Hope

We always ask ourselves, what is it all about? We wonder why this and why that. It's just so amazing how we are so worried about these little things, these small details of life... But what's really true is that none of all these things we value and care about so much matter.
But recently I found out what really matters. And what we should really be concerned about. See there are a lot of children out there suffering. They don't have any food to eat, no place to sleep, and nobody to care for them. It's not only children, there are people without any hope, because when they look at their circumstances they have no where and no one to turn to. There are people, children out there without a hope for tomorrow, even yet for today, for the next minute. They are hopeless and there's basically nothing they can do about it! There are people who wake up everyday knowing that that will be their last day, some even wish that their next breath would be the last. It's so sad to know, that while there are people around us or even us ourselves with all these resources and these privileges, most of which we don't even use or most of all need. While there are people who can't have even those that we call "the basics of lie".To mean that one can't survive without them. Those things that some of us take for granted. Things we never ever even think about. Those that we get naturally, or so we think, there are some people who would kill for even a minute of supply of those things that we take for granted.
And this is what its all about. Its about those that have hope providing hope for those who don't. Its about those that have more than what they need, even those that have what they need to share with those that don't have. Its about those who have a reason to smile to help those that lost their smile, mostly by giving something or a reason for them to smile.
And yes, that/this is a very valid reason to live for. We should live to compliment and help out each other. And this also, there are many times we think we are at our worst, when we think there could never be anyone more miserable than we are. However, we should know that ohhhhh there is always someone if not even many who are worse than us, who are in worse situations. But thats not the good news, the good news is, no matter how bad you think things are for you, no matter how miserable you think you are, you are still capable and so able to help someone, at least one person!
When it comes to faith, it takes a whole different meaning. We are so preoccupied with the laws of the Bible, with all the signs and wonders. We are so caught up in these little things that we've completely lost sight of what faith in God is all about. We've lost the true meaning of worship. And worst of all, we've lost the true identity of God, Christ....
And what's even more sad is that instead of us searching for the true meaning and reason for faith, we just dig ourselves deeper into the hole of deception, misconception and darkness. In fact, for some its even in this search that we find ourselves more lost, and thus drifting further and further away from what truly matters.
We are so lost despite of the clarity of the life of Christ. As we read the Bible or hear the story of Jesus, its all about nothing else but redemption!
Its about giving, even to those you think don't deserve to be given, its about loving, loving even those that we think don't deserve to be loved. And you know it's pretty explicit in the Bible that we are called to be like Jesus.
Now, one doesn't really have to believe in Jesus to see that he is a true model of how true humanity should be, how we are supposed to be. Even for those who don't believe in God, the simple arrangement of nature but for those with to help those without!
And we see this in the perfect character and personality of Jesus Christ!
And the Bible puts it the best way it can ever be put. That these two commandments I give to you; the greatest of them is that you shall love the Lord your God with all your strength, hear, and soul. And the second is that you shall love your neighbor as you love yourself.
So, this is a call to all humanity, to all of us, that we should start living for!

Join the revolution

Throughout human history, the idea of revolution has always excited people. Revolutions have rallied those in search of a cause larger than themselves and have given previously aimless men and women a cause they are willing to die for. They have birthed great leaders and they have literally changed the world.
A revolution is a sudden radical and complete change from the way things are normally done. Revolutionaries are usually ignited by one person or a very small group of people who are unwilling to continue living the way they have lived in the past. They believe that something can change and must change and they keep promoting their ideas until a groundswell begins and ultimately changes the situation, often in radical ways.
Revolutions also took place as outdated, ineffective systems or ways of doing things were replaced and old ways of thinking gave way to new ideas.
In Africa, we have had our own share of revolutions, such as the armed revolution of the ANC in South Africa to end Apartheid or the emancipation of the Burkina Faso’s economy and well being in 1980s. These revolutions all had a common trait; they were started by Young Visionaries who were tired of the way the world was and were fighting for the way the world should be. Young intellectuals like Nelson Mandela “madiba”, Steve Biko, and others believed in a South Africa that was free from racial discrimination and institutionalized hatred, and they spent their lives fighting for a more just and a better world for all South Africans. In Burkina Faso, Thomas Sankara, a charismatic leader, fought against the injustice of poverty and women discrimination in his country and even though he’s a fallen soldier I believe that Africa has never had such a selfless and committed leader.
These revolutions have inspired human progress .People have been able to live more satisfactory lives because of the courage and sacrifice of their fore fathers.. Because of the efforts of Mandela and the ANC leaders, people in South Africa are now living free and racial segregation is no longer a basis for restriction of rights.
Thomas Jefferson said: “every generation needs a new revolution”.
So one might wonder, what is our revolution? What is going to be written about our generation in textbooks and history books and if 50 years from now our kids ask us what we did, what are we going to say?
I believe that we live in very exciting times, times where the world is run by technology that connects all corners of the world. Now you find Rwandese students coming together to pray in Kinyarwanda, and in a city in India, we find people being able to communicate through Facebook , Hi5, MSN,and other social networks. As an old saying in our mother tongue goes, “ abapfuye bagiye vuba".
We also live in a time where leaders like Paul Kagame are talking about the development of Africa. For many centuries, starting from the conference in Berlin in the late 19th century, Africa has always been seen as a lost cause. Corruption, poverty, and disease have long kept our continent bound in “darkness” - our continent has always been known as “the dark continent”.
But today, even though we still hear of cases of corruption and high child mortality rates, AIDS, and other disasters, things are different in Africa today. Today we have leaders like Paul Kagame who are aiming at not being dependent on foreign aid in a matter of a generation’s time. There are also economists like Dambisa Moyo and Jacqueline Novogratz who are bringing new ideas on how to move Africa from extreme poverty to prosperity. But what if that was our revolution? What if our revolution was one that will move Africa to the place it truly deserves, a place of dignity and respect?I have decided to call this revolution, the “HOPE REVOLUTION”. This revolution will be a revolution more complicated but yet more fulfilling than any other that came before. It will be complicated because it would require books and knowledge instead of guns and bullets that we have seen in the past. It would require innovation and critical thinking rather than blind obedience. This revolution will however require far more than brain power but also a healthy heart. It will require love over hate , and generosity coupled with sacrifice over greed and selfishness! This Revolution will create a new generation of selfless and courageous young people.
However, all of this will not come easily because people by nature oppose change; it will require faith, hope and love. These three principles that are usually linked to the Bible but are principles that should lead every person. Faith is our belief that if we do what is right and never give up things will get better or things will change. Hope is the belief that better days are ahead if we are willing to work for it, fight for it and sacrifice for it. And finally love is the main reason we do what we do, for our kinsmen and our country.

