Life Will Always Be a Torrential Downpour...Or So I Hope

I have decided that I want to keep a blog going for when I move to Canada and instead of making a new one, I'm going to use the same one I used in Africa. I want to be able to keep in contact with the people I love and post pictures and cool stuff like that. I know that my life will always be a torrential downpour because exciting events will always be happening, whether happy or stressful. Know that even though I'm moving far away, you will all still be in my heart. I think it is true that when you have something that is really amazing that you don't really realize it until you don't have it anymore. I always knew I had a great family and great friends, but now that I'm moving, I realize how amazing you all are. Hopefully I can hang out with lots of you before I move. Also, remember that you can visit me anytime! Caleb and I would love to have you visit us. I love you all! Here are also some pics that have been taken since I was in Africa.

Caught in a Torrential Downpour

November 19^th, 2007

Food has been good this weekend in Kampala. Grace is an amazing cook. Notice that I talk about food a lot. that is because I love food. Also, when Kate and I were in Sasiga, when we were in a bad mood, we would always try to think of happy thoughts. Those happy thoughts, probably 90 percent of the time, were about food. One time we spent at least a half hour thinking about the food we want when we get home and foods that are our favorites. Pretty pathetic, I know.

I slept in on Saturday which was refreshing. In the afternoon I got caught in a rainstorm when I was trying to go shopping. Seven of us girls were going so we had to split up into two different taxis. We didn’t know exactly where we were going and so we drove around looking for the shop. It was called Uganda Crafts 2000 and it is a free trade shop. The money goes toward orphans, widows, and disabled people. it’s a little expensive, but the extra money is worth the cause. Just as we were dropped off, it started raining and the craft shop was nowhere to be seen. Caitlin, Sarah, and I wandered around in the rain. Suddenly the rain poured really hard. We literally had to step into and over streams of quick-moving water on the streets. the water was deep enough to go partway up my calf and so when I stepped into it, it splashed up onto my skirt. As everyone else waited patiently underneath the eaves, we traipsed around in the downpour and got soaked. I’m sure they were thinking, “Crazy Mzungus. Always in a hurry.” But we had to find that shop. After calling the other girls about 4 times and getting descriptions of the billboards nearby the shop, we finally made it there. Good thing it wasn’t’ cold out or we would all have been admitted into the hospital for hypothermia. I’m used to rain in Oregon, but not like that. The shop was amazing and I bought a lot of things.

That night we watched The Office: 4 episodes from season 4. of course the girls were excited that Jim and Pam were finally together (sorry if I gave something away). Sunday morning I went to church at an international church and I was not used to seeing so many white people in one spot! Even the international church in Ethiopia was mostly Ethiopian people and not foreigners. I was a little overwhelmed. The pastor talked about the parting of the Red Sea. After the service the congregation acted out that scene on a slip’n slide. That evening we went to the Nisley’s and ate really good tacos. I was most happy about the guacamole because I had been craving it since we ate tacos at their house the last time. we also had home made chocolate chip cookies. I hadn’t eaten so much in so long. My stomach shrunk when I was in Ethiopia, but I think that Grace will fatten me back up. We sang worship songs together and then debriefed about our practicum experiences. There are so many funny stories and good memories that we are all taking away from this experience.

Reminiscing of Bittersweet Departures

November 17^th, 2007

We were supposed to fly to Kampala yesterday but our flight was cancelled. So yesterday we just hung out at the office and then went out to a really nice restaurant for lunch. It was called the Top View because it overlooked the city. it was part of a hotel. I had amazing ravioli pasta and a dessert called ‘Jamaica’ which was vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce and peanuts. So nice. It was a really relaxing time. I tried to take pictures with Christy’s camera and I used a tip that Kate taught me. I don’t know if they turned out any good, but I tried. Tekle gave us post cards and gave us each an Ethiopian gospel CD that we listened to a lot with Tekle. That evening the four of us girls went to the Lime Tree to hang out, do homework, read, and eat dinner. I had really good curry. I’m definitely going to make some Japanese curry when I get home.

We flew first class back to Uganda today! I think it was because our flight was cancelled yesterday. Multiple drinks were offered to us as well as magazines. There was no sign of paper or plastic on our dinner trays either. It was all glass. There was so much leg room and the seats were huge. Comfy, comfy. I couldn’t believe our luck!

