Guheka umwana
Guheka Umwana .. Ange Bely’s Story
Some stories begin with a painting. Others begin with a conversations
I met Ange Bely during the five-year anniversary celebration of the Institut Français du Rwanda, where I was exhibiting my "A Day in the Life" collection. She was drawn to the collection and the way it tells stories of everyday people through art.
During our conversation, she shared a personal memory from a time when she travelled by motorbike taxi with her baby tied to her back. Her experience stayed with me, especially the fear she carried while trying to keep her child safe.
Her son was only four months old when she began travelling with him this way. One day, when he became sick, she had to take him to the hospital. She carefully tied him against her back and climbed onto a motorbike.
She explained that the hardest part was not putting the baby on her back or tying the cloth. It was trusting the knot.
She feared that it might come loose and her baby could fall. She held him close with both hands, even when that meant having no hand left to hold on and protect herself.
As she wrote:
“I was afraid of falling. But I was more afraid of letting him fall.”
Those words reveal a moment that many people may never notice when they see a mother travelling with her child on the back of a motorbike. Behind that ordinary journey was a mother carrying fear, responsibility, and the determination to get her sick baby the care he needed.
Her story reminded me that everyday life holds experiences that deserve to be seen and remembered. A journey that might appear simple to someone watching can carry a much deeper meaning for the person living it.
As I continue developing the Motari series within *A Day in the Life*, Ange’s experience has inspired me to explore this story through painting: a mother, her child, and a motorbike journey shaped by love and the instinct to protect.
Through this collection, I continue to paint the stories of my community, finding meaning in the everyday moments that often pass unnoticed.
Some stories begin with a painting. Others begin with a conversations
I met Ange Bely during the five-year anniversary celebration of the Institut Français du Rwanda, where I was exhibiting my "A Day in the Life" collection. She was drawn to the collection and the way it tells stories of everyday people through art.
During our conversation, she shared a personal memory from a time when she travelled by motorbike taxi with her baby tied to her back. Her experience stayed with me, especially the fear she carried while trying to keep her child safe.
Her son was only four months old when she began travelling with him this way. One day, when he became sick, she had to take him to the hospital. She carefully tied him against her back and climbed onto a motorbike.
She explained that the hardest part was not putting the baby on her back or tying the cloth. It was trusting the knot.
She feared that it might come loose and her baby could fall. She held him close with both hands, even when that meant having no hand left to hold on and protect herself.
As she wrote:
“I was afraid of falling. But I was more afraid of letting him fall.”
Those words reveal a moment that many people may never notice when they see a mother travelling with her child on the back of a motorbike. Behind that ordinary journey was a mother carrying fear, responsibility, and the determination to get her sick baby the care he needed.
Her story reminded me that everyday life holds experiences that deserve to be seen and remembered. A journey that might appear simple to someone watching can carry a much deeper meaning for the person living it.
As I continue developing the Motari series within *A Day in the Life*, Ange’s experience has inspired me to explore this story through painting: a mother, her child, and a motorbike journey shaped by love and the instinct to protect.
Through this collection, I continue to paint the stories of my community, finding meaning in the everyday moments that often pass unnoticed.
