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!

The Last Coffee Ceremony

November 9^th, 2007

Yesterday wasn’t too exciting. We taught and my class period went by fast because they were asking so many questions. But that was because I was attempting to define words and it’s difficult to define them in English in such a way that they’ll understand. It is better if their regular teacher tells them what words mean in their own language instead. The sad thing is that they don’t have English to Oromifa dictionaries. That’s another need that should be met.

Today we went to school and took pictures of the flag-raising ceremony. Bruce and Tekle came because they had arrived during devotions. Kate taught while I talked to some teachers. Many of the local people here, including the teachers, always ask if we are coming back and we always have to explain that it’s expensive to come. Then they say that when we graduate we’ll get a good paying job and come. Well that’s not always true, but we always say maybe because we would love to return. I gave my students the test they asked for. I thought that it was pretty hilarious that they asked for one. I tried to make it easy for them, so hopefully it was. There may have been some cheating going on, but the students are so crowded in that classroom and it’s so dark that it’s hard to tell. But then again, I could be making an unfair accusation.

Then they showed Bruce, Tekle, and Kate the library, textbook room, and material room. It was interesting because it looked like there were plenty of extra books in the textbook room, but not all of the kids had them. Then they explained that there were enough for a few grades, but not all of them. I had noticed this even though Kassa had said one day that the government is finally providing the books. While they may have provided some, they still haven’t provided enough. We took pictures with the teachers and some of the students. It was really difficult trying to get out of there. I guess this is what it’s like to be a miniature celebrity. Crazy. I felt bittersweet about leaving. I was glad because I wouldn’t have to teach anymore but I was sad that I would leave all those children who had found a place in my heart.

We drove to a water pump and the coffee plantation after class. Bruce was really interested in it because he studied agriculture and economics. Later we played Frisbee and sang while Kate played guitar. The rest of the staff is in Nekemt so it was a small number of people: just Kate, Bruce, Tekle, Abraham, a guard, Tanagne and I. After dinner we made a campfire while Tanagne served us coffee. Tanagne even put frankincense on the coffee-making fire. A true ceremony. Thunder and lightening lit up the whole sky.

We leave early tomorrow morning and we have to get up at like 5:30! Ugh! I am so sad to leave Tanagne. She’s so sweet. Tonight she hugged me and cried, which humbled me because I had no idea we were such a blessing to her. I wish women could stay here with her so she wouldn’t always be the only one. At least Truwork comes around every day as well as the laundry girl (whom I still haven’t learned her name because their names are so hard to learn!). We are giving Tanagne and Truwork necklaces and notes before we leave.

It was so good to see Bruce and tell him all the things we’ve wanted to talk about concerning practicum. It was also really good to see Tekle again. I look forward to seeing Addis Ababa as well and eating different kinds of food.

Girls' Advocacy

November 7^th, 2007

Yesterday morning we realized too late that Kate and I were supposed to be in charge of devotions. Oops. So matthewos finished his from the day before.

At the school, Kate and I talked to the 5^th-8^th grade girls (and the older girls in the lower grades) for the purpose of Girls’ Advocacy. For Kate and I, it was a bit tiring saying the same thing 3 times, but it was really good. we essentially told them to pursue education, develop their skills, become confident, exercise their right to make decisions, that they’re equal to boys, that university would be helpful in many ways, how to communicate to their parents how important education is to them, not to get married young, and what occupations they could pursue. Many don’t know about occupations other than doctor or teacher. I think it was a productive time as well. One girl stood and thanked us and said it was a good opportunity for them. At the end, there was question time and some of them asked what they should do about their families’ insistence that hey only do housework. They don’t want to give them time for school and homework. We said that they should communicate to them how important school was to them and to ask if they could set aside time for homework. Another girl said she believed girls weren’t even as capable as boys in learning. I couldn't believe that these things I’ve heard about were true. They actually believe these things! It made me angry, not at the girls, but at the society who told them such lies. While I’m glad that we had that talk, I’m afraid the girls will talk to their parents and get beaten. Beating is so common around here. It disturbs me. Because that one girl thanked us, I hope that if we even helped one person there, then our purpose for being there was fulfilled. Maybe we were an inspiration to her so fight against all odds in order to pursue her dreams. That’s my hope. I felt so inadequate and like I was nobody. Who was I to tell the girls that they could do all those things? I haven’t lived their lives and I don’t know what they go through every day. Yet they listened eagerly and Kassa translated while a female teacher observed. She is had of the Girls’ Club which is held at the school.

One of the boys, Salamou, asked why we were only talking to girls. I said that we were telling them to pursue education. He said, “Only girls?” And I said, “No. it is good for boys to pursue education, but many people tell girls that they should not, so we are telling them that they should.” He smiled and said ok. I can’t help but admire that kid. I never knew how teachers could have favorites, but now I know why. He’s one of those that makes you feel like you are a good teacher. He makes you want to teach.

As I reflect back, I hope that all the things that we said can come true. It is so much easier for Americans because we have more opportunities, there are more finances available, and people are encouraged to pursue education and their dreams. I want to believe everything I said! They will have so many more obstacles in their way that they will just have to try harder and not give up. I guess it’s something to pray for. I just hope the government will become increasingly more interested in the school so they will have more support and materials.

After the clinic, Kate taught (we talked through my period of teaching) and I talked to Kassa. He explained the committees and clubs that the school has. It was quite interesting. They had a Red Cross Club which is trained to carry sick people to the nearest clinic, for example.

At 3 pm we met at the school for a party. A few teachers were being transferred, so it’s a goodbye party for them and Kate and I. they had food. I had to explain about my inability to eat injera and they didn’t take it very well. eyes grew wide as saucers and I was so embarrassed because injera is their staple food. But I ate much spicy meat with some bread instead. There was a coffee ceremony as well. we played a game which was comparable to truth or dare. Each person gets a number and they go in order asking the person a question or daring them to do something that corresponds to the number. Kate had to do something that was cultural. It was a war song. She bellowed because she didn’t know what to do. she said, “I am woman, hear me roar, I will kill you!” someone else took over and did the real thing for her. I answered this question: what is the happiest day of your life and what is your saddest? I said the saddest was when my Grandma Marie died and my happiest was when Caleb asked me to be his girlfriend. They thought that was pretty funny and I couldn’t understand why. Matthewos said it was because people here don’t usually talk about things like that. I thought I had said something wrong.

Afterwards we visited Medema for coffee. We had an awesome time goofing off with her children and asking her questions about her life. her children are adorable. Truwork, the girl cleans around the compound, lives next door to Medema. She made the coffee. Medema is a very sweet mother. We hope to return to say goodbye.

During dinner I talked to Dereje and Alamo. They told me about their families. Dereje told me about all the women he almost married. They showed me pictures of their children and their wives. It was good to get to know them better and share their lives with them. As I got into bed that night I started to feel sick again. I got out of bed and puked. I’m pretty sure it was because I took my malaria pill on an empty stomach. Oops. We’ve had such a hard time with our stomachs. Even Kate had bad acid reflux that night. All that spicy food. She was burping a lot – gross! As I tried to go to sleep again I tried to think about happy thoughts to make me feel better.

