Happy Halloween

Disaster Strikes

Ok so I’m probably exaggerating just a little, but honestly come on now. I waited a week with my ‘gold/orange’ hair hoping it would fade or look better. It never did so today I bought hair dye. I bought L’Oreal ‘Chocolate’ stuff too and it wasn’t cheap either. I thought a ‘chocolate’ color hair dye would cover up ‘gold/orange’ mess just nicely. I was wrong…oh so wrong. I have dark red/brown hair now. Yep…dark red. I look so silly. I don’t know what’s worse – gold/orange or dark red.

*My mom was gracious enough to help me fix my hair now that I am home. It is now brown. 

 

 

 

Last Blog

Well, this is my last blog – at least for a while. I’m going home early, which is both exciting and sad at the same time. I am really looking forward to being with my family once again, but I am going to miss my Ethiopian family and friends and of course the kids. It’s going to be quite different going back to the states, but I think I’ll manage just fine. As for why I’m going back early…life happens and plans change. So to all my trusty blog readers and sponsors – thank you. It has been an epic year of growing and maturing, and my pride has been taken down a few notches. I would not change my time here in Ethiopia for anything. 

*The flight was long but I am so glad I am home. Thank you to everyone who has been praying for me.

A very busy weekend

School Uniforms

Two weeks ago Mesfin and Hiwot rounded up the sponsorship kids who need new uniforms who live in Addis. I met with them and measured them for either a skirt or pants and a sweater. There were so many different kinds and colors of uniforms that Tesfanesh and I had to go to the merkato to find the best deals on fabric. We also found a seamstress to make all of the skirts and pants for the children. I found a sweater store in the merkato and bought all of the girls’ their sweaters – they were out of little boy sweaters. I decided that I would just give money to the moms and they can find the sweaters. There were also a couple kids who had such obscure uniform colors that I couldn’t find it in the merkato; they would receive money as well. Well, this Saturday (Oct. 17^th) we were able to give the much-needed uniforms to the children. Of course something went wrong…something always goes wrong. Apparently the light blue sweaters that I bought for five little girls were the wrong color of light blue – who knew? So I gave them money to have their mom’s figure it out. Besides that minor problem everything fit pretty well. The kids were stoked to have new uniforms.

 

Random Thoughts

Weather – The weather has been really weird lately. One day it will be sunny and blue skies and the next there will be huge black clouds in the sky and be rainy and windy.

 

Big Black – Yesterday I saw two guys wearing a Big Black t-shirt. Maybe they were the same person I don’t know. I just thought it was funny.

 

Lion Zoo – I went to the lion zoo yesterday. My friend appropriately renamed it the ‘lion prison’ – it’s that bad.

 

Language – Aynalem likes to talk to me in Amharic even though I don’t understand a word she’s saying most of the time. I just look at her and say, “I have no idea what you just said,” and then she mimes something out and sometimes I understand and sometimes I don’t.

 

Solar Power – The lights on our gate are solar powered. Tesfanesh and Aynalem have never heard of such a thing, and one night they tried every switch but the lights outside wouldn’t turn off. Then I tried really hard to explain solar power to them. 

 

Parasite – I think I have a parasite again. Boo.

Whoa Now

Lost in Translation

I went to Debre Zeit today (Oct. 14^th) to spend time with the kids in the orphanage. The last couple of times I have been there have been for the sponsorship kids and I’ve been missing the ELOLAM kids. Anyways, on bus ride out there Mesfin told me that Meheret is actually a boy not a girl. Well, that changes everything. So, I threw some names fit for a little boy. At first I started with the meaning of a name and had it translated into Amharic. For example I asked what “God’s blessing” is in Amharic – it translates to Bereket. So for a while that was his new name. But the only Bereket I know is a girl and I couldn’t make it work for a little boy in my head. So I changed his name for the third time to Silas (pronounced See-las here). He is a tiny little thing with straight black hair and big eyes…he’s going to be good lookin’ when he’s older.

