Orphan Gorillas

Although Musanze is a small town in Rwanda, it is home to several NGOs and US based projects, totaling about 20 expatriates in the area (our B2R team has 7 of those 20). We are all neighbors and good friends. Our nearest neighbors are the MGVP group, or the Mountain Gorilla Veterinarian Project. They are the veterinarians for the famous yet endangered 700 mountain gorillas in Rwanda, Uganda, and Congo. This is the most well-known tourist attraction in Rwanda, costing around $500 to trek up a mountain and observe the gorillas in their natural habitat for one hour. Our friend Jan, the regional director of the project, has been offering to take us to see a group of orphan gorillas at the base of the mountain, a sight which few people actually get to visit. Last week we finally took her up on that offer.
For about an hour, six of our B2R team members stood on top of Jan’s safari vehicle overlooking the walled-off residence and staring in amazement as the nine orphan gorillas put on a show for the humans. These gorillas were orphaned mostly as the result of poachers in the Congo who killed their parents and stole the babies to sell at a hefty price in the “gorilla black markets”. Apparently having a gorilla as either a pet or dinner, although extremely illegal, is appealing to the flamboyantly affluent in Africa. The MGVP vets works tirelessly to perform “sting operations” to locate these stolen gorillas, give them a home in this gorilla “orphanage," and arrest the poachers.
And so these nine gorillas, ranging in ages from 3-9 years old, have lived at the bottom of the mountain away from their natural habitat almost their whole lives. Since they were taken from the wild at a young age, they were forced to become dependent upon the given care and have not been able to be reintroduced to the wild. Their caretaker leisurely lounged in the play area with them, letting the gorillas ride on his back and cradling the babies when they reached up their arms. It is uncanny how human-like they seemed, as they relaxed and cuddled with their human caretaker. As Jan called them by name, they would beat their chests and bulk up to prove to us humans how tough they were. The passion and sorrow could be heard in Jan’s voice as she shared with us about the orphans. She viewed these gorillas as true orphans, wandering through life without a family or home to call their own. And after leaving that day, we all did too. In three weeks, these gorillas will be taken from this “orphanage” they have known as their home. Some may be able to go back into the wild, but most would never survive. Most of these will go to the Congo to make their permanent home at a new Gorilla Educational Center, which will teach the locals about the importance of preserving the lives of this endangered species. Hopefully, these gorillas will not be replaced by other orphans.

A Friend

I am pouting today. I am pouting because I was supposed to be in the US with my family 3 days ago, and I am still here in Rwanda. Now part of this is my own dumb fault. I committed the cardinal sin of international traveling. I got to the airport, bags packed and ready....and realized I FORGOT MY PASSPORT!!! Not just at the house in Kigali....2 hours away in Musanze. Yes, I realize I am admitting my idiocy to the world. I thought of literally everything else that I needed to go home except for the one thing that I needed to get on the plane. I am usually so organized and responsible...I don't know what got into me. So I had to reschedule my flight for the next flight out of Kigali....two days later. Then, yesterday we hear a radio commercial that my flight had been delayed 24 hours due to "technical difficulties". So here I am, still in Rwanda, praying to get out tonight. So while I am sitting here pouting because I am missing out on being with my family and friends back home, I just got the sweetest email from one of my students. He sent me the following poem that he wrote...which totally brightened my day and turned my pout into a smile.

To you.........................

Someone once told me that all you need to succeed
was God, yourself and a friend,

I pushed it away then, but now I realise
just how right he was

A friend is there for you when you need help
physically, mentally, and emotionally.

Phusically a friend is there when you are in trouble
He keeps a watch on you as you climb a ladder and is always beneath to catch when you fall.

He labours with you to enjoy your emotions. When you run crazy,
he makes things still.

He mentors and fetches hope on the springs of the crest for you when you are down
he is ever ready to put helping hand in your homework.

During you screams, is there to wipe tears from you face
and with a gentle slap, triggers you to smile.

In a desert you lean on him as palm tree.
He stretches the arms to fold them over your waist as a belt of mule.

You never get alone when that person is there.
He once again wispered to my ear

If you need a friend like that,
look no further your friend is near you.

He holds ripe fruits for you, and wine to quench your thirst.
He is staring with a gentle and genuine look,

His face is filled with smiles of joy and grace,
He goes no distance but just near you,

He holds a jar and pail
he holds a plate and a spoon

He cares not whether old or young,
but feeds who chose to stay right beside him.

