World Ark Magazine - November/December 2007 - (Page 24)

ARV medication bolsters their health, and now Mukagatsinzi and her husband can concentrate their efforts in building a sustainable livelihood for their children—all of whom are HIV negative. Up to now, milk has been their major expenditure. Their heifer is still producing colostrum for the calf, but the family looks forward to drinking the heifer’s milk soon. “Whatever we save in terms of money from the sale of milk will be spent on buying new land for new pasture because we are hoping this cow will multiply after we have fulfi lled the contract of ‘passing on the gift.’ We expect more cows!” Mukagatsinzi says. She has turned her condition and stoic outlook on life into an asset for others. Through Heifer Rwanda’s partnership with Urunana Trait d’Union and WE ACT (Women in AIDS Care and Treatment), both village-based grassroots NGOs, she serves as an advisor for other women living with HIV. Mukagatsinzi counsels them during the initial shock of the virus, then helps them move on with their lives and obtain ARVs at the local clinic. BENJAMINE MUKAKAJUGA’S STORY: BROUGHT OUT OF GRIEF I n a wash of evening sunlight in the northeastern province of Gicumbi, Benjamine Mukakajuga, 38, stands in her golden wheat field, beaming with a broad, gap-toothed smile. In a proud and victorious manner, she sweeps her arm in the air, gesturing to a 12-acre parcel of jutting green crops. “All of this that you see was acquired because of that cow. Before this, I had no land.” In 2002, Mukakajuga began to feel ill and tested positive for HIV/AIDS. The devastating news only added to the severe challenges she faced—caring for two of her biological children and four other orphans from the genocide. Her husband abandoned her. Like others who suffer from HIV, she felt stigmatized because she was weak, sick, and couldn’t support herself, harboring a deep-seated feeling that she was a social burden. That same year, she became a beneficiary of a cow that soon began supplying more than five gallons of milk per day and has since birthed three calves, including the one she passed on. Mukakajuga saw the opportunity and wasted no time turning the proceeds from her milk, which drew a competitive price at market, into food for her children and a regimen of ARVs for herself. Over time, the medication and a diet of milk and homegrown vitamin-rich vegetables have significantly improved her health. “I am now feeling healthy, looking good and positive. I am moving on!” she says. On the way back to her house, Mukakajuga points to another sign of her progress: a series of long wooden poles strewn on the ground, ready to be constructed into her second cow shed. Mukakajuga named her first cow Imaragahinda, a word that means “brought out of grief.” And so much of what she has today comes from Imaragahinda. Thanks to the benefits of one animal and a means for sustainable living, Benjamine went from a decimated outlook on life to building genuine hope for tomorrow. “I would not be alive without this cow,” she says. “This cow is my husband. It took away my grief. I drink milk every day and all the work around me is because of my cow. With it, I can afford to hire people to help me and care for my well-being. In brief, my cow is my life.” 24 November/December 2007 | WORLD ARK www.heifer.org http://www.heifer.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of World Ark Magazine - November/December 2007

World Ark - November/December 2007 Contents Letters For the Record The Good Life Asked & Answered Pursuing Happiness (PRODUCT) RED: Consumer Power Fights AIDS in Africa Rwanda Reconciles End Hunger Now Protecting the Poor from Climate Change Mixed Media Heifer Bulletin Heifer Spirit Heifer Calendar Reflection

World Ark Magazine - November/December 2007

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