The Lord of the Ring(s)

It’s only been a little over a month since we’ve been back in Rwanda and already we have hosted 25 people to the country through HOPE. First was a group of HOPE supporters, next was a group of HOPE staff here to discuss how to make our program better. Finally, we had a film crew from Christian Broadcasting Network to make a mini documentary about Rwanda and our savings program. Although it’s over now, the two and a half weeks of visitors went incredibly well and was a lot of fun. Fortunately, there will be a couple more groups coming in the next two months. The tough part of about hosting so many visitors is that the other work must continue on. At HOPE, Garrett is already into a long stretch of trainings that will last until the end of September. This past week focused on training new Field Coordinators and refreshing the training for our current Field Coordinators. The coordinators are hired by our Church partners to be our primary connection with the various regions in which we have savings groups. When we first arrived this group was 14, and now we are up to 26. It has been an amazing experience to see the way the program has grown and continues to grow. In a country and region of the world where savings is not really valued, we have heard so many stories of lives changed by the simple power of savings groups.

During the busy past month, we both needed to get away for a little while and chose to go Lake Kivu (Rachael’s first time there, Garrett’s third time) with some friends. Lake Kivu is truly a retreat as it is unlike anywhere else in the country. In addition to being a prime coffee growing location, it is picturesquely beautiful and serene, especially during dry season, which we are currently in. 

Since it was a rather hot day, when we drove out to Kivu, the first item on the agenda was to cool off in the lake. After a good swim around the cove that is next to the hotel where we were staying, we settled in for some sun bathing. That’s when Garrett realized that his wedding ring was missing. After a frantic search, the group of six came to the conclusion that it was going to be nothing short of a miracle to find this “needle in a haystack.” As a note of reference, the bottom of the lake drops off rather quickly a few feet from shore. One member of our party though, Dan Klinck, took this as an adventure and a challenge and proceeded to inquire about the availability of snorkel equipment. It wasn't until the next day that some was procured though and unfortunately, it arrived only half an hour before the boat cruise that the group was taking to explore the islands. The short search recovered nothing. This disappointment did not deter us from having a nice time on the islands which included seeing a large amount of fruit bats and a monkey and enjoying a nice lunch. The search resumed the next morning when Garrett decided to take a turn searching for his ring. He started early with Rachael being the lone observer from the beach. After twenty minutes of diving down and coming back up, Garrett spotted something in the sand about 15-20 feet underneath the surface. With Golum-like obsession, he reached into the sand and pulled up his ring. What a recovery! I guess our God is Lord over all, including rings. What was going to be the most devastating loss turned into a joyous moment and a tale to tell. We both feel that this whole ordeal is a powerful symbol that our promise to one another will never be lost (even if someday one of our rings does in fact go missing for good). We owe a lot of thanks to Dan whose acquisition of the snorkel gear made this whole thing possible. Thank you as well to the rest of the group who never lost hope either.

While this above story is a huge praise, we still need a lot of prayer as Rachael heads back to the States this Thursday. We feel this course of action is necessary for the best development of the baby. Unfortunately, it also means several weeks of separation for us. Garrett is planning on heading back at the end of September about nine days before the due date. Please lift us up in prayer and pray that God encourages us both during this time we are apart. Also pray that everything goes smoothly and that we will be able to welcome a healthy child into the world. We couldn't be more excited about the upcoming arrival of our first son!

Lake (Break) Time

It was just about one month in Washington State and over a month since leaving Kigali to go to the annual HOPE Leadership Summit. The trip for Garrett included a stop in Haiti for some savings methodology training. God in all His infinite wisdom knew that this trip was exactly what we needed to recharge and revitalize our souls as well as renew our vision for the work that is taking place in Rwanda. Our time with family and friends could not have been more precious. Although, most of our interactions were brief, we were able to savor each moment together. We cannot thank everyone enough for the gracious hospitality offered to us while being home.

