn more at www.redtv.ca/rwanda

Hidden Faces of AIDS - World Vision

Wow! This is simply unreal. As a human being sharing this planet, I cannot sit by and watch this unfold. I refuse to measure my life by the size of my RRSP. C'mon Canada! Let's all play a small role in creating awareness and living with compassion for those that really need our help with AIDS.

Canada is the greatest country in the world. We won the birth lottery by living here. Please help share your blessings with just one other human being.

Thanks to World Vision Canada for doing great work.

Click here to watch video: http://tinyurl.com/lkdash

World Vision Sponsorship

I'm never surprised when musicians step up and want to help the world around us. Thank-you to the band Vagabond Blonde in Calgary who have decided to sponsor a child in Rwanda through World Vision Canada. The cool thing is that we will meet their sponsored child this month as RED TV travels to Rwanda!

There are many folks out there that like to bash celebrity musicians, such as Bono, for the great philanthropic work that they do when it comes to global issues such as extreme poverty. Thankfully, most musicians don't listen to the nay-sayers, anyway. I've yet to see a statue erected for a critic! 

And so the message of love and compassion is sent to Rwanda via a group of musicians in Calgary who may not be as famous as U2 but have chosen to speak with their actions and not with the cynicism of critics. I am so grateful to know the difference between talkers and doers. Artists truly are the lightning rods of action and change. Happy to be a fellow musician!

Doing What You Can

I received an inspiring email today from a distant cousin in Ontario. After hearing that we were soon traveling to Rwanda with World Vision Canada, my cousin sent an email saying that she and her husband wanted to help in their own way by offering a donation so that we may purchase local staple items for one of the families we will be visiting. 

This is what our Journey to Rwanda is all about: moving people to action. Whether it's sponsoring a child, donating resources, or simply creating awareness, we can all help someone today. Thank-you to Susan & Sheldon Sweeney for making the conscious effort to get involved. 

For everyone, making a difference is your decision; not your destiny.

Working On A Rwanda Dream

With our upcoming trip to Rwanda, I can't help but think about the number one question that I seem to be asking myself: Why? Life is such a journey; no fixed plan; no map of stone. Why do we do what we do? I'm really not sure. But I can say that being focused on helping other people seems to be a path to meaning and peace of mind.

As a big fan of the Boss, I plan to start using this song as an inspiration to remind myself that what I'm looking for is not "out there" but right here in me. So, when you ask me, "What are you working on?", you already know the answer! Working on a dream.