Well it has been about 6 months since I returned from my challenging and life changing adventure in Ethiopia. Despite some difficult experiences while I was there, I still have moments where I miss Ethiopia a lot. I fell in love with the culture and made some really close and dear friends. Someday I’ll go back and visit them. Ethiopia is a beautiful country with a RICH and DEEP culture and history. If anyone is looking for an adventure, I recommend traveling to Ethiopia, especially if you spend most of your time in the rural areas of the North and the South. The North has a RICH history. It is said that the Ten Commandments are located in Axum, where a monk guards them. I didn’t get time to travel to the North, so when I go back that is the SECOND thing on my list of things to do- the first thing is to go to Addis and visit all of my friends. : )
Anyways, that is a chapter in my life that is closed, but will hopefully be re-visited in the future. Now I am moving on to another chapter…MISSISSIPPI! I got accepted to Teach For America (if you are interested in learning more about TFA, here is the link- http://teachforamerica.org/ ).
Schedule: I will fly down to Mississippi June 4th. I will be in Mississippi for 4 or 5 days of induction, where I will learn about the culture and demographics and need in Mississippi. I will also get a chance to interview with 3 or 4 principles, with the hope of being offered a job. I got accepted to TFA as an elementary teacher, but I still have to get hired by a school. (TFA facilitates it, and everyone who was accepted is pretty much guaranteed to get hired…) After the 5 days in Mississippi, I will caravan over to Houston, Texas where I will live for 5 weeks and have INTENSIVE training- with the goal of receiving my emergency credentials at the end of training. Once training is over, I will caravan BACK to Mississippi…by then I will know exactly what district and grade level I will be teaching. I will meet my parents in MI (they are going to bring my car down with all of my stuff) and I will have about two weeks to find a place to move into before school STARTS!
Sounds crazy, I know. I’m really praying I’ll make some quality friends during institute that will be able to be roommates! Anyways, right now I’m in Seattle preparing for this adventure. I have a LOT of reading to do as well as some classroom visits. Honestly I don’t know what to expect AT ALL. I’m going with an open mind and heart, and a willing spirit. I’m a little nervous about getting through the intensive training in Houston and finding quality people to be able to live with. There are a lot of unknowns. Right now all I can do is move forward and trust God to guide.
I would appreciate your prayers and encouragement as I begin this new and exciting chapter in my life. I hear that the first year of teaching is pretty difficult, so I ask for your love and support in this next year. I feel so blessed that I have such a loving and supportive community that I can depend on. Thank you so much.
Much love,
Dana
Monday, May 18, 2009
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Dear friends and family,
I'm HOME! I came home in time for Thanksgiving. So far my experience home has been a blur of family, friends, and a lot of sleep. I'm enjoying being home a lot. My body is doing well and continuing to adjust to the time difference…but my emotions are a different story. I feel like I haven’t even begun to process my experience. As my professor says, I’ve been in sort of a "honeymoon stage"….extremely happy to be back with family and friends and enjoying the love and comfort of home. But I’m starting to realize that those feelings will soon fade (not completely of course!) and I will have to face the reality of everything that I went through and experienced in Ethiopia. Which of course will be emotional and draining...but necessary and all apart of the process. I will write one final update on my experience and how I'm doing in a few weeks. I'm excited to talk with and see everyone. Thank you all for your prayers and support. They mean more to me then I can express.
In Christ,
Dana
I'm HOME! I came home in time for Thanksgiving. So far my experience home has been a blur of family, friends, and a lot of sleep. I'm enjoying being home a lot. My body is doing well and continuing to adjust to the time difference…but my emotions are a different story. I feel like I haven’t even begun to process my experience. As my professor says, I’ve been in sort of a "honeymoon stage"….extremely happy to be back with family and friends and enjoying the love and comfort of home. But I’m starting to realize that those feelings will soon fade (not completely of course!) and I will have to face the reality of everything that I went through and experienced in Ethiopia. Which of course will be emotional and draining...but necessary and all apart of the process. I will write one final update on my experience and how I'm doing in a few weeks. I'm excited to talk with and see everyone. Thank you all for your prayers and support. They mean more to me then I can express.
In Christ,
Dana
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Preparing to come home!
Dear friends and family,
I am in the mental process right now of preparing for the end of my trip. I feel like a lot of my time these days is spent reflecting on my experience. My global learning term (GLT) has been NOTHING of what I expected. I expected the "picture perfect" GLT...going to another country, feeling like I belong and fit in, working for an amazing organization where I was able to have hands on experiences with the poor, loving them and caring for them. I expected to have so many pictures and amazing life changing stories to tell people. But I came here and reality hit me. I was EXTREMELY lonely and had a hard time at the beginning of my trip, then I started to adjust and get use to life but became overwhelmed by the poor and poverty I saw, I also became overwhelmed by city life. Then I started working at an organization where I thought I would be involved with the poor- talking with them, crying with them, laughing with them...but instead I spent most of my time in the office, writing reports and editing papers. I then found out that the organization I was working for was corrupt. I soon realized that I didn't agree with a lot that was going on. My world crashed when I saw the struggles and pain of the clients that the organization was working for. I can't get into too much detail here but it was hard to see. I felt powerless to do anything about it and right now I feel very discouraged and hopeless.
