Settled

It’s a sunny Saturday morning ahead of another warm day. Preparing myself to go to a wedding of a close friend’s daughter. I hope I will survive the negotiations between the two families as I only went to bed at four. Catherine arrived last night and as traditional Rwandan welcoming is what it is, you can imagine that even in the middle of the night there is time for talking and talking and….

I had a busy but a feel good week. I was teaching my first full day and it’s so great to see those dancers with whom I’m working since 2010 growing and growing and being dedicated. I did my first attempt to know their names; everyone knows how terrible I am in this. We will see what’s left over next week Monday…

Also yesterday I went to town for the first time to do some shopping with the kids. It’s funny to meet Minister Joe at the supermarket’s gate followed by his faithful shadow. What I first thought to be his driver, his umbrella carrier, seems to be his body guard. Even funnier is the idea I have that the minister could be his bodyguards’ bodyguard but for those to whom I should give the wrong inspiration, be aware that the shadow player is a trained military, so be carefully when you approach the Minister with bad ideas! ;-)

Joe Habineza, Minister of Sports and Culture of the department with the same name, most known as ‘minispoc’ (the Dutch must love this abbreviation). I met him this week in a short meeting we had about the workshops in Kanombe, the remake of the Agaciro movie in Murambi at the latest in 2018-2019 and the creation of a vocational school for dance. We also agreed fast on a few practical things regarding the showcase by Abatarutwa on January 4^th. Lauren Makuza, his advisor and Director of Culture Promotion whom I met already last week will start the implementation…. Rwandan efficiency at its best.

The same afternoon Minister Joe was also present at the Presidential Palace Museum for the historical show prepared by the kids of Kanombe with their trainers, most of them dancers from Abatarutwa. Like last year it was a sublime show about the history of Rwanda till colonization, with even more participants and attendants. As a special guest I had the privilege to sit a while next to the freshly chosen Miss Rwanda and to show my rather limited skills in Rwandan traditional dance flanked by the honorable guests. I’m happy the camera only took the last, lost steps, all the more that the Abatarutwa dancers whom can be considered amongst the best of Rwanda had shown their spectacular style at the opening of the show. That moment, when you feel proud to have the privilege to work with them in urban… Urban? Yes we decided to use urban rather than contemporary at least for the moment…

Most of my days end here at home with the family at the dining table after analyzing the movies of my classes. And then… to bed because tomorrow is another ‘working’ day.

Yes I am settled.

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En tout cas! (Anyway!)

Let me start this first letter with one of the fetish sentences from my hostess, Francoise; on reflection the catchphrase of a big part of the family and after giving it a deep thought I guess it’s the countries slogan… ‘In any event’. Anyway, whatever happens we do it, nothing can stop us!

This can better be my motto for the coming weeks also. I go for it and to illustrate what that means… After I landed between the hills last Thursday evening and after the traditional proceedings… dinner, unpacking gifts and finally taking up residence I had a rather quit day till the evening. The welcome from the family consists of a dinner at the swimming pool of a hotel enlivened with a band playing traditional Rwandan songs and embellished with traditional dancers and probably the most talented four year old little girl dancer ever seen. Rwanda has talent!

What is unimaginable in Europe and probably in most countries of the world, I have a meeting with the Ag. Advisor to the Minister/Director of Culture Promotion MINISPOC on Saturday morning at the Ministry to discuss my teaching program with the Abatarutwa company and to hand over my blueprint about professionalization of Rwandan dance ‘An attempt to move’ and the ‘Agaciro’ movie. This country has shortcuts between its leaders and its population and that is probably another part of the miracle that happens here every day since twenty years. One of the important results of this meeting is that I can teach again with the company in the Presidential Palace Museum in Kanombe, so we avoid all the useless displacements and loss of time we went through last year. We will probably organizing a showcase on January 4 in le Petit Stade at the Amahoro site in Kigali. Furthermore we intend to organize a meeting with envoys from the MINISPOC and the WDA (Workforce Development Authority) and a few specialists to discuss the blueprint and implementation possibilities.

Saturdays… wedding days and traditional dowry celebrations… you can’t escape them and certainly not when you are considered a member of the family. Thus it could happen that this muzungu was suddenly accused of having refused a visa to a honorable gentleman from the future brides family and I had to justify myself in front of both families. It was rather hilarious to become suddenly a part of the traditional negotiations. I invented myself a twin brother, a Dutchman even… and off I went, praised by my clan.

The day ended at the groom’s family were I finally met again, after almost five years, the man who is probably responsible for my deep commitment towards Rwanda and who made me read the most interesting books about the Genocide against Tutsi, Dr. Charles Rudakubana.

Sunday afternoon… visiting the staff of the Abatarutwa Troupe, Mbabazi and Richard. It’s good to talk to those two fantastic persons that I really admire because they are running this company as parents, taking care of the dancers as if they were their own children… btw three out of their four sons are in the company. It makes me feel humble and proud to serve their goals. There is so much love inside Rwandan homes. The same within the family of one of the dancers that I started to support last year because of her talent but also because of her widely acclaimed personality. As I wrote already several times, as an individual you can’t help everybody but if every single person in this world should help another one, this planet would look different.

Monday… ‘la grasse matinée’ there is no adequate translation for it but I was in bed till almost midday and in the afternoon preparing my first classes for the next couple of days, listening to music, some stretching, surrounded by the kids. Neither them, neither Francoise nor Egide, are questioning this odd behavior within their walls anymore, after all those years they probably got used to it.

Just went into Tuesday… sleeping time…. I’m here only four days back and it seems I never went away. Rwanda feels good. This family feels good. I have a message for the dancers and for all of us here…. Let the hills inspire you!