A Day in the Life of...

Entrance to the Fathers compound
"Don Bosco Villa".

Yesterday was a national holiday in Ethiopia.  Adway Day commemorates the Ethiopian victory over the Italians in 1896 in the city of Adwa. It also marked my first month in Ethiopia.  I’m slowly settling into a normal routine as I am adapting to life in Dilla. My alarm clock, which is the church bell tower next door, rings every morning at 6AM to announce the start of the Ethiopian day.  Their day is divided between 6AM/6PM so when its Noon our time, it is actually 6AM their time. So needless to say, it’s already happened to me that I made an appointment at 10AM in the morning but my student showed up 10AM Ethiopian time (4PM our time).  The Ethiopian calendar is also behind – today is actually February 24 of the year 2008 - since it follows the Julian calendar.  

Courtyard and church bell tower in the background.

So as noted earlier, my day starts at 6AM and I join the Sisters every morning for mass at 6.45 AM.  Mass is celebrated in Amharic so I don’t understand much but I am trying to learn the prayer responses in Amharic. So far I know how to say “The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit” and now I am working on “Our Father”.  My favorite parts about Mass are the songs that are sung beautifully by the young people. Birds also play their role in the Eucharistic celebration as they swoop in and up over our heads during Mass. 

A shallow pool due to the dry season.

By 8AM, we are in the student hall where the principal or a teacher will give students the “Good Morning” pep talk to start their day.  We have three class periods before a 30 minute break for tea / snacks. We then have two more periods before our 1.5 hour lunch break. Classes resume at 2PM and we have three more periods until the day ends at 4.30.  The afternoon sessions are probably the most difficult due to the heat, especially in the computer labs. We rely on natural breeze, no AC, to cool us throughout the day.  Of all the first world luxuries that I miss the most, it is probably AC.  Luckily, the cool refreshing breeze in the evenings and mornings offer a nice respite from the heat.  Free time after school and before supper is spent resting or playing basketball/football with the local students. Age has definitely crept up on me as I have a hard time keeping up with these youngsters.

St. Gabriel Orthodox Church

Life with the Sisters is enjoyable and spiritual.  The Sisters come from all parts of the world: Korea, Poland, India, Ethiopia and Sudan which makes conversations at the dining table entertaining as the English dialogue is interspersed with a bit of Amharic, Italian, Polish, Arabic and Korean.  We share all our mealtimes together (breakfast at 7.20AM, lunch at 12.45PM and supper at around 7PM).  A different Sister is assigned kitchen duty every week, which makes for a nice mix of local and international cuisine. Needless to say, I am well fed over here, so much so that I have put myself on a diet which is no easy task since we always seem to be celebrating a feast or special event that requires a delicious dessert J 

Well that’s all from me for now. Thank you for your comments and emails. Please keep them coming as it helps me stay connected with your lives. Responses may be delayed though due to intermittent access to the Internet!