Burritos, Art and a Fundraiser for the Kigali School of Music!

A new burrito place opened on the road that takes Bruce to work each day.  We tried

it out last Sat. and it is very good!  So, when Crystal called and said... "Wanna go to lunch and get a burrito" you know what i said!  Susan came too, but Lillian was not feeling well.  We had a great lunch and then headed to the Ivuka Arts Studio.

                             

Ivuka is a Kinyrwanda name meaning rebirth and this place has indeed 
seen a rebirth of art. This studio has been open for about 5 years.
Susan and Crystal posing in front!  I asked them to!
The studio is willing to allow CMU/Rwanda to display art pieces
throughout the 3 wings ---free of charge ---in hopes people will
want to buy them. We went to check them out to see if any would
work on the walls of CMU/Rwanda.  Several will!

I love this painting!  It is so typical of all the "motos" here in Kigali.  I think
this would look awesome in one of the student classrooms or the lounge.

Not to worry that is just a wall behind Crystal!
The artist in front was working on a piece that would be great
on display, too!

Both Susan and I loved the one will the yellow line to her right..
 It isn't finished yet, but when it is...it will find a place
on the walls, as well.  Innocent, one of the artist said we
had inspired him to get back to work and complete it.   

Debby from Colorado then took us to where the women were working. 

In this area there were necklaces being made, bags, wine bottle covers 

and coasters, etc.  She is helping these women get started on creating 

things that others in town aren't already creating. 

They will have their Grand Opening on July 14th.

 As of a few weeks ago only one of the women knew how to run a
sewing machine.  She is now teaching the others.
This seemed to be a little machine.. but they had about 4.
We had a great time visiting here and I'm sure I'll take some
folks back to see it again soon. 

 Following this I had a meeting with the lead fundraising team from AIC
 (Africa International Club)
 to organize the upcoming event for the Kigali School of Music.
We met here at the US Ambassador's residence before going downtown.
 Cindy, the ambassador 's
wife has been landscaping the property and it is beautiful!  

Apparently there had been so  much undergrowth or (over growth)  
that you could barely see the light posts before.

The view of downtown from the side of their yard.
Lionel came and picked us up and drove us --Cindy, Maria,
and me to the French Cultural Center.

 In the parking lot of the Center... stood this HUGE
Rubber (plant) TREE! It could hardly be called a
plant, but i guess it once was.   

One tiny little branch-- That we would call a rubber tree.

 This gives you an idea... of how big the trunks of this tree were.  
Our meeting held here consisted of:  Cindy, Maria, Machiko, the Japanese 
Ambassor's wife, the Director of the Kigali School of Music and the Director of 
the French Cultural Center and me. ( Yes, i felt a bit out-classed. ha!)


We were meeting to discuss the details of a fabulous concert that will take place Oct. 25 and will feature..Jacques- Greg Belobo!  He is gifting his performance and all the 
proceeds to the Kigali School of Music.  The ONLY school of Music in all of Rwanda! 


Below is a very brief description of who he is!  
I can't wait to hear him sing...

Jacques-Greg Belobo is an opera singer with the Semper Opera in Dresden, Germany. He began singing in his hometown of Yaoundé in Cameroon, where he won the first prize at the National Classical Music Competition in 1996, the first prize at the Aguimucla Competition of Yaoundé in 1997, and the first Medal in the International Diapason Competition in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Jacques-Greg Belobo’s performance at the International Diapason Competition in Abidjan earned him a scholarship to take singing lessons at the Summer Academy of Nice, where he worked on improving his performance techniques under the tutorship Michel Piquemal.

Our meeting was short, efficient and not finished....
More meetings to follow but we covered a lot of ground...
in French, Kinyrwanda, Spanish, English and Japanese.
The discussion ran.. mostly in French.  But amazingly
we all seemed to understand one another.  After the meeting
i had to take another picture of the tree from the other side.

 Cindy, Maria, the Music Director (I'm sorry.  
I have never gotten his full name.)
and Machiko.

The French Director we took leave of in the Cultural Center,
 so he is not pictured.  If you are reading this and you live
in Kigali or anywhere near, please save the date and plan
to come to this great concert on Oct. 25th... 

Stopped for some groceries on the way home and these are some
of my friends from the store. They always want me to take their
pictures.. so i do.  Copies of them are made on the computer and
given to them.  Then they REALLY smile!

Don't you just love it?

I am now, at this writing waiting for the last 10 minutes before the flight with
Nelda, Kristi, Amy and Bruce arrives from Brussels.  I couldn't write this before....
because it was to be a surprise.
Bruce met the girls in Brussels.  He just happened to be booked on the same
flight they were on.. so he was going to just find them at the airport and
surprise them!  Telling them that he came to meet them so they would make it to Kigali with no problems!!!!  I wish i could have been there to see their faces.

Soon I will hear the story....
in the meantime.... I will close but

today, Friday June 29, couldn't have been any better.

