Reflections from Sister Ann Fox

In March of 2020, Maranyundo Founder and long-time Board member Sister Ann went on a trip to Rwanda that was supposed to last one month, but she ended up staying for a year and a half!

Here are some of her reflections from living in Rwanda during the pandemic. 

I had planned to stay in Rwanda for a few months but the day after I landed, the airport was shut down for six months because of the coronavirus. It was a safe place to be during the crisis. The Government acted quickly to put masks and social distancing restrictions in place. They already had one set up for a threatened Ebola endemic so that was used. Out after the 8:00 PM curfew? You spend the rest of the night sitting in the stadium, listening to lectures on the virus.

We had one funeral -  only fifty people were supposed to attend but there were a hundred. It was a Sister who was studying in Canada and died of the virus. Great care was taken that her casket remained in the ambulance and only a few well suited up people accompanied it to the cemetery.

For the most part, schooling had continued. Since most children did not have access to smartphones or the internet, radio was used extensively for online learning during the period the schools were closed. School classrooms were reconfigured to meet social distancing standards and some classrooms were converted into dormitories. Travel between districts was prohibited, which was the most difficult constraint. Maybe that wasn't the biggest constraint - all the bars were closed -- to be fair all the churches were closed as well.

We could not travel from the Mother House to nearby Huye or to Kigali because they were in different districts. You could go shopping in town and most of the shops were open but everyone had masks. Everyone wore masks outside of their homes and the traditional Rwandan hugs were changed to elbow greetings.   

It was a good place to be during this pandemic. But it desperately needs more vaccines as does every African country.

Sr Ann Fox