Monday

Our First Day After dropping into bed at 11 p.m. and waking throughout the night to dogs barking and the Muslim call to prayer about 5:30 a.m., Jennifer and I sluggishly got out of bed and made our way to the kitchen for our first taste of Ethiopian coffee. It did not disappoint! Ethiopia introduced coffee to the world, and the strong taste is heaven for coffee drinkers.

Promptly at 9 a.m., we headed to the Layla House. I don’t think I can properly describe in words for the orphanage: clean yet incredibly sparse, tears and lots of hugs, children running and playing and curiously looking at the brand new group of American volunteers. The first compound (through the yellow and red Pooh doors) had two mattresses on the concrete floor with about 10 babies in the sun. Flies were everywhere, and the workers tried their best to keep the flies off the babies faces. The toddlers were also in this area: crawling, kicking a lone soccer ball, and holding their arms up to us to pick them up and cuddle with them. I know (and I’m sure I can speak for Jennifer here) that I was literally biting the inside of my cheek as I witnessed and tried to take in the whole scene while not sobbing. The babies and toddlers cried often, yet they were quite happy and had good eye contact and clearly loved their caregivers.

The second compound (through the concrete playground with a basketball court and two metal goals set up for soccer) were where the older children were in school. They were precious and the manners were exceptional. They kept saying “Photo! Photo!”—wanting to see their picture in our digital cameras. The girls mostly have braids, and the boys hair is cut very short. They are so dear and sweet—and love to try out their English on us. The most amazing thing is that they just want to be touched—hand holding, sweet conversation, and many, many hugs.

Lunch was traditional Ethiopian—Jennifer was much braver than I was and ate the injera stew (way spicy for me—she didn’t break a sweat) and Ethiopian bread (very spongy and cold.) There is no silverware, so you scoop the stew with your bread. There are also no napkins, so the kids wait until the end to use the sink to wash up. Needless to say, it’s a messy process! I snuck in a Zone Bar in the corner of the compound and a quick bottle of water while no was looking (I think…)

For the afternoon, Jennifer went to visit Opportunity House (a 9 x 10 room with around 10 kids with varying degrees of handicaps); the access to healthcare is simply not available, and so these children make due with what life has handed them. Thankfully Jennifer was able to show one child some physical therapy to help stretch his muscles. The children have no stimulation (legos and stuffed animals is it…). The age range is 3-8. Pray for these children…Jennifer is going to visit daily. I stayed in the baby rooms for the majority of the day—holding, singing songs, wiping noses and trying not to be a complete basket case. One child in particular has grabbed my heart—her name is Mimi. Mimi came about 3 months ago malnourished, and has an enlarged heart and no hair (due to the lack of food and nutrition). She has blossomed and grown, but her nutrition needs special attention and I don’t know much more about her family and why they left her at Layla House. She is thought to be around 3.

Our emotions are high and the need is great here. These children LONG for a home and a family to call their own. Many older children watch their friends open up packages from their American families, and then leave. While they mourn the loss of their friendships, the need for them to have a family is greater. Thank you for all your prayers—our travel here was wonderful, our accommodations are much better than we hoped, and our group is amazing. The children of the Layla House and Opportunity House, though, need your prayers most of all. We are so grateful there is a Father in heaven who sees them, knows every hair on their head, sees every tear shed, and knows their needs.