Rwanda Culture Day

Day 8

~ by Cathy Low ~

Wow!! What an incredible day of festivity and fun. We started our day at Shalom by changing into typical Rwandan garb of old. We were then introduced to our guide for the day who took us through a series of demonstrations of life in Rwanda in ancient times. (Please don’t ask me his name as he gave it the old traditional way expounding his greatness that lasted several minutes!)  We learned of the great value of cows! You should know they are the center of Rwandan life. They provide food, money and are a symbol of wealth. They are used as the basis of marital contract negotiations even to this day if not in the actual sense (villages), in the monetary sense (cities). (I am curious how many cows I am worth! A smart man would answer more than one I hope!) The cows ceremonially receive names, are sung to, brushed and can be taken from you if your care of them is seen as negligent.

We then proceeded to visit an ancient homestead with a beautiful grass thatched hut, (they do not leak) with several rooms inside (not expected), floors covered in grass mats,(no shoes please) surrounded by bamboo fenced in yard to keep animals safe and a grass thatched silo for grain. We were then encouraged to attempt all sorts of tools, musical instruments and a game. With a home, I can take a wife, so a wedding procession to introduce the bride to the groom was demonstrated. (No peeking! The bride comes veiled, many times the couple never having been previously introduced.) Next came Rwandan drums and weapons to try. Those bows and arrows were quite the challenge. Kudos to those of us who hit the target. Now we visited ladies weaving beautiful grass mats and making butter. Butter is made by shaking milk in a gourd for hours!

We were then treated to traditional dancers. They were Amazing and so fun. Such joyous and expressive faces all the dancers wore! I especially loved the expressions on Joseph, the dance masters face-so interactive with his audience and quite silly at times! Testimonies from the dancers were heard thanking God, Shalom  and our team for all that is done  for them. We then shared gifts for the team and a special gift for Joseph, the dance master. He received a bike to ease his journey to and from Shalom. It was a great surprise. He was so excited and so thankful.

It was now time to eat traditional food by sitting on mats (keep those legs straight and together ladies) and using our fingers. We only partook in this meal briefly as the Shalom chef had fixed us a more modern Rwandan meal. (Even better than the first- how can we not gain weight!!)

It was now time to take off our traditional dress so we could go down the street to sit with the villagers and watch soccer. We were cheering for Team Shalom of course! The local field usually has sheep and cows grazing on it. The grass is high (it reached our ankles), there are no field lines or soccer shoes(they play in sandals) but these boys are incredible players and it was so fun to watch. (I was amazed they did not twist their ankles the field was so lumpy.)

We ended our day with testimonies from the soccer kids (so uplifting),  gifts to the soccer coach and team and prayers for their needs and concerns. The team dreams of traveling to other villages to play soccer with other teams. Both the traditional dancers and football( soccer) club are supported by Shalom (whom we support). These groups support each other emotionally and physically. They assist each other with tutoring in school and help with their family life. They have a love of Jesus and are working to spread the joy in healing, reconciliation, and resiliency. We can learn so much from these people and their forgiving hearts.   What a wonderful wonderful wonderful day!