July 10, 2010

9:04 AM

It’s a quiet morning here in “our” house – Jeremiah is resting on the couch next to Josie who is sick now too (with what Jeremiah has and maybe an eye infection? Caught from a little friend at VBS – germ sharing, another universal language) and snuggled in a big chair watching a Looney Toons DVD in the dark living rom. All shutters (heavy duty – like hurricane shutters on a beach house) are drawn and it is dark, mellow and cozy.

Set on routine, Lucy woke at 7:30 (have I made them this way or did God?), which answered the question I had at midnight last night – “will I get to sleep in???” – but she is back in bed for a nap now, so I’m here in my pajamas (there’s something very rewarding about still being in my pajamas at 9AM!) at the table listening to some Phil Whickham and sipping some Ethiopian coffee.

Sigh.

It was a crazy week of VBS and the final week of Jeremiah’s class. Praise the Lord that I was able to hire the head nursery worker from IEC to help me this week. Rahel, a single Mama to Samela (2 yrs old) runs the nursery on Sunday mornings, and works during the week for two missionary families watching their children. I have seen her in the nursery loving on the kids when I’ve been in there nursing Lucy on Sundays. She is amazing with the kids, speaks English incredibly well, and I found out that the two families she works for are out of town for a few weeks! So she met us every morning and took care of Lucy during VBS, enabling me to be free to do the bazillion motions to the songs all day long. She would bring Lucy in for the opening and closing ceremonies, so Lucy was able to enjoy the music as well :)

Rahel would help me with the girls and walk to lunch with us then help me get taxis home, and then she made us some tortillas that rival the best you’ve ever tasted in Texas! We made lasagna and banana bread together – one for us, one for her – she was thrilled. I was too.

Having Rahel around this week was such a blessing for me. It was a hectic week with the combination of VBS all morning, crazy taxi rides, long walks between places, late lunches out, late naps and Jeremiah getting home after baths all but one night (that’s Mama talk for, “we barely saw him”), but with her help I didn’t go crazy. :) I don’t think. Our girls LOVED her – she read Josie lots of books and Lucy was always showing off her dimples and big grin when she would talk to her…and she doesn’t do that for just anybody!

She is such a hard working woman, caring for her mother, two brothers and her own child, while loving and caring for other’s children all day long. She has a bright smile on her face and joy in her heart. She became a Christian through IEC when a neighbor invited her to church when she was 10. Immediately afterwards she began helping in the Sunday school classes and eventually became the head nursery worker. Her husband comes from a wealthy Ethiopian family, and they were never happy with him marrying Rahel, from a much lower class. So they put affairs in order and made a way for him to leave her and live in Sweeden. So when she was 7 months pregnant with their child, he said he was going to visit his family, and instead left and never returned. She was left in her last trimester, with no money and now no house, as she had to move out. From what I can gather, this is when she started to nanny. She has also found time at night to go to school (I think an American family sponsored her education for awhile), where she has learned administrative skills. She now rents a room on a compound where her mother and brothers live as well…they all live together, but there isn’t room for Rahel and Samela, so she has to rent herself. Apparently her brothers are drunks and do not contribute to the family. I think she is considering applying to ETC next semester to take a night class…I so hope she does. It costs $150 US for one whole semester of college at ETC, a private Bible college. But when you put that cost into context, it is quite a sacrifice here to pay for Bible school, or any school, instead of, say, buying a stove/oven. (which she does not have) I think my favorite thing about Rahel, was her attitude about her situation. I had to DRAG information from her…she was never trying to sell me a sob story and ask for a hand-out. She is a Godly, single Mama who is working hard to provide the best life possible for her family (extended included). She quickly became my friend, and I so appreciated her company and help this week. I had to beg her to sit and have coffee with me at the table, she was always wanting more things to help me with. Having been a nanny though, I have experienced the difference between a family who includes you and a family that simply employs you. Besides that, I really did enjoy her.

If I could, I would pack Rahel and Samela (her 2 year old daughter) in a bag and carry them on. Since I cannot, we will at least leave her a few mix CDs (nothing says love like a mix tape, er, CD…sorry Hudson!), attend Samela’s 2nd birthday party this Saturday before we board our plane home, and leave as many of Josie’s clothes and shoes (some of which are Lily Baker’s actually – the gift that keeps on giving :)) for her.

I want to give her everything we have.