 

Ye Tilik Iat Tarik (The Story of the Big Rat)

Last night (Oct. 13^th) I saw Tesfanesh put some of her dirty clothes in the gap between the backdoor door and the floor. I asked her why she would do this and she told me a story…it’s a true story, one that happened the previous night. (Aynalem has been sleeping in Tesfanesh’s room because her bed is broken.) After I had said good night and gone into my room to read Aynalem saw something big run into their room. She didn’t tell Tesfanesh but after a couple minutes Tesfanesh saw the same thing run out of her room. She scoured the whole house (except my room) for the fury creature. She didn’t tell me that she saw the big rat until the next night.

I said, ‘Why didn’t you tell me? It could be in my room right now.”

Her reply was, “No I think it went outside.”

“Tesfanesh! I sleep on a mattress on the floor! What if it went in my room?”

“Trust me, it went outside,” she said.

“Did you see it go outside?”

“No, but we looked every where for it and did not find it.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked.

“I knew you wouldn’t sleep if I told you.”

“Good point. How big is big?”

“This big.” And she puts her hands about six inches apart and makes a fat body shape.

“Ewww. Gross. Are you sure you looked everywhere?”

“Yes.”

So now we put clothes in the gaps between the doors and floor – even I put a duffle bag under my door ‘just in case’. I looked for the rat but I didn’t find anything in my room. Oh the joys of renting a house.

 

Beauty Salon Part Two

I’ve been going to the beauty salon about once a week for the last month or so. Tuesday the three of us (Tesfanesh, Aynalem and I) went to get our hair done. It costs less than three dollars per person to have our hair washed with freezing cold water, put in curlers and dried, and either straightened or curled more. This time I decided on impulse to have them color my hair. I really should have thought about it twice. Anyways, the only box colors they had were blond and dark brown. So I chose the blond. It didn’t turn out too bad…I’m hoping it will fade a little. It’s a little ‘gold’ right now. Hahahahaha. I’ve had worse.

One of my Favorite Families

One of my favorite families lives next door to Tesfanesh’s brother. They have five children and live in a one-bedroom apartment. Their names are Tekle (the dad), Simeign (the mom), Nardos, Rhediet, Aboosh (this is just a nickname – I’m not sure what his real name is), Mesgana, and Eyobid. About a month ago I asked Tesfanesh if Aboosh had a school uniform because I hadn’t ever seen him in one. She said, “Of course. He wouldn’t be allowed to go to school if he didn’t.” Well, about a week ago she told me that she found out that he didn’t have a uniform and that Mesgana doesn’t either. Rhediet doesn’t have enough money for transportation to her school and that Eyobid isn’t going to school because they don’t have enough money for it. She also told me that this family often goes without food because they don’t have enough money. I asked what Tekle does for a job…he works in the church. No wonder they don’t have enough money – most churches here can’t afford to pay their staff on a regular basis. Simeign sews little scraps of material together to make children’s shirts and sells them in the merkato to make a little money. So I told them to make a list of how much they think it will cost for the kids to get uniforms, school supplies, school fees for the year and transportation. Anyone care to take a guess? Eighty-seven dollars – for the entire year, and that was estimating high. He had tears in his eyes when I gave him the money. He didn’t expect me to give it to him that night, but I was prepared. Transportation for Rhediet on a monthly basis is $5 USD and they are struggling to come up with that. I told them I would gladly cover that cost and give her extra so she can have lunch while she is at school. I also explained that people gave me money so I could do this. He wanted me to tell everyone, “Thank you so much. God bless you. You must have heard my prayers because you have answered them. I cannot tell you what is in my heart – I can only say thank you.” So on behalf of one of my favorite families – thank you for everyone who supports me, I get such joy from giving your money away. 

Just Two

Questions

Well lately I’ve been getting a lot of questions as to how people can help. Let me tell you there are plenty of opportunities. I’ll name a few and if you are interested email (emilytalcott@gmail.com) me and let me know.

