Bazima means “to be alive” in Swahili. Swahili is one of the four official languages of DRC and the lingua franca in Kivu.
It’s most often heard as a response to the question, “How are you doing?”
Response: Bazima.
There’s variations to this response, too:
Bazima kidogo. A little bit alive.
Tuko Bazima. We are alive.
Bazima sana. We are doing well (very alive).
There’s nothing like a great, fresh cup of coffee to make your day come to life.
Especially in a place where living conditions are often challenging, each moment of life, each day, each sip, is precious.
There’s also nothing like diving into learning about a new subject, history, context, and culture to make you feel connected to humanity and, well, alive!