This morning I taught and I don’t think I did very well. oh well, it’s almost over. We observed a 1^st grade teacher who kept talking to us and we kept encouraging him to teach instead. It seemed like he was just trying to impress us with his English or something

We heard that Tekle and Bruce will be here sometime, but we’re confused as to when. Getachew is supposed to be back today too. We’ll see. We try not to get excited about specific times because we never know if they will return when they say.

Oh yeah, I can’t forget this. Last night we got our evaluations back. Matthewos said it was difficult to do because the time was so short. But my reliability was marked down when Kate’s wasn’t. I asked why and he said that reliability had to do with being confident and facing fears. TOTALLY WRONG! I was seething. It has to do with being dependable and doing what you’re told to do and expected to do. I was at everything. I got even when Kate was sick! I’m having a difficult time forgiving because I feel like I’ve been wronged. Plus, I faced so many fears while I was here! Just by being here for one. And teaching when I’m not even a teacher! Just because I don’t talk as much as Kate does or always have answers doesn’t mean that I’m not reliable. Ah! Kate and I have different personalities, dangit! The only thing I was truly afraid of was bees. I’m so confused and hurt. We’re going to talk to Bruce and try to change it. he just doesn’t understand because of the language barrier. I mean whose language is English their first language? Kate’s and mine, duh! Kate was angry too. Sorry this blog entry was so angry, but this is how I felt. I have always prided myself on my reliability, so this was a real kick in the stomach.

Leilani, Master Self-entertainer

November 5^th, 2007

“And here we have Suzy Q, the best bowler in the land this year. Her technique is quite unique, but it works for her. She hops and she skips and we have a strike ladies and gentlemen!” Yes, Kate and I bowled yesterday. We set up 10 empty water bottles as bowling pins in the hallway and used the soccer ball to bowl them over. We commentated on each other’s bowling and made up silly stories about each other like the one above. It was almost like a real sports event, only we were in a dark hallway in which there were spider webs and other things that I’m glad I could not see at the end of it. One of the bowlers even had a prosthetic arm. We experimented with different bowling techniques. Yes, we have become masters of self-entertainment. We even made playing cards out of paper and played rummy.

Before we entertained ourselves we had personal devotions and did a lot of homework. It was a very relaxing but productive day. Tanagne made us a very good lunch with chicken, which was amazing because we had requested it and had been craving it. It was nice not having anyone around to tell us to eat more, more! The men were in Nekemt all day. We kicked the soccer ball around for a while but the bees kept dive-bombing us. So we gave up. That’s one of the downfalls of our compound – the bees. There are a few hives and during the day you can always see the bees diving around and you can hear them buzzing from far off. It’s rather daunting. Since one of the hives is in the entryway to the office, Kate and I avoid going to the office during the day at all costs. Many of the men have gotten stung (or as they call it, ‘bitten’), sometimes more than one time in a day, but we have successfully avoided it so far. Every time bees come around, I become as still as possible and they eventually go away.

Matthewos returned from Nekemt with a man named Dereje whom we had met in Nekemt previously, the new driver named Alamo, and most surprisingly, his wife Gadise. She is a very beautiful woman and she is super sweet. Her English is really good too. She will stay until Matthnewos leaves for Addis on Wednesday. She had missed him very much. I’m glad she came.

On my way to school this morning my clothes stayed on, so that’s a blessing. Ha. Kate taught for her first time and she taught very well. She’s a more natural teacher than I am. Then I taught and didn’t finish as much as I wanted to. I think I’m a bit too slow, so I should speed things up. I was frustrated this morning because there was a misunderstanding about what I was teaching. It was on the plan for me to teach the last exercises in the book, but Teka told me to move to the next unit. So I started to, but the students freaked out and asked why we skipped it. Teka had to explain in Oromifa for me. Teka said that he had finished the unit on Friday when we were talking to Kassa. So I was thoroughly confused. Also, he told me to teach more exercises than I had planned for today. So I had to kind of pull answers out of you-know-where instead of being prepared. So frustrating! Kate and I should write a song about flexibility. But I guess it makes sense that I should be prepared for more than one day’s worth just in case we go through the lessons faster than I think we will. So maybe I learned a good lesson.

After class we observed 1^st grade English. It was so cute! They were so eager to learn. They are fortunate because there are only 65 students in their class and they have a better classroom. It was one of the newer ones which FH helped to build. The visibility is much better. With less students there’s more participation, more time to correct homework, and just overall better atmosphere for learning’s in some ways I wish we could have taught 1^st grade or one of the other lower grades, but at the same time it is good that we were seeing all the struggles that the school has by being in the upper grades. And it’s more challenging! Then we observed the 5^th grade English class taught by Teka which had the most participation and it seemed that there more comprehension in that class than in the other upper grades.

Then we talked to Kassa for a while about Girls’ Advocacy ‘clinic’ we are doing tomorrow. We will do it from 8:30-10:30. It will be split into 3 sessions that are 40 minutes long. Each session will be a grade: 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th grade. Then he will pull the adolescent girls out of the younger grades to listen to the clinic. We are supposed to share about our own lives and education and to encourage the girls to pursue education and to let them know that they have the right to make their own decisions. Usually their culture says that girls should stay at home. Also, their parents and husbands make their life decisions for them. We’re hoping to impact their lives, but not make their families angry. We’ll see how that goes.

Some 8^th grade boys from my class came to Kassa’s office. One of them, Salamaou, I had noticed from the very first day of school to be a very bright and eager student. He can speak English better than possibly all the other students in class (as far as I can tell because they don’t all talk to me). His questions in class always help me to teach better. They came to the office to learn about American culture. I told them about marriage and discipline in school. They said that from what they heard they think America is like heaven. We quickly corrected them. I told them about homelessness and crime in the US. Once again they couldn’t’ believe that there was homelessness. And once again, it shows how little America lets the world know about its problems. it was funny because one of them asked if I had a husband and some of the boys laughed shyly when they asked. It was cute. I really enjoyed talking to them. I’d much rather do that than be in front of a whole classroom with time limits and formalities. It’s so much more personal.

In ethic evening Matthewos, Gadise, Kate, and I took a walk to the nearest water pump. We met more children and one of them was also name Gadise. On the river, there was a dam which funneled the water to one spot so that the current would be stronger and flow farther. Many people use that water for cleaning and they use the pump for drinking. We took a walk among the sorghum after we crossed some mud and stick bridges. It’s crazy how these people depend on these water sources for survival. It seems like they could easily dry up. Since it’s the dry season, the water is lower than it had been.

on the way back we met a woman who was carrying a baby on her back as well as firewood on her head and an empty water bottle in one of her hands. I couldn’t help but admire her strength. We goofed off with her and some children for awhile. She gave me a water bottle to try to carry on my head, but it wouldn’t balance. I think my head is too rounded. We laughed at my inability to balance it. she said that I should carry her firewood and I said that I’d probably fall over. More laughing. Her name was Medema. She said she liked us and invited us over for coffee. We agree to go the next evening. Then suddenly she was breast-feeding somehow, while still carrying all those things. And I thought I could multi-task! We had to avoid two bulls that were fighting along our pathway. It was pretty sweet seeing their horns clanging together. When oxen walk past, you always have to be careful to get out of the way, especially if they have big horns that can impale you.