1.     School sponsorship. You can sponsor a child to go to school for a one time fee of $20 USD. That includes buying a uniform and school supplies. The government will waive the tuition fee if the parents can prove they can’t afford it.

2.     School uniform. Most parents can afford tuition because it’s roughly ($5 UDS a semester) but they can’t usually afford a uniform. It costs about $10 USD to have a new uniform made. Most children are going to school in rags of a uniform and this is one way to easy the financial burden of the parent’s.

3.     Shoes. It seems like everywhere I look someone needs a new pair of shoes. Luckily fake crocs are all the rage here and they are cheap. It costs about $2 USD for a new pair of shoes.

4.     Tutors. The orphanage I am working with would like to hire a tutor to come to the house five days a week and tutor the children in math, reading, spelling and English. It will cost about $35 USD a month for the tutor and supplies he/she needs.

5.     Daycare. This is something I am very passionate about. All the time I see mothers giving up their children to an orphanage because they simply can’t afford them. If the child were able to go to a daycare during the day so the mother or father could work then it would prevent them from having to go to an orphanage. I also see many children playing in the streets because no one is at their house to look after them. There are also many children who are in charge of watching their younger siblings – I’m not talking about a 15 year old in charge I’m saying a 6 or 7 year old is in charge of a smaller children. I am still working out the details, but when I figure it out I will let you all know. I’m figuring that it would cost about $20 USD a month per child (that is for 50 children or $1000 USD per month). This would allow us to rent a house, hire nannies, hire a cook, pay the bills, and provide breakfast and lunch for the children. 

 

Oh Have Mercy

If you didn’t get the title right away don’t feel bad…it’s from the TV show Full House. But that’s not the point of the story.

Today (Saturday the 10^th) I went over to Hiwot #2’s house to hang out. She was telling me how they just got a baby girl at the orphanage and that she got to named her. I told her how lucky she was. I remembered naming Lily and Hallelujah and how fun that was. She then told me that the next time they get a baby who hasn’t been named she will call me and I can name him/her. Well, I didn’t think she would call so soon, but low and behold she called tonight a mere seven hours after our conversation telling me that they just got another tiny baby at the orphanage and she doesn’t have a name. I told her I would call her back in ten minutes after I think of one. I started naming off names in English and Tesfanesh translated them into Amharic for me. I found I liked Mercy the best or Meheret in Amharic. So I called back and told her the name I chose and the verse in the Bible that it is from (Micah 6:8). I cannot wait to meet little Meheret some day soon.

*To pronounce Meheret correctly all the ‘e’ s are the same sound. Take the ‘e’ sound in Emily and use it three times…Me-he-ret. I hope that makes sense – it’s the best I could think of.

Some New Ones

Monday Madness

Monday (September 28^th) night Tesfanesh came home in a very weird mood. I asked her what was wrong and her reply was, “It will make you angry.” So of course my curiosity got the better of me and I asked her what was wrong again. She finally answered – and I was angry. Not that I had any right to be angry, but I was on her behalf. She was demoted for no reason and told that she would have to move back to the transition house and work 24 hours a day. So, she decided to quit. She told them on Wednesday so that night we went out to dinner and I bought a cake to celebrate.

 

Employment Opportunities

When I got back to Ethiopia in August I called Zoudie to see if she wanted to come and work for me. She said yes but said she had to tell her boss. Long story short, she never did come and work for me so Tesfanesh called her sister who was working in construction and asked her if she wanted to come work for me. Two days later she showed up. I was expecting a sturdier looking woman, but an older looking version of Tesfanesh came. She is probably 5’5” and weighs maybe 95 pounds. I can’t imagine her doing construction work. Her name is Aynalem and she doesn’t speak English at all. It’s been a little frustrating trying to talk to her, but with hand motions we’ve been able to get by.

