This post features student writing.
From breathing in the scent of fresh jasmine to playing with children in the marketplace, this trip is off to a magical start. Rwanda, from what we have seen so far, is a flourishing country full of compassionate and hardworking people. I live in New York city so it was especially moving to have a complete stranger walk to us to the pharmacy. Where I am from, the most you’ll get is a vague point of the finger in (perhaps) the right direction. Here a young woman dropped what she was doing and led us to where we were going. My days here have been full of interactions much like these. Because of this, I have grown to feel very comfortable in Nyamata.
Today at 6:45, our group began with a breakfast of traditional Rwandan doughnuts (amandazi), of which we have all become very fond! We headed off on our walk to AVEH. At AVEH, we are working on three worthwhile projects: (1) Rebuilding their formerly smokey kitchen, (2) clearing a field of brush and creepers and (3) painting the exterior walls of the facility.
After a few hours of this labor, many of us transition to feeding the children. I was assigned to a young boy, Heaveny. He is two years old, but looks much younger than that. The nurses informed me that he has hydrocephaly, a condition where the head swells with excess fluid and slows his maturity.
Madeline held Heaveny as I spoon-fed him rice and beans. At first he was eager to eat as much as possible in as little time as possible. When he was finished chewing, he would be sure to let me know by tapping his small hands on my forearm. After lunch, he nestled his head into Madeline’s shoulder and his eyes grew droopy. The two of us carried him to the dormitory. After laying him on his bed, we sang to him until his eyes gently fluttered shut. He slept deeply and was adorably curled up underneath his blanket: he resembled a Renaissance painting! It was definitely the best moment so far! I hope that we, as a group, can make even a small difference for children like Heaveny.
-Lucia