The Leadership Summit provided us time to get to know fellow HOPE coworkers and refocus on the core mission of discipleship through microenterprise development. While every session of summit was meaningful, the one that sticks out particularly for me was one about idolatry in our work. I foolishly let myself think that going to a developing country to serve the Lord omitted me from having any idols in my life. This session called me out in the most vulnerable of ways and I am so grateful. Another standout time was a devotion entitled "Treasure in Clay Jars." I don't really need to go beyond the title to describe what the talk was about, but it really encouraging to two weary hearts.
In the midst of our time in Pennsylvania, we were also able to spend time with Chris, Kristen, and Emelyn, Kenney, who made the drive up from North Carolina to see us. Although brief, we had a great time exploring all (mostly the food though) that Philadelphia offers.

Lake in the pool

Our time in Washington is where the title of the post is derived. We were able to stay at Rachael's on Mercer Island, where there is a beautiful view of Lake Washington from the living room window. We even ventured into the lake at one point. Probably more significant is the time we were able to spend with our 15 month old niece, Eleanor Lake. She is now quite the character as well as quite mobile. It was a little sad to think of the time that we've missed in her life to this point. Fortunately, with Momma Ashely working, we were able to spend some quality time with her on several occasions. During our time in Washington, we were also blessed with incredible weather. Washingtonians know that late May and early to mid-June is usually dreary as everyone prepares themselves for the glorious three months of July, August, and September. Somehow, the only real gloomy days we experienced were the first day we arrived and the day we departed to return to Rwanda. I wish I could fully describe the wonderful fullness of our time in Washington that included visits by Rachael's Grandfather "Poppa"and aunt "Tia" and cousin Kate, all coming from Colorado. We were able to see our dear friends Liam and Carolyn Murphy, up from Santa Barbara. We took a trip down to Oregon to see Quinn and Katy Burke, Terry and Ellen Yarbrough, Andrea Tang, and Sophia Maletz. The travels also took us to the Olympic Peninsula, Olympic National Park (Hurricane Ridge) for a Fathers' Day getaway with the Fujiwaras (sans Graham, we miss you).

With the Murphys

Port Angeles with the family

We have arrived safely back in Rwanda now and had a weekend to get readjusted to the time difference. (Garrett is now bracing for the email backlog that awaits Monday morning.) However, we feel overwhelmingly blessed for each and every moment of the past couple months. Since it has been a while since the last post, the big news is that Rachael is pregnant! We are having a little boy and we're so excited. Lots of changes ahead though. Rachael will only back in Rwanda for six weeks before heading back to the states before the delivery. She is leaving a little earlier as we were told that she could not fly past 30 weeks of gestation. Garrett will travel home a week before the expected due date of October 4th. Please be praying for us. We have so much to be thankful for, but the next few months (and years following that) will be so full and busy. Several visitors will be coming in July for HOPE and there are still many logistics that need to be sorted out. Though it all, we know that the Lord is good and He is with us. We have seen an great outpouring of His love and hope that spills over to those we encounter.

Yep, that's the bump

Romans 8:28

Iminsi Myinshi

The title means "many days"; this is usually said in reference to not seeing someone in many days. While that is true for most of us, it has also been many days since the last blog post. I would apologize if I had just not cared about posting anything, but these past two months have been packed. We've been hosting people, both here for work and here for leisure. The biggest to note is that our friends, Adam and Emily Rapkin, win the award for being the first non-work related visitors! They lived with us here in Kigali from March 3rd-March 11th. What a wonderful time we had with them. While the visit was highlighted by a trip to Akagera National Park to see some wild animals, everyday was a delight. Just so you know, anyone is welcome to come visit and we would be happy to host! :)

Ready for the African Safari

Perhaps now may not be the best time though, as we are entering rainy season. I'm currently writing this in the shelter of a coffee shop, but it is indeed pouring outside. This weekend was an exciting weekend as well, as we helped to facilitate an engagement of our friends who met while in Rwanda! I don't want to spill their news in case, so they shall remain unnamed for now, but we wished them congratulations and all the best!