This GLT hasn't turned out how I thought it would. I have seen intense pain, hurt, and corruption, I have felt lonely, powerless, and discouraged. It's interesting because I have realized that what I have experienced is most people's everyday reality. So many people in this world feel lonely, powerless, and discouraged most of the time. So many people live in poverty and pain. And those people can't just pick up their stuff and go back to a comfortable life with loving family and friends. So even though I don't feel like I have experienced the "perfect" GLT-I don't have the stories of seeing lives transformed, or holding a mother in her last moments before the AIDS took her life, or seeing a street child come off the streets into a loving home. I don't have stories of hope. I have stories of pain and desperation-I do feel like I have experienced real life. After awhile of being here it soon just became my life. I don't feel like I'm living in another country most of the time. It's hard to explain, but it doesn't feel like a one month mission trip where you go, are so taken with the people and culture, help some people, have your eyes opened, and then come home. It feels like I came here to live...make friends...work...and just be. I feel like I'm just going through daily struggles, talking with people, experiencing/seeing the pain and suffering around me. I have realized that I came all the way across the world to experience life. I know this isn't the most encouraging message. I know that there is hope in this world. There are organizations that haven't allowed money to get in the way of doing good and helping people. I know there are people out there fighting injustice and seeking to make this world a better place. But the other side of life is full of pain and suffering...and it is important to open ones eyes to that side too. It's important to hurt, it's important to cry, it's important to realize the realities in this world. So even though I'm frustrated, broken, extremely tired, and ready to come home, I have to believe that God will still use this experience to stir in me even more passion to DO something. I expected this to be my time to DO something, but it has turned out to be my time to just live and observe.
Anyways, I don't know if this is really making sense. But I do want to say that being here has made me realize that I have taken a lot for granted. I miss my friends and family so much. I am looking forward to being home again with everyone.
Thank you so so much for your continued support and prayers. I still have a little bit more to go...right now I'm working on language AND my huge research project...along with my other little daily assignments. Pray for strength and stamina for Amber and me as we finish up. Also pray that in these last weeks God will bring pockets of joy into our lives. It can be pretty discouraging and hard at times but I'm still seeking to find God in everything and allowing Him to move through me.
Thank you again for your love and support, Dana
p.s. Amber and I were woken up at 7:00 am this morning to my host mom and little sisters running in our room screaming- "Obama is President!!" It was a great way to wake up. Amber and I just started crying for joy right then. This is a day to remember for sure. It has been interesting to experience it all the way across the world. These elections have really impacted not only the U.S. but the rest of the world as well. I know that some of you are disappointed and some are rejoicing. I want you to know that even if you aren't happy about Obama being president SO many people all over the world are impacted and touched by the fact that he is now president. Our host dad was saying that the rest of the world looks to the U.S. as a role model, and today he is very proud of America. It is a big deal and people all over the world have a lot of hope for Obama.
I am in the mental process right now of preparing for the end of my trip. I feel like a lot of my time these days is spent reflecting on my experience. My global learning term (GLT) has been NOTHING of what I expected. I expected the "picture perfect" GLT...going to another country, feeling like I belong and fit in, working for an amazing organization where I was able to have hands on experiences with the poor, loving them and caring for them. I expected to have so many pictures and amazing life changing stories to tell people. But I came here and reality hit me. I was EXTREMELY lonely and had a hard time at the beginning of my trip, then I started to adjust and get use to life but became overwhelmed by the poor and poverty I saw, I also became overwhelmed by city life. Then I started working at an organization where I thought I would be involved with the poor- talking with them, crying with them, laughing with them...but instead I spent most of my time in the office, writing reports and editing papers. I then found out that the organization I was working for was corrupt. I soon realized that I didn't agree with a lot that was going on. My world crashed when I saw the struggles and pain of the clients that the organization was working for. I can't get into too much detail here but it was hard to see. I felt powerless to do anything about it and right now I feel very discouraged and hopeless.
This GLT hasn't turned out how I thought it would. I have seen intense pain, hurt, and corruption, I have felt lonely, powerless, and discouraged. It's interesting because I have realized that what I have experienced is most people's everyday reality. So many people in this world feel lonely, powerless, and discouraged most of the time. So many people live in poverty and pain. And those people can't just pick up their stuff and go back to a comfortable life with loving family and friends. So even though I don't feel like I have experienced the "perfect" GLT-I don't have the stories of seeing lives transformed, or holding a mother in her last moments before the AIDS took her life, or seeing a street child come off the streets into a loving home. I don't have stories of hope. I have stories of pain and desperation-I do feel like I have experienced real life. After awhile of being here it soon just became my life. I don't feel like I'm living in another country most of the time. It's hard to explain, but it doesn't feel like a one month mission trip where you go, are so taken with the people and culture, help some people, have your eyes opened, and then come home. It feels like I came here to live...make friends...work...and just be. I feel like I'm just going through daily struggles, talking with people, experiencing/seeing the pain and suffering around me. I have realized that I came all the way across the world to experience life. I know this isn't the most encouraging message. I know that there is hope in this world. There are organizations that haven't allowed money to get in the way of doing good and helping people. I know there are people out there fighting injustice and seeking to make this world a better place. But the other side of life is full of pain and suffering...and it is important to open ones eyes to that side too. It's important to hurt, it's important to cry, it's important to realize the realities in this world. So even though I'm frustrated, broken, extremely tired, and ready to come home, I have to believe that God will still use this experience to stir in me even more passion to DO something. I expected this to be my time to DO something, but it has turned out to be my time to just live and observe.
