We joined our friend in Matara yesterday to celebrate together. We gathered in a makeshift meeting room, covered with blue tarps and fragrant with eucalyptus from the fresh branches woven into walls.

There were prayers offered in thanksgiving.

A children’s choir singing, with school uniforms transformed into choir robes!

There was drumming…

…lots of drumming!

Testimonies of God’s goodness were shared.

“Once we had no land, now we have land with homes and crops and fresh water!”

“Last year we had no shoes, but this year we all have shoes to wear!”

Some of the testimonies were quite animated, bursting with such joy!

All gathered together were thankful for the transformed landscape, for move from landlessness to home-land. All looked healthier than they did just 7 months ago. All were eager to break bread together in celebration… this time it would be roasted beef, bugari and Fanta!

Soon after this photo was taken, we ate. And then it rained – a huge, pounding rain. We all huddled into the center of the tent, clustered under the blue tarps to stay dry. There was a lot of laughing as we waited out the rains together. But I was reminded, once again, that rain is a sign of blessing. How appropriate to be rained on as we came together to give thanks – to be reminded that God’s blessings will continue to rain down on us all in the New Year!

Matara Update

These two families have much to celebrate, as they both have new additions to their families this holiday! Both babies, one boy and one girl, were born during the first part of December. The sweet little girl was named Niteka, which means ‘It’s an honor.’ The little bouncing boy was named Niyomwungere, meaning ‘God is our shepherd.’ As you can tell from these names, God’s blessing continues to fan this community, bringing forth names of promise, hope and gratitude.

Just this very week we harvested mushrooms for the first time, the newest addition to the Matara menu of vegetation. As you can see, they are cultivated indoors, more like a greenhouse setting. Mushrooms are considered by many to be a luxury crop, and our hope is that the chanterelles will bring a good price at the local market!

This is a snapshot of our staff in Matara in their new office space! Our team includes an agricultural engineer, social worker and micro-finance associate. These friends work alongside the families of Matara to assist them in learning the skills necessary to build a thriving community. They offer instruction, support, encouragement and friendship daily. It is a blessing to have such a great staff, so committed to the work and cheering the families along with genuine love!

Student House Update

Our students just completed their first term of the academic year. Sadly, the public school teachers are on strike again, which means 19 of our students did not get to take final exams or receive grades. They have been working so hard all term, and it is so disappointing to see the educational system break down and slow the learning pace of these dedicated students. Please pray for the dispute to be resolved soon so that the students can return to school and return to learning in 2010!

As for the remaining 18 students in private school, they completed the term – exams, grades and all! And we were so delighted to see the grades coming in – higher than ever before! Some students improved their grades from last year by 15 points, 18 points and even 33 points! It is so encouraging to see these students excelling and reaching their full potential. There is much to celebrate!

So we are celebrating – new babies, a harvest of mushrooms, a great Matara staff, dedicated students and some really stunning report cards!

Merry Christmas to all our friends… more Good News coming in the New Year from Burundi!

Last week the Batwa families in Matara had their first harvest… potatoes! Men and women helped with the harvesting work, and you can see by the smiles that they are proud of their agricultural accomplishment. The students in the CFB house will be sharing in the bounty… keeping some of the harvest in the family. More harvesting is to come, but for now we celebrate the first one and congratulate our Batwa families.

I am recalling a passage from Isaiah, where the prophet tells of a day when you will plant crops and reap them… eat them… enjoy the fruits of your labors. A time when your harvest is yours, and does not belong to the overlord, the tyrant owner or the empire. This harvest belongs to the Batwa families, they will taste the goodness of their work. The portion of the harvest that is sold will help repay their land loan so that this land will be theirs. This is not the empires crop, this is theirs! The prophets words ring true today – once landless families are now planting, harvesting and eating their own crops. They are tasting true restoration!

And in other exciting news… the second child was born in Matara. A boy! He is called Nishimwe, which means ‘may he be thankful.’ His family hopes he will grow to be thankful to God for the goodness He has shown them. Congratulations to this sweet family!

We are celebrating with our Batwa friends in Matara. We invite you to share in their joy and thanksgiving. God is good, and these friends can taste and see His goodness, indeed!

It is Training Day in Matara – Micro-finance training, that is. This week a well-respected micro-finance trainer from the region is on site and teaching our families about the principles of micro-finance loans. He is addressing both women and men, with a keen eye on the women, who tend to be the most industrious when it comes to initiating local enterprises. He is hoping to equip them with the basic understanding required to begin a micro-finance program. Joining him is Donatien, a new member to the CFB team, who will be managing the program. The original idea was to launch this endeavor in Year Three of the project, but we have decided to move this to Year One to accelerate the opportunity to make this a self-sustaining community sooner, rather than later.

