Michael related an anecdote about his meeting with one eight year old boy in a village. Michael offered the boy a stick of gum and the boy hurriedly chewed and swallowed it. Michael then gave him another two pieces, for the boy to eat later, and he immediately ate these too. Michael asked an interpreter to tell the boy to save some for later and was told that that was a completely foreign concept to most people in Rwanda. This boy, he was told, had no thoughts of tomorrow and no understanding of accumulating possessions.
Life is very much for today only.
Much of the work Michael and his fellow investigators are conducting is laborious and painstaking. Helping to exhume mass grave sites with hundreds of dead is something however that no amount of experience or training can prepare anyone for. Michael has noticed a remarkable similarity in the skills and abilities of people from other law enforcement agencies. He believes increased movement and sharing of resources amongst law enforcement services internationally would be beneficial to all concerned. Michael said it has been a unique experience meeting and working with such committed and remarkable people.