Anyways, I don't know if this is really making sense. But I do want to say that being here has made me realize that I have taken a lot for granted. I miss my friends and family so much. I am looking forward to being home again with everyone.
Thank you so so much for your continued support and prayers. I still have a little bit more to go...right now I'm working on language AND my huge research project...along with my other little daily assignments. Pray for strength and stamina for Amber and me as we finish up. Also pray that in these last weeks God will bring pockets of joy into our lives. It can be pretty discouraging and hard at times but I'm still seeking to find God in everything and allowing Him to move through me.
Thank you again for your love and support, Dana
p.s. Amber and I were woken up at 7:00 am this morning to my host mom and little sisters running in our room screaming- "Obama is President!!" It was a great way to wake up. Amber and I just started crying for joy right then. This is a day to remember for sure. It has been interesting to experience it all the way across the world. These elections have really impacted not only the U.S. but the rest of the world as well. I know that some of you are disappointed and some are rejoicing. I want you to know that even if you aren't happy about Obama being president SO many people all over the world are impacted and touched by the fact that he is now president. Our host dad was saying that the rest of the world looks to the U.S. as a role model, and today he is very proud of America. It is a big deal and people all over the world have a lot of hope for Obama.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Two Months to Go
Dear Friends and Family,
Hair: So last week Amber and I went and got our hair done again. We decided to get different styles since MOST people think we are twins anyways. Amber got her hair braided down in little braids using a lot of fake hair...she sort of looks like a Rasta! It looks good on her. : ) I got my hair in a traditional Tigringna (one tribe in Ethiopia) style. It's super hard to explain, but I'll try....ok, the front part is a corn-rows....but then about half way back they added fake curly hair that sticks out everywhere....it's all fake hair that can be seen...the rest of my hair was attached in the back (by sewing) and is covered by the fake fro. Usually I wear a head band over the top braided part and let my fake fro stick out...seriously, I have a white girls fro...it's pretty sweet. I'm enjoying it! Oh and the fake hair they added is brown...so right now I have a brown fro! Haha don't worry, I've taken a lot of pictures. Overall it took them about 5 hours to do our hair!
Friends: Last week Amber threw me a "surprise" birthday party. It wasn't quite a surprise though...haha she did a good job at hiding it, BUT this is Africa...so everyone showed up super late....by the time most of them arrived, Amber had already told me what was going on. Haha it was fun to hang out with our friends once they got there!! It was so sweet of Amber to do that for me. I also got many e-mails and wishes...thank you all!)
Holidays: Ethiopians like to celebrate! Last Friday was Meskel- an Orthodox holiday to celebrate how they found the true cross- the cross that Jesus died on. Amber and I went with our friend Hirut. We went to a BIG square, where there was literally thousands of people gathered. We got a decent spot to see the ceremony. In the middle of the square all the priests put on a dancing performance....they were dressed in the colors of the flag and they formed into a big circle and did some dances with a small cross. The prime minister and president were there. It was a nice ceremony of faith but it seemed very political. Some people did some speeches, and once it started to get dark everyone lit candles....it was beautiful. Then they had a fire works show and they lit a HUGE bon-fire. It was interesting to experience it and be among such a HUGE crowd of people. Also, on Tuesday it was Eid- a holiday for Muslims for the breaking of their fast- Ramadan. Ethiopia is about 50% Muslim...so it's a national holiday. Everyone had school and work off. The streets seemed empty. Early in the morning they gathered in a stadium and had a service. I saw some of it on the news, it was crazy to see THOUSANDS of Ethiopians doing the prayer in-sync. Amber and I wanted to go...but we heard they wouldn't let us in since we aren't Muslim...and I would have a hard time covering my fro....)
Voting: We voted for president on Thursday!!! It's exciting to me that we got to vote before everyone else!)
Life: Things are still hard. City life is so draining. I've always, always, wanted to live in the city. I grew up in the city and LA term confirmed that I'm definitely a city girl, but after being here, all I wanna do is live in a little village or town out in the country (overseas OR in the US)...away from all the people, away from the cars/busses, the big buildings, the exhaust, away from the surface friendships, away from the beggars...when I go home I feel like I'm gonna need to go somewhere in the wilderness and stay there to re-coup from city life. Luckily Amber and I are planning a few trips to go outside of Addis Ababa. We need it! God is good, he's getting me through. Right now finding the importance of surrendering EVERYDAY to God and asking him to show me how to love...just for that day. Cause it's too overwhelming to think about doing it for two more months. So that's some things that are going on. Thank you for your continued prayers. Much love -dana
Hair: So last week Amber and I went and got our hair done again. We decided to get different styles since MOST people think we are twins anyways. Amber got her hair braided down in little braids using a lot of fake hair...she sort of looks like a Rasta! It looks good on her. : ) I got my hair in a traditional Tigringna (one tribe in Ethiopia) style. It's super hard to explain, but I'll try....ok, the front part is a corn-rows....but then about half way back they added fake curly hair that sticks out everywhere....it's all fake hair that can be seen...the rest of my hair was attached in the back (by sewing) and is covered by the fake fro. Usually I wear a head band over the top braided part and let my fake fro stick out...seriously, I have a white girls fro...it's pretty sweet. I'm enjoying it! Oh and the fake hair they added is brown...so right now I have a brown fro! Haha don't worry, I've taken a lot of pictures. Overall it took them about 5 hours to do our hair!
