It is said time heals all wounds. I googled the saying to try and find out the origin of this proverb. My un-academic internet search cited the 4th century B.C. Greek dramatist Menander as being the primary source, but I also came across hit upon hit of individuals who questioned the saying and the ability of time to truly heal wounds. Fifteen years after the Genocide in Rwanda there is a strong sense of reconciliation. Is that due to time, a culmination of other factors, or both? I too question the power of time to repair and mend a wrong, but I do believe time may dim the acute feeling of an experience. And I want to put pen to paper, or rather finger tips to keys, before that happens.
I arrived home in Toronto from my experience in Rwanda 11 weeks ago. That’s two weeks longer than the total time I spent in East Africa. Due to the haphazard way of life, it is now, at this time, that I am on the InsideToronto site to update my Wanda in Rwanda blog.
But here’s the question: How can I write a Wanda in Rwanda blog when I, Wanda, am not in fact in Rwanda?
This is my response: I am physically in Toronto, working and socializing and living, but a part of me remains in Rwanda. My calves niggle for the ache of walking through a myriad of hills, my throat thirsts for the refreshing fizz of a Fanta citron, and my imagination roams the Rwandan countryside as my mind searches for answers to questions that I’ve yet to ask. So search with me, as I delve through my memory and expose my experiences living and working in Rwanda through a series of journal-like entries.
It's time.