Break the circle

Are you the one who made your lugages sir/madam? and do you know every item that is in it? eventhough to many this question seems very "stupid and unnecessary" its many times that we find things in our luggages that we didnt pack. i would like to use it to illustrate a point. in life we have many burden/ resentments that we hold that arent ours.we hate some people because we have been told by our parents that those people are our enemies. for example in Rwanda many people killed their neighbors because for some reasons the so called tutsis king used to step on a hutu to stand.this is probably a myth and even if it was true that was more th50years before the birth of the many that commited genocide!!!we hate people or groups of people for no apparent reason.
eventhough this has been a common thing in our for many generations i believe that the 21st century generation need to change we need to stop hating each other for hatred leads to more destruction and pain.
but how can we change? i believe that each person needs to do self analysis look withing you and take out the lugages that you did not make!!i believe that in order to make NEVER AGAIN NEVER AGAIN each one of us has a role to play! each one of us needs to question those prejudices that were given to you and take a step and break the barriers!!!! Get to know that boy or girl that they categorised as your enemy and only then will you be able to know that race/gender or other stereotypes says soo little about a person.
and that the goodness or badness of a person doesnt depend on his race but on his values and his heart.
break the circle

Hope

“Love comes to those who still hope even though they've been disappointed, to those who still believe even though they've been betrayed, to those who still love even though they've been hurt before.”

A lot of things have been going through my mind vis a vis forgiveness. Forgiveness is a journey but can we have forgiveness without hope?
For me I think that forgiveness is deciding that despite the wrongs that have been done in the past, I decide to not hold grudges against you and am open to a new possibility of a relationship with you. However, if people have no hope can they really forgive? I believe that they cant and this is why. Hope is that deep belief that despite the hardship that we may be enduring or that we endured in our past, that our future holds greatest things. Hope is when we decide not only to dream again but to open our hearts and minds for new possibilities that are sometimes beyond our imagination. Hope is what drives a underprivileged kid to school with no meal, no books, no school supplies but with a deep desire to see a brighter future for him and his family. Hope is what drives soldiers, freedom fighters who live in horrible conditions and live in sacrifice so that their kids might live in a better country. Hope is what keeps each human being positive despite the negative circumstances.
However, many people all over the world have lost their hope. Their hearts have been hurt so deeply that they turned cold, they have lost any desire in living and bitterness, anger drive their life. Telling these people to forgive their “enemies” would be wrong because it’s just impossible for them since their heart is not set for that! Nevertheless, I think that these people need to be given hope, they need to feel alive again and in the end forgiveness will occur.
But how can one give hope? The first way to provide hope to people is to listen to them. Listening is probably the most important tool in healing! As you listen to these people empty their hearts(without judging them) you are giving them a chance to replace their stony hearts into a flesh heart. After listening to them however I think that they also need words of encouragement, they do not need you to tell them that they are irrational, all they need is love and understanding!
I also believe that that Hope can be found into a higher being and his love.
And finally I do believe that in order to provide hope to victims there also needs to be material things. These material things are not aimed at replacing the lives of their loved ones but they are meant to ease their life to make their lives easier.
So as we provide hope for people who are experienced great hurt, we are giving them back the joy of life, the joy to live and as peace settles into their heart one day the redeeming power of forgiveness will turn their hatred into love.