Sister I send this to you to enjoy reading it as you fly, I just want to draw your attention on the true and the right friendship we share. The one you have taught me through you acts. I pray that one day you will lean on him as he wipes all stress from your stress.

"Education is not the filling of a pail but the lighting of a fire"

I have written often about our favorite village and the smart, beautiful children that reside there. From my first visit to the village, one particular little boy stole my heart. John Lambert is one of the leaders in the village at the young age of 10 (we think, he doesn’t even really know how old he is). His father Cristoph is the community leader and has a large family of 8 children (7 boys and 1 girl), an average family size in the villages. Although he is one of many precious children in the village, John Lambert has this sweet charming spirit about him, the kind that tugs on the heart strings and immediately draws people. You can see the eagerness, the hunger for knowledge, and the thirst for opportunity in his eyes. You can see that he will become something extraordinary in life….if only given the chance.

And just a few weeks ago he got that chance. His life changed right before my very eyes. This brilliant child received an opportunity that will change the course of his life.

The only world that John Lambert has ever known has been the simple village life, with no electricity, running water, or access to any sort of technology as we know it. He has lived his entire life walking several miles to get water, going to bed as soon as the sun goes down, and running barefoot up and down the Rwandan hills. There are probably many nights that he has gone to bed hungry, despite his father’s relentless efforts to feed his family, as evidenced by the bones that that protrude from his small frame. He has spent every night of his life sharing a twin sized bed with three or four other siblings....and his family is considered lucky they even have a bed at all. Although he has studied very hard and is obviously bright, inadequate resources and limited teachers in a very remote area have held him back from receiving a sufficient education.

But God has different plans for John Lambert.... My student Emmanuel (whom I have blogged about in the last couple of months) has been to the village with us on several occasions to interpret, teach the children English lessons, and preach passionate sermons on the love of God. Emmanuel happened to notice the potential in John Lambert as well, which led him on a fervent prayer quest and even to write a letter to the Bishop for sponsorship to Sonrise Boarding School for John Lambert. Only a few short weeks later, Emmanuel’s prayer was answered. Tom and Linda Wilson, who serve as B2R mentors and are two of the most wonderful people I have ever met, came from Fort Worth, Texas to visit our team in Rwanda. Not only did they bring us duffel bags full of Velveeta and Oreos, but they also took a great interest in two of my favorite boys. They fell in love with both Emmanuel and John Lambert, not even realizing their connection to each other. After recognizing the potential in John Lambert, they decided to sponsor his education to Sonrise Primary School. A school where opportunity is open to those who choose to seize it. A school that provides one of the best educations in Rwanda, as well as a comfortable bed and three healthy meals a day. A school that gives a future to those who may not have one otherwise. Emmanuel’s prayer was answered.

So the day before the start of second term, Tom, Mark, and I went to pick John Lambert up in his village and bring him back to Sonrise. Although I knew he didn’t have many material belongings, I was expecting that he might have some kind of bag with essential supplies to bring to his new school. When I asked him where his things were, he simply stated “I have nothing to bring.” He was wearing his only pair of pants, his only shirt, his only pair of shoes. He literally had NOTHING to bring with him. No toothbrush, no soap, no pajamas, no underwear….nothing. I brought him back to our house, found a bag, and rummaged around our stuff for some necessities (or what I thought of as necessities, obviously not to him). Emmanuel accompanied us throughout this whole experience, explaining everything step by step to the overwhelmed John Lambert and assuring him he was once in his shoes.

Before we sent him off to school, we took him to eat at one of the local hotels for his first ever restaurant experience. He proudly sat at the head of the table, placing his order and enjoying delicacies such as napkins and butter for the first time in his life (I had to explain to him the purpose of a napkin and how to butter bread:). He devoured the full plate of food before him, as you can see in the picture below.

And finally, we take him to his new school. His eyes were filled with novelty as we gave him a tour around the school, examining things such as clocks, bunk beds, toilets, and running water for the first time. It was very touching to watch Emmanuel leading John Lambert around, educating him on the ins and outs of the school. I could see that Emmanuel saw himself in John Lambert. He empathized with this kid who, by the grace of God, was chosen out of the countless needy children in Rwanda to attend one of the best schools in the country. As we left, I felt this motherly tear in my heart leaving him in an unfamiliar place all by himself, wide-eyed and bewildered… with only the slightest hint of apprehension….but mostly just in awe of his new world and the opportunities that lie ahead of him.