Written April 6, 2013
It is Saturday afternoon as i write this and it has been a beautiful day. Although, if I tell you that, a downpour thunderstorm might start any moment because that is just how things seem to work here in the rainy season. [edit: after lunch I switched locations and there has since been consistent thunder in the distance and there was a heavy sprinkle as I walked over here]
It has been a relaxing day which I think is a good thing after a week at the clinic. The rest of the team gets here on Friday and I will meet them Saturday in Kigali. This upcoming week is still a little unknown. I will probably be spending time at the orphanage and helping my friend with the organization she started. It is called "His Imbaraga". it is a ministry to teach guys how to make products out of leather. I encourage you to find them through the pages I have liked on my Facebook.
Every day this past week I went to volunteer at a nearby clinic. I suppose "nearby" is relative. Sometimes I took the bus and other times I walked to where I met the other volunteer and our translator. It was a 40 minute walk to where we met and then another 30 minutes to the clinic.
There was surprising set up when we arrived. There was a building designated for maternity purposes. ALthough, it was a room for check ups, a room for those in labor, a room to actually give birth, and a room for mom and baby. The rooms were in that order. So after the last room they walked out the door and that was that.
There was another building that had a room for females, males, and children. It was "inpatient". Although it didn't seem to get used much.
We were in yet another building that had a couple of rooms to see patients. The waiting area was the area outside. The actual treatment that was provided was even more minimal and primitive than I expected. Basically we cleaned wounds with a vinegar/water mixture or just with water and put a new bandage on it. To anyone that is in the medical field, it was the strangest attempt at sterile procedure when it really wasn't possible.
It was still a very humbling experience. The patients were a variety of ages. Some simply had a s sore throat that wasn't healing, others had stitches that needed to come out, and yet others had unique issues. Some were unimaginably tough as their wound was cleaned. However, one kid that needed stitches out was not so tough. We had to stop half way and just let him calm down outside while we halped a few others. Then we tried to do a sneak attack to get the last few out. It didn't work so well, but in the end he was stitch free.
Some people would come but they wouldn't have the money (about the equivalent of 50 cents USD). Sowe would slip them some money so they could be seen and treated.
The walk to the clinic was a unique experience of its own. It was a gravel/dirt/rock "road" of sorts. But along both sides were homes of locals. It was so great to see the excitement of the kids as they saw us walk in and out each day. They seemed to think we were celebrities as they screamed and shouted at us twice each day. Some would come running arms stretched as far as they could be, tackle our legs, and run off after a satisfactory hug was given. Other children wanted a high five, and some were satisfied with a wave and a smile as we kept walking.
I spent the afternoons relaxing, visiting kids at the orphanage, or reading. Thursday afternoon I walked to the market and another store. It was an adventure and I am not just saying that because it was uphill to get there. I have decided that Ig et more stares being a solo white person than I do if I am traveling with a team.
All in all, it was a great week!!!
One more week is all I have to serve and love the country and people of Rwanda on my own schedule. on Friday the team arrives and I will be meeting them Saturday for lunch followed by our first clinic at an orphanage. However, this week will be the first week of memorials and meetings about the Genocide that forever changed this country in 1994. Rwandans will be required to go to memorials and meetings to remember, talk about, and learn from what happened. I too will be attending some to remember what happened.
Serving and Loving in Rwanda,
Katherine
It is Saturday afternoon as i write this and it has been a beautiful day. Although, if I tell you that, a downpour thunderstorm might start any moment because that is just how things seem to work here in the rainy season. [edit: after lunch I switched locations and there has since been consistent thunder in the distance and there was a heavy sprinkle as I walked over here]
It has been a relaxing day which I think is a good thing after a week at the clinic. The rest of the team gets here on Friday and I will meet them Saturday in Kigali. This upcoming week is still a little unknown. I will probably be spending time at the orphanage and helping my friend with the organization she started. It is called "His Imbaraga". it is a ministry to teach guys how to make products out of leather. I encourage you to find them through the pages I have liked on my Facebook.
Every day this past week I went to volunteer at a nearby clinic. I suppose "nearby" is relative. Sometimes I took the bus and other times I walked to where I met the other volunteer and our translator. It was a 40 minute walk to where we met and then another 30 minutes to the clinic.
There was surprising set up when we arrived. There was a building designated for maternity purposes. ALthough, it was a room for check ups, a room for those in labor, a room to actually give birth, and a room for mom and baby. The rooms were in that order. So after the last room they walked out the door and that was that.
There was another building that had a room for females, males, and children. It was "inpatient". Although it didn't seem to get used much.
We were in yet another building that had a couple of rooms to see patients. The waiting area was the area outside. The actual treatment that was provided was even more minimal and primitive than I expected. Basically we cleaned wounds with a vinegar/water mixture or just with water and put a new bandage on it. To anyone that is in the medical field, it was the strangest attempt at sterile procedure when it really wasn't possible.
It was still a very humbling experience. The patients were a variety of ages. Some simply had a s sore throat that wasn't healing, others had stitches that needed to come out, and yet others had unique issues. Some were unimaginably tough as their wound was cleaned. However, one kid that needed stitches out was not so tough. We had to stop half way and just let him calm down outside while we halped a few others. Then we tried to do a sneak attack to get the last few out. It didn't work so well, but in the end he was stitch free.
Some people would come but they wouldn't have the money (about the equivalent of 50 cents USD). Sowe would slip them some money so they could be seen and treated.
The walk to the clinic was a unique experience of its own. It was a gravel/dirt/rock "road" of sorts. But along both sides were homes of locals. It was so great to see the excitement of the kids as they saw us walk in and out each day. They seemed to think we were celebrities as they screamed and shouted at us twice each day. Some would come running arms stretched as far as they could be, tackle our legs, and run off after a satisfactory hug was given. Other children wanted a high five, and some were satisfied with a wave and a smile as we kept walking.
I spent the afternoons relaxing, visiting kids at the orphanage, or reading. Thursday afternoon I walked to the market and another store. It was an adventure and I am not just saying that because it was uphill to get there. I have decided that Ig et more stares being a solo white person than I do if I am traveling with a team.
All in all, it was a great week!!!
One more week is all I have to serve and love the country and people of Rwanda on my own schedule. on Friday the team arrives and I will be meeting them Saturday for lunch followed by our first clinic at an orphanage. However, this week will be the first week of memorials and meetings about the Genocide that forever changed this country in 1994. Rwandans will be required to go to memorials and meetings to remember, talk about, and learn from what happened. I too will be attending some to remember what happened.
Serving and Loving in Rwanda,
Katherine
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