It was Christmas eve and I stayed up extra late until my whole team was deep asleep then I got out of bed and set their presents on the floor like ‘Santa’ does at home for my family. Each present labeled with their name. It was fun to give them such small but intentional gifts that are so appreciated on the race, and to be able to invite them into a Christmas tradition that I have always cherished – waking up Christmas day to Santa’s presents on the floor.
It was the best morning. There was also one person asked from each team to wake up early on Christmas to ‘Christmas carol’ to each team’s door to wake them up in the morning. It was joyous. I will admit, although we were singing our hearts out not many woke up right away haha. Once we were all up, we had breakfast at 8 (the usual), however this time the kitchen ladies had put all the tables together to make it one long table with decorations and they made chocolate donuts for Christmas morning!! It was so sweet! Then at 9 we all sat on the couches in the living room and got our stockings that we had been hanging up for the past few weeks where anyone could put a letter or note in as a ‘Christmas present’ we all sat around and opened them together. It was such a sweet moment of simple, sweet, intentionality. Then we had our white elephant gift exchange which really felt like home, except playing with 45 people took about an hour and a half to finish ha-ha. I ended up with a pair of fuzzy socks that are perfect for Ethiopia because at night it gets pretty chilly. We all laughed and had a good time.
By then I took a little nap and then it was time for lunch. After lunch, starting at 3, we had our powderpuff tournament. Our squad had been split into 4 teams in the past week and we each had been practicing to become champions. We won our first game which put us in the championship game against the other winner of the other 2 teams. Unfortunately, in the end we lost our last game putting us in 2nd place, but it was one of the funnest things I have done on Christmas and it brought so much cheer to our squad. The powderpuff game lasted until dinner. After dinner, we had hot chocolate and dessert (cinnamon rolls). Then our squad had bonfire worship where at the end we had a space to share what this Christmas was to us and how it was different than a Christmas back home.
Yes, it would have been nice to wake up and take a warm shower, put on clothes that had just been washed, then stand in front of the tree for an annual photo, but instead I woke up and took another cold shower, put on the same clothes that I had worn the past 4 days, and took a picture with my team in front of a tree made of watercolor paper. Yet – despite the lackluster, I was just as joyful as any other Christmas. Possibly more joyful, because for once in my life I didn’t have to focus on if I was wearing lipstick or not, if my family would like the presents I got them, if I smiled wide enough for the picture, or if I was talking to our aunts and uncles enough, for once I simply had to focus on the joy and celebration it is to know that our savior has come and that he is here to stay. I got to rejoice with my brothers and sisters around me for the gift that is simply the birth of our savior. We were happy with clothes-pinned socks on a line, and taping up green paper for a tree because our eyes were focused on something else entirely, something eternal and worth celebrating. There were no expectations, and there didn’t have to be. However, I still watched Star Wars that night just to feel a little at home 😉
don’t get me wrong, of course I longed for the little traditions I was missing back home, like hanging up my star on the Christmas tree, having fondue with my family, opening presents on Christmas eve, and seeing a movie on Christmas day, but for me to be right here right now for this Christmas is such a privilege and I would never want to wish it away.
A perfectly perfect Ethiopian Christmas,
El