I love these interactions with nature and with the people in their daily lives. It’s so much more fulfilling than teaching. I learn so much more about them this way too. I can’t express the joy it brings me. It makes this trip all worthwhile. I feel privileged to get a glimpse into their lives and share it with other people.

The River and the Pink Land Rover

Ooops this one didn't get posted in the right spot.

October 28^th, 2007

We took a walk to the river yesterday. It was a long walk amongst the rolling hills and various crops such as oil seeds (might have been flax), sorghum, sugarcane, teff, ground nuts, sweet potatoes, wheat, and corn. The sun was setting as Matthewos, Kate, and I walked the dirt road. As we strolled lazily, we collected a following. This is not unusual for any ferenji around here. When we neared the river I wanted to capture the moment in my mind’s eye. Children were fetching water from the river in yellow bottles. Women carried their babies on their backs. Men dug irrigation canals, cattle and goats were being herded across the river. Many people, mostly children, were bathing in the river. A rough bridge made of wood and clay enabled us to cross the river. The women were dressed beautifully with brightly colored dresses, scarves, and jewelry. Children stopped to stare. Kate took their pictures and they giggled when they saw themselves on the viewfinder.

We visited the veterinary office on the hill. It was constructed in September of this year. Unfortunately, some of the posts of the fence surrounding the office were getting eaten by termites so FH will need to figure out different way of building the fence. They’ll probably have to use metal posts instead. The people that we visited were Muslims from the eastern part of Ethiopian who migrated here 3 years ago with the help of the government. This was because of the lack of fertile land to farm and the conflict in Somalia. The people are getting a little discouraged because the development is slow-going, but FH workers keep encouraging that circumstances will improve. We walked back as dusk was falling and eventually it turned dark and I kept tripping on the uneven pathway.

When we returned we discussed politics and America over dinner. They asked about some of our ways of life and other more difficult issues. It wasn’t as surprising to me as it might have been a few years ago that they believe America often meddles where it shouldn’t. Kate and I were surprised that they didn’t know more about America than they did, but it made sense that hey would have stereotypical ideas about it. After all, we have a stereotypical mindset about Africa.

This morning we attended church at a Pentecostal service that spoke Oromifa (the local language). Kate and I agree that it was crazy! They spoke tongues all at once. The preacher was yelling. There was a small choir that sang to cheesy key board music. And they didn’t seem to try to stay in time with the music. The congregation said amen to almost everything the preacher said. The service lasted almost 3 hours! The prayers were also very long. Fortunately, I was to space out a lot and I read the Bible to keep myself entertained. The sermon was on Ezekiel 37 which is about the dry bones coming to life. Matthewos said the message was about God helping poor people. Unfortunately, Kate and I found the service annoying and loud. But it’s definitely a preference. That is one thing I have learned. We can’t judge another church for how it worships (unless it’s completely unbiblical) because there are so many styles and everyone has their own way of expressing themselves spiritually.

For lunch we ate with the school director named Kassahun and the English teacher named Tekalign. We ate at a local hotel which is a small building made of clay and wood with a tin roof. The food was surprisingly good – better than any Ethiopian food I had ever tasted before. They kept saying ‘Bi’ which is Amharic for ‘go ahead, eat.’ Although Kate and I got a little annoyed by it, we learned that it is a way that their culture expresses concern for the guests and that they care. Kate and I are used to being able to eat however much we want without anyone pressuring us to eat more. But I knew it was just a cultural difference we had to understand instead of judge. We ate so much! Luckily while I’ve been here I haven’t had to eat the injera which is the local bread because Tekle told them I don’t like it. I even feel sick when I look at it. Meals are kind of hard because they eat it for every meal. It’s their staple. But I will probably get used to seeing it. The lady who cooked made us tea and put frankincense on the fire. Those are the two smells I have grown accustomed to and that I love – coffee and frankincense.

We learned a lot about the school system here: what they lack and things like that. The school director said that they finally have enough books for the students because the government provided them. Unfortunately, the student-teacher ratio is about 100 to 1, which is horrible. Many girls aren’t allowed to go to school. Children often must stay home and take care of their responsibilities such as shepherding. FH can’t hire teachers because schools are government ran.

When we returned to the compound the men were singing while Getachew played guitar. Kate recorded them on her tape recorder. Then Kate and I sang while Kate played guitar. They recorded us again. We joked around and ate sugar cane. It was a good memory. Getachew and Binyam were leaving for the coffee plantation so Kate and I tagged along. We rode in the pink (like Pepto Bismol) Land Rover. This vehicle was donated by a Japanese company called Fuji and they want the whole world to know it by making it pink. The funny thing is that I was wearing my pink shirt that has a map of Japan on it! So I match. I also found out that there’s a pink school. If we had the Land Rover, my shirt, and the school all in the same spot, it would be a whole lot of pink. Ha, ha. We drove to the river and crossed it in the Land Rover! So awesome. We were in the water with cows.

When we arrived at the coffee plantation, we saw that they water some of the soil and let weeds grow, and then they pluck the weeds and plant coffee in that soil. They put mulch beds over the plants to shield them from harsh weather. Around the plantation they planted trees for wind protection because there aren’t many trees, buildings, or mountains in Ethiopia to break the wind. We played football (soccer) with a small boy- Kate, Getachew, and I.

We learned from Getachew that when he worked for World Vision they were helping an Ethiopian group, but then the society started to turn backwards. They had helped them get more sources of income so they could end poverty in that area. The society had grown physically in development and had become wealthy, so they spent their money on gambling, prostitution, and alcohol. The men’s families were going hungry while they used the money for these things. Consequently, World Vision realized they needed to teach them how to live spiritually and how to spend their money wisely. That is why development needs to be done on many levels and not just on a physical level. It needs to be done physically, spiritually, socially, etc. That group needed to learn how to use their resources wisely, how to be hygienic, and things like that to improve health and lifestyle.

A crowd gathered and asked us our names. When Getachew told them mine, they got really excited because the name Leila is Muslim and so many people there are named Leila. When we left they yelled our names, which I thought was really cool. It was so refreshing after being called “ferenji” for so long by people that didn’t even know me.

Tonight I pulled the joke “you know that gullible isn’t in the dictionary, right?” on Massamo and he fell for it! Ha. I think I’m becoming known as the joker, which is fine with me. I think they thought I was boring and weak when I was sick, but now they’re seeing who I really am. This is good because I was having an inferiority complex (inferior to Kate). I realized that I like to make people laugh.

I Hate Goodbyes!

November 3^rd, 2007

This morning we drove to Belo in the pink vehicle and the drive was beautiful. We crossed a river, crossed a bridge, saw a waterfall, and saw antelope bounding across the grasslands. I almost expected to see a lion chasing them. We brought the cat with us because and let it out at Tomasge’s home. Kate and I felt really bad because she wasn’t put into a box. Instead, she just slid around the vehicle. We were afraid she would either vomit or claw us up – like in the Disney movies! They left her because she was leaving gifts one of the beds and being a nuisance at our compound.