While the training on micro-finance was quite engaging… you can see that our photographer (aka Claude) gravitated toward the smaller members of the community! They seemed to be filled with smiles, giggles and a general playfulness.

Meanwhile, the crops are growing…

And the children are returning from class – because the teachers strike ended this week! (Thank you for your prayers – students in Matara and Bujumbura are excited to be back in class.)

There are about a dozen other women who are expecting… so a Batwa baby boom is on the way! New life coming to Matara, how exciting is this!!!

In less than three months, the Batwa families have made Matara their home. In less than three months they have built homes, constructed the bulk of 15 latrines, relocated their families and forged friendships with their neighbors. But what I found most amazing when I was in Matara this week, is the sheer volume of agricultural work the Batwa have done in under three months. The hard work and progress astounded me and left me with an incessant smile as we moved across the land, up and down the hill and around the property line.

Above you can see the strata of progress. The soil in the foreground is the land just prepared for potatoes seeds. It is on a hillside, and the land was recently softened by a nocturnal rain, making it ready for clearing. They also dug an irrigation channel to keep the water coming to the crop. Down in the valley you can see the crops that have been planted and are already showing hints of green. More potatoes and some cabbage. Across the valley, on the far off hillside, you can see that they are in the final stages of clearing the land and making it ready for more potatoes! But this picture does not tell the full story… there are crops all around the base of the hills. Carrots, cabbage, corn and… so many potatoes!

Claude (our agricultural engineer) took Claude on a tour of the land, showcasing all the work.

He was eager to show us the spot where the cabbage seedlings were incubated, gently cared for until they are ready to transplant in the fields.

Meanwhile the women are preparing the field for the cabbage, all working side by side. They are as cheerful and they are colorful, and you can hear their laughter fill the valley as they wielded the hoes and moved the dirt.

They have already accomplished so much…

Carrots are growing here… we hope this will be another cash crop to benefit the community.

Today the men are bringing in more supplies for the construction of the latrines.

So much progress, and so many fields of green! So many reasons to applaud our Batwa families and their efforts thus far.

In other villages where they came from, like Bubanza, the grass huts were no protection from the rains. There was no where they could go to escape the wetness, the cold, the downpour. Everything they had would end up drenched, including their children. When rains came, I always thought of the Batwa friends and said a prayer. I knew they were so vulnerable and without protection. But this rain… I smiled knowing our friends in Matara has shelter that would keep all the families dry!

It is a drop of good news…

The land receives good attention as the Batwa friends are preparing it for cultivation. You can see the squares of land, allowing room for irrigation once the seeds are planted.

This woman is hard at work preparing her own land. There is satisfaction that she is working for her own family, and not consigned to another’s field or another’s crop. Soon she will see the fruits of her labors!

The men are carrying supplies up the hill, along with children on their hip, for the current construction project. The 30 temporary homes are all complete. Now they are working on 15 communal latrines.

They dig, line the holes with bricks (which have been carried up the hill), then a layer of cement… All part of the construction of permanent latrines. I am told that another benefit of these latrines… future fertilizer for the crops. Nothing is wasted…

At long last the potato seeds arrived! You cannot imagine how hard it was to locate and procure these seeds! It is not as simple as just going to the local nursery… But after a few attempts we found the right source for good seed. The potatoes will be the first crop planted. This will be a communal crop. A small percentage will remain in Matara for the families to enjoy, but the bulk will go to market to bring some income for the village. Claude, our on-site agricultural engineer, will be spending this week teaching the Batwa about the planting and tending involved in potato cultivation. This is just the beginning of our agriculture adventure, you might say it is small potatoes . (I could not resist!)

Claude noted that in his most recent visit he observed a good spirit among the Batwa. There seemed to be a levity among them, bright countenances and more laughter. They are seeing, already, that their labor is producing good things for their families. They are finding satisfaction in their work, finally seeing with their eyes how this village will become life-giving for them. It takes time for new realities to materialize, for our imaginations to conceive of a new set of possibilities and our hearts to believe that such goodness can come to us. But our Batwa friends seem to see that a new future is possible for them – and they are cheerful as they work together toward the new thing God is doing among them!

I am sure that as I type, they are planting potato seeds. So the Batwa are keeping busy and whistling as they work, or so it seems!

This past season I have seen the pages of the Old Testament come to life before my very eyes. Our Batwa friends live a landless existence in Burundi, their own homeland. They are without roots, as the government can order them to move at any time. So their grass huts are flimsy and unable to withstand the heavy rains, unable to keep families dry or warm of safe. Their villages are often far from the road to town, too far for children to walk to local school, a days walk to get meager amounts of water and a great distance from the crossroads of commerce. It is barren land. They might as well be wandering in a desert.

