A Day in the Life of Alyssa

I decided it might be easiest to give you a peek into life here if I just told you about a typical day. Especially now that school has started my days have a fair amount of routine in them, so it is easier to describe them to you!
I wake up every morning at 5:00am and start getting ready for the day. After ironing my clothes (who knew that it would take moving to Africa to make me start ironing!! But not ironing them is simply not an option here.), I usually get my bag ready and fill up my water bottle with the boiled water. When I first moved here I was worried I would accidentally pour myself water that was unboiled, but I very quickly learned where we always put the boiled water. Then I drink a cup of tea (every once in awhile coffee) and have my bread with peanut butter on it. I also get to see Queen briefly every morning as she is up just as early to go to school.
At 6:00am I walk quickly up the small hill that leads to the main road and meet the motorbike driver who has agreed to drive me to school every morning. “Mwaramutse (good morning),” I say. And he replies, “Yego (yes); Amakuru (how are you?).” Ni meza (I’m good) I say back to him…and then we are on our way! The mornings are usually cool in Rwanda, but I always appreciate the 25 minute cool ride to wake me up a bit.
So I usually arrive at school around 6:30 and wait for the guards to realize I am there and come open the gate. I exchange the same greetings with them and move towards my classroom. School starts at 8:00 but I use this time in the morning to do a lot of my preparation. I like arriving early so that I can get back to the church and home earlier.
Around 7:30 kids start arriving and I always have to remind them that they need to wait in their special spot outside the classroom instead of coming in so early. So, from 8:00-3:30 my day is full of 14 little kindergarteners. As the days go by they are getting more and more used to being in school all day and are learning more about the routines of being in school. I really should be writing down the things that they say, because they are all too hilarious but also all too easy to forget!
I usually stay at school until around 4:00. Then my motorbike driver friend comes and picks me up and I always have him drop me at church. I usually walk into the church office ( a small room attached to the church that has become a part of home for me) and greet whoever is there. “Yesu Ishimwe” (Praise Jesus), I say. This is the substitute for hi or how are you if you are greeting a Christian. I usually catch up with whoever is in the office (there is a group of guys that are basically on “staff” even though they cannot be paid) and then see if there is anything I can do to help the church. Sometimes I help with different odds and ends in the office (computer problems, recording data, etc) or sometimes with different children’s programs that are being planned. The worship team practices 3 times a week, so I love those days! I love just sitting and listening to them sing and trying to learn the songs in Kinyarwanda. Almost every day there is also someone in the office that has come to the church to seek help or prayer. So it is always neat to at least greet them and smile. The church has such a great reputation in the community of trying to help people; so, it is cool to see all the people who come for support and hope.
Depending on the day I usually reach home sometime between 6:30-8:30. Then the greeting of my family begins! I love coming home and seeing Daniella, Nathan, and Joella. I seriously miss them even if I don’t see them for one day! I try to greet the kids in both Kinyarwanda and English, so that they keep learning English. Sometimes when I come home they run into my arms and say “inshuti wanje” (my friend) or “nda gukunda” (I love you). But other days when I come home they look at me with a huge smile on their face and say “Nda Kuanz.” Which actually means I am no longer your friend. But whenever they say this to me I pretend to be really sad and start crying, which they think is hilarious. So we have lots of fun!
So for the remainder of the evening I just spend time with them or do various things around the home. Sometimes I try to help with the cooking. I love learning how to cook in Rwanda! I don’t know much yet…but I will get there. Then we eat dinner around 9:00 and I go to bed soon after that!
So…most of that seems pretty normal to me and maybe even boring to read. But I thought for those of you who wanted a peek into life, this would be the best way!

It has been awhile...

Well, it has been quite some time since I have updated my blog. I am not sure what specific story to tell you since it has been so long! Also, sometimes it is hard to remember what I should share because the longer I live here the more life just seems normal!! My weeks and days have felt very full as I have now become a kindergarten teacher. Crazy. I have successfully finished my first week of school (and a week of training). I do feel a little new to this whole world, but overall it is going well. I sort of feel like I am living two different lives (my life at school with quite a few Americans and my life at home/church with all Rwandans), but I think as time goes on I will adjust to living both of those lives. I have 13 Kindergarteners right now, with one coming sometime in the near future, and two coming in January. One of my favorite parts of teaching is the fact that the children are from all over the world. I have a few from Rwanda, a few from America, one from England, one from Tanzania, one from Japan, one from Uganda, and one from somewhere else that I can’t quite remember! That is where they are “from”, but it was pretty funny going around and asking the kids where they are from. One of the Rwandan girls said “Canada!” and one of the American boys said “Africa!” You see, a good number of these kids have lived most of their lives in places that their parents are not from. Some of them weren’t even sure where they from! Anyway, it is fun to think about how to teach these children from all different cultures. One of the highlights of being here is still living with my family. I love coming home at night and just being with them, helping them prepare dinner for guests, or playing with the kids. I am also still really enjoying being a part of my church here. I always stop by the church every day after school and help with little things or just say hi to the people there. Oh! I also really enjoyed going to a Rwandan wedding the other day!! I will have to write more about that later…it was quite the experience. Please continue to be praying for me as I learn to balance teaching and the rest of life!! These first few weeks have been a little long, but I am still doing well.