I had a hard time saying goodbye to Tekle before we flew because we hung out with him so much. He’s definitely like a big brother. I cried. I think I’ve cried more here than I ever have. I will miss Ethiopia and the beauty of its people, culture and land despite the hardships. I definitely learned a lot about myself and about humans in general. Communication was the most difficult thing but I feel so privileged to see their land and see how they lived. I learned of their needs and witnessed an amazing culture. I don’t have the words to express. One of my favorite parts of the culture was the coffee ceremony. And not just because of the coffee (after all, I’m still not a huge fan), but because of the aesthetic and sensual appeal of it. the smells of freshly roasting coffee and frankincense, the red flowers and green ferns set around the fire wand tray, the gracefulness of the woman who roasts, pounds, mixes and pours the coffee into quaint tea cups are all unforgettable. I will also remember visiting the Muslim village with the beauty of the river. I saw how the people work hard for daily survival. I still remember the children’s shouts of ‘Leila, Leila!’ as they waved to us in our Pink Land Rover. it was so cool that they actually learned my name. I will remember specific faces that smiled at me and tried to get to know me. I will be praying for them even if I couldn’t learn their names. I will remember the men on our compound who we joked with: Massamo, Getachew, Matthewos, Binyam, Dereje, Desta, tall Tomasge, Alamo, Eva, and short Tomasge. Tanagne’s humility, love and smiling face will be imprinted upon my memory as well. I will reminisce about singing under the mango trees and listening to the men sing their Ethiopian songs. Lastly, I will remember Nunu, Tekle, and Kidus who made our stay in Addis Ababa comfortable and fun.

Although the people of Ethiopia has many physical needs they are rich in culture. there is so much to learn from them. They care about people so much, time is no issue, and they always offer you their best. As a busy college student and American, I know I can take on some of those values in my lifestyle.

Campfire

November 15^th, 2007

Christy and Becca came back to Addis on Monday and it was good to see them again. they came while Kate and I were checking our email for the first time in a long time. that night we made dinner in Becca and Christy’s room. It felt good to cook again. we made spaghetti, orange slices, bread, and tea. While we ate we watched ‘I am Sam’ the movie. That movie is already emotional, but because we hadn’t watched TV or movies for so long we were extremely affected by it. it happens every time we watch a show or movie. Everything seems soo dramatic. During the movie I kept saying, “it’s so infuriating!” then I cried at the end. I find that I cry a lot more than I used to because thing affect me more.

On Tuesday morning Kate woke up sick early. It was the same pain again. so we called Andy and he brought us to the hospital. She stayed there for many hours so she could get tested again. that hospital was much nicer than the one in Nekemt. No contest. And there were only a few people there that we could see. There was even a ferenji lady who talked to us even though she worked in maternity. Kate was finally let out of the hospital and it was the same results as before! She still has to take supro. She is determined to have no more hospital visits in Africa! Andy thought it could have been a parasite called giardia.

Kate rested during the day and in the evening Kidus came to our hotel and we told him about our experiences. Then we all went out to coffee at Kaldi’s and the Lime Tree. Kaldi’s is an imitation of Starbucks or at least the logo is anyway. Even Kate came because she felt much better from the medicine.

Yesterday we went shopping with a woman whom we call Mami who works for FH. I got an Ethiopian flag, a bag, and something that will be a huge surprise for my family. Ok, maybe not that huge, but it’s good. then we went to Tekle’s house and had a really good dinner. My favorite part was the tiny shish kabobs. We put a dark chocolate cake in the oven while we sat around the fire, but it never got cooked completely because the oven didn’t get hot enough. They tried it and they still liked it! the fire was really nice because it was really cold outside. Kidus tried to roast meat over the fire but it just ended up being charred in some places and raw in others. Tekle and Nunu were so cute cuddling together. It felt so good to be in a home, which is different than an FH compound or even an FH guesthouse. There was a rug on the floor too! I think I miss carpet. we have Nunu and Tekle some cool candle holders as a thank you gift for everything they’d done for us. Altogether, it was a good night.