Jeremiah has reminded me though, that we live month to month and he works at Starbucks and I work too and he is in school as well. Oh yes. How quickly I forget. :) We are so rich in so many things though, a nice apartment and family and opportunity and true freedom and friends and TIME with our children and convenience and access to so much…not to mention a microwave, dishwasher and oven. Ugh, I wish I could give her all of these things.

Anyway, today begins our last week in Ethiopia! :( None of us can believe our time here is coming to a close…

We are overwhelmed with gratitude – without the prayers and generosity of so many of our friends and family, we would have never been able to experience Ethiopia these past 5 weeks. And even though half our family is sick right now, for the bulk of our trip, we have been healthy and able to function at (close to ;) ) 100%! It has been hard, adventurous, exciting, stretching, tiresome, educational, sad, and all at the same time full of fun and joy. We have really loved being here.

All that said, I am on the verge of being very ready to be home.

It is sad to know we only have one week left – sad to know we have to say goodbye to so many sweet people who we have grown to love in such a short time. But it has been a pretty exhausting 5 weeks for me, personally – physically and emotionally – so it will be nice to be home.

But wow, what a great taste, if even a small one, of what life could possibly look like for us one day. Obviously if we were in a more developed country there would be lots of differences, but evenso, a really great taste. We will be chewing on it for a long time, I’m sure. Wow, that was just cheesy. Sorry.

We will head to the Dr. at SIM Headquarters on Monday as we will be over on that side of town anyway having dinner with Tom and Romanda Lunsford and Ernie and Anne Frey. Hopefully we can kick these illnesses soon and have a great last week here – our team will be down in Langano this week, which we have decided to forgo.

Malaria is very prevalent in Langano, and although we’d love to go enjoy more of Ethiopia, and get to see Emily!, we have received plenty of advice, from locals and missionaries both, that have advised us not to take a baby. Thinking about Lucy getting Malaria, maybe even spiking super high fever on our flight home, unable to take any malaria meds (in the air or on the ground, as she is too little), it seemed way too irresponsible to go. Bringing her to Addis was all the risk/faith combo we could handle right now, we decided.

So instead we will have the house to ourselves and a somewhat “free” schedule. Which we are looking forward to both.

We plan to do a little souvenir shopping at Merkato (largest open air market in Africa), Jeremiah will road trip for the day Tuesday with Tom and Erinie to do some very informal theological training in Sodo (outside of Addis), visit A-Hope (HIV-AIDS children's home), Hope Enterprises (NGO reaching those living in great poverty), learn how to cook injera and doro wat at an Ethiopian’s home with Ramond and Anne, have all of the students over this week (half Tues night and half Wed night), and attend Samela’s party on Saturday before we get picked up at 4:30PM to head to the airport.

Okay, I better go…there are snotty noses to be wiped. Haha…I wish I was kidding.

Some of the VBS kids singing

Josie and her new favorite book reader

Lucy loving Rahel

Lucy expressing her discontent with Papa's grading of Doctrinal Statements

Jeremiah fixing the water tank/lack of water situation

Meeting Kefan, a popular Ethiopian Gospel Singer, at a restaurant

Eating Injera with a few of the students...and yes, I have both children on my lap.

July 9, 2010

11:00PM

Whew – girls finally in bed after a looooong day. We have a lot of those here! I think it’s the blessing and the curse of knowing you only have a short time somewhere – you pack things in, because your departure is always right around the corner.

Fridays are our “team days” usually. Class at ETC for rainy season class is M-Thur.

On past Fridays we have spent the day out of the city breathing clean(er) air…we’ve hiked in the Entoto Hills and seen lots of goats, sheep, a jungle of eucalyptus trees and mountain huts, hung out at Bubagaya Retreat Center/Crater Lake all day and hiked out through fields and mud to a really really old tree, and everyone but me and the girls hiked a mountain last week (I can’t remember the name) enjoying some true Ethiopian countryside (while they were gone, the girls and I enjoyed a fun day with Ramonda!) – the Friday dinner meal is reserved for the team as well, so since we had VBS today, we didn’t breathe clean(er) air, but we did take a big breath of relief that the week is drawing to a close.

Jeremiah actually stayed home today, super sick on the couch (this week WAS killer – sinus infection and fever has him out for the count), and went to the nurse at SIM to get some meds this afternoon.

So the girls and I braved VBS on our own today…it’s safe to say the whole fam is wasted.