On the way we encountered a group of men who looked like they were pleading for a ride. They were going in the same direction as us. Then I saw that a group of men were carrying one man on a chair. Kate said he was ill. He had a blanket over his shoulders. The men pleaded once more for a ride. But Matthewos refused them because ‘we didn’t have time.’ by the time Kate and I realized what happened (because it had to be translated in order for us to understand what was going on), it was too late, otherwise we would have said something. Kate and I were so angry that he refused them because we could have at least driven them to a certain point. It would have saved them so much time. It looked like Binyam, our driver wanted to stop, but Matthewos was the one who decided. I wondered if we could have helped save a life. I was really frustrated.

We arrived at the church in Belo and some Americans from South Dakota were putting on a program for the children. They were part of a group called “Life Flight,” but FH was housing them. They did a skit in which a chair was sin and only Jesus could get the person out of it. Then they talked about the book with no words and gave them the bracelets that matched (gold, black, red, white, blue, and green). I was a little frustrated because those people already had Jesus. What they need is help with their lifestyles and with poverty. Of course we admire the work they’re trying to do, but they need tangible help. I don’t want to be too critical.

After the service we had lunch at the Belo compound. The food was really good. It was spaghetti. We had a great time talking to the Americans. I think I talked their ears off. It was so nice to just chat with and joke with people who understand our sense of humor. Josh, one of the younger people, said that we talked like we’d been here for a while. And that’s after only being here for two weeks! Now I understand why Robert from Canada talks so slowly and with such diction. He’s been here for 2 years. We were sad when we had to leave the Americans.

On our way home it started to rain, so the red mud roads were super slippery within seconds. We slid over the road. We only got partially stuck once because we had a Land Rover, unlike last time when we had a small Toyota which had to be wrenched out of the mud manually. Binyam kept insisting that we sing. There was some sweet thunder and lightening too. I was glad I brought food because if we got stuck for good, we’d have something to eat. Kate and I kept yelling things like “yeehaw, yeah!” because it was like off-roading to us. We stopped at he waterfall to take pictures and of it and of the Gumu women who walked by. They hold their belongings in nets connected to each end of a stick which is slung over their shoulders.

Gumus are also called Benyshangles and they are darker than the Oromo people. They live right next to they Oromos and they came from Sudan. The Oromo and the Gumus do not get along. The Amhara oppress the Oromo and the Oromo oppress the Gumus. Matthewos is afraid that racial tension will become so bad that there will be genocide there some day. There are peace talks, but earlier this year Oromos met with some Gumus and the Gumus killed 10 people that came. Then the Oromo government sent troops to kill even more Gumus because of the small massacre. So it has terrible potential. Kate said that it takes humility to reconcile. Humility is the key to solving almost all problems. Be humble and forgive and move on. Easier said than done.

During and after dinner we had a good discussion with Matthews about the homeless of America. He didn’t know and couldn’t’ believe there was homeless there! So we said that people don’t have a realistic view of America, just as America doesn’t have a realistic view of Africa. He said he wouldn’t believe it until he saw it. America doesn’t show the world its own problems.

We said goodbye to Binyam last night because he is returning to his family. It was sad saying goodbye to him even though we are happy that he will see his family. He is such a good father and husband. He is so tender and caring. When we were at the hospital he was so comforting to Kate. He’s always helping us. He’ll be missed for sure. Whenever he talks on the phone with his wife and daughter he looks at their photo waves at it, and talks to it. It’s so cute! It must have been difficult for him because he didn’t know English or Oromifa very well, so he could only talk in Amharic with the men on the compound. Now we’ll get a new driver.

My Most Embarrassing Moment Revealed

November 2^nd, 2007

This morning was a whirlwind and I needed to scream. We went to school at 8:30 to see the flag-raising. Each grade lines up neatly for it. A different child is selected each day to raise the flag and they sing the Oromo anthem while it’s being done. The kindergarteners were so cute because they waved to us practically the whole time. I sometimes wish I could teach the younger ones.

It’s really disturbing because the teachers actually do use the sticks to whip the children! The first day that I was at class, I walked in just as they were whipping the late children on the leg with a piece of plastic. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing and wondered what I was doing there. One girl cried and Matthewos consoled her by saying, “auzosh.”

Before my class started we asked Teka for next week’s lesson plan. Kate and I can’t even explain our frustration with how communication was going. Although we’d explain that we weren’t actual teachers, he still didn’t seem to get a clue. We wish there was more communication between FH in Uganda, FH in Addis, FH here, and the school. We just need to clear expectations from the beginning. Maybe that’s asking too much. I don’t know. Then we talked to Kassa for a while. He explained that he needed a lap top for the school because eventually they will get electricity. Personally I think they need copiers as well. He’s going to make a list of things they need. Hopefully Kate and I can figure out a way to get these things to them. He told us not to send things to the government for them because the government can decide to do whatever they want with the things we send. All of the needs of the school are so overwhelming. I hope I can fulfill those wishes somehow. Kassa said I didn’t need to teach my second class because I was too tired. I wasn’t too tired, but I didn’t mind not teaching. I think he just wanted to talk to us longer. During the class I did teach today Teka left partway through, so I was alone with no one to translate if they didn’t understand me.

Kassa’s daughter hung out with us most of the time and she was really cute. He and his daughter talked us to the compound and on the way we asked him about the hitting. He said that he knows it’s bad to hit the children, but there are reasons why it is still done. One is because most of the parents hit their children in order to discipline them. Consequently, they don’t think that the children are being disciplined if they ask them if they got hit that day and they didn’t. Secondly, a lot of the children will not obey unless they are hit because that is how they’ve always been disciplined. Kassa holds meetings with parents and tells them about the repercussions of hitting their children, so hopefully it will some day become an obsolete method of discipline in the home and in the schools. Sometimes changes have to be made slowly. I can’t help but wonder if it would be effective to stop the hitting immediately.

This afternoon we drove to the pink school and also saw Desta’s water project. Desta is in charge of water and sanitation. We saw an adult class which was being taught literacy. The building they were using used to be an office but it was changed into a classroom. A couple boys had some small balls which they were using for football and volleyball. I played volleyball with one of the boys. He was pretty good and it was a lot of fun. Then we went to the water pump which is the source of water for all the people in the area. Crazy! I think we interrupted a man showering. Luckily, he had shorts on. Then we played football (soccer) with tons of children. We played with a real football this time. One of the children was hilarious. He was probably the smallest child there and he kept stopping the ball and picking it up. He wanted to be the center of attention at all times. He would get low with his hands on his knees. We decided he was a natural goal keeper. Whenever I tried to give him a high 5 he would duck. He probably thought I was going to hit him, which is really sad. Finally, I was able to show him that I wasn’t going to hit him and he gave me a high 5. I love playing with the children and I wish I could do it more while we’re here. That is when I am happiest.

