Our Squad did a seven ten split in the third month of our trip on The World Race. Some of us flew to Kenya. The rest of us flew to Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia. We were far apart in distance but not heart. When we arrived at the airport it was pretty late, but it wasn’t anywhere near as sketch as the airport in Entebbe and there were a lot less guns. There were still a bunch of guns, just less. I also wasn’t anywhere near as tired as my first travel day with flights had made me, and I was a lot more traveled. This was kind of my normal routine now. Ethiopia is known for its beautiful historical sights and incredible landscapes. The ads were all over the walls of the international travel terminal for these legendary places.
Once we got through the security checkpoints and got our passports stamped, we made our way out the door of the airport and met Lincoln Vallet, a former world racer, serving a ministry in Addis and the surrounding regions. Being the empathetic sarcastic goof that I am, I asked him how often he got Abraham Lincoln related comments. He said every day of his entire life. I decided after that not to make a comment that he ironically was sort of a “valet” when he helped us load up a couple of vehicles worth of bags. We left the airport and were off to our hostel for the night. We had hot showers and beds for the first time since our hotel at launch at this guesthouse. It was really nice.
I woke up early the next morning and went to get my deodorant out of my toiletries bag, but my antibiotic ointment had exploded all over everything in the bag. It was a terrible mess. I cleaned everything. Water didn’t wash this stuff off. I had to wipe it all off. That was a long half hour. I was late to the briefing about Ethiopia, and everyone stared at me as I walked in the room, not only because I was late, but because my hands were incredibly shiny. Even though I had washed the ointment off, it left a beautiful Miracle Wax sheen on my skin, I could seriously almost see my reflection.
After the briefing I walked outside and saw Mardie and Lincoln talking next to Lincoln’s car (Which wasn’t a Lincoln). He told her that it was no longer safe for us to stay where we planned to stay on Entoto Mountain because of some murders that took place close to the sight just the afternoon before. He started figuring out plan B while he drove us up to our ministry site for the Saturday morning feeding program of Endinhew Hope, our ministry for the month, where we met our host Mesfin. It was raining, cold and astoundingly beautiful. There were kids in little second hand hoodies running, laughing, screaming, playing games, dancing and doing all the things kids do. We helped pass out food and enjoyed the beautiful view.
Lincoln drove us to Jemo 1, a major residential area of Addis Ababa, to Mesfin’s single bedroom studio apartment for home roasted coffee, which was the most delicious coffee ever, and engera, a staple of the Ethiopian Diet. I liked it honestly, even though it looked like a sponge. We learned that we would be staying there at the apartment. It was pretty far away from our ministry site, but it was quite safe. It just meant we would have to travel from one side of the city to the other and back every day. That’s exactly what we did. It wasn’t easy, it was the most tedious and honestly stressful part of our time in Ethiopia, and it took a lot of time, but we did it.
Each morning we would walk to the bus stop and all pile into an already crowded van together, and arrive at Mexico, the largest square in the city. Then we would get to another bus stop, then another, and have breakfast and coffee at an amazing café called Romina.
Before our breakfast had even begun to settle, we would ride two more buses up the mountain, passed ladies carrying huge bundles of wood down the mountain, to do ministry where we split into two teams to do home visits. One of the teams did interviews with parents for child sponsorships and the other team did medical visits, including physical rehabilitation and simple first aid training. Ill tell you honestly, this was the worst poverty that I saw on the race. Before Endinhew hope came to the mountain, this place was really hopeless.
People suffering from HIV, which was nearly everyone on the mountain, came to the mountain to be near the church where they could have access to the holy water. Some would even neglect taking the medicine which the government gave them for free for because of their faith in the healing power of the Holy Water. This was a very complicated situation, but we stepped in beside the Staff of Endinhew hope and did everything we could to begin making a change on the mountain. Though it was some of the hardest stuff ive seen in my life, I know it actually isn’t hopeless. I know that God has not forgotten these people.
The Child sponsorship program would provide food for the family so the parents could focus on a trade without the stress of having to provide for meals. This way they could actually afford a living, because in most cases, they would pick between buying a little bit of bread or paying rent. An added bonus to this would be that the kids would grow up seeing their parents working, instead of sitting around sad and never succeeding. This would inspire the kids to grow up and work hard, study hard, and succeed. Several kids were sponsored while we were there, and our work and effort played a part in that. We planted seeds and God watered them in a truly life sustaining and giving way.
The future vision of the ministry was that the newest and largest building on the property of our ministry site would be a clinic, so people could afford medical treatments. I When I looked up to the top of the hill I could see the future clinic shining like a bright and beautiful light, though there wasn’t really anything particularly beautiful about its physical appearance. I remember fondly how much that caught me off guard. God is going to do beautiful things there.
The Medical visits were life changing for the people on the mountain, and we saw a lot of people, but they were especially transformational for a man named Castle. A former pharmacist and an incredibly smart and educated man, Castle still had deep faith in the healing power of holy water. He stopped taking his medicine after being infected with HIV. This caused a blood clot which led to a stroke which led to almost total paralysis throughout most of his body. So he lays in a dark room, lit by a single light bulb, In a mud shack held together by sticks and insulated with old newspapers. Logan, Shannon and Andrea worked with him every day to build strength in his arms and legs. The last time I Saw Castle, I saw a man, who, for ten years believed he was paralyzed, stand on his own, legs trembling, with tears streaming down his smiling face.