Is it the Right time?

Is it right to forgive?
Is it the right time to forgive?

Forgiveness: the new F word! Sounds so easy, but actually involves so much! For the past month, two questions have been in my mind: Is it right to forgive and Is it the right time to forgive? These questions stemmed from a series of discussions I had with friends and genocide survivors who don’t feel any need to forgive those who dehumanized them.
First, is it right to forgive? In other words, do killers deserve mercy? From childhood we are taught that when people do wrong, they must bear the consequences of their actions. We are taught that we are to repay evil with evil, and that we must have justice, justice that we deserve! We are never taught that sometimes we ought to show mercy! We see mercy as weakness, as something that uncovers our inability to respond with strength to offenses against us. But mercy is never for the weak. As Dr. Martin Luther King used to say, “It takes a lot of courage and love to be able to not respond to darkness with darkness.” The fact is, nobody ever deserves mercy. Mercy is something that can never be “deserved,” yet it is universally needed. We are all alike in that we constantly wrong others; the common bonds we share are our imperfections and (at least potentially) our forgiving love.
But can we forgive something like genocide? Should we?
Forgiveness is a gift that you give to another, yet it affects you the most! Think about it: when you hold grudges and bitterness, you are only hurting yourself! The moment you start thinking of the person that has hurt you, the poison seeps through your mind making you miserable! Your own unforgiveness destroys you, takes away your happiness. Nelson Mandela said that “unforgiveness is like drinking poison and hoping your enemy dies.”

Is it the right time to forgive? I believe that forgiveness is a very personal matter and that each person should find his/her own way to forgiveness. No one should be forced to forgive; instead, they should be given the opportunity to work through the difficult process of radical forgiveness at their own pace. Making absolute statements such as “this is not the right time to forgive” or “this is the right time to forgive” suggests that we all are the same. Not true! Each one of us must find our own way and our own pace. For some it may take a few days; for some many years. And some might never find it in their hearts to forgive.

Does the fact that you cannot forgive make you evil? No, I don’t believe that. But if we are to find healing for our hearts, we will only find it through forgiveness!

Story telling

Young people in Rwanda and in any other post-conflict society of the world are faced with what might seem to many as an impossible task. the task of dreaming and imagining a better society that the one that they live in. as a result of history, many of their society are full of broken hearts,fear, resentment and bitterness. Young people are victims of their history. Victims because they have to bare the consequences of actions that they did not undertake. The effects of these actions still define many lives in those post conflict societies and as we are trying to rebuild our lives and society we have to deal with those consequences on a daily basis. Whether through the constant reminders of our history, like the prevailing poverty or through constraints that are imposed us by our elders. The greatest consequence of conflict is the mentality of “us” and “them” where we are constantly told that “those people” are different from us that “those people”are evil and we are good people. This ideology is one that created the conflict itself, by dehumanizing the “other” it becomes easier to commit evil deeds against them because in your eyes they are “not human”. To break this pattern of though however is a hard thing because it requires a radical and complete change of mind and heart.
However, God's gift for young minds has always been a free mind that can imagine greater things and a undivided energy to work towards that future! In order for that to change, like suggested in my last posts there’s need for Hope and faith.
But today I want to share what I believe is important in this process of change and that’s story telling. If there’s anything that separates humans from animals it’s our ability to tell stories. Humans communicate through stories. According to walter fischer humans are homo narrans. We understand our world through stories: about ourselves, about other people.
Stories have a powerful influence on us, because it’s through stories that we find meaning to our lives and our identity.
But how can stories be used to reconcile former enemies”?
The “US vs them” mentality suggests that a group of people have the same story, which is simply untrue.
Each person has stories that define them, story that shaped not only their character but their lives. And as each one of us tells our story we break away from that mentality.
Imagine for example if a child of a perpetrator of the genocide and a child of a genocide survivor sit down together and share their stories. As they share their stories it becomes easier for each one of them to see the “ humanity” in the “other” it becomes easier for them to see that admitting that the other suffered does not mean that you did not suffer too! And as they tell their stories they slowly break the walls that separated them before.
However, story telling in itself is not enough if not backed with goodness and the willingness to listen to the “other” and accepting him as a fellow human being. Story telling also require humility and courage.

So my brothers and sisters, if we truly want to change the world and make it better lets go out there and look for the “other”. The person whom you have been told to hate, the person whom you have been told to fear and talk to them and don’t worry if you are scared,” Courage is not the absence of fear but rather the judgment that something is more important than fear. The brave may not live forever but the cautious do not live at all”
Have a nice day

Rwanda: the power of forgiveness

Towson university African Diaspora with the sponsorship of the BSU is organising an event intituled "Rwanda: the Power of Forgiveness". this event which will take place on Towson Campus is part of the hope revolution where the leaders of this movement are reaching out to community and churches to explain to them what is happening in Rwanda! if you can please attend!!