But it’s Friday so it’s team dinner night…so tonight we had injera with the team at the Anderson’s home, along with two young families who are full-time missionaries in Ethiopia and who are also DTS grads. One couple had a 4 week old baby boy (that she delivered here – C section – bless her!) and the other had a 18 month old boy. It was nice that our children weren’t the only ones making lots of noise at team dinners/meetings. :)

It was a fun dinner with injera and some SPICY duro wat – a mix of onions, chicken, and lots of spice. I hope that we were able to be an encouragement to these two families/new friends.

Our poor girls, though, this has been such a busy week that I’m sure they will soon come down with the full-on yuck that Jeremiah has :(

At least it’s at the end of our trip and not the beginning! And how amazing is it that for the entire trip Josie has had ZERO breathing issues?!? Thank you to any and all of you that were praying for her about that! We were just commenting tonight on how incredible it is, especially considering the high altitude and polluted air here, that Josie’s lungs have held up so well. We are so thankful!!

Eating lunch at one of our favorite places - overlooking Sarbet roundabout - the roundabout where we get dropped off by taxi's when we we go to church/school.

Josie's way of passing time in Papa's class - chewing every piece of gum in the pack.

Sitting in Jeremiah's class again...a little theology, a little Josie.

Jeremiah's day of hiking with the team in the country off Jima Road (Road to Lunsford's old home - Aromo).

Horrible picture of Ellie, but hilarious of Josie...a 4th of July Ethiopian style with Injera and SO MUCH FOOD.

Josie exhausted on July 4th. Church, no nap, big lunch at someone's house, soaked with rain on our walk home, early bath and pj's on..."rest time" at 4PM, reading in bed turned into this 10 minutes later. Poor baby. Lights out.

Rahel, one of our new favorite Ethiopians, who Lucy smiles and laughs with while Mama and Papa make fools of themselves singing and dancing and Josie enjoys VBS.

Josie's best buddy here, Lydia - ETC's Dean of Student's youngest daughter.

Jeremiah and our VBS music leaders practicing.

Girls in Josie's VBS group following her around...very typical here...the American is the Pied Piper.

July 6, 2010 8:30PM

Whew, obviously it has been awhile. I have written so much in my head

– jotted down notes of rememberance here and there.

But overall, what I’ve said before is just ringing truer and truer.

It’s all just too much.

Really. The poverty and devastation is just too much – my heart and

even my brain can’t process it all. Maybe enough to function and “take

in” life here, but not nearly enough to process it and then put it on

paper.

There aren’t any words. Which is why pictures have been my method of

communication these past few weeks.

(Plus I have this horrible blogging disease – where I lose my filter –

I start typing and say more than I maybe should. This is the number

one reason the old blog went buh-bye. Hard to write but not write.

Hard to say but not say. I am more of a verbal vomitter when it comes

to blogging. Ha…just what everyone should read!)

I feel like Josie is in much of the same place as me. When I try to

fish for information to see what SHE is processing and taking in, I

ask things like “what do you like about Ethiopia?” or “does Ethiopia

look like Dallas?” and she says things like “church” and “yes”…and

that’s it. Haha I see it in her eyes as we are out and about – she is

taking so much in. I asuume, though, that she and I are processing at

about the same speed right now…super super slow.

Yesterday began our week long Vacation Bible School at International

Evangelical Church (IEC). Our team is heading up the weeklong program

for 4 year olds through 12 year olds. We have about 80 kids coming,

and Jeremiah and I are in charge of all the music. David and T, two

Ethiopian college guys are helping.

It is hilarious.

We are using a VBS curriculum that has solidified my belief that my

mom should copyright and sell all the original curriculums she has

written…these songs and stories and skits are killing me.

Curriculum!!!

But that’s okay. The kids are enjoying their days and we are cracking

up while doing a motion (from the curriculum) for almost every word of

every song. To watch these kids try to keep up with this many motions

is so funny! To watch us is probably even funnier.

So yesterday and today started reasonably early…as we have to be at

the church by 8:30…we live about 30 minutes away from the church…break

that down into a 10 minute walk to the taxi stop/underpass Tur High

Loch and about 10 minutes of standing in the mud, haggling with

contract taxis, OR waiting for a mini bus then about a 10 to 15

minutes ride in the vehicle you piled yourself and your children and

your backpack and your laptop into.