These wonderful and joyous events help to offset some of the recent hardships that we've faced. Rachael's phone was stolen recently. Fortunately, this is really more of an annoyance than anything, but apparently people witnessed the theft and didn't say anything until they were asked directly if they saw someone take it. It's really discouraging to think that some people don't really care about integrity or the well-being of foreigners. Due to communication and overall attitude by the administration, Rachael also left her job at the international school after months of trying to persevere through the obstacles. What's even more sad is that she barely got a chance to say goodbye to her students that she deeply cared about and would've not left under different circumstances. We have also learned that many of our closest friends here will be returning to the U.S. this summer for good. Rachael and I have felt incredibly blessed by the close and tight-knit Christian community that we have been a part of since living here. Sadly, that will look very different come June. Yet, we know that God is at work and is already preparing other believers to come to Rwanda. On top of these other things, over the past few weeks, we've really had a lot of water and electricity difficulties at our house. While we've come to expect these things living here, it doesn't make them any less inconvenient or frustrating. You would think that one's patience would increase while living in a developing context, however, I feel like mine is running out. We could both use prayer that God would refresh us and give us an extra measure of grace and understanding.

Fortunately, we have a break coming. HOPE's annual Leadership Summit is in May. Rachael and I have decided to tack on some time off after the Summit and will return to the Pacific Northwest from May 23rd to June 19th. We are really looking forward to being reunited with family and friends. Our separation from the people that we love and care about has been the greatest struggle living in Rwanda. We are so thankful for Skype and email, and even Facebook, which makes communication so easy.

A savings group visit

Rachael has been enjoying some free time and keeping busy. Now that she is not working full-time, she is being more intentional meeting with friends, exercising, cooking, walking our puppy and cleaning the house. She feels a relief not working at the school anymore and is enjoying just living life here and enjoying the small blessings of each day.

Things at HOPE are going well, but keeping very busy as usual. Fortunately, we are looking to bring over both another intern and hire a full-time staff member. This is justified as God continues to bless the program and grow it at quite an impressive pace. We soon hope to sign an agreement with another Church partner, while looking to add another one in the summer! Praise God.

P.S. We realize that we've been sparing with the pictures, so we hope to put up a photoblog post sometime soon!

Happy Belated New Year!

Happy 2013 to you! We love and miss you all.

Here is what we've been up to lately. As most of you know, we spent our Christmas together in Zanzibar (an island off the coast of Tanzania).

Couldn't have been more perfect!

Burning through the sunscreen

Zanzibar was absolutely incredible. It’s a must place to visit you ever get the chance (or desire). This vacation was one of those vacations where relaxation was the primary focus. Rachael loves the beach and that’s where most of the time was spent. We did make the effort to walk around historic Stonetown, venture out to “The Rock” restaurant, and go on a highseas Dhow adventure that included seeing dolphins, having a seafood bbq feast and snorkeling. It was also a tale of two hotels. Both were good but they were very different from one another. The first was the Melia (you have to say it with a high brow accent of some sort to get the full effect). It was very nice and this is where we spent Christmas Eve and day. In addition to five restaurants, pool, tennis court, and spa, the Melia had its own private beach. How nice! Yet somehow they didn’t have wi-fi access in the rooms. Oh well, I guess why would you spend your time on the internet while in paradise, unless trying to contact family, on the most important holiday of the year. Fortunately there was internet in the lounge area and we were able to wish both families Merry Christmas over skype and even got to watch them open some presents. Our second place of stay was at the Dongwe Ocean View Hotel. It was not the Melia. However as it turns out, was much more quiet, the staff was friendlier and more personable and we had an equally nice stay. They had Maasai warriors on staff and we were treated to a traditional dance show. Overall, this trip was incredibly refreshing and was a great way to spend a week away, especially not being able to be with friends and family.