I hear the baying of the donkeys. They always sound like they’re dying or being tortured. Kate and I joke that we can’t sleep until we hear a donkey baying. It’s like our good night call. Andy gave us an assignment to find out which animal you would rather or rather not meet on the road. So far donkeys and cattle seem the most annoying. But goats seem to scurry pretty fast. I think I would rather meet a goat and would rather not meet cattle. I’m going to miss not seeing animals around, just hanging out in the middle of the road, when I return to the states.

Oh and how can I forget this?! Kate and I were on our way to school. A clinic right sits outside of our compound and men and women are always standing and sitting in front of it. Children were walking to school in front of me and behind me. Suddenly, my skirt falls to my knees! I quickly pull it back up. Kate sees me tugging on it and is like, “what?!” I start laughing hysterically because it’s hilarious. But at the same time, I start crying because I’m humiliated. And they weren’t the kind of tears that come from laughing too hard. They were tears of humiliation. I was thinking that the children wouldn’t respect me and that people would think of me of the white laughing-stock of the school from that day forth. I wanted to go back to the compound and crawl back into bed. But I didn’t. Kate consoled me and laughed at the same time. We both were in shock, but thought it was hilarious at the same time. Luckily, I was wearing my spandex under the skirt. I couldn’t believe that this would happen to me in a society where showing your thighs is completely taboo.

Now you wonder, ‘how did the skirt fall down?’ there are many factors which contributed to this untimely disaster. First, the skirt was already a loose skirt. Secondly, the skirt hadn’t’ been put in the drier for months so it has slowly gotten bigger. Thirdly, I had lost a little bit of weight since I had arrived there because of my dislike of the food. People always ask me if I have a most embarrassing moment and I usually say I don’t. But now, thanks to that skirt (which I haven’t worn since), I have one. I can tell you that I now do not ever wear a skirt without spandex underneath them.

Hospital Horrors

November 1^st, 2007

Yesterday morning Kate woke up really sick. She had terrible, deep, sharp stomach pains. So we decided to go to Nekemt. It was Binyam, Getachew, Matthewos, Kate and I. I told Massamo to tell the school director and Teka why we weren’t coming to class. So we left on the bumpy road some time after 7 am. It was torture hearing and watching Kate next to me she would clench up her body every few minutes. We were all praying, but she was saying “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus” the whole way. Afterwards she described it as probably being as painful as labor contractions although she’s never felt them before. I felt so bad and wanted to do something for her. I held her hand when a bad ‘contraction’ came, she would squeeze it harder. Since we were all so worried, it was a very serious and long drive.

When we finally arrived there, a crowd of people, probably close to a hundred of them, was waiting to get in. they all stood outside the gate of the hospital pressed up against the gate. Matthewos got out and talked to the guard and we were instantly let in. then as we walked into the building there were crowds of people in the hall. There was almost no walking space. Since Kate could barely hold herself up, she was being helped by Matthewos and they could barely get through the crowd. I felt so bad because those people were probably there for a long time and they probably wouldn’t get helped that day, and we, as white people, just waltz right in and get helped. It made me feel like it was a case of white privilege. I hope it wasn’t. I mean, she really did need to get helped quickly, but how many of the people needed to be helped just as bad? They probably walked there from miles and miles around since it’s the only hospital for miles around. They probably carried their sick loved ones there. Who knows how long and how many trials they had to overcome to get there? Yet they didn’t complain as we passed them. So as we walked into one of the rooms, I started to cry because of the moral dilemma and overwhelming feelings I had. The floors were dirty, parts of the building were falling apart, and it smelled strange. But I guess all hospitals kind of have a weird smell. There were nurses and doctors everywhere in their white coats. Since there were a lot of young people, I think that some of them might have been medical students.

Kate was asked a few questions, but not many. Then all of a sudden they were ushering her into another room and a nurse was pulling out a needle. I didn’t hear what it was so I was really confused and started freaking out in my head. “What are they doing with that needle? What is it? Is it clean?” They pulled Kate behind a curtain. I went in with her and held her hand. Getachew held her while they pulled down her pants a little and stuck the needle in her behind. Later I found out it was a pain killer. Kate said that she had noticed that the nurse didn’t have gloves on and hoped that she would clean the area that the needle was thrust into. She did clean the area, so that was good. But she still wasn’t wearing gloves.

Then they ushered her to another location and said she needed to use the bathroom. At first we were shown to some tin huts in some tall grass, but Matthewos said that that would be too traumatic for her right now. So they showed her into a nurse’s bathroom. She gave a stool sample, which I would not have wanted to do if I was her. We went to the doctor’s office and he asked her what her symptoms were. It was difficult for us to understand his English, but we got through. It was kind of awkward because there were maybe 5 men in the room and he lifted up her shirt. He just showed her stomach, but still, I felt like it would have been a bit awkward for her. We waited patiently as they tested the stool. Kate’s painkiller was working, so she was much more coherent at this point. Now she was just sleepy and wanted to go to bed. Finally the results came and the paper said ‘many motile bacteria’ so they told her to take supro which she already owned, so that was good. She’s just not supposed to take it unless a doctor tells her to. It took us forever to finally reach the compound, but when we did, Kate slept for a long time and woke up feeling a lot better. Unfortunately, she didn’t have much of an appetite.

As Kate rested, I went to the coffee fields with Getachew and Binyam. As Getch paid the people, I sat in the Land Rover for 2 hours. At first I sat there uncomfortably while people crowded around the Rover and stared at me. But eventually I realized I was going to be there a while, so I interacted with the people out of the window. There were many children that I talked to especially. Binyam didn’t know much Oromifa, but he helped to translate a little. I learned a few words in Oromifa, such as ‘kotu’ which means come, ‘mucha’ which means baby, and ‘inyaata’ which means food. There was a small boy who was super cute and I kept touching his hair. He kept ducking. Then a note was passed to me. I looked around to see who it was. It was a girl who quickly hid behind a tree. The note said:

Can you talking Oromo language?

No matter. Try try.

What your name?

- and –

My name is Mulu Daneli

I keep it in my journal. I was touched by her desire to get to know me, but I couldn’t understand why she kept hiding. I tried to get her to talk to my face and she finally did when I said, “Mulu, kotu” (Mulu, come). I let some of the children touch my hair which was really exciting for them. On the way there we picked up some women who Getch said were arguing about whether my hair was real or not. Ha ha! It feels funny to be such an anomaly to the people. It was a really great time to just hang out with the people. Sometimes I feel so separated from the people when we are in our compound.

This morning I taught the class about adverbs. Exciting, exciting. Sometimes I wondered why the heck I was up there and sometimes I was fine. But I felt so inadequate. I love talking to the children on a more personal level I wish I could do that more. I don’t like standing in front of people, telling them things, and acting like I have all the answers. I had tea with some teachers and returned home.

I played Frisbee with some of the men from my compound and from the Belo project. I love watching people’s reactions and seeing how they catch the Frisbee. It’s so entertaining. One man hops into the air with his legs together every time he catches the Frisbee no matter how low or high it is thrown to him. Getch seems to get stuck on one leg as he reaches for the Frisbee. He often makes funny noises as well. Binyam likes to have it tossed to him high so he can leap up into the air and catch it with two hands. Matthews comments as he throws it, like, “ok, here we go. Yeah. Nope.” I can’t even describe it.