 

Finders Keepers – Losers Weepers

Friday (October 2^nd) Tesfanesh, her sister Aynalem and I went to look at houses to rent. We first asked the storeowner near our apartment, he also happens to be a broker; he had two houses for us to look at. He called the owner of the first house and we found out that it is very, very far from where we were looking. He then called the owner of the second house who just happened to move to an apartment. He said that instead of taking a minibus to look at the house he wanted me to rent a contract taxi. So I did and we went to look at the house. It was surprisingly nice and met almost all of my requirements (running water, three bedrooms, etc.). The owner even said that I could pay every month instead of three months in advance, which is nice. The only bad thing is that there is a dog. I don’t really like dogs at all in fact especially dirty ugly ones. I told the owner that I didn’t want the dog and he said he would find a home for it. So we moved houses Saturday and looked at used furniture in the morning. I found a buffet side-table that I am refinishing, a bed and an armoire. Sunday we found mattresses and supplies to refinish the table. They don’t use stain here in Ethiopia – but they do stain their furniture. I asked the guy at the little hardware store what they use and he handed me a little plastic bag with powder in it. He told me to mix it with water and use it like stain. Hmmm…we’ll see how it turned out.

*They just moved the dog to a different house. I guess this morning when Aynalem woke up there was poop all over the place. She cleaned it up with bleach water – I think she’s glad to get rid if it too.

 

Debre Zeit

I finally made it back to Debre Zeit…this time there were children there – 50 to be exact. I met with each one to take their picture and give them their tote bag of school supplies. The social worker told me that there was a mentally challenged girl (as if she should be sent home without anything). I said, “So, she still needs to go to school.” When I asked her what her name was – yes she was slow to answer, but when she smiled nothing else mattered. She has the best smile. A mother came into the office with two babies (one tied to her back and one in her arms), when she started telling us her story she started crying. I can totally empathize with her – when I get worked up I cry too. Anyways, when her twin girls were 3 months old her husband left her. He just took off and she has never heard from him again. Well, her girls are a year old right now and she is struggling to make it. She makes and sells injera but it is not a very profitable business. I asked her what is her greatest need – rent money. I asked her now much is rent – $100 birr ($8USD). I told Hiwot #2 that I would like to sponsor her and pay for rent every month. Hiwot then translated to the lady to come back every month and collect rent money. She was so relieved to have that burden lifted that she almost started crying again. I played with one of the twins and fed her a piece of bread. I wish I had brought clothes with me, but I wasn’t expecting such little kids to come.

September 11 – 28

***Emily is having trouble with her photos but will send them to me when she can so I can upload them.  So, check back in a few days to see if this post has the photos that go along with it. – Autumn

Happy 2002 Ethiopia!

Well, it kind of feels like I went back in time and at the same time still went forward. It turned 2002 here on Friday September 11th. Weird. I was invited to Bellatu’s sister’s house on Friday night. Saturday we went to the beauty salon and then Sunday I went to Tesfanesh’s sister-in-law’s brother’s house. It was a good way to spend New Years – they definitely celebrate for many days. The family usually gathers at the patriarch or matriarch’s house on new years day. Then for a couple days after that they gather at another member’s house for a meal. It’s a good tradition.

Beauty Salon

Friday night I informed Tesfanesh that I wanted to go to a beauty salon and have my hair straightened. She was delighted. So Saturday late morning we headed to one beauty salon, but they were so full they said to come back in four hours. So we jumped on the minibus and headed up to Bethel. Right across from where the bus let us off there was a beauty salon (they are all over the place) so we decided to try this one. It was much nicer than the first one we went to and there wasn’t a long line at all. They washed my hair with freezing cold water and then put it in curlers and under a dryer for 40 minutes. While I was under the dryer the most amazing thing happened – Ethiopian Idol came on tv. I had no idea they had Ethiopian Idol – I shouldn’t have been surprised but I was. Some were good and some were horrible. They also had dancers too so I guess it is more like America’s Got Talent. Anyways, after the dryer she straightened my hair and kept touching/playing with it. I asked her if it was her first time doing a white person’s hair and she said yes. Then she ruined it. She put a sheen spray on my hair without asking me. It was so oily feeling and looking that I went home and washed my hair that night. Next time I will have to tell her no spray. I loved having my hair straightened though.