Friends: Last week Amber threw me a "surprise" birthday party. It wasn't quite a surprise though...haha she did a good job at hiding it, BUT this is Africa...so everyone showed up super late....by the time most of them arrived, Amber had already told me what was going on. Haha it was fun to hang out with our friends once they got there!! It was so sweet of Amber to do that for me. I also got many e-mails and wishes...thank you all!)
Holidays: Ethiopians like to celebrate! Last Friday was Meskel- an Orthodox holiday to celebrate how they found the true cross- the cross that Jesus died on. Amber and I went with our friend Hirut. We went to a BIG square, where there was literally thousands of people gathered. We got a decent spot to see the ceremony. In the middle of the square all the priests put on a dancing performance....they were dressed in the colors of the flag and they formed into a big circle and did some dances with a small cross. The prime minister and president were there. It was a nice ceremony of faith but it seemed very political. Some people did some speeches, and once it started to get dark everyone lit candles....it was beautiful. Then they had a fire works show and they lit a HUGE bon-fire. It was interesting to experience it and be among such a HUGE crowd of people. Also, on Tuesday it was Eid- a holiday for Muslims for the breaking of their fast- Ramadan. Ethiopia is about 50% Muslim...so it's a national holiday. Everyone had school and work off. The streets seemed empty. Early in the morning they gathered in a stadium and had a service. I saw some of it on the news, it was crazy to see THOUSANDS of Ethiopians doing the prayer in-sync. Amber and I wanted to go...but we heard they wouldn't let us in since we aren't Muslim...and I would have a hard time covering my fro....)
Voting: We voted for president on Thursday!!! It's exciting to me that we got to vote before everyone else!)
Life: Things are still hard. City life is so draining. I've always, always, wanted to live in the city. I grew up in the city and LA term confirmed that I'm definitely a city girl, but after being here, all I wanna do is live in a little village or town out in the country (overseas OR in the US)...away from all the people, away from the cars/busses, the big buildings, the exhaust, away from the surface friendships, away from the beggars...when I go home I feel like I'm gonna need to go somewhere in the wilderness and stay there to re-coup from city life. Luckily Amber and I are planning a few trips to go outside of Addis Ababa. We need it! God is good, he's getting me through. Right now finding the importance of surrendering EVERYDAY to God and asking him to show me how to love...just for that day. Cause it's too overwhelming to think about doing it for two more months. So that's some things that are going on. Thank you for your continued prayers. Much love -dana
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Extended Time
Dear Friends and Family!
Selam, denah nacho? Selamno? Egzabier Imskin (Hello, how are you all? Peace to you? Praise the Lord). This is the greeting that everyone does when you see each other. There are different ways of greeting someone…usually it is with three kisses on the cheek, sometimes it’s a shoulder bump, sometimes it’s a hug and then a hand shake….you always ask them how they are…usually multiple times in different forms…and the response is always along the lines of I’m good, or fine, or praise the Lord. So in the states, if you get tired of the casual, “hello, how are you? I’m fine” greeting….believe me, it’s nothing compared to here!! Ha ha I have grown to love it though. Although sometimes I get nervous because I’m not sure how many times we should kiss on the cheek, or if they are gonna do the one shoulder bump, or go in for the hug…sometimes it’s awkward, but usually I sense what they are doing and end up pulling it off. : ) It seems that most people have their favorite way of greeting people, so with my friends I try to remember when I see them to do it their way…for instance my boss is a one shoulder bump/hug kind of guy…my best friend Hirut is a hug, kiss on the cheek, handshake kind of girl. Usually when you meet someone new it’s a three kiss greeting. : ) It’s hard to explain it in writing, but I hope you can get somewhat of a picture!
News: Ishi, (ok) I have to tell you all some very important news. I have prayed, talked with people, and thought about this a lot….and I have decided to extend my time here for one more month. My original plane ticket home was for November 5th, but I have extended my time until December 2nd. Because I struggled so much with things at the beginning I lost some time and have fallen a bit behind in my work, thus I really need the extra month. I also started my internship late, and still have a lot of work to do for language and my research project. So that is the main reason why I have extended. Some more news- Amber’s family that she was living with have been going through some really hard times…thus Amber had to leave. So my family opened their loving arms to her and we are now living together! So yes, we work together and live together. It’s not the “ideal” GLT- where you are out there roughing it on your own. Butttt, it’s what we both need right now. God has really brought us together. Life isn’t always roses here…there are many confusions, miscommunications, and difficult times. So it has been such a blessing to have someone to debrief with and experience things with. All of our friends are habisha (Ethiopian) and we are still very much involved in the life…so it’s all good. ; )
Ethiopian New Years a.k.a. sheep/goat genocide: It was Ethiopian New Year on September 1st, (actually for our calendar it was Sept. 11th…they have a different calendar and time schedule then we do). New Years is a BIG deal here in Ethiopia. Everyone buys new clothes, gets their hair done, and spends hours preparing food! Basically everyone in Ethiopia…rich or poor buys a goat or a sheep. It was hilarious, a day or two before New Year there were goats and sheep everywhere…cars would have to stop to let the herds go across the road, people would be buying them, dragging them around, strapping them to the top of their cars, and bringing them on the mini buses! There were a couple times when I almost tripped over the goat while getting off the mini bus. They were everywhere!! Then, New Years came...and the next day…the city was quiet….there were no more sheep or goats left. I was talking with some of my friends and we decided that probably THOUSANDS of sheep and goats where slaughtered in one day. There’s also an area that I travel through everyday on the mini bus to get to work…it’s a butcher house…and it’s known for it’s MOUND of bones…the mound got a LOT bigger after New Years…and the smell got A LOT worse!! That area it known for its smell…but now it’s terrible!