The VBS kids and staff from Hebron Church skyped and I was able
to see and talk to some of the kids.  They sang 2 of their VBS songs and it was all
totally wonderful.  Of course, it brought me to tears.  I miss them all so much!
The highlight was getting to talk to Wyatt, my grandson that was there.

Thank you kids, teachers, Ellen, Tami, Beth and especially, Barrett!

Love you all,
margie

New Friends and Astonishing Music!

Did you know that the only symphony orchestra in Central Africa is located in Kinshasa, the capital of the Congo –
 a war-torn country plagued by poverty and despair? 

I didn't... until I went to see this movie called "Kinshasa Symphony". 
 It tells the amazing story of the  Kinshasa Symphony and shows some of the difficult circumstances  the 200 musicians deal with to get to rehearsals.  They come from all over the city; most travel on foot to get to rehearsals six days a week; and  most of the instruments have been donated, salvaged and repaired or purchased from second-hand shops. Some have even been handmade.   But in spite of it all, the orchestra manages to make  beautiful music.  For some it is a relief from the lives they lead each day and it is great therapy.  For others it is a dream come true.. to play music and take them away from the struggles of everyday life.   It was an inspiring film..  It is an inspiring orchestra! 


None of my age friends were able to go.. so i hung out with the 20-30 somethings.
We had a great time.

 Louise, on the left, I had met through Arlene from the
children's home.  She has been living with a family that Bruce knows
through the Ministry here in Rwanda.  Then we discovered we all knew each other.
Louise is doing her PhD research in Rwanda on Standards for Latrines.
Louise is from England and I love to hear her talk!  She is so fun!

Betty, on the right, is Mike's niece.  A delightful girl who is
helping to open a new guest house that Mike and his wife
 are in the process of getting off the ground.

The movie was held at the  Goethe-Institut in Kigali...The German 
Influence here in Kigali.  They run films each Tues. evening to enlighten 
and educate all of us that need it.  This was a great film. 

 This guy was one of Louise's friends---he took a picture of us!

Yes... we were laughing!

I took this one of Betty and Hope!  

They are great girls and it was fun to meet them and be with them.

I didn't get a picture but as we were walking over to the hall

for the movie there were HUGE bats flying around in the air

over our heads.  I didn't even know bats came that large.

Anyway... back to the evening.....
If you'd like to know more about this amazing story...check it out here
http://www.kinshasa-symphony.com/

I'm ready to sleep tonight.
Tomorrow night our first family guests come from the States.
Nelda, my sister-in-law and her 2 daughters, Kristi and Amy, my nieces
are coming!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The only regret I have about them coming is that Brian, their son & brother couldn't
come too!!!  Disney World needs him!  We will so miss him here with us.
Bruce also returns tomorrow night after being gone this week to the American Control  Conference in Montreal, Canada!!!!!

So it will be a big night!

More tomorrow on all the things that happened today!

love,
margie

Something to CROW about!!!

Look what the Krogh's got on their street!
Really something to 'crow' about!!!

 A Street Name for the street they live on!  
First ever for this street and most of the streets in Kigali. 
It's a city wide project. 

This too, is a city wide project.  Last weekend they began painting
EVERY
curb in the city.  They must have hired 100's of people to paint. 

 It now looks like this ALL OVER THE CITY!  Quite pristine!

No matter where you drove this was the sight you

saw.. They are preparing for July 1--Their Independence Day

and this is their 50th year--Jubilee Celebration! 

 This is what it looked like before!


And now a few words from the birds! 

What did you say?

I thought that is what you said!

 This grass is yummy...
 I don't know where Mommy went with the worms.

Not to worry... Mama is looking out for her baby.
These are called "Little Weavers".

This one on the other hand is a Green-Throated Sunbird

He or she was starting to make a nest in the palm tree. 

I'm not sure that this is what this bird is... but this is the closest

thing i could find in the bird book.

A busy little creature... Worked for hours just to get the 

nest started!

The nest is in the very end of the long branch.  

I hope the nest is completed... because if it is we will be 

able to observe from the office window! 

All for today! 

Nelda and Kristi and Amy arrive on Friday 

so we are getting everything ready for them. 

Have a meeting today about the Kigali School of Music. 

So more on that tomorrow! 

love,

margie

PS.  The roster is from Mike's house... where Louise is staying. 

Isn't he something else? 

Nourishment!

Reflecting on a comment from Oswald Chambers....

From John 12:27-28

 " What shall I say?  Father, save Me from this hour?  But for this cause came I unto this hour.  Father glorify thy name."

To quote OC..."Jesus was saved not from the hour, but out of the hour.

Suffering either gives me my self or it destroys my self.  You cannot receive your self in success, you lose your head; you cannot receive your self in monotony, you grouse.  The way to find your self is in the fires of sorrow...If you receive yourself in the fires of sorrow, 

God will make you nourishment for other people."

