T Minus 4 Hours to Departure

     The time has almost come.  I don't plan on sleeping tonight, night owl that I am, in favor of simply staying up until our 4:30 departure from home sweet home.  Roughly 24 hours of travel await me, alongside the rest of the team.  In all likelihood, we're going to be a sorry bunch by the time we touch down in Bujumbura, Burundi.
     Burundi.  To quote a particularly annoying sect of modern American pop culture, "you've probably never heard of it."  Click here to get a better view of the image behind this text; Burundi is in red.  Surprisingly, it isn't even the smallest country in Africa, such countries as Lesotho, Djibouti, and Swaziland, along with a few island nations, compete for that distinction.  It was colonized by the Germans originally, but was taken by the Belgians during World War I.  The Belgians introduced French, which, alongside Kirundi, is still spoken there today.  As with Rwanda, Burundi's history is riddled with tribal warfare and genocide.  Detailed information can be found here.
     Governmental efforts to quell violence have been tenuous in the past, and so despite the fear that violence might break out again, peace efforts are growing.
     Development and Research Innovations (DRI) has partnered with Trauma Healing and Reconciliation Services (THARS) in the hopes that with education and training, the animosity that exists as a result of the last genocide will not lead to another.