Part of the "Lindi" crew...Jambo

The New Year back in Kigali started with a dance party at our friends’ house.  Sharing the dance floor with former Westmont professor Carter Crockett was quite a treat. There have been promises of more dance parties to come! Danny, the Rwandan HOPE Intern and Bridge2Rwanda scholar has moved into the Fujiwara house and we’ve enjoyed having him with us. HOPE also hired a Director of SCA programs, Phil Smith, which should help the overall HOPE SCA network run more smoothly, efficiently, and effectively. Phil has already made it to Rwanda to visit the work of the program. I even had the opportunity to go to Bujumbura, Burundi for a day. After seeing Tanzania and Burundi, I realize how different neighboring countries can be, both culturally and topographically. Erisa is taking a well-deserved extended leave and so that means I’m manning the office with Danny. No fires to put out yet, so I’m thankful for that. Rachael is still at Hagos, but is actively looking for a nursing position once the school year finishes. I’ll let her comment in her own post.

Just your friendly Maasai warriors

Wild Jack...Jackfruit that is 

Oh you know, just us and an old stone fort

Stonetown is known for its ornate doors

Ahhhh

In our home church we are covering the topic of hearing God’s voice/call. At the time confirming the call to come to Africa seemed like a delicate process. Being here now for several months, it seems like that was easy compared to challenge of continuing to hear God’s voice. In some senses it is easy to be in constant communication (like emergency prayers for safety, access to communication, etc.). Yet, these prayers are not the ones where we take the time to be in intentional communion with our Lord. It’s extremely hard to desire that communion when you see so much brokenness all around. The hardest of this was my first visit to the orphanage, where Rachael and our friend Lindsey have been going for a few months now. I had to hold back tears as I wondered how God could allow such beautiful and innocent children to have nothing without any hope of change. I suppose that is why Jesus said to “feed my sheep.”   

Rachael's new friend (wandering around our hotel)

Please continue to pray for us in 2013. Pray for renewed vision and passion for the work God is doing here in Rwanda. Pray that Rachael is able to find the right position. Pray that God really does more than all we can ask or imagine. Thank you so much for your steadfast love, encouragement, and support.

Noheli Nziza - The African Chistmas Edition

Holiday greetings from the heart of (and hearts in) Africa! At this point, I think the duration of our time here and the time of the year has really made us miss you more. It doesn’t help that we’ve been listening to a lot of Christmas music, including I’ll be Home for Christmas, to make up for the lack of Christmas festivities here. A big thank you to those of you who managed to send us some decorations! People have asked if we were able to have any turkey for Thanksgiving and while we were not able to feast on any, we did have a nice Thanksgiving with our friends. There was still plenty of food, and I think even more to be thankful for this year. Looking back, God has cared for us in rich and incredible ways. Despite being rather exhausted from trying to wrap up all remaining activities at work and school, and days where we would just like to get on a plane back home, we are so grateful still for the opportunity to be where we are and to experience the Lord in new ways.

I’m (Garrett) still trying to slowly learn Kinyarwanda. My favorite phrase so far is “turi kumwe”, which translated literally means we are together. I like this phrase not only because it sounds cool, but because the ways in which it is used. Rwandans seem to have two usages for this phrase: 1) that we understand one another and on the same page and 2) that in spite of physical separation, we are still connected. This is great because I think to use this with you can contain both of these meanings. Being this far from all of you has been one of the most difficult things that either of us has ever done. Yet, you know why we have chosen to do this. God’s call trumps all. Also, thanks in large part to an ever-globally connected world, we have been able to keep connected regardless of time difference and a distance of thousands of miles. WE ARE TOGETHER, and we cannot thank you enough for your unrelenting support, prayer, and encouragement.