We said goodbye to Massamo and Getch because they are going to Addis. Getch will be back sometime next week, but we’re not sure when. I was really sad that they were going because those were the two whom I felt most comfortable with and had many good conversations with. We joked around with them a lot too. It feels like people we get to know best are always leaving us.

Classroom Conditions

October 30^th, 2007

Yesterday morning Kate woke up very sick so she didn’t do devotions with me as we had planned. Every morning we have devotions as a group on the compound and that morning we were supposed to lead it. I felt so bad for her! We both decided that our stomachs are so bad that we should have a doctor living here. Hee. The devotions went fine. I read from Luke – the passage of sewing seeds. They enjoyed the devotion and it was relevant to what they are doing in Sasiga.

Afterwards I went to class and observed Teka teach 8^th grade. I talked to Kasshun for a while and observed his biology class. I visited the kindergarten class which was adorable. Kassa said it wasn’t facilitated. Instead, the parents pay 2 birr (there are 9 birr to a dollar) so their children can come. The children are advised to bring food because they aren’t used to being away from home and food for so many hours in a day. They are usually 5 and 6 years old, but there are a couple 4-year-olds.

I saw their library which is small and the books are falling apart. The men who showed it to me said that they don’t have any books for teachers to teach from. They only have students’ books. Also, most of their books are very old. Then Kassa showed me their materials room. There were charts and other visuals which the teachers can use to help instruct. One thing I’ve noticed is the materials here such as bookshelves, file folders, and things such as that which will help organize their books and materials. I want to help somehow when I return to the states. Maybe I can start a fund for them so we can send them money or materials. They need them so bad.

I was shocked to see the rooms that they taught in. they were essentially mud and stick rooms with uneven, dirt floors. They didn’t have window panes, but only wooden shutters to open and close to let in light. There was barely any light in that room even if the windows were open. I could barely see the students. I don’t know how they read or write in these conditions. There are a few buildings which FH and USAID helped to build that are really nice, but the rest of them are terrible. The ones that FH and USAID helped build have actual windows, they’re made of cement, they have real floors, and there’s enough light to see in them. Hopefully they can receive enough funds to make more of those some day. The government needs to make education a priority.

I met many teachers and conversed with them for a short time. As a result of such a full day and I was exhausted when I returned to the compound. Communication exhausts a person when he or she is in a new culture. I was dragged from one thing to another with no clue as to when I would be leaving. So I was there from 9 am to 1 pm. When I came back Kate was still sick. We were afraid she might have to go to Nekemt to see the doctor the next day. I took a long nap and so did Kate. Soon afterwards, Kate felt better and I was relieved. I didn’t want her to go to Nekemt. I also didn’t want to miss out on class and other activities.

This morning I taught English in class. I had thought that I would get a couple days of observation, but nope, I had to wing it. We read from a passage in the work book and I defined some bold words for them. It was strange for me because I had never done anything like this before, with so many eyes on me. They drank in every word (that they could understand) and they were silent. I was so glad that Kate was there sitting in the front row so I could use her for examples and so she could say, “tell them the page number.” My brain doesn’t completely work when I’m in front of the class, so I forget obvious things like that. Then we observed the 7^th grade class. We had tea with a few teachers and I taught again even though I thought I only had one class period today. We answered some questions about he passage concerning the comparison of Ethiopian and British cultures. They seemed interested, but I am by no means an expert on British culture. They wanted to know so much. They wanted to know where English came from in America. But I am also no history major! They think I know so much! It is true that I am more educated than most of the people than they know, which is an overwhelming thought. They really do think very highly of us.

Fortunately Teka said my teaching was done well. Hopefully I will continue to improve. Kate and I are most worried about the grammar since we don’t know how to teach it. We just speak it naturally. When we returned to the compound, many children followed and stood outside the gate. A few were girls from my class. They wanted us to take their photos. An old woman came by and wanted a photo too. She was pretty funny and kept kissing our hands. She kept asking “Akem” which means 'how are you' or 'hello.' Then we would answer “Naga” which was one of the answers you can say. But she kept insisting we say “feya” instead.

Kate and I watched the cook, Tanagne, make injera (which is the bread I hate). It’s more difficult than it looks. It’s made out of teff. The teff is bought already pounded in Nekemt and water is added. It looks like pancake mix. She scoops batter out and pours it onto the large, round skillet over the fire. When I tried it, I made it very lopsided. But she kindly kept saying, “konjo” which is "beautiful" in Amharic. I laughed at my creation anyway. Then she takes the bread off of the skillet quickly with her hands and lets it cool on the basket lid. When she takes it off, the fire licks at her around the sides and she often gets burned. The smoke escapes out of an opening in the roof, the doorway, and the window, but not well enough. It still smells like horrible burning chemicals, soot covers us, and the fire climbs upwards to burn the tin walls. It doesn’t seem safe. Kate and I were wondering why they haven’t made her one of those newer fancy stoves. I want to make her one, but I don’t know if it’s possible. We don’t think it’s fair that the community gets new stoves, but she doesn’t. Of course we haven’t been there, so we don’t know the whole story.

Kate and I have been having such a difficult time here. We just want to go home. It was especially hard because we both had a really good dream last night. We both dreamed that we married our boyfriends! Crazy. I also dreamed that I was at home and it was Christmas time. Dreams like that make it super had to get up in the morning when you’re not in the place you want to be. We also don’t like the food (except for a couple things), so we are losing weight. The men are noticing we don’t each much either. They might even get us spaghetti from Nekemt for us. It’s cute how concerned they are. But we don’t want to change what they eat just for our sakes.

Who are you and what are you doing here?

