Ah Monday morning. I faced it eight hours before America. It
was a beautiful Monday. It was the beginning. Emily and I went to the clinic
together this morning. Monday is a distribution day for baby formula and plumpy
nut. While Emily distributed, I saw patients. I was there for a few hours
treating people and organizing the store room. We have a recent problem with
pigeons flying in through the gap between the walls and the roof. At least
three times as I examined people I grabbed a broom and aggressively attacked
the trespassing birds. Not sure what to do about that…the birds I mean.
A wonderful girl named Cristiana has come on the scene. She
is waiting on an entrance exam to go to medical school in Italy. Cristiana is
half Italian and half Ethiopian, and can speak both perfect Amharic and English.
She often comes to the clinic and translates for Emily and I, which makes a
huge difference for us in assessment of the patients. She was with me all
morning.
Yangoosey came through the door, smiling as usual, with a
contented Abreham on her back. (Abreham is the child with Down syndrome whose
medical visa for heart surgery has been processing for several months.)
Friday
she had invited me to come to lunch on Monday, and here she was to lead me to
her home. She welcomed Cristiana to join us, and I locked the clinic door. We
followed her through the Korah maze of stones and houses. It is so dusty right
now. We filed into her one room home. The ceiling is higher than in most homes.
The walls made of cracked mud are not painted. Cristiana and I sat on Yangoosey’s
bed and she hospitably served us a delicious (and slightly dangerous for the ferenge intestines) meal. By the time we
were finished eating Yangoosey had a coffee ceremony well under way, and the
smell of burning incense and percolating coffee filled the room.
There were a
million children – well like eight – that were sitting along the wall watching
Cristiana and I talk. I told her that I was learning to read and write in
Amharic, and that I was learning with a wordless book to tell the Creation
story from Genesis. Then I remembered I had the book in my bag. So I pulled it
out and asked the children and Yangoosey if they would like to hear a story.
Children are children everywhere, and immediately leaned into the bed to see
the pictures. “Beu majambria menim alleu.
Igzabeher bichahon nebere…” In the beginning there was nothing. Only God
was there… I began with that. And little by little, stumble by stumble, I told
them about the creation of all the animals, and man, and woman, and God’s
command, and Satan’s lie, and their disobedience, and the consequences, and ended
with: “Ahun hatiat weudeu alem geba.”
Now sin had entered the world. And they understood me!!! I was amazed. I was thankful.
I was humbled. I celebrated it in my heart for the rest of the day.
I am
working very hard on the language, but I do not pretend that my hard work is
what is making it stick. I have asked many many people to pray for me to learn
the language quickly, and I just want to tell those of you who are praying
thank you. God is answering speedily. I have soooo much more to learn, but
today was victorious.
Today I told the first story in the Bible. Today was the
beginning.