I’ll attempt to update you with all that has happened since our last correspondence which is probably a lot. I think the biggest news is the ever growing size of our household here. We now have two dogs Jumu and Itunda (pronounced e-tune-da and means passion fruit singular). We had a rabbit, Thicket, may he rest in peace. We are considering getting some chickens, mostly for the fresh eggs. We have also offered a room to the HOPE intern, Danny, who was going to have to go back his village in order to not pay rent here in the city. Danny has been a great worker and it would be a shame to lose him now, especially with some ambitious plans for the program in 2013. Before acquiring Itunda, we (the two of us and Jumu) were even able to go on a little retreat to Musanze (which is in the northwest part of Rwanda), where the volcanos and mountain gorillas are situated. I (Garrett again) have been playing tennis and ultimate Frisbee as a way to get exercise. Rachael is continuing to teach tennis lessons and making use of her Pilates DVD (the only DVD we chose to bring, err what?). Work is keeping us both busy. Rachael’s students now number eight (she started with four). With my boss and the country director, Erisa, out of the country frequently over the last couple of months, I have been all over the place trying to keeps things in order. You can be praying for HOPE here in Rwanda. It has been over months since we’ve applied for our NGO re-registration with the government.We are confident we will be able to obtain it, but it has been a distraction for the activities of the program and what we are actually trying to accomplish. We also have some major projects lined up for this coming year and could use prayer for smooth implementation and blessings on the outcomes. Rachael has been doing a great job as a teacher, but being a nurse by profession, she would love to be able to get back to it. Please pray that the right opportunity is presented to her where her valuable skills could be used optimally.

We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. May this season be filled with God’s joy and blessings. We certainly are thankful for the gift of Jesus in our lives. We hope that at some point we will be able to see you all in person during 2013!

Our Sunday guard Assumani with his new bike and Itunda.

The Family



Jumu and Itunda are keeping us busy.

 

The Usual Unusual

Today, one of the most unusual, yet heartwarming experiences happened to me today. The past few weeks we have been assisting our housecleaner find another job. She works for us Monday, Wednesday, Friday, but would like to work on Tuesday, Thursday and possibly Saturday. After a few leads failed to turn into anything, we had a very interested party approach us and asked for a trial day, which was today. Since directions aren't really simple here (usually it means triangulating a location by using several landmarks), I elected to help our housecleaner get to her interview. All this is a long way of giving context as to why I was walking around the neighborhood this morning. Anyway, on our way to the interview we passed a child of about 6 or 7 years old walking to school alone. She was clearly late, but in no apparent rush to reduce the length of tardiness. As we passed, this girl came up and hugged me without saying anything. She then continued on her way and we continued on ours. The reason this is so unusual is because, first off, it was a real hug. Not a half hug that is customary here (honestly, it's maybe the most awkward physical interaction you could have with another person). But even more so because this is biggest display of affection I've encountered by any Rwandan that I don't know personally. Rwandese, in contrast to other African cultures are generally pretty reserved (unless they're in church). The act clearly stunned my housecleaner. I'm usually pretty happy if I can get kids to wave and a smile, or even get a return greeting that aren't noises that are intended to sound Chinese. I guess sometimes you just need a hug and you have no idea when or where that will come from.

To mark the four month anniversary of our arrival here in Rwanda, Rachael and I are headed out of the city. This is exciting as it will be only the second time that Rachael has left Kigali. It will also be my second time to leave the city for non-work related purposes. We were told about a tea plantation that has a guest house, serves good food (and tea of course), and has a tennis court. Sounds just about perfect for the two of us. Look forward to the forthcoming pictures. Just pray that we make it there and back ok.

Currently, Erisa is out of the country for a couple of weeks, which means I'm in effect the acting Country Director. Kind of frightening when I think about it. Knock on wood, but it has been going well so far. I even gave presentation (with translation help) to possibly expand the SCA program! Even though I've been managing, it will be great when Erisa gets back. However, he has another trip planned in November. Gulp.

The Rainy Season is Upon Us!

