NATASHA’S CHRONICLES:Keeping Memory Alive

Rwanda’s official commemoration week of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi has been marked by activity in respect to moving on from its dark past into the definitely promising future. This year’s theme “Learning from our history to build a bright future”, hits a particularly important point in our growth. I believe the power derived from keeping memories alive is beyond what we usually take into account, however it is the very source of our drive to do better, be better, influence others better, produce better results and so on. In fact, it puts us in a position to point out our weaknesses and strengths alike, as well as what really went wrong or right. Once these things are in place within our minds, no matter how painful the memory, we are on the right track moving ahead. You can speak of blessings in disguise.This time round, I have observed different age groups and kinds of people, companies, organisations and even schools, taking part in various initiatives towards keeping some of our painful memories alive and particularly using these memories to fuel energy and determination towards more recovery and overall transformation. Personally, I would like to publically commend the effort of all Rwandans and friends of Rwanda; young, old near and far, in their various capacities for their steadfast motivation. This ought to be the attitude of anyone who loves and feels responsible for their home. There are those who have gone out of their way, sacrificed their time, their sleep, their finances, their emotional courage to ensure that ‘Never Again’ a cause, that we have broken down into many specific particles, i.e. the Walk to Remember, memorial ceremonies, media campaigns and so forth, is ensured. Usually, people who go the extra mile receive less appreciation than they deserve and even I cannot fill that gap but for what It’s worth. I take this opportunity to convey my sincere gratitude to you, regardless of your age, background or status.I hope by doing so, I am also serving the double purpose of condemning those of us who have lost or are slowly but surely losing interest in supporting the Never Again cause based on inferior excuses such as boredom, or an extreme sad atmosphere among others. During a memorial walk by Riviera High School students last week in which I participated, we walked quite a long distance and by the end, we were exhausted and as we complained we also reflected on those who were forced, 18 years ago, to walk longer distances, without water, or food, or hope for survival in the least! I hope like me, you are challenged to do more than be negative about what is already negative. That is adding a problem to millions of other problems. Rather, try to contribute positively. Where you thought of boredom, think of how much more boring baseless hatred expressed in a bloody war; where you see an extreme sad atmosphere, look at it as a hopeful atmosphere for future joy and then, tell me that Rwanda will not have gained an extra hand in its ongoing quest for victory today!