hmmm...

11/11/09 Ok, weird thing happened to me today after Mass. An older woman with her son came up to me afterward, very nice and smiley, and said something in Kinyarwanda. I told her in French that I didn't understand, but she just kept repeating it and was grabbing onto her breast. I maintained a look of "I have no idea what you're saying," and we parted ways. Well, I asked Sr. Charlotte what that was all about, and she told me that the woman said "I am your mother!" Yes, grabbing your boob is how you indicate motherhood. Fitting, I guess. But she explained that this fits into the mentality of "white people are rich, so if I'm their friend they'll give me money." I've never met this woman or even seen her before, and she's already calling me her daughter. Therefore, this was probably not a sincere gesture to be kind to the foreigner; it was self-seeking. It was a good reminder that I must be careful with friendships here, as you can't really tell who is genuine and who is just after your perceived (yet false) infinite wealth.