Sorry, to have not posted in quite some time. Things have been pretty busy here. We have been engaged in working on a special project, one that was unexpected. As a marketing project, our main office was hoping to sell “Made in Rwanda” ceramic clay mugs at an upcoming Christian leadership conference in the U.S. I only received a week’s notice about this project before one of HOPE’s senior grant writers came to Rwanda to help oversee this project. Fortunately, the number of mugs we wanted crafted went from 13,000 down to 1,200 in a short period of time. While this project kept me fairly busy in tandem with my other tasks here, it was a fun time to explore different parts of Kigali and the country and meet a number of Rwandese craftspeople. It was also very fun to host and get to know Hope grant writer, Becky Svendsen as well. The project went as smoothly as is possible for Africa. The mugs turned out great (see pictures) and are now on their way to the U.S. We are now praying that they arrive intact and on time (need to be in the U.S. by the end of the month).

This past week the Country Director, Erisa, my boss, was out of the country in Zambia for some training. That left me by myself to man the office. Needless to say, work was a lot busier this last week. I’m now exhausted. No rest for the weary though as we are now hosting five (three from the U.S., one from Belgium, and one from the Philippines) HOPE visitors this next week for a conference and retreat. This will mean back and forth from the retreat center (one and a half hours away) every other day. Let the games begin.

As the title of the post may suggest, it is also rainy season. This brings a nice relief from the summer heat, but it also brings crazy and unpredictable thunder and lightning storms. I was foolish enough to take my first moto (motorcycle taxi) ride this past week. It was fine until it started raining at which point we (the driver and I) got soaked, we stopped and waited at a gas station with 30 other motos/passengers for an hour, then proceeded again before it stopped raining and got soaked again. Fortunately, I didn’t have any meetings after this event and was able to dry off sitting at my desk. Just another day in Rwanda!

I took a survey taken by the Graduate Management Admissions Council the other day. Some of the survey questions asked about my financial satisfaction. Has you graduate degree increased your earnings potential? How much has your salary increased since your previous job? How much of your student loans have you been able to pay off? These questions recalled a sarcastic comment by one of my relatives before we left, “you got an MBA and now we’re financially supporting you?” That stung, still stings. It now is hitting me that I haven’t made a temporary sacrifice, I’ve made a lifelong one. I’ll never be a captain of industry. I guess that also means I’ll never be a robber baron either. A verse that has been a key part of being here is Matthew: “Whatever you did for the least of these…” yet I constantly need to be reminded that the verse does not end with “I’ll do for you also” but with “you also did for me.” I need to tell myself that my response to that shouldn’t be “that’s all?” but that is all. In our Sunday night Bible study we keep singing the song “Heart of Worship.” I don’t know if any song captures it better: because "it's all about you, Jesus.”

Perhaps my last post left you wondering if I still enjoy being here. The answer to that is yes. I work long hours and there aren’t western conveniences that take the edge off life. However, the community here, both expat and Rwandan make up for it all. I’ve talked about the expat community, but not enough about the Rwandan one that we experience. Our guard and housekeeper, Bernard and Adrianne, are two wonderful and amazing people. Both have families and children (our guard’s family lives two hours away). Yet day in and day out they diligently work hard to provide a better life to their loved ones. Our guard is even enthusiastically taking English lessons now! I’ve also hired an intern at work. Danny is a student with a program called Bridge to Rwanda, which is a select program that is preparing him to gain entrance into a U.S. university. This program also provides logistical and financial support to help these students go have a completely unimaginable experience. Danny, however, affectionately known by his peers as “Pastor,” comes from a small village. It is only through the grace of God and his own hard work and ingenuity that he has this rare opportunity. Danny though refuses to take any of this for granted and took this internship to improve his knowledge and skills. Through it all he has an incredibly gentile spirit. Without this community, God knew that we could not make it here. Yet the Father of Lights, knows all and hears our prayers.