The other hard thing to see, and truly this was the most difficult thing for me, was the lack of fathers or husbands on the mountain. Most of the homes we visited were run by single mothers, generally infected with HIV, taking care of one or two children. I saw two present fathers in the homes on the mountain. That’s an awful statistic. But in the homes with fathers I saw hardworking men that were fighting to provide something different for their families. I have a much bigger hope for Entoto Mountain. I believe it wont be stricken with poverty forever. I believe that one day people will see hope spilling from the mountain. I believe that people from Entoto will change things for the better in Ethiopia. I believe God can turn Entoto Mountain totally around.
This was clearly a powerfully rewarding ministry that we trekked to everyday. The challenge was truly the trek. We road in bus after bus back and forth every, crammed in twelve passenger vans, with about twenty people in each of them. Then we staggered up the three flights of stairs to our tiny apartment. This led to some serious stress and need for space in all of us. We shared meals, bus rides, and ministry together, but we all sought out quiet space with the Lord.
I haunted coffee shops, and probably single handedly helped them afford their month’s rent. I penned words in my journal that I got from hobby lobby that was handmade in India, drank cappuccino after latte, and listened to music and found that healthy space that I learned how to cultivate in Rwanda. I decided to continue to confront issues in my heart in this space. I faced my problems instead of facebooking them.
One time when our team was all together, Mardie played a game called “What are the Odds”, A game almost every world racer plays, with Andrea. A game of chance where if you both say the same number, say between one and ten, the person has to do whatever the bet was. Andrea lost and was not allowed to eat Pringles, her absolute favorite snack, until we were in India. Jocelyn got in a Bajaj accident a few days after that. A bajaj is a tiny three wheeled taxi that reminds me of the car that Steve Urkle drove. She wasn’t hurt at all and has told the story almost every day since.
A blessing came when Mesfin, who had stepped out and stayed with a friend, had to come back the same time that our squad leader Megan Moffit came to stay with us. We were out of room, and Lincoln worked out an incredible deal where the girls of our team could stay at the guesthouse that we stayed at the first night. This also meant Alex and I could shower and use the wifi whenever we had free time. This place was so nice and had an incredible view. It put me in a weird place, knowing that people in this same city were sleeping on the streets and in mud huts on mountains.
Even though The Guesthouse was two miles away from Mesfin’s apartment, I still walked back from the guesthouse almost every time that I went over there. It led to a bunch of intense and wonderful interactions with both friendly and not so friendly locals.
My free time led to me walking around, listening to Tallest Man on Earth and Coldplay, and making friends with people throughout our town. Including a great guy named Sommer, who ran the laundry mat down the street. His brother in law was a pastor at a large church called Beza International. Sommer became a great friend of mine, and we always had great conversations over pizza and drinks. Beza was one of my favorite parts of Ethiopia. It was the first church I went to that gave me the feeling of Worship like City Lights or Fellowship Greenville did back home.
Some rough news came when I heard that two of my squad mates, Morgan Woods and Rachel Gagliardo( the future Mrs. Jacob Hafler) were very, very sick. They had contracted Malaria back when we were in Rwanda, and it developed into Cerebral Malaria, its worst possible form, by the second week of our time in Ethiopia. They came to Addis to get proper treatment. This broke my heart, and all I wanted to do was be with them, but the flow of my day never really allowed it. So I prayed for them as often as I could.
Thanksgiving rolled around and the wonderful ladies from team Liora, our team, Alexa Kapsalis, Morgan, Rachel, and our squad leader Megan all got together for an incredible dinner along Lincoln and many of our Ethiopian friends. I visited Sommer Thanksgiving morning, and he gave me a button up shirt that fit me to wear to dinner. I walked up to Safeway, the biggest grocery store in the area, and I bought the girls from my team along with Morgan, Rachel, Alexa and Megan roses to give to them at dinner. I actually did a lot of grocery store runs that day to help with all the food prep that was taking place. Dinner was good.
I designed a tattoo for my friend Ashley Ancona which she ended up getting in Nepal. I also got to talk to my best friend Luke, and My parents back home. I played a few worship songs on the guitar and everyone gave thanks to God for what they were thankful for. That night Morgan and Rachel went back to the United States to recover for a few weeks. Morgan came back in India, and Rachel came back the second day that we were in Nepal.
The last day in Ethiopia everyone got back together at the guesthouse, and I got to hear some beautiful stories of ministry from the month. I also downloaded Coldplay’s album, Head Full of Dreams, which became the soundtrack to the rest of my race.
Ethiopia is a deeply powerful place. Everyone should go and experience the beauty and wisdom of the people.
We waved Africa goodbye, and flew to Dubai where we were reunited with the rest of our squad. Mardie was reunited with McDonalds. I was reunited with my good friends Brooks and Dylan, and after a few hours of fun in the Dubai airport, which was an amazing cultural experience on its own, we took off. As soon as we broke into Indian airspace, Andrea broke into a can of Pringles. I was full of anticipation for India, I couldn’t shut up and I couldn’t sleep.