Out From Under My Feet

On Saturday (the 12th) night Tesfanesh told me about a three bedroom ground floor apartment in the same complex. So the next morning we went and had a look at it. It was surprisingly really nice for an apartment. The kitchen was large as well as the living room. The three bedrooms were a decent size too. So we called the owner that night and told him that we would like to take the apartment. So we called him again on Monday night to try and figure out when we could meet with him to sign the contract and that kind of thing. He said he would get back to us. So we called again on Tuesday night and asked if we could meet the next day to finalize things. He said he was going to be out of town but that he can meet with us on Thursday. So we call again Wednesday to schedule a time and he told us that his sister lives in the same complex and told her friend that she can rent it. Tesfanesh was livid – she yelled at him for a good three minutes without taking a break. So we didn’t end up getting the apartment. It’s bummer too because we are going to have to spend another month in the one bedroom no water apartment.

Quitting Time

So this new job has its pros and cons. Pros: the pay and the hours. Cons: lack of organization, never being able to get a hold of my boss, not being paid on time, no one ever does what they say they will do. I am about fed up. Yesterday I almost quit but then I thought of the money and I kept my mouth shut.

School Shopping

So Mefin (Hiwot #2’s right hand man) called me a couple weeks ago and said that he is getting around a list of children from Debre Zeit (pronounced Deb-ra Z-eye-eat) who are hoping to get sponsored to go to school. I told him that I would help with whatever I can. Saturday night he came and visited and told me all about the sponsorship children – all 67 of them. They are from extremely poor families – so poor in fact the government is waiving tuition fees. He told me what they needed: uniforms, notebooks, pencils and backpacks. He also gave me an estimated budget for all the supplies of almost $13,000 birr. Yikes! So of course I called my dad and begged him to ask our church. He did of course – thank you so much. That covered a portion of the cost. Then I remembered the donations from some of the traveling families. So my trusty driver and I went to the merkato to go school shopping for 80 children (we added 13 orphans in the mix as well). First we went to see if we could reduce the cost of the backpacks by having tote bags made instead. We were able to reduce the cost to half the price. Then we went looking for 640 notebooks. We found a shop that would sell them to us for a very, very good price – $1.65 birr less than the estimated price. They were also willing to give us a reasonable price on 160 pencils so we added 80 pens and 80 erasers too. Tesfanesh and I unpacked all the notebooks and put them in stacks of 8 for each child. When we get the tote bags back on Saturday afternoon we will stuff each bag with all the school supplies. We are hopefully going to go to Debre Zeit on Sunday afternoon and hand out all the supplies. I will for sure take pictures. As for the uniforms – well I’m not sure. I hope the school will waive that fee as well but if not they cost about $10 USD per child. Thank you so much to everyone who donated.

School Shopping Part Two

Last Sunday (the 20th) I met with 20 children who live in Addis who are being sponsored to go to school. I met their mothers and sisters and younger siblings. They were poor. I started with the top of the list and took her photo and asked her if she was excited to go to school. She was shy but responded with a huge smile. I gave her a tote bag full of all the goodies and she bowed low and said thank you very softly. I got through the first nine children and then my camera died. Ahh…of course it would. With each child it was the same shy smile and some would answer my questions in English – only the confident ones did. They all bowed their thanks – it is not customary to say please or thank you in this culture, so a bow was more than I was expecting. Each child whether they were four or fourteen each looked at their tote bag and notebooks with awed expressions. One little boy is three – he is the younger brother of a little boy and girl who are going to school – was wearing such tattered clothes that I wanted to go home and get something for him. When he sat down the whole inseam of his pants were missing and his little pee-pee was just hanging out. His mother looked at me, pleading with me for something from him. I had nothing. I told her through Mesfin that I would bring him something when we finish the photos and buy school uniforms. Tomorrow (Saturday) we are going to Debre Zeit to deliver the rest of the tote bags. My mom called me last night and there have been enough donations through my church that all the uniforms will be paid for! This was such an answer to everyone’s prayers. I wasn’t sure where I was going to come up with money. Mesfin was overjoyed this morning when I told him we were going to be able to purchase the uniforms. He wanted to me tell everyone who donated money, “Thank you so much. God bless you.” I must also add my thanks to everyone who donated money. Without it 80 children would be at home playing in the streets or working in the fields, but now they are able to go to school. I think I have the best part in this whole ordeal – I get to watch their faces light up while they touch their tote bag for the first time, when it really sinks in that they are going to be able to go to school.

