my BIG, FAT, RWANDAN visit

If you have seen My Big, Fat, Greek Wedding, then you are all set to understand this post. If you haven't seen it, promptly close your computer, go watch it, and then come back to read this post. You will definitely thank me later because it is a hilarious movie and you will now be armed with a number of excellent one-liners.

I went with Louise and Lydia to visit a nurse with whom Louise works and with whose daughter Lydia is friends. I was able to hang out with and get to know one of her older daughters who is 15. She said that she would help teach me Kinurwanda, which I definitely need help with. It is also nice to feel like I have a friend who is Rwandan. The visit began with a Fanta citron. Fanta is the catch-all term for every soda they have here, and, everywhere you go, people always offer you Fanta. I've never really loved soda, but you pretty much accept what people put in front of you as it can be rude to refuse someone hospitably providing for you. The Fanta was followed by an apple each, three or four plates of these doughnut hole things, three bowls of peanuts, and several bowls of pineapples. Each time, I would try to eat as much as possible of the one thing, and then the next food item would arrive. If I stopped eating for a time, my new friend would touch my arm, point to the food and say, "You should eat!" Believe me, I would eat if I didn't think my stomach were going to explode.

See, this is My Big, Fat, Greek Wedding. The mom asks if anyone is hungry, and, regardless of the answer, she immediately offers plates of food. This is also Jane DeHart. A typical conversation between my mother and one of my friends:

Friend: Hello Mrs. DeHart!
Mom: Hello! Are you hungry? What can I feed you?
Friend: Oh, I'm fine. Thank you though.
Mom: Ok. Here's a plate of cookies.

I always thought that this was just Southern hospitality, but perhaps it is more worldwide than that. I love the notion that perhaps Mom learned this particular form of hospitality from growing up in Congo, but regardless of where it's from or where it happens, I hope it always happens in my home wherever I live.

After eating my fill, I walked with my new friend out to the back of the house where Lyd was playing with her friend. I greeted their grandmother and watched them play for a while. Then we went for a walk. I would ask her about certain words, and she would tell me what they were in Kinurwanda. She laughed about why my cousins hadn't taught me any Kinurwanda. I told her that really I just have a poor memory for language (Sadly, I did not inherit the amazing mind for languages that my Grandfather has, but I think Erich got it, so it's still in the family).

It was a lovely visit. I loved getting to walk around her neighborhood with her. I hope that there will be more visits to come. Though, next time, I will remember to pace myself on the snacks because there are more lying in wait in the kitchen.