Health- So my body seems to be really sensitive to everything here. I ended up going to the doctor to get it all checked out. After doing some tests, the doctor told me that I have Typhoid and Typhus!! When he told me that, I causally said, ok…got the medicine…and went home. Then it hit me…. “oh dear! I have Typhoid AND Typhus!!” I started to freak out a little. When I told my friends, a lot of them were like WHAT? Amber told one of our good friends and he was like… “oh no, I think I need to visit her”…like I was on my death bed or something. After freaking out for a bit…I finally was like “koi, koi, koi (wait, wait, wait)….I feel fine.” Haha Honestly I had none of the symptoms that I should have for the two Ts. So I went back to the doctor to talk with him. Luckily it was a different doctor…so I explained to him everything and he told me that I was definitely misdiagnosed. PHEW! So I don’t have Typhoid and Typhus…they did give me some meds to take for it and I was told to continue taking them…hoping that it will cure whatever I DO have. : ) So pray for my health.
Awakening: So…as I mentioned in my previous e-mail…I’ve sort of had an awakening. When I first got to Addis, I was SO overwhelmed by everything I saw. I was almost paralyzed…I didn’t feel like I could do anything, or comprehend what I was seeing. But now that I’ve been here for three months, I realized that my coping mechanism was to just shove it all aside. I was tired of having my heart hurt every time I saw a street child, or a disabled person…etc. So that, along with the body and minds natural adjustment to things…I all of a sudden realized that I was very self consumed and numb to what’s around me. I feel like I don’t know how to truly love….in fact, I really just haven’t been myself lately. I’ve been extremely self consumed….extremely overwhelmed with work and all of the frustrations that come with that…and extremely overwhelmed by all of the demands and people here in the city. Amber felt the same way, so we decided to get away and re-asses our lives. So Friday evening, after work…we reserved a hotel room… went to the bus station…got on a bus and traveled about an hour and a half outside of Addis Ababa. We turned off our phones…and spent the weekend reading, praying, and journaling. The area we went is known for its crater lakes. So we got a cheapo hotel to sleep in (I have some funny stories about that) and in the day time we went to the more high class hotel with a GORGEOUS view over the lake…there we sat and read and journaled and ate bomb food. It was very relaxing, and a good time to reflect. I’m really praying for God to open my heart and show me how to love him by loving others. It’s hard to explain in words what I am feeling right now…even though I still don’t feel completely myself, and I still don’t know really what to do or how to take care of “the least of these” and follow after Jesus’ example….I am feeling more refreshed and I’m ready to wake up every morning and surrender my day to God…praying that He will guide me each step of the way….thank you for your prayers and e-mails. It all means so so much to me. Life isn’t always easy here in Addis….but I’m living and learning….learning how to love and be loved.
Thank you again for your prayers. I love you guys. Oh! One more thing….IF anyone wants to use Skype and give me a call (I know it cost money so honestly don’t feel pressured!!)…here is my cell phone number- 0913325765. It’d be fun to hear from you! Ishi, ciao! (ok, bye!) -
dana, dayna, donna, dionna, diana, dina, da….whatever my name is…. ?
Selam, denah nacho? Selamno? Egzabier Imskin (Hello, how are you all? Peace to you? Praise the Lord). This is the greeting that everyone does when you see each other. There are different ways of greeting someone…usually it is with three kisses on the cheek, sometimes it’s a shoulder bump, sometimes it’s a hug and then a hand shake….you always ask them how they are…usually multiple times in different forms…and the response is always along the lines of I’m good, or fine, or praise the Lord. So in the states, if you get tired of the casual, “hello, how are you? I’m fine” greeting….believe me, it’s nothing compared to here!! Ha ha I have grown to love it though. Although sometimes I get nervous because I’m not sure how many times we should kiss on the cheek, or if they are gonna do the one shoulder bump, or go in for the hug…sometimes it’s awkward, but usually I sense what they are doing and end up pulling it off. : ) It seems that most people have their favorite way of greeting people, so with my friends I try to remember when I see them to do it their way…for instance my boss is a one shoulder bump/hug kind of guy…my best friend Hirut is a hug, kiss on the cheek, handshake kind of girl. Usually when you meet someone new it’s a three kiss greeting. : ) It’s hard to explain it in writing, but I hope you can get somewhat of a picture!
