Yesterday (Saturday), I was able to return to Kigali for a
very different reason than last week. This time, the other trainees and I were
able to visit the Kigali Genocide Memorial, which acts as as a memorial, a place
of information concerning the 1994 Genocide Against Tutsis, and a mass grave
for 250,000 individuals. It was an overwhelming visit. In addition to
information about the 1994 genocide, the Memorial also featured an exhibit on
other genocides, such as the Holocaust, the Armenian genocide, etc. The most
moving exhibit featured profiles of child victims, some as young as 9 months. Overall,
these exhibits reminded me just how much we as people have yet to learn from
our mistakes, and we desperately need to. After the Holocaust, there was a
theme of never forget and never again. Well, it happened again, several times.
And though some may feel “removed” from these events (it happened so far away,
well, I can’t do anything about it, it’s not my problem, etc.), I think we do
all have a responsibility to make “never again” a reality more than an idea. Be
nice to people. Embrace diversity. Listen to new ideas and new perspectives.
Talk to someone different than you. Treat others they way you would like to be
treated. Do something and say something. We live in an increasingly global society,
and we have to work together and support each other in order to make the world
a better place for those who come after. We have to open our hearts and minds
to make sure never again stays never again.
Okay, sad and serious part done. It was an important and emotional
experience, and I just wanted to share my thoughts.
But in other, happier news, we got to visit Kigali City
Center after our visit! That means we got to scope out things we may buy for
our homes at site and check out prices. I found ice cream too, and it was a
nice treat.
However, Kigali doesn’t have everything, and if anyone wants
to send me a combo birthday/Christmas present, I would be more than open to the
following:
Fitted twin
sheets (fitted sheets aren’t a thing here)
Decorative
pillows or seat cushions
Wash
clothes, cleaning rags, and towels
A blanket
or two
Hand
sanitizer
School
supplies of any sort
Various
non-perishable foods (cliff bars, spaghetti o’s, boxed pasta,
etc)
Spices and
sauces
My mailing address at site will be:
Brooke
Terry
BP 15
Kibuye,
Rwanda
And, last but not least, a few pictures:
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| View of Kigali from the Memorial |
 |
| Some of those hills |
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| More of those hills |
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| Ice cream! |