October 27th, 2007
Thursday, when we arrived in Sasiga at the compound, almost none of the men who lived on the compound were there because they were in Nekemt. But we got to meet the cook who is lovely and very young and cooking for all those men! I’m sure she’s happy that Kate and I are there are fellow women.
The accommodations here aren’t everything we expected, but they’re still good. It is a beautiful compound with much shade. It is made up of many small buildings that used to be government office buildings. There are many plants and flowers as well. There’s a separate building for showers and a separate building for toilets. We didn’t learn that until yesterday that we had been sing the men’s toilet all along and there was a much nicer one behind it. The men’s was a squatty potty and the women’s was a regular toilet. We learned that because a man almost walked in on me. Ha ha.
We hung out and talked for a long time. Then Kate and I took a much-needed nap. Once again we talked and Kate told horror stories about insects and nature while everyone else cringed in horror. But all of a sudden I felt sick again! So I left the table and puked on the ground over and over while Tekle, Kate, and Kidus fussed over me like mother hens – rubbing my back, getting water for me, getting a chair for me, and a cold cloth for me. They said things like, “Aozush” which means “you will be ok,” or “be strong.” I think I’ll remember that word best. If I don’t learn anything else, I’ll learn that word. I finally walked around a bit and placed a chair in a clearing where I could see the moon. As I looked at the moon, it was strange because I felt like God was using the moon to heal me. He was showing me that he cared. It was so bright that I could barely se any stars despite the lack of city lights. Tekle and Kidus came by to talk to me and make sure I was ok at different times. I was as long as I kept looking up at the moon. Tekle called a doctor and the country director to ask what we should do. It was very sweet. They even contemplated bringing me back, but I said that I would get over this sickness because it wasn’t serious. Also, traveling is the worst thing I can do when I’m sick! Andy told me to fast the next day, so I decided to take his advice. Hopefully it will kill whatever it was making me sick.
That night Kate threw up too because she had been watching me puke. The whole time I had been wondering if she could really be around while I threw and be perfectly fine. I know I couldn’t do it. The next morning we both felt fine. I fasted until dinnertime. The three men who drove us there left the compound in the morning to see a different project and they won’t be back until they pick us up at the end of practicum. It’s so sad because we enjoyed their company a lot. Tekle will be a good father. It is crazy how he is spending so much time with us and he just got married 2 weeks ago! He said that she was ok and that they would take a true honeymoon later. I’m really glad.
That morning we went to the school. While we were there, the teachers had sticks and kept threatening the students with them when they were staring at Kate and me. I think that the school director said that it is illegal to actually use them, but it still scares the students. I hope they don’t actually use the sticks on the children. That would be sad. We found that nothing was organized concerning our teaching and no one knew why we were there. Ha. They thought we were teachers. Ha, ha, HA! There has obviously been a lack of communication. But we finally figured it out. Kate and I will be teaching two different grades, but beside the same teacher. It’s crazy because the teacher instructs 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th grades! So many students! I will teach 8th and Kate will teach 7th. They way that they figured out who would teach what grade was so ask who was the oldest. So as the older of the two of us, I am teaching the older students. Of course they both (Matthewos and the school director) thought I was the younger one. We will observe the first couple days and then help teach and possibly teach by ourselves with the teacher looking in to make sure there’s discipline and to make sure we’re doing ok. I am a bit nervous, but it will be ok. I hope. There will be 130 students in each class! Another obvious lack of communication because we thought we would be teaching 85 students. Ha! The school is very near to our compound. We can see it from there, so it’s a nice short walk. Many children were playing volleyball in the schoolyard and I longed to play with them.
After lunch, we visited a project site. They built tables made of wood and covered them with clay. Then they set up bricks to start making a stove. The finished product will be a stove on top of the table. The traditional way here that people cook is over an open fire inside their stick homes. This is bad for many reasons:
1. The cook (which is usually the mother) and the children get easily burnt.
2. It is not fuel efficient because it is so open.
3. There is much smoke inhalation.
4. The house could be easily burnt down.
5. It keeps the house dirty with all the soot.
6. The food could easily be knocked off of the fire.
7. The cook has to bend over in order to use them.
The new stoves will remedy all these problems. Plus, FH is teaching the people how to build them instead of building the stoves for them. This way they can continue building them without needing anyone from the outside. The stove is covered and has an outlet outside for smoke. I thought that this was an amazing, practical way to help the people.
Kate and I had a good discussion with Getachew and Massamo about the Rwandan genocide. I was surprised with their interest. We’ve had many great talks about how the international community views the US too. Matthewos said he likes Canada better because it’s more peaceful in its international relations. The US is so nosy. I couldn’t help but agree. Maybe it’s not so bad that I’ll be living there. I do love my country, but I agree that our international relations need some help. I thought it was really good learning about other people’s points of view in other countries.
That evening (yesterday) we had another nap before dinner. After dinner Kate and Getachew took turns playing guitar. Getachew has a cool Ethiopian style voice. When Kate played, she and I would sing. Then Getachew recorded us on his cell phone singing “How Great is our God.” he played it back and it was so weird hearing my own voice. It has been a long time. It was a relaxing, enjoyable evening.
This morning Matthewos took us to the market in the village. He said that people come from miles away on foot to bring their goods, food, and animals to sell. It was definitely interesting to see. I couldn’t believe that they walked so far. I don’t feel many Americans would do that. They wouldn’t even be expected to. We had a good discussion with Matthewos during lunch. He said that he wanted Kate and me to talk to the young women of the community about their freedom and rights. Most women are not treated equally to men and are not as educated. They are usually forced to marry at young ages – as young as 12! He said that if they had role models they would be able o speak their minds after we share our experiences. Kate and I think it’s good, but it’s a little overwhelming to put that much pressure on us. I guess I’ve never thought of myself as a role model and having so much of an influence over people’s lives. We’ll see how that goes.
This afternoon we will be walking to the river. Oh by the way, Kate saw a goat slaughtered. We will be eating it tonight. I couldn’t watch. Originally, she was going to slaughter it herself, but she saw the goat tied up to the pole and she couldn’t do it. I watched it get tied up, but then I had to leave. She watched and said she wished she didn’t. She thought it would be one clean cut that would kill it, but they had to saw through its neck several times. Ugh! I’m so glad I didn’t watch.
Our cook is amazing because she makes home roasted, pounded, and steeped coffee! She does every step and we get to watch. She does this 2 times a day on the porch after meals and she decorates around the fire with ferns and poinsettias. I can’t believe all the cooking she does with all the tools that she has to use. Her whole life is cooking for all these men.

Breath-taking Ethiopian Landscape

October 25^th, 2007

So we left yesterday and we are finally in Sasiga. Our drive was long yesterday. We covered over 300 km. the road was only good part of the time, but the view was spectacular. It’s indescribable. So green, with rolling hills and many different colors of grass. It’s like patchwork. There were even yellow flowers that covered various patches of land. “Lion King” trees (actually called acacia) were everywhere as well. They’re flat-topped ones.

I sat in the front seat the whole way next to Kidus who is very chatty. I had some good talks with him, but he can be very exhausting. It’s probably a good thing I sat next to him or I would have been very bored and the drive would have felt even longer. We stopped for lunch at a random spot and had some really good meat with bread that Hannah made. Hannah was a young woman who traveled with us. She is an FH accountant. She is very beautiful with braids in her hair and curls on the ends and with a beautiful smile. Another woman named Zoudanash traveled with us as well. She had to sit in the very back with our luggage. She was really sweet.

We sang songs in the vehicle to entertain ourselves. We topped again and I chased after a horse that wouldn’t let me pet it. Meanwhile, Kate took pictures of the locals who were very excited to see themselves on the back of the camera. They probably only every see their reflections in water.

Our driver was called Tesfaye and he was really sweet. He was always concerned about our well-being. We stopped at a café which had a shell logo on it, which is quite humorous to me. Just when we started to drink our beverages, a bus pulled in. it took great pains trying to park and I foresaw what happened next. It scraped the side of our Land Cruiser and we could see the Land Cruiser shaking from the impact. The driver came out and wouldn’t apologize which infuriated Kidus. The driver said that things like that happen all the time. I thought that if things like that happen all the time to him that he shouldn’t be a driver! So Tesfaye, Tekle, and Kidus reasoned and argued with the driver in Amharic for a long time while us girls sat there wondering what they could possibly be talking about. Then the traffic police arrived. More arguing ensued. More confusion from my end. We finally left and Kidus said that the policeman must have been bribed because of the things he said. But it was finally worked out somehow. As we kept driving Tesfaye kept talking about the ‘accident’ because he was really upset. So I kept suggesting that we sing in order to forget about it. It worked sometimes. They would sing a song in Amharic and then Kate and I would sing a ‘ferenji’ song. Sometimes Kidus would join in because he speaks really good English and knows many English songs. Ferenji is what they call white people in Ethiopia. It is taking some getting used to since we are used to Muzungu which was what we were called in Uganda and Rwanda. Ferenji is derived from the word French.

