Ambo
Day 14:
Back to Ambo! Our four extra team members are back with us tending to our every need (the street boys previously mentioned). English lessons were slightly chaotic this morning, but the kids have learned so much over the past week. We were all covered in mud by the end of the day; the word for mud is “chica”. I plan on getting some authentic rainboots tomorrow. The stomach virus known as “the fear” is currently being passed around our team so too many people were sick in bed today. In the afternoon we split the kids up into classrooms for facepainting. While Melissa and Brandon painted faces, I was in charge of entertaining all 30 of the anxiously waiting children. So, I basically broke out every song and dance I knew. They included the “beaver song.” “baby shark,” “father abraham,” and even the legendary “banana song.” I’m pretty sure the kids enjoyed it and Surafel, our translator, thoroughly enjoyed laughing at my one-man show. I accidentally got him back by trying to kick mud off my shoe, and sent a clump of mud and grass flying through the air landing in his hair. I’m pretty sure I stopped breathing I was laughing so hard, At dinner one of the street boys, Gaytahun, decided to feed me a huge handful of food- which is customary here in Ethiopia. So, I ate a fistful of spicy lamb stuff with far too much injera. It was painful/nauseating and all the street boys were laughing hysterically at me because I wouldn’t swallow the injera- I just kept it in my left cheek. They told me afterwards they stuck a jalepeno in my bite. Amanda helped out the situation by sharing her chocolate Teddy Grahams. What a blessing- I am CRAVING chocolate/cookies/tacos/salads.
Day 15:
I was able to walk the streets of Ambo today. I was on a hunt for rainboots so Surafel lead us through the town market. Despite the fact that I was gawked at the entire time, it was awesome being a participant in the daily grind. During our hike through the market I saw shops made of sticks, kids without pants, a boy with a sore-covered scalp, men playing games outside of shops, horse with carriage, and disturbingly, a dead dog decomposing in the middle of the road. It felt like a completely different world but yet boys still flirt, girls still giggle with friends, and a smile is still evident despite suffering. I’ve decided my favorite commonality among people is joy. Today we fed the approx. 100 street boys lunch again. I like handing out food to the hungry- I suggest everyone try it. One of my favorites was attached to my hip all day , and I loved it. We taught the boys how to take pictures- which was chaos, but hilarious. They pose like martial arts fighters. It’s crazy to think that these kids never take pictures, and have never really held a camera. We watched the older boys play an extremely muddy game of soccer. I had a moment. At one point you could hear the church prayers coming from a loud speaker and I was watching the homeless boys play. I can’t describe what I felt or thought, but I can tell you I have never felt it before. The melodic chanting mixed perfectly with a scene of simplicity with the smell of Africa to show me something real.
Day 16:
It was “Sunday school” on a Saturday for the kids in Ambo. Three people shared a part of their stories to different age groups. It’s amazing how attentive and quiet they are for the local leaders. Our whole group then performed a skit on the Good Samaritan story. Our acting skills may have been subpar, but the kids seemed to enjoy it (they sure did laugh a lot), and it was fun to make our Ethiopian debut. We are back in Addis for a few days before our last stint in Ambo.
Back to Ambo! Our four extra team members are back with us tending to our every need (the street boys previously mentioned). English lessons were slightly chaotic this morning, but the kids have learned so much over the past week. We were all covered in mud by the end of the day; the word for mud is “chica”. I plan on getting some authentic rainboots tomorrow. The stomach virus known as “the fear” is currently being passed around our team so too many people were sick in bed today. In the afternoon we split the kids up into classrooms for facepainting. While Melissa and Brandon painted faces, I was in charge of entertaining all 30 of the anxiously waiting children. So, I basically broke out every song and dance I knew. They included the “beaver song.” “baby shark,” “father abraham,” and even the legendary “banana song.” I’m pretty sure the kids enjoyed it and Surafel, our translator, thoroughly enjoyed laughing at my one-man show. I accidentally got him back by trying to kick mud off my shoe, and sent a clump of mud and grass flying through the air landing in his hair. I’m pretty sure I stopped breathing I was laughing so hard, At dinner one of the street boys, Gaytahun, decided to feed me a huge handful of food- which is customary here in Ethiopia. So, I ate a fistful of spicy lamb stuff with far too much injera. It was painful/nauseating and all the street boys were laughing hysterically at me because I wouldn’t swallow the injera- I just kept it in my left cheek. They told me afterwards they stuck a jalepeno in my bite. Amanda helped out the situation by sharing her chocolate Teddy Grahams. What a blessing- I am CRAVING chocolate/cookies/tacos/salads.
Day 15:
I was able to walk the streets of Ambo today. I was on a hunt for rainboots so Surafel lead us through the town market. Despite the fact that I was gawked at the entire time, it was awesome being a participant in the daily grind. During our hike through the market I saw shops made of sticks, kids without pants, a boy with a sore-covered scalp, men playing games outside of shops, horse with carriage, and disturbingly, a dead dog decomposing in the middle of the road. It felt like a completely different world but yet boys still flirt, girls still giggle with friends, and a smile is still evident despite suffering. I’ve decided my favorite commonality among people is joy. Today we fed the approx. 100 street boys lunch again. I like handing out food to the hungry- I suggest everyone try it. One of my favorites was attached to my hip all day , and I loved it. We taught the boys how to take pictures- which was chaos, but hilarious. They pose like martial arts fighters. It’s crazy to think that these kids never take pictures, and have never really held a camera. We watched the older boys play an extremely muddy game of soccer. I had a moment. At one point you could hear the church prayers coming from a loud speaker and I was watching the homeless boys play. I can’t describe what I felt or thought, but I can tell you I have never felt it before. The melodic chanting mixed perfectly with a scene of simplicity with the smell of Africa to show me something real.
Day 16:
It was “Sunday school” on a Saturday for the kids in Ambo. Three people shared a part of their stories to different age groups. It’s amazing how attentive and quiet they are for the local leaders. Our whole group then performed a skit on the Good Samaritan story. Our acting skills may have been subpar, but the kids seemed to enjoy it (they sure did laugh a lot), and it was fun to make our Ethiopian debut. We are back in Addis for a few days before our last stint in Ambo.
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