In Her Shoes/HOPE. PERIOD: Amina
Every heart holds a story. It’s through sharing these stories that we relate, learn, and know that we are not alone. Today we are HONORED to hear from our dear friend Amina Nzamwitakuze Harmon. She is a wife, mother, survivor of the Rwandan Genocide, and a big part of SheHopes. We have worked with her in East Africa, and now we get the pleasure of working with her here in Wichita. She is our Swahili translator, our consultant, and our HERO.
Grab a cup of tea, maybe a Kleenex or two, open up your heart, and let Amina share her story of HOPE. Period and what it is like to be IN HER SHOES…
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I did not know anything about getting my period. I watched my older sister. She hid her period cloths around the house before she washed them. My older sister and brother went to school, but my father did not have enough money for the school fees to send my younger brother and me to school. While my older siblings were at school, it was my job to clean the house. We lived in a mud house, so I had to clean often so we didn’t get jiggers or bed bugs. I used to find her period cloths and take them to my dad to tattle on her and to ask what they were. He used to tell me, “You will know when you grow up.”
My dad passed away from HIV when I was eleven. My stepmom never told me what to expect when I got my period a year or two later. I shared a bed with my older brother until I was 12-13 when I started my period. I woke up and saw blood. I was so scared that I ran out of the house and didn’t tell anyone. My brother came looking for me and asked why I was up so early. When he learned that I was bleeding, he told me that our sisters used their clothes to soak up the blood.
At the time, my very favorite shirt was a red Minnie Mouse t-shirt. My brother said that because it was so soft and spongy, it would be the best thing to use so I would not leak. I was always running around and playing games with boys and learning karate, and he said I would leak blood if I used any other fabric. He showed me how to tear my Minnie Mouse shirt into strips about 18” long and to wrap them into little bundles to use. I did not have any underwear at the time, but I owned one pair of shorts, so I used those shorts to hold my period cloth in place. I still think about that shirt.
Little Amina with her dad and mom (Saidi and Vestine) in Rwanda a year or two before the Rwandan Genocide
I only had my period once before I was raped. My aunt took me to be checked out at the hospital. I didn’t know that the period would be coming every month. My aunt had a daughter who was only one year older than me, so she taught me more about my period. There is a special part of our culture in Rwanda where women take girls to a hidden place to explain their period and what it is like to be a woman. They also take cow oil and teach girls to massage and pull on their labia like they are milking a cow. It was taught that this was a part of our culture, as well as how to keep a man. Unlike other places around the world, even in Kenya - thankfully cutting was not part of our culture.
At one point I became sick because I did not know how to care for my period cloths. No one had taught me how to wash them and then dry them in the sun. My aunt took me to the hospital again, and they gave me pills which made me better. She taught me how to boil the cloths and to dry them in the sun to disinfect them before using them again.
Amina at 18 in Kenya
I used strips of cloth for my periods until I was 18 and living in Kenya when I first tried disposable pads. I didn’t understand all of the different sizes and options, but my American friend Sammy showed me how to use them.
I began to work with girls while I was living in Kenya. Talking with them and listening to their stories really took me back to when I was a little girl, and it made me miss my mom. My mom was killed on April 11, 1994 as we were hiding during the Rwandan Genocide. I was five years old. I missed her because if she had lived, she would have taught me about my period and all the things that I needed to know.
Amina working with girls in Kenya
I learned that so many women and girls have to stay home during their periods. Women can’t work to provide for their families. Girls can’t go to school. Even though we didn’t talk about periods and how natural they are, if your neighbors see that you are staying at home, they know that you are having your period. So many girls don’t understand the emotions and feelings that come with their periods - feeling angry, or the pains in your stomach and back. I love to educate them about what I have learned - that it is normal.
Amina translating and teaching girls in Kenya with SheHopes
When SheHopes reached out to me and said they wanted to give pads to girls, it was the most joy I felt in a long time. I was so happy seeing the handmade pads that the girls could wash and reuse. Seeing the smiles on the girls’ faces was the best thing ever. It reminded me of when someone showed me real pads for the first time. It filled me with JOY!
Amina and Leila teaching girls how to use washable sanitary supplies in Kenya
We took the SheHopes pads to schoolgirls in Kenya, and teachers saw them and wanted pads too! They said, “Thank you! This will save us so much! This is the best thing!”
I also took SheHopes pads to women and girls back home in Rwanda. They thanked me and kissed me. One package of 12 pads costs 1,200 Rwandan Francs ($1.26) and is only enough for 2-3 days. My sister who is HIV positive has three daughters, so she cannot afford to buy them pads. I gave them to my nieces, and they said that besides the clothes that I had brought them, these pads were the best gift I had ever given them. I was able to see how impactful these pads are, even in my own family.
Amina teaching self-defense in Kenya with SheHopes
I live in America now with my husband and two sons, but when I go back to Africa I want to help in my country. So many girls and women struggle with shyness talking about periods, panties, bras, and women’s needs. I would love to go back to talk and help. Many women don’t have panties, and they wear traditional wrap skirt or sarong called kitenge, so it’s hard to wear period cloths without underwear and pads.
I want to continue supporting girls so they don’t feel ashamed about their periods. In working with girls who do not even have panties because it was hard enough to have other things that they needed, I found out that I was not alone. I want to protect other girls so they don’t get sick, and so they know that they are not alone. In my power, I will do anything.
Amina and her grandma in Rwanda - her grandmother wearing the traditional kitenge wrap sarong
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Every heart holds a story. It’s through sharing those stories that we relate, learn, and just like Amina said - know that we are not alone. A big MURAKOZE (THANK YOU) from the bottom of our hearts to Amina for sharing her story with us today. Today is exciting because we have just read what a difference sanitary supplies can make in the life of a girl! We are asking YOU today to give the gift of HOPE. We are asking you to give the life-changing gift of providing SANITARY SUPPLIES to our sisters in Rwanda and Kenya. You will be giving each girl enough sanitary supplies for an entire year! Click on the link below to donate today! Here’s to HOPE!