I can’t quite put my finger on what makes getting ready and out the

door with two kids early in the morning harder in Ethiopia…to be

honest, before we boarded that plane out of the US, I hadn’t mastered

this small feat in Dallas. Figuring out getting myself ready, getting

a 3 year old fed, ready, and occupied while feeding and getting ready

an infant before 10AM was still pretty daunting. That reads so

pathetic. But it should read very true. At least for me.

Anyway, so getting up and ready and out the door to catch a taxi to

VBS these past two days has been a little eventful. But so far we’ve

made it.

It’s 8:30PM now and Jeremiah is still at the church/school. Poor guy!

He will pull two 12 hour days this week. VBS from 8:30-Noon, teaching

his class from 2-4:45PM and then two days this week (same as every

week) leading a discussion group for Dr. Andersons class from

5:00PM-7:45PM…taxis at night seem to be crammed and take much longer

to catch, so he will probably not be home until 9:30 or so. KILLER!

To pass the time alone, I am watching Aljazeera news. Now there’s

something I’ve never said before! (I won’t have to watch long, though,

because the World Cup semi final starts soon!! Go Netherlands! ☺ )

June 29, 2010

10:00PM

Wow.

Today we met a hero.

Really really amazing.

We went on a tour of the Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital today, and we

met and got to visit with Dr. Catherine Hamlin.

I can’t think of any words in my vocabulary to adequately describe

this woman and the impact she is making in Ethiopia.

She has been called a “new Mother Theresa of our age” by the New York

Times. Oprah has interviewed her and given money for a building on the

grounds. She knows the Queen.

I was speechless meeting her. I mumbled out, “it is such an honor to

meet you”, but just as soon as I got those words out, tears found

their way onto my cheeks and I was done for.

Truly amazing. I am still stunned that we got to speak with this very

normal and yet extraordinary woman.

I have stored away all that we saw and heard about at the Fistula

Hospital, and I will revisit it all often in my head and heart, I’m

sure. My sensitivities were for sure heightened as I walked the

hospital grounds wearing my own little Lucy Dawn.

This is an issue that breaks my heart. Women, some very very young

women going into labor days away from a hospital. Their bodies needing

assistance in delivery, so they labor for days…the baby dies in the

birth canal and causes great damage to the Mama’s body…she is left

(among many things) broken hearted, and an outcast, because now she

constantly leaks urine and/or feces.

Women come from ALL over to get surgery to fix this situation at the

Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital that Dr. Hamlin founded and continues to

operate at. (side note – she is EIGHTY SIX!!!) Fathers and brothers

literally carry their broken hearted, hurting, smelly and frail

daughters and sisters for days to bring them to the hospital.

Not one is turned away.

These women wait on the grounds in front of the hospital until they

are admitted and examined before getting a bed and having their

surgery scheduled.

As we walked up to the office for our tour, we passed dozens of women,

wrapped in blankets, face downcast, and wet cement and puddles under

them all.

It’s too much.

But wow. To meet a woman who is doing so much to heal. Not just these

women, but the way the hospital cares and educates truly is changing

Ethiopia.

I still can’t believe we met her. We’ll have to be sure to have Lucy

read her autobiography someday since her hand was kissed by Dr.

Hamlin. ☺ If you haven’t read it, I cannot recommend any higher her

book, The Hospital By The River. You will not regret reading it,

educating yourself and finding a way to be involved in what God is

doing through Dr. Hamlin and her hospital.

P.S. The other thing worth noting from today is that a large light

fixture fell in the kitchen. Josie and I were making pizza dough and

Lucy was laying on a blanket on the floor. I layed Lucy down for a nap

in her bed, and when I came back to the kitchen Josie was playing with

her princesses next to Lucy’s blanket. I asked her to help me again

with the dough, so she came to the other side of the kitchen and as

she helped me stir, the light fixture went CRASH on the floor. She

screamed, and cried. I was stunned. Her princesses were covered in

glass, little tiny pieces were on Lucy’s blanket. But no one was hurt.

Just in the knick of time. Thank you Lord. And can I just say what in

the world is my problem with being overseas and lightbulbs breaking?!

June 24, 2010

Heather, Lucy and I spent the morning exploring an area of town called

“Bole” (Bow-lay) – a long stretch of road leading to the airport.

Supposedly this is a wealthier, newer area of town. We have heard lots

of people talk about Bole, so we decided to check it out for

ourselves.

We met and had a macchiato at Kaldi’s and then walked and walked and

walked. Most impressive, was a public trash can! I can’t say there was

any trash IN it, but it was the first public trash can I’ve seen!