A Day in Debre Zeit (School Shopping Part Three)

So yesterday (Saturday the 26th) I went to Debre Zeit with Mesfin to meet with 60 children to give them their school supplies and take photos for their profiles. Well, lets just say something went wrong. I was not surprised at all – I was kind of expecting it actually. Only three children showed up. Hmm…Mesfin said that they moved offices a few days before and that the people didn’t know where the new office was. Well, that makes sense. So while we waited for a couple more kids to come I played with the kids at the orphanage (oh yeah, the office is at the orphanage). I forgot what a joy it was to play with kids. There was a mother there with an older girl and she was holding a baby – I was then informed while I was feeding the baby that was her baby and she was visiting while she registered the older girl for school. I couldn’t believe it really. I don’t think I could do it; visit the baby I gave up to an orphanage and most likely for adoption. I promptly gave the baby back to her – I didn’t feel right holding him while she was there for only a little while. So we filled out the paperwork and took photos. The social worker that helps Hiwot said he would make sure the children were there the next Saturday. So I have to go back next Saturday – not that I really mind.

Magdus Alemayhu

I called her forward so we could fill out her paperwork and take her photo. She was the first one and a little nervous. I asked her name and her age, six – then looked to her mother to see if she knew a more precise date – surprisingly she did. I asked her if she did chores and what she did. She answered so quietly that I had to lean closer and ask her again. She cleans the house. That did not surprise me at all. I asked her what she liked to do for fun. Again she whispered so softly that I leaned closer. She likes to play hide-n-seek with her friends. I asked her if she had ever been to school – only kindergarten. She hasn’t gone in the last two years because her mother cannot afford the tuition of $55 birr or $4 USD. She said she was very excited to go to school. I asked her mother about the father. He died she replied. I said I was sorry for her loss and asked how – he was a soldier. I asked her if she had a job – yes as a construction laborer. Being a construction worker is one of the most physically demanding jobs there are in Ethiopia. Ever since Ethiopia was under communist rule women were allowed to work as construction workers. The social divide was broken. Women are paid about $20 birr for 12 hours of work that is roughly $1.60USD. They carry loads of stone and sand and cement for 12 hours. It is backbreaking work. Magdus then smiled for a photo and laughed a little when I showed it to her. She gladly accepted her tote bag with notebooks, pencils, pen and an eraser and was all smiles then.

Bane of my Existence

Ok so I exaggerate just a little when I say that but really I hate ringworm. It itches and itches and looks disgusting. Luckily it’s not on my face this time. I thought at first it was just a mosquito bite on the top of my middle finger of my right hand. After a couple days it started to spread and take shape. Now it is a distinct circular shape. Since I sleep with my head on my hands most of the time I have taken to putting some gauze around it so it doesn’t spread to my face – and I don’t itch it as much. Ugg I hate it. The anti-fungal cream says to put it twice a day for a month. Boo. I guess it could be worse and be on my face.

August 18 – September 3

Cake

So tonight Yonatan (Tesfanesh’s nephew) and I were talking about job opportunities and he mentioned that a certain job would be a piece of cake. At this point Tesfanesh perks up and says, “Huh?!? Cake!” so then he explained in Amharic what he said, luckily she was able to laugh at herself because we were laughing at her too.

