Hola from Rwanda

No, we’re not teaching Spanish, but we did just have Mexican food for dinner tonight! Seriously, our cook, Tapista, is amazing! I think this precious Ugandan woman made the best guacamole I’ve ever tasted! The avocados here are the size of your face—and they’re perfect! Add in some fresh limes, onions and tomatoes, and OLE, we’re having a Rwandan Fiesta!

In other news from Kimihururla Hill (say it with me “kim-mee-hoo-roo-la” (this is the name of the hill where we live (did you know Rwanda is known as the “land of 1,000 hills?))), the mosquito net has been hung by my bed with care with the hopes that mosquitoes won’t soon be there! And, Tapista made homemade cinnamon rolls that we’ll have for breakfast. Did I mention that we had an amazing goat cheese pizza and vegetable ravioli for dinner on Sunday night and Bar-B-Que at the missionary potluck on Sunday? And waffles for breakfast today? Seriously people, we are spoiled! I just may stay here!

So today was our first day of teaching English. I’m not going to lie, I had a bit of “first day of school” jitters, but this time I’m the teacher! My first two readers no-showed, so I used that time to look over the lessons once again and have a little quiet time. But then this afternoon, I did five sessions back-to-back. My readers come from many different backgrounds. David is 19, homeless, and was orphaned in the genocide in 1994. Eric has great English and is working to improve his English for secondary school. I’m reading with two women named Francine. “Cooking Francine” is 30 years old, cooks for a family, and giggles with every other word. Our reading sessions consist of a LOT of laughter and a little bit of French.. If I lived here, we would totally be dear friends! “Belgian Francine” is 39, her husband works for the Belgian embassy, and she primarily speaks French. For once in my life, my decision to study French rather than Spanish is finally paying off! Chuck and I even traded readers tonight after his session with “Jean Bosco” was lost in translation. This man is going to eat my French lunch! He talks so fast—I can hardly keep up! I really love reading with these kind people. Their smiles, their gentle laughter and their kind eyes have already captured my heart.

Yesterday, we had a great afternoon playing volleyball with our readers and members from the church. I sat on the sidelines and played with the neighborhood kids. Everyone received a “God loves you” sticker, and we played tag, red rover, and “duck, duck goose. Have you ever tried to explain the difference between a duck and a goose to seven-year-olds who don’t speak your language? It involves the “quack” and “honk” sounds and is a guaranteed way to make new friends. These children were so precious!

I guess that’s all for tonight. I tried to upload pictures, but the internet here thinks otherwise. Thanks for all the prayers—God is doing might things! Tune in Wednesday for further adventures—we’re taking turns posting each night to make the reader comment contest is fair and square. So if you like what you read, be sure and leave a comment of at least 5 words!