Tea and Inspiration

Mwiriwe (good afternoon/good evening),
As you have read in Brandon's last post yesterday was a long day, but thankfully I was able to reflect on what I learned. My biggest connection so far is with the teachers in Kapanga Secondary because we were able to get to know them over a two day period which provided time to understand who they are as people. I appreciated being able to converse with colleagues who were willing to have an honest conversation. I look forward to preserving my connection with this school, so I am currently brainstorming ways we can turn these connections into fruitful ways of supporting the teachers broach the challenges they face with teaching their students.

Today we were able to change our US dollars into Francs and we learned that we can obtain a better exchange rate at the local Pharmacy instead of at the local bank. We also bought snacks for our day out of Kinigi including chapati, cashews, other nuts, oranges, and gourmet steak strips (Thanks to Vanessa and her love of Costco). Our first excursion was to Sowarthe Tea Plantation which took two and a half hours by car. The drive provided beautiful scenery, so our ride was mostly quiet as many of us took the time to admire the beauty and journal. I can't wait to share our pictures when we return. Many people warned me about the beauty of Rwanda, but I wasn't prepared for how beautiful it actually is. The volcanoes, the hills, the flowers, people, etc. Once we arrived at the plantation, we had to wait for approval from the director who was in Kigali. I was  so happy when we were granted approval because not only is this a fascinating place but I finally realized that I was able to really take a breather and learn out tea. Sowarthe is the largest out of eleven tea plantations in Rwanda covering over 800 acres of land, so I was honored to have the opportunity to learn about the operation. Our guide, Patrick, spoke very good English and clearly explained every step of the tea process. We were able to taste tea at the end of our tour, and learn the technique of tea tasting (kin to wine tasting) and we got to use the spittoon (Guma, Guma / Woohoo). The final portion of our visit was to see the Sowarthe Guesthouse. I am going to plan a trip to Rwanda and make sure that I stay at this guesthouse because you get to appreciate nature and smell tea at the same time.

Our next excursion was to visit the Imbabazi Orphanage. I was skeptical of visiting the orphanage for obvious reasons, luckily the ride from Sowarthe to Imababzi was two hours allowing mental preparation. When we arrived to Imababazi we were greeted by a few staff and orphans, and four friendly dogs.  We then met Devin, the manager of the orphanage. Devin gave us a fascinating tour of the grounds, which covers over 100 acres of land. I felt as if I made a connection with the founder,  Rosamond Carr affectionately known as Roz due to the spirit of Imbabazi. We learned that Roz's love for Rwanda, even though she was born and lived in the United States until her late thirties. Upon separating from her husband she bought the plantation in which Imbabazi is housed and began a career in growing and selling flowers.

Roz was forced to leave her home during the genocide for four months. Upon returning to her destroyed home, she witnessed the many children effected and decided to do something. In December of 1994, 82 year old Roz decided to open Imbabazi Orphanage with forty children. This alone is inspirational, but it doesn't stop there. Roz doted on her children and as a result they didn't have to life a finger under her care. Although I understand her actions, this didn't fully prepare her children for adult life because they didn't learn how to fully care for themselves. Imbabazi has cared for more than 400 children since it opening. Today the government is eliminating orphanages, believing that children are more successful when living with a 'family.' Imbabazi currently cares for 51 orphans in which 2/3 are male; the staff is in the process of finding families for them and has committed to paying for their education until they have graduated from secondary or vocational school. Imbabazi will continue to nurture the community's children by opening and running a pre-school.

Roz's story has inspired me as an educator and is forcing me to cautiously think as a global educator. Before taken part of this program, I was having difficulties understanding how I fit in as a math teacher. I now understand that my responsibility as a global educator is to encourage my students to engage in conversations with people from other cultures which will allow them the opportunity to learn that we have more commonalities than differences. These conversations may also lead them to work together to solve local and global issues, and ultimately my students will be more appreciative of the world's diversity. I look forward to working with Brandon and creating a social justice through mathematics curriculum for BCS.