August 19, 2005 (1998 by Ethiopian calendar year).

Hello All,

This letter is to let you know how we are doing, and give you a bit more of our first impressions of Ethiopia.

As our plane touched down at Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa on the night of August 17, the Ethiopians on the plane let out a big cheer, like a rolling “rrrrreeeeee,” quite happy to be home. Listening to their cheers of celebration of arrival, it was quite emotional and exciting for us to finally touch down in our new home after so many months of preparation and expectation. We staggered off the plane after more than 30 hours of travel without sleep (our 15-month old daughter Carolee being the exception, of course). The customs agents were quite friendly, and we made it out of the airport without having to pay any import duties for all of our luggage, including the two laptop computers we brought for the school—thanks be to God (and to Monica Ridgeway at our church for all of her efforts for these computers). We were greeted by the PC(USA) and Mekane Yesus Church staff, very glad to finally meet many of the people we will be spending a great deal of our lives with over the next three years.

So what is Addis like? We are very much reminded of Vientienne, Laos, where last November Janelle’s sister Katrina and her husband Darrell live. There is a considerable amount of poverty evident all around, and yet there also seems to be a joyful vibrancy to the people here, a seeming expectation of opportunity within this big city where so many come. The streets are so very crowded with people shopping, visiting, working, cooking—a celebration of humanity on every block. The people of Addis are very warm, and they flock to say hello to Carolee wherever we are, just as it was in Vientienne. There are also many beggars on the streets, many of whom are missing limbs, probably the result of polio and the inability to afford health-care to address infections.

Yesterday, we met Elzebet, a young woman about 20 years old who attends the theological school here. She has really taken to Carolee. Elzebet gave us yet another example of the optimism amidst adversity we have witnessed in this short time we have been here. She showed us her home, a very small room she shares with three other women, with two bunk beds and a small table. All her possessions could probably fit into a suitcase. She showed us a picture beside her bed of her brother, who recently died, as well as her mother and father, who died when she was younger. Even with her losses, she always shows a smile, and talks enthusiastically about being at the school, and an opportunity to do an acting job as an Oromo girl on a television program here in Addis.

In the next few weeks we will continue to meet with various colleagues before heading out to Dembi Dollo. We’ve already met with the development director who I (Mike) will be working with, as well as the director of the synod. And we’ve met Michel and Elke, the German couple that also work at the Bethel Evangelical Secondary School (BESS). All are very warm and friendly, and have made us feel quite welcome. Altogether, we will be in Addis for about two more weeks. We’ll send another letter soon and trust that you are all doing well.

In His Love,

Mike, Janelle, and Carolee