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Day Twenty-Eight
Marked by the Waters: A Day of Baptisms and Goodbyes
Sometimes you live through a day and can hardly believe you were there for it—present, witnessing holy moments, and holding the weight of both celebration and goodbye in the very same breath.
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Day Twenty-Seven
Opening the Unexpected: When a Broken Schedule Becomes a Gift
Sometimes the most meaningful days are the ones that don’t go as planned—where space opens for both quiet work and unexpected connection, and joy finds you in the most surprising places.
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Day Twenty-Six
Full Circle: A Day of Practice, Presence, and Completion
From final sessions with the mothers to conversations with staff and students, the day marked both completion and continuation—evidence that the work is taking root.
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Day Twenty-Five
Bittersweet Transitions: Holding On While Letting Go
Final moments with the sewing program girls to unexpected joy and global connection; endings and reminders of the lasting impact of presence.
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Day Twenty-Four
Steady Moments: A Day of Pouring Out and Being Filled
A day of teaching, quiet impact, and unexpected rest—reminding me that both pouring out and being filled are necessary parts of the work.
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Day Twenty-Three
An Unexpected Assignment: Learning in the In-Between Moments
A day shaped by national exams, meaningful conversations, and quiet reminders that impact often happens in the moments we don’t plan.
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Day Twenty-Two
A Day That Didn’t Need Words: When Presence Speaks Louder Than Language
A full day of worship, reunion, and reflection — where the most meaningful moments needed no translation.
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Day Twenty-One
Debates, Doctors, and a Mango Tree: Hope Taking Root
A campus-wide health outreach, a razor-close student debate, time with teen mothers and a new sponsored child, Uno and laughter with 7th graders, and a quiet visit to a mango tree planted in my dad’s honor.
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Day Twenty
Rings, Sewing Dreams, and Rest: Listening to My Limits
A quiet breakfast, a hard conversation under the trees with a teen mom, laughter and games in the sewing program, and an afternoon where I finally chose rest so I can keep going.
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Day Nineteen
Imvange Over Open Flames: Connection, Questions, and Quiet Evenings
An early chapel message on Genesis, honest conversations with teen mothers, problem-solving with staff, a razor-close student debate, and an evening game that ended not with Uno, but with a quiet gift and much-needed rest.
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Day Eighteen
Wednesday at Rwanda Children: Chicken Lollipops and Debates
An early chapel message on Genesis, honest conversations with teen mothers, problem-solving with staff, a razor-close student debate, and an evening game that ended not with Uno, but with a quiet gift and much-needed rest.
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Day Seventeen
Mothers, Nursery Hugs, and Uno: A Tuesday of Connection
A day of listening to mothers share what they’ve tried at home, talking about trauma-informed care with the nursery teachers, meeting a new circle of 7th graders at Conversation Corner, and ending the night with stories from staff and laughter over Uno Flip.
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Day Sixteen
Parents, Questions, and Quiet Conversations: A Sunday at Rwanda Children
A student-led worship service on parent-visit Sunday, an afternoon that shifted from a large teaching circle to a small group of students asking hard questions about trauma, and an evening of Uno, laughter, and quiet gratitude on the patio.
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Day Fifteen
Parents, Questions, and Quiet Conversations: A Sunday at Rwanda Children
A student-led worship service on parent-visit Sunday, an afternoon that shifted from a large teaching circle to a small group of students asking hard questions about trauma, and an evening of Uno, laughter, and quiet gratitude on the patio.
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Day Fourteen
The River, Coffee, and Song: A Full Saturday
A morning hike to the river through village paths, an intimate coffee roasting experience, songs and sign language with Girl Guides, a rain soaked dash to Conversation Corner, and a campus that felt fully alive from sunrise to storm.
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Day Thirteen
Teen Mothers and Friday Football: A Hard Morning and a Joyful Evening
A hard but hopeful morning with teen mothers in the sewing program, a loud and joy filled student led chapel, and a Friday night football match under a tree that showed just how alive this campus really is.
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Day Twelve
Rwanda Children: Mothers, Questions, and Conversation Corner
A morning with mothers in the Child Malnutrition Program, an afternoon of planning with chaplains, and an evening of honest conversation with 9th graders that ended on fields full of laughter and play.
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Day Eleven
Rwanda Children: A First Full Day
A morning of worship and walking a vastly expanded campus, an afternoon of orientation and Conversation Corner with 10th graders, and an evening of student-led worship.
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Day Ten
From ATN and Rwanda Children: The Stories in Between
A quiet morning of goodbyes, unplanned one-on-one conversations at ATN, a dusty drive to Rwanda Children, and an evening unpacking suitcases full of supplies and stories that others helped carry here.
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Day Nine
Akagera: The Day That Took Our Breath Away
A pre-dawn departure, a caravan of safari vehicles, close encounters with elephants and lions, and a red-dust ride back to a villa that felt suddenly quiet after the students left for home.
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Day Eight
Church and the Children: A Day of Worship and Welcome
A Sunday of worship in two languages, sixty preschoolers with tea and mandazi, and an afternoon of burgers, markets, and memories that left everyone fu5l in more ways than one.
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Day Seven
ATN: A Day of Culture and Care
A morning of cultural immersion on the farm, an afternoon in a packed room of parents talking about trauma and safety, and an evening filled with stories that made the tired feel holy.
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Day Six
Peace House and ATN: The Stories That Stayed With Us
A morning of coffee, worship, and testimonies at Peace House, an afternoon of chapel, stories, and quiet conversations at ATN, and an evening under a breezy pavilion that left us full in every way.
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Day Five
What Safety Looks Like in This Room: Training, Testimonies, and a Soccer Match
A morning of trauma-informed training with ATN teachers, an afternoon of songs and testimonies with welding students, and an evening punctuated by the sound of a joy-filled soccer match drifting in through an open window.
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Day Four
Walking Through Memory: Kigali and Ntarama
Quiet museum floors, shaded gardens, and memorial grounds that asked us to slow down, listen deeply, and receive before we step into teaching and camps.
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Day Three
The Day That Wouldn’t Let Go
Bureaucracy in the morning, drums and dancing in the afternoon, and the kind of welcome that makes the hard parts feel worth it.
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Arrival Day and Day 2
I Have Landed: First Hours in Kigali
Soft afternoon light, calm Sunday roads, and moto taxis threading their way through Kigali’s hills.
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