Back in Blighty.

Just a final note of thanks to all who have faithfully supported the team on the DT Rwanda trip this summer in so many ways; financially, with gifts for the schools and churches, words of encouragement and with prayer.  We are now all safely back home and have enjoyed a wonderful night’s sleep in our own comfy beds, without a ravine down the middle of the plastic covered mattress and missing the nightly tussle with the mosquito net.  I imagine today some of the watercourses of Britain may have acquired a tinge of orange temporarily, by a sprinkling of African dust as our washing machines have whirred away, in a vain attempt to return our clothes to their original colour.  

I’m guessing that none of the team will have started the day with either an egg or a banana as we resume our daily lives in a country of abundant choice.  So many of the items that we take for granted in our western homes, suddenly seem to be luxurious on returning from a trip to the developing world – a wonderful hot shower without having to collect a jerry can, a fridge to cool drinks, fully functional car door handles and car windows that actually close!  Though we may all be still marvelling at these ‘gadgets’ today, we know that in a couple of days time complacency will have set in once again, as we slot right back into normal life in Britain.  When returning to ‘the west,’ it is quite difficult to remember that the tough life led by our brothers and sisters in Rwanda, which we experienced as a snap shot in time, continues for them as a daily reality.  We will endeavour to remember them in our hearts and pray for them in their struggles, particularly when we find ourselves grumbling about pot-holes on our roads or a dripping tap in our comparatively palatial homes.

Accompanying us on our return flight were many refugees, dressed in winter coats and woolly hats, presumably in preparation for their new life in Europe.  They were all carrying the same plastic bags sporting the logo from the agency administering their resettlement.  We had been joined by a similar group of people on our outward journey, when we landed briefly in Entebbe, Uganda.  Judging by their expressions, an aeroplane appeared to be an alien environment to them and they clearly had no understanding of their allocated seating, which caused considerable confusion for fellow passengers.

At baggage reclaim we were relieved to see that our large collection of luggage had completed the journey.  Andy said a quick prayer as he took several suitcases of baskets and banana-fibre cards along to customs.  Thankfully after an expert official was called to deal with the goods to declare, Andy’s paperwork was deemed to be in order and we were ushered on our way without so much as a glance at the merchandise.

Contrary to all airport advice our cases were crammed to the limit with all manner of ‘other people’s stuff,’ mostly African handicrafts for resale to support the widows, but some destined for friends or relatives …. (ie lots of cute stuff for grandchildren!)  We had all discovered an Aladdin’s cave of African handicrafts on our visit to the Peacebuilding Healing And Reconciliation Programme (PHARP) in Kigali the previous day.  Run by a lovely Christian lady Julienne, the programme teaches young girls to sew in order that they can establish their own business to generate an income.  The girls train for a year and there is strict quality control of their work so that the products are produced at a high standard ready for the tourist market. As part of the training, the students have a time of Bible study and prayer together.  As they study, pray and talk together, reconciliation is taking place, wounds are being healed and a peaceful environment is established.  The teacher in charge of the sewing programme, shows the students how to follow and create patterns whilst also frequently checking the quality of their stitching.  This teacher was formerly a student of the programme.  Next to the sewing room the products were for sale.  The ladies of the DT team enjoyed the colourful delights of the handicraft shop, ‘oohing and ahhing,’ like wide-eyed children in a sweet shop!  Heather even went so far as to model a beautifully styled African dress, made by the students, which fitted her like a glove.  Meanwhile Andy was discussing the possibility of partnering with Julienne to source handicrafts for the new DT on-line shop.

After leaving all manner of African craft purchases back at our hostel, we headed out for the final debrief meeting at the Anglican Cathedral with the Archbishop, Pastor Samuel and another member of the development team. Afterwards, the rest of the staff team joined us for a farewell meal, which we shared together in the Cathedral’s conference room, dangerously near the room Eleanor had been trapped in during Sunday worship!  So we were vigilant not to get separated, or left behind a handle-less door!

The following day, our final day in Kigali, we headed into the frenetic city centre, buzzing with people and streets packed with little shops, whose wares were pouring out over the pavements.  We couldn’t resist picking up a few more African crafts and traditional rubber mop heads, great for cleaning hard floors.  The shop keeper obediently severed  the long wooden handles, from the mop heads, at our request, so as not to prove a nightmare in hand baggage.   At another hardware shop, Andy was drawn to huge wooden spoons, and then proceeded to bargain with the seller for a good price, which when converted from Rwandan Francs to Sterling, meant that he was in reality quibbling over a few pence! 

As Alan had stayed at the hostel, nursing a wobbly tummy, Eleanor had free rein to spend, spend, spend, with the result that she had to buy a new suitcase to stash her booty!  We treated ourselves to tea in a western style café to celebrate the end of our stay in Rwanda, and to fortify our bodies for the gruelling night flight ahead of us.  

Andy returned the dilapidated Land Cruiser to Brandon, with fuel in the tank to detract from the handle Isobel snapped in two and the glove compartment cover on the floor, which Alan had inadvertently pulled off!  Our many suitcases were piled up in a minibus, only to be unloaded again at a police check point on the way to the airport for the inspection of Rita, a malnourished, bony sniffer-dog.  Thankfully Rita was disinterested in African baskets so our baggage was reloaded and the journey to the airport resumed.  Airport security had been stepped up significantly since last year, with the addition of some typical African jobs-worth red tape, for instance, prior to entering the airport building, we had to queue at a desk, where an official collected all our passports in order to issue us each with a large important-looking blue card.  As soon as we had been given the card, we were then permitted step over the threshold into the building and having moved no more than 2 paces from the desk we were requested to hand over the blue cards to another official!  In spite of their large size and glossy appearance, these cards appeared to serve no purpose at all, other than to hold up the flow of pedestrians, by causing a queue and to create jobs for 2 employees, the issuer and receiver!  It made us all smile as we stepped from African soil into Kigali’s smart new airport to begin our journey back to Blighty.

Final thanks to Isobel for her writing of the blog, sometimes very late at night, with helpful suggestions from the team. 

Our praise and thanks to the Lord for giving us the opportunity to share time with his Church in Rwanda and for the many challenges and lessons they provide us with as the Church in the West. 

Thanks for your support and interest and if you would like to conitnue a link with Damascus Trust then please visit our web-site where you can sign up for various updates - www.damascustrust.org. Trips to India, Romania and Rwanda are planned for next year, so if you would like to join us, then please get in touch via the web-site.

Your friends - Alan, Eleanor, Heather, Isobel and Andy