What d'ya say?
  • Home
  • BLOG
  • India Adventure
  • Scuba Diving
  • Meddies
  • Travel Pictures
  • Falmouth, Jamaica Pictures
  • Chichicastenango, Guatemala

Do I stay or do I go?

6/28/2009

1 Comment

 

That is the question that I have been contemplating over today, do I go to the genocide memorials in Rwanda where the bodies were not buried.  There are two large churches where thousands of Tutsi's were murdered and as a memorial their remains have not been moved.  Instead the bones remain, in the rooms, between the pew, men, women and children. Some people compare the memorial to a modern day Pompeii.  It is a horrific sight to see and I have been told it leaves a lasting impression...not a good one.


As terrible, disgusting, heart wrenching, traumatic it may be I feel as if I need to go see one of these churches.  I don't want to go as a tourist (which in reality that is what I am going to be), instead I want to go because I feel as if I didn't I am kind of doing what everyone in the West did in 1994.  By not going I am turning a blind eye and pretending as if it doesn't exist.  How can I talk to, listen, and research the topic of genocide with survivors but dart around the genocide?

No matter how much I prepare myself, how many books I read, I won't be ready to see what took place.  I can't fathom the fear those people must have felt or the anger and rage the killers must have had to carry out such atrocities.  I know the pain I have felt recently with my Grandfather passing away but can't image what it must have been like if all of my relatives would have died...right before my eyes to make it that much worse.  When older people die everyone says they lived a splendid life, made the best of their 80+ yrs but their body was just worn out.  What do you say when it is a mother and her six children who are brutally murdered? 

My mind is still not made up and I probably won't make the decision until right before we plan our day trip. 

1 Comment
Fun Photos link
9/1/2023 02:50:39 am

Great postt thankyou

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Author

    My name is Meg and I am currently a Geriatrics and Palliative Care Fellow at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City.  I started this blog several years ago as a way to remember and talk about what I experienced while studying abroad in Rwanda during the summer of 2009.

    The blog has now continued and still serves as a way to let my friends and family know what I have been up to and a way for me to open up.

    Disclaimer: The contents on this site represent my personal opinions, views, and experiences.  They do not reflect the views of my employer or sponsor program.

    Archives

    January 2016
    March 2014
    February 2014
    May 2012
    February 2012
    November 2010
    October 2010
    September 2010
    May 2010
    April 2010
    March 2010
    December 2009
    November 2009
    October 2009
    September 2009
    July 2009
    June 2009
    May 2009

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.