News: Ishi, (ok) I have to tell you all some very important news. I have prayed, talked with people, and thought about this a lot….and I have decided to extend my time here for one more month. My original plane ticket home was for November 5th, but I have extended my time until December 2nd. Because I struggled so much with things at the beginning I lost some time and have fallen a bit behind in my work, thus I really need the extra month. I also started my internship late, and still have a lot of work to do for language and my research project. So that is the main reason why I have extended. Some more news- Amber’s family that she was living with have been going through some really hard times…thus Amber had to leave. So my family opened their loving arms to her and we are now living together! So yes, we work together and live together. It’s not the “ideal” GLT- where you are out there roughing it on your own. Butttt, it’s what we both need right now. God has really brought us together. Life isn’t always roses here…there are many confusions, miscommunications, and difficult times. So it has been such a blessing to have someone to debrief with and experience things with. All of our friends are habisha (Ethiopian) and we are still very much involved in the life…so it’s all good. ; )
Ethiopian New Years a.k.a. sheep/goat genocide: It was Ethiopian New Year on September 1st, (actually for our calendar it was Sept. 11th…they have a different calendar and time schedule then we do). New Years is a BIG deal here in Ethiopia. Everyone buys new clothes, gets their hair done, and spends hours preparing food! Basically everyone in Ethiopia…rich or poor buys a goat or a sheep. It was hilarious, a day or two before New Year there were goats and sheep everywhere…cars would have to stop to let the herds go across the road, people would be buying them, dragging them around, strapping them to the top of their cars, and bringing them on the mini buses! There were a couple times when I almost tripped over the goat while getting off the mini bus. They were everywhere!! Then, New Years came...and the next day…the city was quiet….there were no more sheep or goats left. I was talking with some of my friends and we decided that probably THOUSANDS of sheep and goats where slaughtered in one day. There’s also an area that I travel through everyday on the mini bus to get to work…it’s a butcher house…and it’s known for it’s MOUND of bones…the mound got a LOT bigger after New Years…and the smell got A LOT worse!! That area it known for its smell…but now it’s terrible!
Health- So my body seems to be really sensitive to everything here. I ended up going to the doctor to get it all checked out. After doing some tests, the doctor told me that I have Typhoid and Typhus!! When he told me that, I causally said, ok…got the medicine…and went home. Then it hit me…. “oh dear! I have Typhoid AND Typhus!!” I started to freak out a little. When I told my friends, a lot of them were like WHAT? Amber told one of our good friends and he was like… “oh no, I think I need to visit her”…like I was on my death bed or something. After freaking out for a bit…I finally was like “koi, koi, koi (wait, wait, wait)….I feel fine.” Haha Honestly I had none of the symptoms that I should have for the two Ts. So I went back to the doctor to talk with him. Luckily it was a different doctor…so I explained to him everything and he told me that I was definitely misdiagnosed. PHEW! So I don’t have Typhoid and Typhus…they did give me some meds to take for it and I was told to continue taking them…hoping that it will cure whatever I DO have. : ) So pray for my health.
Awakening: So…as I mentioned in my previous e-mail…I’ve sort of had an awakening. When I first got to Addis, I was SO overwhelmed by everything I saw. I was almost paralyzed…I didn’t feel like I could do anything, or comprehend what I was seeing. But now that I’ve been here for three months, I realized that my coping mechanism was to just shove it all aside. I was tired of having my heart hurt every time I saw a street child, or a disabled person…etc. So that, along with the body and minds natural adjustment to things…I all of a sudden realized that I was very self consumed and numb to what’s around me. I feel like I don’t know how to truly love….in fact, I really just haven’t been myself lately. I’ve been extremely self consumed….extremely overwhelmed with work and all of the frustrations that come with that…and extremely overwhelmed by all of the demands and people here in the city. Amber felt the same way, so we decided to get away and re-asses our lives. So Friday evening, after work…we reserved a hotel room… went to the bus station…got on a bus and traveled about an hour and a half outside of Addis Ababa. We turned off our phones…and spent the weekend reading, praying, and journaling. The area we went is known for its crater lakes. So we got a cheapo hotel to sleep in (I have some funny stories about that) and in the day time we went to the more high class hotel with a GORGEOUS view over the lake…there we sat and read and journaled and ate bomb food. It was very relaxing, and a good time to reflect. I’m really praying for God to open my heart and show me how to love him by loving others. It’s hard to explain in words what I am feeling right now…even though I still don’t feel completely myself, and I still don’t know really what to do or how to take care of “the least of these” and follow after Jesus’ example….I am feeling more refreshed and I’m ready to wake up every morning and surrender my day to God…praying that He will guide me each step of the way….thank you for your prayers and e-mails. It all means so so much to me. Life isn’t always easy here in Addis….but I’m living and learning….learning how to love and be loved.
Thank you again for your prayers. I love you guys. Oh! One more thing….IF anyone wants to use Skype and give me a call (I know it cost money so honestly don’t feel pressured!!)…here is my cell phone number- 0913325765. It’d be fun to hear from you! Ishi, ciao! (ok, bye!) -
dana, dayna, donna, dionna, diana, dina, da….whatever my name is…. ?