Last night I slept really well and woke up more refreshed than I have in days. But I had a strange dream. I dreamed that Kate and I were teaching, but we were teaching my high school choir instead of English to non-English speaking people. Dreams are weird.

Oh, But I Love Luxury

November 11th, 2007
Yesterday was another sick day. I hate my stomach right now. But partway through our drive to Addis I felt better. Even though we got up early to drive, Kate was a happy chatterbox. It was really funny because she isn’t usually a morning person. She said it was because she didn’t get much sleep last night.
Our driver was Abraham and he was so funny pointing at people and honking at them when they were on the road. We found out that he is Muslim and Kate brought up a good point. We had sung worship songs and talked about Jesus around him and that is how it should always be. We should be ourselves around people of other religions. Too often we try to hide who we are in order not to offend people. I also think it’s good that FH employs drivers no matter what religion they are. Drivers are usually only temporary workers. He is a sweet man who kept asking me how I felt.
I can’t help but be so happy to be in the city. So nice! All the things I like are at my fingertips. Should I feel guilty about that? I don’t think it’s wrong because it’s what I’m used to. It felt so nice to have a warm shower and to have my feet clean again instead of caked with red dirt. I was so grungy! My hair turned into a huge knot on the way here.
We ordered dinner into our rooms, which was really nice. We didn’t have to go anywhere. We had tea, chicken, steak and rice. The chicken and rice were awesome, but the steak wasn’t very good to me. We watched TV before we went to bed and during dinner, which was nice. I hadn’t watched TV in English the whole time I’ve been in Africa! The only TV I had watched was in Amharic on our compound in Sasiga. But the only thing that was ever on was some sort of conference with the Ethiopian Prime Minister’s face shown over and over again. He always looked so serious. He was our constant dinner companion. We watched BBC world last night and I had never watched it before since I didn’t grow up with very many channels. I decided I like it and I’ll ask my parents if they have it at their house. We saw an interview with the Dalai Lama and he seems like a really funny person. I would love to meet him. He doesn’t take himself too seriously which is amazing for someone of his status. Kate said that he was in her town and talked to some university students, but she wasn’t there at the time.
This morning I woke up to the sounds of the call to prayer, which I am very used to now. It will be strange not hearing it anymore, although it will be really nice. I lay in bed and thought about Japan. I really want to go there again. Actually, coming here has made me realize that I used to think that being a missionary in Japan would be taking the easy way out. Africa has Christ and his gospel can be spread by other African people more easily than westerners can do it. But Japan is so spiritually poor. They have material things, but they don’t have hope. It is much more difficult for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven than a poor one, according to scripture, and I can see it there. They don’t have physical needs you can meet in Japan that will let them know how much you care and how much God cares. Some day I would like to return.
During the meals it was good to talk to Bruce and vent all our frustrations out to him. We felt bad that he had to take the brunt of it, but we had to tell someone. He appreciates our feedback. For dinner we went out to Chinese food, which was amazing! We had sweet and sour chicken, kung pao chicken, and ginger beef. I was so happy. Tekle joined us for dinner because he actually likes Chinese food. Earlier we had really good gelato at Kaldi’s Coffee.
We went to church at Beza International, which was where we went to before. He spoke on having faith that God can use you and having confidence in yourself. I learned a lot from that message because I have had huge confidence and inferiority complex issues since being here. Part of it’s my fault and part of it’s not. I need to believe that I can do things and do them well. I don’t know why I have such a hard time with that. I think I try to be overly humble about things, which just turns into being self-derogatory. During the service I was prayed for the people in Angar; especially the school. I now have this burden and passion for them because they deserve so much better.
At church a man from India named Benny Prasad played an instrument that he invented called a bongo guitar. He was amazing! It was beautiful music. He plays in front of presidents and other world leaders and he played for the 2004 Olympics. I’m going to look him up online. Unfortunately, he doesn’t have a new CD out. He has a lung disease and so he was expected to die 16 years ago according to the doctors. But he’s still kicking and he’s really successful. His voice is really high because of his lung problem. He works for YWAM. Anyway, he has a really good testimony and he’s really funny too. He said that many churches start praying for him when he enters because they think he’s a drug addict. Probably just because he has long hair. Ha ha!