Bubanza, the village where we first encountered the Batwa’s living conditions, was a place of mere existence. I could imagine the cries that went up from this place. And what I know now is that, just like in the stories of Exodus, God hears the cry of the poor and exploited. He hears, He remembers and He responds. He delivered then and He delivers now. I don’t claim to know when God heard the cry of the Batwa of Bubanza, how long ago He considered them and set into motion salvific action on their behalf, how long they wandered with a wisp hope. Maybe more than 10 years ago… when Liberate had a burning in her heart to see emancipation for her tribesmen and women. Maybe all these years God has been at work, bringing together a new future, a promised future, for the Batwa.

But last month we saw the further unfolding of the Biblical narrative before our eyes. Etienne, Liberate and Evariste went to see the land of Matara, and like Joshua and Caleb, pronounced it to be good land! Maybe not flowing with milk and honey, but there was a green field thick with tea plants! And a water source on the land, and a forested hillside that offered shade and shelter. This was promised land, indeed!

So on June 1st the men relocated from Bubanza, among other similar villages, to Matara. They came ready to prepare the land for their families. For 2 weeks they worked at clearing the land and building the temporary homes out of bamboo, mud and sheet metal roofing. And on June 19 they welcomed their wives and children to their new home. Crossing the little river on Matara must have been like crossing the Jordan for them… moving onto their new land where they could build permanent, weather-proof homes, plant gardens to have fresh vegetables to eat, a running river just meters from their village center where they could now have ample water for cleaning, bathing and drinking and an elementary school within an easy walking distance for their children. Now there is a homestead for them and their children and future generations. This is the Biblical story come to life, yet again!

Temporary homes

Welcome to our home!

Greetings

The Batwa of Matara welcomed us with extravagant hospitality to their new home. There was enthusiastic and athletic dancing, the singing of ancient songs and roasting of goat over the fire to be shared with us all. The celebration was a homecoming party… God had answered their prayers for real land. And we, as friends, were so humbled and honored to share in the holy moment. I felt like I was transported back to the banks of the Jordan… crossing over with these friends into a promised land as real as Israel. I was reminded that God delivered and He delivers.

How many times do we get to walk the Biblical story so literally? To be so tangibly reminded that God is still active in the world in such ways – listening to the cries of the poor, bringing liberation, giving land, handing us hope and holistic salvation? It has been overwhelming, to say the least. One thing this has done for me is reminded me that the Old Testament stories are not collecting dust on a shelf somewhere, or only read to children in Sunday School… they are continually being enacted across the world where God is on the move for the sake of the world He so deeply loves and is committed to restoring.

June 1st was an exciting day for Community For Burundi and their Batwa friends… it was the day that the relocation of 30 families began!

The morning began with more than 30 Batwa men on the land of Matara ready to work and begin preparing a place for their families. Claude and the committee members came with the official list of selected families, to ensure that there be order from the beginning. It seemed there were about a dozen extra men present, hoping to squeeze into the newly forming village by offering their hard work or just simply blending in. One was originally scouted out to be part of the initial group, but declined because he did not really believe that this day would come, that the promise of land was true. But he was there… finally seeing what was promised with his eyes. But this was not his day to relocate, as he had declined. This day he was to support others as they moved up the hill to their new home.

Once the 30 men were identified, they all made their way over the river and up the hill to the site of their new village. Most men came with just a plastic grocery bag of things… not much for moving day. But truly, this land is all they now have. So the CFB committee gathered them all on the hillside, inviting them to sit for an inaugural meeting of the village men. There was a long discussion about the expectations for the new community they are building and detailed conversation about the next steps in cultivating their village life. The first real order of business was electing the 5 village leaders, or local government. This is the foundation for village leadership and corporate responsibility for the welfare of this village. These are the 5 men that will work closely with the committee to steer the village in the seasons to come.

While there was a layout for the plots of land for each family, no assignments had been made as to which family would reside on which plot. But there was no struggle or contention as the men went to set down their belongings and begin working on their new home sites. Everyone was so excited to be inhabiting this rich quality of land, that no one felt the need to fight over site locations. There was just gratitude that they were here and part of this new endeavor!

The men were in for a surprise… unexpected gifts as they began their life in Matara. The CFB committee brought gifts to assist them with their new life here – like a bunch of housewarming gifts! There was a large cooking pot for each family, hoes for their gardens, soap, salt, beans, rice and other tools necessary for a strong beginning. The men were thrilled – they have never been given such a chance, even the very tools for success as they put down their roots here. The spirits were high today!

The CFB team will be coming up to the site daily as the project begins and the building takes shape. There will be a social worker on site to get to know the family and access their needs. There is a local engineer to assist with the construction of homes, roads and such. The committee members will be working alongside the Batwa to both deepen relationships and supervise the formative stages of the community development. And in a few weeks, the women and children will move to the new home, bringing an abundance of energy and life to Matara!

We are on the way…