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Reflection on the poor
"In the words of our Holy Father, each one of us must be able 'to cleanse what is dirty, to warm what is lukewarm, to strengthen what is weak, to enlighten what is dark.' We must not be afraid to proclaim Christ's love and to love as He loved. Where God is, there is love; and where there is love, there always is an openness to serve. The world is hungry for God. When we all see God in each other, we will love one another as He loves us all. That is the fulfillment of the law, to love one another. This is all Jesus came to teach us: that God loves us, and that He wants us to love one another as He loves us. We must know that we have been created for greater things, not just to be a number in the world, not just to go for diplomas and degrees, this work and that work. We have been created in order to love and to be loved." Mother Teresa -"No Greater Love" p. 29 I have been convicted. I have been here for three months now and have found myself very self-consumed and disconnected with the marginalized and the suffering here in Ethiopia. I have become desensitized. Everyday I walk the streets and constantly have little hands reaching out to me, tugging on my hands, looking at me with sad eyes. Every day I walk by literally tons of crippled, suffering people. Young poor mothers with their infants curled up on the side of the road. People with no eyes, half their face burned, or abnormal sized body parts. People without legs or arms, people who walk on all fours like dogs....intense suffering. And what do I do? I walk on by it all. I look through them and not actually at them. I say no. Yesterday I was eating lunch with some friends and a little girl came up to our table, wanting money or food. We all ignored her until she went away. I thought nothing of it. It's a daily experience. When I first came here I kept on asking people what they do about all of the beggars...how they choose, when to give and when not to give...many people have different opinions. Most of them say never to give to children. There are SO MANY street children in Addis. Many of them are forced on the streets, some of them choose it, most of them learn to live that life and thus don't even try to work. It's a hard balance, but most Ethiopians say not to encourage the children to beg. Most Ethiopians do give small coins to the crippled and the old, because it's obvious that they can't work. Why are there so many crippled? People give different reasons...the diseases here, the lack of medicine and treatment....they don't have anywhere else to go but the streets. I still don't know what to do though...so I walk on by. I feel like I've lost the personal touch of God's love. At work I know we are helping the poor and suffering to come out of poverty...the work is amazing and it is transforming lives...but I usually am in the office writing papers, editing...etc. and when I do get to go and actually interview the people, it's very professional. It's so different then at home. At home I was able to pour my heart and soul into the Pomona community. Everyday I prayed for Gods love to pour out through me to those kids, and through that I felt God's love radiating back to me. It's hard to feel that here. It's easy to get disconnected and self-consumed. Pray that I will find a way to let God love through me. "God is within me with a more intimate presence than that whereby I am in myself: 'In Him we live and move and have our being' (Acts 17:28 NAB). It is He who gives life to all, who gives power and being to all that exists. But for His sustaining presence, all things would cease to be and fall back into nothingness. Consider that you are in God, surrounded and encompassed by God, swimming in God. God's love is infinite. With God, nothing is impossible."
Thursday, August 28, 2008
I love Ethiopia!
Internship: So I am constantly kept busy. On Tuesdays and Thursdays I have worked as a computer teacher. I also helped out with the library and other paper work. The other days I helped out with accounting work (you should be proud dad!!). I still LOVE the community at the school. My best friend here, Hirut, is the principle of the school. We connected right away and I spend a lot of my time with her. Summer school just ended, so I am no longer a teacher. It was fun while it lasted! I love those kids. Also after a lot of prayer and advice, I decided to stay with the first organization that I was connected with. I also brought Amber one day to see if they needed another person, and they did, so we are working together there. We work there on Monday, Wednesdays, Fridays, and some weekends. The organization is called Integrated Urban Development Department (IUDD). This organization works with the poorest of poor in Addis and in the surrounding cities. They help form groups of 15-20 members, teaching them job skills, how to save and manage money....etc. They don't give ANY MONEY. They have each group member give what they can weekly. Most groups start giving 50 cents each per week. Then with that money they are able to save and then give loans to the members. So lets say there are 20 members, and they each give 50 cents a week, after saving for around three months they would have enough money in savings to give a member a loan of 100 birr. Then the member takes that money and uses it to start or expand their business. Some of their businesses include: a clothes shop, selling corn, making injera or local bread...etc. Usually the members have to pay back the loan within four months with a certain amount of interest...like 5% or 8%. So the group makes some money. Many of the groups have grown in their capital, which allows the loans to be bigger, which allows their businesses to expand. And the best thing is, they feel empowered because they are doing it all on their own!! It's an amazing program, I have never seen anything like it. IUDD really is fighting and actually solving the issue of poverty. Amber and I meet with the self-help groups (SHG) and interview them. We also get to meet individually with members to hear their personal stories. Then Amber and I write case studies about the members. It's an absolutely amazing opportunity and I am so grateful for it. I also am really enjoying spending more time with Amber. Two weeks ago our work took us to a small city 5 hours outside of Addis Ababa called Awassa. Amber and I found ourselves squished in one car with 7 guys! It was hilarious. We felt like sardines. We had a great time, hanging out, seeing Awassa, and meeting with/interviewing the SHGs there. I am so encouraged and excited to continue to learn more about how IUDD helps the poor. We recently just wrote a paper explaining more about the organization and what they do. If you are interested in reading it, email me and I'll try and send it to you! Friends: So I feel like everywhere I go I am making new friends. It makes me laugh because when I first got here I would pray everyday for a friend and I felt really lonely. But now...I actually am starting to feel overwhelmed by the amount of friends I am making. I'm thankful for it...but I feel like I haven't really gotten true alone time in over two weeks! I'm either working, with my family, with my close friends, or having coffee with random people...then I come home