When we were nearing Nekemt, which is the city nearest to Sasiga, I started to feel sick, so we pulled over. I though it was because I hadn’t eaten much, but I’m not so sure now. I ate an orange, which helped. When we arrived in Nekemt we stopped at a restaurant to eat and I had a little bit of rice. I could barely eat. That night Kate and I had a whole house to ourselves. It had three bedrooms and a bathroom with hot water. We went to bed early and at about sun up I felt sick so I had to get up. My heart was pounding and my stomach was queasy. I puked. I went outside to get some air and noticed the loud buzzing. I knew what it was right away. I had been forewarned of the bees. Sure enough, there were a few huge ones buzzing around the porch. In the distance I could hear roosters crowing, dogs barking, and birds chirping. As I stood on the porch I wanted to go home so bad. I finally felt well enough to sleep again.

After 9 am, the men picked us up and we went to breakfast. I drank tea and tried to get some food down. We met a few men who would be living at the compound we would be staying at in Sasiga. It took us forever to leave Nekemt because they kept stopping places to buy food and other things. Kate and I were anxious to get to Sasiga and to get out of the vehicle. But we kept to reminding ourselves again that “We’re in Africa, baby!” We were told that the drive should take 45 minutes to an hour, but we didn’t get to Sasiga until late afternoon. On the way we had to cross a couple streams in our vehicle. Kidus kept stepping out of the Land Cruiser to take photos of our vehicle on rough terrain. Tekle kept telling us ‘Dad jokes’ which are jokes that are pretty cheesy and ones that dads typically tell. He is a great guy who has helped us feel at home. He likes to say ‘your friends are there’ which is supposed to be from a movie.

Coffee, coffee, and more coffee

October 23^rd, 2007

We had a 2 hour flight using Ethiopian air to Addis Ababa. The food was good on the plane; better than the British Airlines food we had on our way to Uganda. I am staying at a Lutheran Norwegian guesthouse. We see a lot of Norwegian people. It’s funny because sometimes they’ll start talking to me in Norwegian because they think I’m Norwegian. I tell them I am mostly Norwegian.

When we first arrived at the guesthouse, we talked to some people who were doing a 2 week missions trip doing cataract surgery. It was pretty interesting. They said that the operation takes 45 minutes here because of the lack of technology, but it usually takes 15 to 30 minutes in the states. They said that the people don’t even flinch when they give them the shot of anesthetic in their eye, but in the states, a lot of people squirm and cry and faint. There’s such a difference in pain tolerance and what people are afraid of. They played Norah Jones for the patients and gave them pillows for under their knees and comfortable beds, so they would fall asleep as they were being operated on. The beds are probably more comfortable than beds they usually sleep on.

We’ve been taken out to eat and to coffee many times. Practicum is not like I expected it to be, but of course we haven’t reached our practicum locations yet. We leave tomorrow morning. The country director of Ethiopia’s FH named Andy Barnes picked us up and we went on a long drive out into the country which was beautiful and drove a super bumpy rode up a hill. Then we hiked for a bit and saw amazing scenery which seemed so unreal and was definitely picture perfect. We also saw a monkey in a tree. Then we saw an antelope type animal which Andy said was classified as threatened, which means it’s in more danger than endangered species are. The reason why it’s endangered is because Ethiopia used to be mostly made of forest (maybe 66 percent) and now it has decreased a lot (to maybe 3 percent, but don’t quote me).

On one hand I’ve loved being in Addis Ababa and seeing the city and the churches and museums. On the other hand I know we will not see as much or experience as much at our practicum sites as the other girls will. It has been seeing all of the elaborate things that the Orthodox Church has made, but at the same time, I wonder if more money could have or should have been spent on helping people, such as the poor.

So far we love the donkeys because they are really cute to us. They have floppy ears and they carry huge loads without anyone leading them with a rope. They have really love IQs but they are so obedient. Maybe humans could learn a thing or two from them. Sometimes people are like donkeys. People can be stubborn, but so can donkeys.

Anyway, it has been fun getting to know Tekle, his wife Nunu, and Tekle’s friend Kidus. He is also Nunu’s brother. He is a crack up. I enjoyed our hike up the hill with Andy as well. The view was gorgeous and it’s always amazing to see people living so far away from the city without vehicles and yet they survive. That just shows how American I am! My mom [pointed out how I am in the least developed country in the world and my sister is in Manhattan, NY. It’s such a world of difference. We’ll have to compare stories.

Things are cheaper here – especially compared to Rwanda! You can eat a very filling meal for around 2 dollars. So crazy, but great. We went to church on Sunday and I wasn’t very impressed. It was an international church. I don’t like church, but I really didn’t like that one. It was just too westernized and stale. I preferred the churches we saw in Uganda and Rwanda. Jordan House and the one in Kibuye, especially. I realized that when I go to church I don’t really see God, but when I’m out in nature, I feel him and see him everywhere! I somehow need to see God in church and not be so judgmental. But I feel like it’s okay to not like church. After all, almost everything about it is man-made and based on culture, whereas nature is made by God and transcends cultural taste. Makes sense to me!

After church we went to coffee again at the Sheraton hotel. It was an amazing hotel! So huge and elaborate. I couldn’t help feeling a bit disgusted, but awed at the same time. But I can’t judge this country or its people. Apparently the Sheraton was the hotel that Beyoncé was staying at because she had a concert here last night. But we didn't get to see her. There was a guy named Kidus whom we hung out with. He is Tekle's friend. He saw her like 5 minutes before we got there. Pretty crazy. The reason why she is in Ethiopia is because she did a show for the new millennium. You know that Ethiopia has their own millennium don’t you? For them it’s the year 2000. They also have a different time system as well. 1 am for them is our 7 am because that is when their day starts. It’s so cool, but also confusing. It was funny because when we were on the airplane, the first thing the flight attendant said to us after she found out we were American was that Beyoncé had a concert in Addis Ababa. She asked us if we were going and we asked the price (knowing it would be ridiculous, even in Ethiopia). One ticket was over 100 dollars! We all just laughed and said no.

On Monday or Tuesday (time just runs together sometimes so I can’t remember) we went to dinner at an Ethiopian restaurant. I was able to get a little bit of food down but I didn’t eat the bread which is the worst part. It’s called Injera. I think it will be a slow process eating Ethiopian food. At that restaurant there was live traditional singing and dancing, which was beautiful. Then we had a coffee ceremony (not religious) where there was incense blowing right at me and popcorn to eat. I actually drank the coffee. It was really strong and I put too much sugar in it. Over all, it was a good night with all of our good conversations. Robert, a Canadian FH worker who has lived in Sasiga (where Kate and I will be) came to the dinner and we talked to him about our struggles and things we’ve learned about in Africa. Hopefully we’ll see him again.