Austin and Verena were caravaning on motos. Someone pulled out in front of Austin’s. The driver tried to stop suddenly - rather than swerving for some reason - and they flew off the bike. Verena, immediately behind them, saw the whole incident, and felt her vehicle run over something. She was immediately frightened she had run over Austin. But he seemed “ok” - Austin and the driver both were bleeding, though the injuries appeared largely superficial.

Of course a crowd quickly gathered to see the commotion. Many tried to detain the biker, who was trying to flee the scene - another testament to Rwandese’s sense of community social justice.

Verena, though shaken, was very alert and concerned about Austin’s open wounds remaining clean due to the threat of contamination, particularly HIV/AIDS.

However, immediately following the incident, both Verena and Austin hopped right back on motos to get to their destination and away from the scene. austin refused medical attention, bandaging his sores himself. Since then, Verena has refused to ride motos, instead walking miles to and from work.

The accident certainly has made me rethink transportation options. I have begun walking more frequently again as opposed to shelling out a few francs here and there. When I do ride motos, I urge the driver to go SLOWLY. The message is either received mockingly or with genuine concern. I try to explain my reasons, telling the story of my friends’ accident through the language barrier, but with the possible understanding, there comes compassion.