Rwandan culture

Issa asks his father, Dieu Domme, to explain the difference between how Rwandese lived in the past and how they live now. Dieu Domme takes this opportunity to describe how life was in Rwanda before ethnicities were brought by the white people. This was a time when Rwandese respected and helped each other, regardless of their background. Dieu Domme hopes that the Rwandese today can learn from the culture of their ancestors and start to respect each other once again.

Sweeping very early in the morning, used to be a girl’s task, and girls hid themselves from the sight of others. These, and other stories from Rwandan culture, Salima is curious to hear from her mother. Were they really schooled separately? Did boys mainly hunt? Chantal fills in these gaps, speaking not only about her own girlhood, but her mother’s as well. Salima asks for more stories. Family stories about Salima’s mother are told, about a close mother-daughter bond, and about her grandmother’s great value for getting support from other women.

Stories For Hope created a forum for elders to inspire the youth; at least that’s what Judith and Nadia expected when they accepted to share their story. In this story however, the roles astonishingly reverse as an elder finds encouragement and inspiration from her niece and adopted child who tries to point out how children now play together in Rwanda, even as their own parents were once enemies.

Vianney snuck out of Rwanda to Burundi by crawling through forest surrounded by an army. He had a plan to join the forces that were fighting the genocide. When he got to Burundi, he forgot this plan and spent his time enjoying the food that had been donated to the refugee camp where he lived. He got his wakeup call when he was visited by a man he would never forget. The legacy he hopes to leave with his brother is that of a nation that rebuilds its cultural institutions and relies on its youth to think like heroes.