Three children were our shadows for about six blocks, even waiting for

us while we went inside a shop.

Begging is fine with me – being pushy is another thing.

We had given them biscuits as well as coins, and they continued to

follow us…and then one of the boys unzipped the front pocket of my

backpack and that was enough.

We asked an adult to ask them to stop following us. It made me sad,

but it was the only way. I hated it though.

After our adventures on Bole Road, we went to the Deborah House, which

is an SIM run home for a handful of homeless girls to grow up in.

It’s located “near” (a relative term here) the guesthouse.

It was a very simple house, with a housemother and 12 teenage girls

making it their home. Iron bunk beds, two picnic tables, outside

toilets and “showers”, no decorations, one tv and a corner designated

for the traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony.

The girls loved my two girls and through broken English they had a blast.

It could be very detrimental how nuts everyone here is over Josie.

They go nuts over Lucy too, but she’s a little young for it to make

too much of an impact. ☺

I wasn’t paying close attention to the time, so we left a little later

than I had planned. And since we were gone all day, we had to figure

something out fast for dinner. Darn. Where’s Chick Fil A when you need

it? We walked awhile and the sun was starting to go downwards so we

quickly made our way into Loyal, the grocery store/restaurant we

shopped at while living at the guesthouse, and ordered two Fantas to

sip while we waited for our pizza “take away”…hmm…”pizza” should be in

quotes too!

As Josie downed her Fanta and the power went out, I looked outside and

saw the rain POUND down on the pavement. Hmmm, getting dark, two small

pizza boxes, two small children no cell phone, husband in class and

pouring rain.

After a quick pep talk trying to hype myself up for what was sure to

be a lovely walk to find a taxi, we did just that. And we found a taxi

that drove us all the way to our house gate.

Ahhh….long, good day. Glad to be home, glad to have the girls in bed,

glad Jeremiah will be home soon to eat “pizza” and very glad to be in

dry clothes.

(pictures sent 7/1)

A new friend made on our hot 3 mile hike through fields and hills and green green grass in Debrazeit (sp?) - by Lake Bubagaya.

Papa and Josie appreciating the view from a 2,000+ year old tree. SO huge and SO old.

Josie enjoying a splash with Julie in Bubagaya Crater Lake (Josie stayed in the closed-in "pool" part). Papa swam in the 75+ feet deep Crater Lake. YIKES!

Mama not even contemplating getting into that water :) Trying to soothe a baby's aching tummy instead.

Josie playing "King of the Sword!" (??) on the multitude of steps at SIM's retreat center on Lake Bubabgaya

Jeremiah, happy to use his knife, making a spear out of bamboo to get some fish. It was a good thought.

Contract Taxi Ride. Pretty sure we've got a thumb-sucker on our hands. AH!!!

Josie barefoot and out the backdoor cleaning, making soup, and missing her cousins who she knows would LOVE this life.

Jeremiah, Mary, Tommy (L-R) passing our "neighbors" homes and walking the 10 minute trek to Tur High Loch, the underpass where we pick up mini-bus taxis.

Josie tree-hugging the lone tree in the front yard while she waited for the turtle (which we found out in Amharic...EEllie=turtle. Awesome.)

Making Pizza Dough (please note solution to always holding Lucy)

The near-miss disaster. Light fixture out of no where just fell from the ceiling (what is my deal with light bulbs?!) Thanking God that Lucy had just been laid down for a nap and Josie had left her princess play to come back to making pizza dough. Princess Belle was not so lucky. Mama was a little shaken up. Tiny pieces of glass all over Lucy's blanket. Literally fell right where Josie was playing 2 minutes before.

Lucy's method of transportation - the Beco. A happy Beco Baby, though. Cooing and laughing and raising eyebrows in expression all the time.

Teacher Jeremiah discussing Old Testament Sacrifices and Jesus' sacrifice with a student on a break to grab coffee before class resumed. (note the massive puddles...rainy season...Mama and Lucy got SOAKED walking to class)

Survey of Bible Doctrine class. Jeremiah teaching the Doctrine of Salvation.

All of Jeremiah's students. For many, this is their very first college course. They love him! (and they loved meeting Lucy too!) They all have offered him a full time position as their teacher. :)

A little debriefing after class.

Sisters spending a good morning hour playing and reading in Josie's bed.

Jeremiah prepping for class in the office out by the laundry room

Josie loving rainy season.