It is this last statement that has made me ask... Has He made me nourishment for other people?  Has He made you nourishment for other people or are we draining

nourishment from others?  

Being here in Rwanda, I pray that I can be... that Bruce and I can be 

nourishment for others in their hours of need.  I'd never really thought about this question in this way but it is truly a BIG Question.  

Has God made us nourishment for other people? 

 Sunday morning.... the empty lot behind our house
became nourishment for these guys! 

 They were here just for the day and then gone!
Maybe we are nourishment for someone for just one day
and then we never see them again. 

 Jesus pops up here and nourishes me in unusual places and in unusual ways.
Here he just brought me a smile! The pick-up testimony!
He carries our heavy loads.

 The joy of family was nourishment for me in this picture..
This was taken from too far away but what joy in seeing this "little"
family walking down the street..
What you can't see is the baby on Mama's back under the umbrella. 

I pray that I can be nourishment for these ladies
  as we are working together this year and that they can be nourishment for me, too.
 

This is Armstrong.  

He provides physical nourishment to us from our local grocery where he works. 

He is the young man we were able to get a Bible for so that he could have his very own.... Nourishment for him.

He is nourishment for me each time we go into the store..  

He shares prayer requests and praises.

This baby basket weaver was finding nourishment in the grass
that the Lord provided for him.
Just watching him made my day! 

 And sometimes we share nourishment together with friends.
Sometimes those friends know the Lord and sometimes they don't.
So even in the process of sharing good food and fellowship we plant the
seeds of nourishment in the souls of others... by sharing our joy of the Lord with them.

One thing is for sure after thinking about this for a
couple of days....
No matter who, where, or what the nourishment is needed for
it must all be to glorify our Lord --our Father....
 and not our "self".  

I pray that the Lord will make us good nourishment for
others... no matter where in the world we are!

Don't you?

Love you all!
margie

 

Just Thursday!

I have been away and then Lionel was away and as Innocent said....

"I miss Lionel". 

Well, we finally all got together and went to discover 

the LaGalette downtown.  It is a grocery store/bakery

and there are several around town.... but everyone raves 

about the one down by the KCT... Kigali City Tower. 

After a little shopping at another African Store

we found the place.  

The little cafe is outside and mainly under this tree!
It looks like it is lighted at night.  That would be pretty.
We had some simple African Sombussa's --
Sort of like a meat pie.

 Cute, huh? This place totally reminds me of the Strip District
in Pittsburgh. 

 Innocent and Lionel..
I asked them to lean in for the picture and they did!

 Ok... so maybe Germany doesn't have the lock on bakeries.

 This is actually called the German Bakery
and they even had Brötchen!! Good thing this place isn't
too near our house!

 A little glimpse of the store.

These folks wanted their pictures taken!

They'd been wrapping veggies.... and all got together for this
great picture with their beautiful smiles.  They loved
their picture on the camera.

Then we started home.. but we couldn't get there.  In the street
were at least 75 drummers!  What a great sound. 

They were walking around in parade fashion.. around the
round about.  

Looked like they were going to some affair to perform but
still don't know who they were or what they were doing. 

They were making their way to this building but
 one thing we do know they were doing......

Causing total havoc with the traffic in the round about!

Out our front window of the car! 

With drum cadences still pounding in our heads we got on the road to our house.
KN 26 Rd....Still can't get over the fact that street signs are popping up all over.

A man on the street was selling this fruit... Any idea what there are?

They are the smallest Strawberries on the earth and i told Innocent to
NEVER
let me buy these again. They are so tiny--it took forever to stem and
clean them.  We do miss strawberries!  That is for sure but...
 I paired them with a fresh pineapple and that
saved them!  The sweetness from the pineapple took the awards!

Innocent has been pulling the carrots.  Most of the garden is done.
We'll plant again in 2 months. 

As I was outside sorting pictures this big guy
flew in and perched on our neighbors antenna! 

 He is a big bird and i don't know what he is.  

 I whistled at him and he looked.. ha!!
Even birds are vain, I guess.

The rest of the day was spent cleaning veggies and getting some things made for
dinner guests we are having Friday night!

Bruce leaves for Montreal on Sunday... so i don't know when i'll post again.
In the meantime... have a great weekend and I hope your weather is
even 1/2 as good as it is here.  If it is, you are having wonderful summer
days and nights!

Have a great Sunday!

VBS starts Monday back in Penn Hills at Hebron Presbyterian Church.
Please remember all the staff and kids and the leadership as they
guide everyone through the week.  Pray for safety, for kids to come to know Jesus
more deeply and for all to throughly enjoy every minute.
 Oh and most of all pray for cooler temperatures.  It's been pretty hot in Pittsburgh.

Love to all and know that i am totally missing being with you for VBS!
But my heart is there!
You are all in my thoughts and prayers!  SEND PICTURES!!!

love,
margie