 

Job

Well, I applied for a part time job at a school here in Addis. The flyer said this, “Wanted: a native English speaker for a part time job as a storyteller. $10,000 birr a month. Call…” To be honest it was the money that caught my attention. So I called and the guy said it was kind of teaching English but by reading stories. Well I had an interview with him and I heard back a week later that I got the job! Woo Hoo! I went this morning to fill out the paper work but when I got their the guy said that he had a tooth ache so he was going to the clinic and to come back tomorrow. That was a little frustrating but it’s Ethiopia…nothing ever moves smoothly.

*It’s not exactly what they said it would be. Right now I am editing lesson plans for grammatical errors. I have an office in a very cold building. I just listen to music and correct spelling and grammar mistakes. I switched my schedule around. I work two ten-hour days, this will give me the opportunity to work at an orphanage or two.

 

Moving

Ever since landing in Ethiopia a couple weeks ago I have been moved. I feel that God is moving me to do something and to be someone that I could only imagine. I feel that God is leading me to live a passionate life that is fully dedicated to do what he desires – no matter the cost. The peace and anxiety that saying ‘yes’ to doing that scares me. I know peace because God calls everyone of his believers to live this kind of life. But actually doing it is a whole other thing. It evokes anxiety because I know that what I need to do it huge and seems almost impossible, and that actually doing this will bring times of trials and heartache. Wouldn’t it be much easier and safer to stay in the U.S. working at a meaningless job making enough money to meet all my needs, going to church every Sunday and living the mundane day to day? Of course it would but what kind of life would that be when I know I am called to something greater? How can I turn my back on the most vulnerable and helpless people on Earth? I don’t think I could ever forgive myself if I didn’t do something.

I just finished reading “The Strength of Mercy” by Jan Beazely. It has renewed my strength and resolve to follow God with every fiber of my body. There is are two sentences that really struck me, “The beauty of God’s way is that He chooses those who are most ordinary, unknown to the world, raising them up without an announcement.” And, “God is not looking for celebrities; he’s looking for servants.” It is true – I don’t have to worry because God isn’t concerned that I don’t know what I’m doing or that I’m just an ordinary girl who doesn’t have any spectacular gifts. He is only concerned with my heart and my willingness to follow his direction for my life. I will leave you with a verse that has been very encouraging to me lately, Micah 6:8, “And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” That is something everyone can do even if they’re not called to live in Ethiopia or take care of the orphans.

 

Domesticated – but there is nothing domestic about this blog

I did a very taboo thing – I became friends with three Muslim women. The first time I met Fethima (pronounce Fet-ee-ma) she helped me scrape mud off of my sandals. After that she invite me over for coffee and the next night for dinner and coffee. The dinner consisted of plain cold rice and bread, pasta with some kind of spicy flavor, popcorn, cookies, warm milk with sugar, tea and coffee. She lives with her husband of two years, her 7-month-old baby girl, Nurr, and her two younger sisters, Medina and Sofiya (Sofia). I have never met her husband; he has always been somewhere else. A couple nights after the dinner at their house I invited them over to my house for dinner. I made so much food but only Fethima and Sofiya came over. Fethima told me that her husband was home and that she didn’t tell him where they were going. The next night I went over for coffee and she had a fat lip with a cut in it. She told me and then showed me her other bruises from that morning. I have never experienced domestic violence before. I was so angry with him. I wanted to tell him off right then and there but he wasn’t home – I would like to think that he was lucky he wasn’t there, but I know I am a chicken. I know that his mindset largely has to do with his religion, but come on – no one deserves to be hit and bruised like Fethima was. I don’t care if she is his ‘property’ he still doesn’t have the right. Listen to me, and my western ways. I asked her why she didn’t go to the police – she just shrugged her shoulders. The sad thing is that she hates him but wants to have another baby with him. She wants to have a son – I don’t think that would make him happy. Oh what to do? Nothing. Until she wants to do something there is nothing I can do without causing her more trouble. What a predicament. It goes against everything I was taught and believe. I feel horrible for doing nothing, but I would hate to see her beaten again on the account of my tongue. 