and I'm exhausted. Wow, I love Ethiopian culture though. Seriously, everyone is soooo nice. I think I said this last time, but honestly, most people genuinely just want to hang out and get to know you. : ) You literally can just be walking down the street and have someone come up and invite you to coffee, or to their house for a coffee ceremony. For the most part Ethiopian's have a culture of respect towards foreigners. It still cracks me up though, because everywhere I walk I have people shouting, "ferenji!" or "Kiyu" (which means white)...I usually laugh and joke around with people... "Oh I'm white?! Wow, I'm glad they told me." Also, in their language when they talk to someone they say, "ange" for a girl and "anta" for a boy...directly translated it means "you." So many times I'll get people saying "you, you, you...comehere" Or "you, you, you, you, wheredoyougo?" Or just plain, "youyouyouyou." Religion: The three main religions here are Orthodox, Protestant, and Muslim. One of my really, really good guy friends, Ahmedin, is a Muslim, although he's not really a practicing Muslim. He doesn't pray...he's thinking about participating in Ramadan, but he's not sure. The Islamic culture is everywhere. Woman wearing hijabs...some just cover their heads, some are completely covered from head to toe. We hear the call to prayer all the time, I can hear it from my room. But surprisingly, Ahmedin is my only friend who is Muslim. I feel like for the most part, they keep to themselves. Ethiopian Orthodox is the main religion in Ethiopia. Most of my friends are either Protestant or Orthodox. It's just like the states....there are the more conservative and the less conservative. Some of my Orthodox friends aren't practicing Orthodox and some are more committed. When Orthodox convert to Protestantism, everyone says "they found Jesus," which means they didn't know Jesus before. I'm still not sure what I think about that...I need to continue to talk with my Orthodox friends to learn more about their faith. I do feel like some of them really are genuine about it. I have noticed that many of the Protestants here are VERY conservative and VERY judgmental. They seem to have many many rules of what to do and what not to do....One time one of Amber and my friends pointed to Amber's nose ring and told us that in the Protestant faith, facial piercings are forbidden. I asked him why and he said he didn't know....I feel like many of the conservative protestants don't truly know why they believe what they believe...they just do it because they were told. That's been hard for me. BUT God has brought me to an AMAZING church that I really connect with. My best friend Hirut goes there. I feel like for those of you who know Brian McLaren's work, this church would make him proud. They are all about asking questions and truly being open to the truth. They reject "religion" and all of the baggage that comes with that word. Their main focus is on Jesus and becoming more and more like him....allowing Jesus to truly manifest himself in our entire lives. They aren't all about rules...they are about love...loving God and loving others...once we do that, the rest will fall into place. It's a small church, and I'm starting to make friends with the people there. I've met with the pastor once, and am going to continue to meet with him every once in a while. The whole service is in Amharic, but Hirut translates the sermons. I like praying and worshiping in Amharic, even though I don't understand, I still feel the connection with the church community and with God. Amharic is a beautiful language. I brought Amber one day and she fell in love with the church too. We are growing closer and closer with the members and feel so welcomed by everyone. Anyways, I'm excited to get more involved and connected with this church. Hair: Sooooo, hair is a BIG deal here. Actually...public appearance is a really big deal here. Amber and I constantly feel...frumpy. Haha Anyways, hair salons are everywhere. Woman are constantly getting their hair changed. Amber and I decided to get our hair braided!! We were gonna get our hair braided down...but with some miscommunication...we ended up each getting multi-colored cornrows!! (with added hair) We decided that Amber looked like Little Bow-wow, and I looked like the elf man from Lord of the Rings!! : ) Here, cornrows looks GOOD on the Ethiopian woman...but I felt a little ridiculous. It was a good experience. I covered mine most of the time, but Amber was free with hers! I'll definitely show you all pictures. We left it in for a week. I suppose we could have left it in for maybe a week and a half, but it was KILLING my head...very itchy and painful. It took us 4 hours to take it out! After taking it out, we went back to the salon and got our hair straightened...and curled. It felt nice and my hair was clean for 5 days! Now it's back to natural, but I think we'll make going to the tsagore bait (hair house) a bi-weekly event. : ) I'm glad I got to experience the cornrows...now I know how the woman feel when they cringe and hit their heads (it's better to hit the head then to scratch)...or when they always have to wrap their hair at night....I feel a bit more connected with the culture. Amber and I want to get our hair braided down next time. I'll make a hair portfolio to show you guys when I get back! Life: So I love it here. Seriously, sometimes I have my bad days, sometimes I feel really sick, sometimes I feel really confused and lost, sometimes I feel taken advantage of, sometimes I feel exhausted, many times I miss home....BUT I'm constantly filled with an overwhelming feeling of love for this place. I'm drawn to it. I feel like this is my second home. I love the people here, I am constantly impressed and amazed with the culture....I'm still enjoying learning Amharic, I'm overjoyed with the org. I work with....I love my family and friends....I feel independent and love exploring, meeting new people, getting around by myself, I see God guiding me all the time....I really have fallen in love with Ethiopia. Amber and I are actually starting to talk about when we can come back!! Sometimes I think about how I was the first three weeks here and I can't believe how much things have changed! Seriously...I can't even truly express how I feel. Prayer Requests: Pray that I stay on top of my work. I feel like I've fallen behind because I am CONSTANTLY doing things, as I mentioned before. But I am here as a student...I have to remember that. Pray for my health....I'm sort of getting used to feeling icky...for the past couple of days I have felt fine, but it comes and goes quite often. I LOVE the food sooo much, but my body doesn't love it very much. There are still communication issues that need to be worked out at IUDD, where Amber and I work. Our time there is very up in the air...our boss never really tells us what he wants us to do until the day of...even if we try and ask him....pray that we will be able to communicate well and actually get a "set" schedule. Pray for time management....I'm having a hard time trying to figure out how to balance my life....work, friends, family, school....also continue to pray for my language learning...I'm TRYING and I can understand a lot, but I still have work to do on that!
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