The children on the bus go...

Rwanda children have me confused. More often than not, children are quite content to walk beside you or just stop and stare, yelling 'mazungu' in your direction, yet you take a step towards them and they scatter like spooked antelope. A mother, trying to be friendly will try to deposit her small kid into your lap where they promptly take one look at you, seize with terror, and let out ear splitting shrieks until the mother removes them again. It's great to look at the novelty white person, but don't let it get too close. But somehow, on the bus these rules cancel out. Now, in America people sitting on a bus have their nice personal space and can conveniently ignore everyone else around them. You could probably do that on Rwandan buses though it gets a little more difficult when there are 4 adults and 3 children trying to sit on 4 seats. Riding back to Kigali after my New Year's holiday, I was crammed in the back between two mothers, one with one child, the other trying to juggle two on her lap. Like most Rwandans, as soon as the vehicle started moving, the mother began to nod off leaving her older son standing squashed in the corner looking out the window. I felt awkward and sorry for both mother and the boy who had barely enough room to move. Pretty soon, the bus began lulling the boy as well and he tried in vain to keep himself upright while napping against the window. After several unsuccessful attempts I figured, why not. I motioned for him to sit on my lap to which he promptly scrambled over his mother. No fear or anxiety, just thankful to sit down. Granted, I was still a mazungu to stare at with the strange skin, but somehow the bus equalized us and he wasn't nervous about sitting with me. The novelty of the mazungu lap wore off quickly and he snuggled up to nap. Honestly, where else would you pick up a strange child and have them curl up to sleep against you. Where else would a child be allowed to sit with a stranger. The pure innocence of that simple act is such a powerful reminder that despite the name calling and frustrations with kids here, they have such a huge capacity to love and trust without questions asked.