 

Hunting

I went house hunting last week. I wanted to get out of my apartment and into a ‘villa’. Calling it a ‘villa’ sounds like I live in Italy rather than Ethiopia, but that’s what they are called. They are single story houses. I looked at houses near my church but they were all really expensive – I think it’s because there are a ton of white people that live there. So then I looked in the same suburb as the transition house. They were much cheaper but also not as nice. I did look at one that I really liked. It was a three bedroom, three bathroom villa with a very large living room and kitchen. Oh I liked it so much. The only thing was that the owner wanted six-months rent all up front. Bummer. So it was no dice on the lovely house – not until I can save up enough.

 

Walking

There is a man that works two offices down. He works for the school, but I don’t know what he does – apparently not much because he is always walking up and down the hallway.     

 

Wedding Presents

Well, Meseret (the old cook who now washes clothes) got secretly married while I was gone. I was shocked when I heard the news, but I know that this is what she has wanted for a very long time. She invited me to her house after work yesterday for coffee. I met her husband for about five seconds before he escaped to church. He doesn’t have a job and doesn’t seem to be looking for one either. She said she was very happy although he doesn’t let her dance (which she does every chance she can get) because Protestants don’t dance in Ethiopia. Her house was meager to say the least. There was a small bed and a small nightstand. Other than that there wasn’t much else just a couple suitcases that they live out of. So I told her that I wanted to get them a wedding present and to think of what she wanted. What she said shocked me I was almost mad, “TV.” I was thinking maybe nice dishes, maybe a dresser or even a table – not a TV. I don’t even have a TV. They have barely anything and she wanted a TV. I want her husband to get a job not sit around the house all day watching TV. I told her maybe and that I would have to look for a good deal (they are pretty expensive here). I don’t think I will get her one even if I can find an inexpensive one. I’ll probably just stick with my original idea and get her dishes.

Quilts

I had my mom make some quilts for the nannies.  Here are some photos.

Senaidt & Mesfin

Diborah

Diborah & Selam

Joy

I don’t think I can express to you adequately what it was like watching the women pick out clothes and scrubs from the donations I was able to bring – I will try and do my best. One day (I think the third day I was in country) Senaidt and Bellatu came over for a visit. I brought out my huge army duffle bag and dumped it out on my sofa. Their face lit up and their eyes started to twinkle while they took in the pile of clothes. We went through all the clothes and gave each nanny two or three things. They of course were able to try clothes on and pick out what they liked. Then we went through the scrubs and picked out the scrubs for each nanny too. They were so thankful for everyone who donated the clothes for them. They kept saying, “thank you, thank you, thank you,” and “God bless you.” It brought me such joy as well as all the nannies joy. When I saw all the other nannies I asked them how their clothes fit and oh my gosh they had such big smiles. They talked a mile a minute describing everything they got. So on behalf of the nannies – thank you to everyone who donated clothes and money.

All In a Day’s Work

My best friend Lisa is in town for a week and a half right now. I have truly enjoyed my time with her. We decided to take a trip to Wolisso to visit some people and run some errands. I learned a lot while we were there. 1) Private school is very cheap – $55 birr per month. 2) The price of food is slowly creeping upwards. 3) Everyone like movies. We started by meeting up with someone from the orphanage in Wolisso. He helped us out by taking us around and finding the best deals for food. We were able to buy 50 kilos of teff, 228 notebooks for school and 2 kilos of meat (they rarely get meat). We were not able to buy a sheep because it was not market day so nobody was willing to sell us one.  We dropped it off at the orphanage and hung out with the kids for a bit. I brought them The Mummy Trilogy and they were so excited. I had brought them a stack of movies the last time I was there and so we were able to talk movies. Then we went and met up with a family and registered a little boy in school. He was so happy and grateful to be going to school. Then we went over to another family and dropped off a quilt that my grandma had made. The mom was so overjoyed that she started crying. After spending three and a half hours in the small town we headed back to Addis. It was such a fulfilling day.