(continued from previous posts...Click here for Part one)

Wednesday, February 15, 2006, was our third full day in Addis. We were really in a “groove”. Ben had fit right in with us and we were having so much fun getting to know him. We were comfortable and familiar with our surroundings and not feeling quite so “lost” as we were the first day or two. The morning started with a phone call from home from my best friend Bethany, and it was great to hear that all of the kids were doing fine. After I got off of the phone we went to the park at our hotel, the Ghion, and played soccer with Ben. Dan came out of his room and joined us in the cool shade of the most gorgeous trees that were covered with huge purple flowers. The sun was shining but it was not yet hot and a perfect breeze was blowing.

We met two boys in the park that day that really touched our hearts. Here is what I wrote about that experience in my blog, “We were playing in the park one day and several boys came over and joined our soccer game. One introduced himself to me and started showing off his English skills. He was 10 years old and dressed very raggedly. His English was good enough that we had good conversations, and when we struggled to understand him, he worked until he could explain it to us in another way. He asked about Ben and our family and was touched that we were adopting him. He asked about America, and what we thought of Ethiopia. We were so impressed with his sweet spirit, his great sense of humor and how very smart he was. Finally when we had to go, after spending about an hour with him, I asked where his parents were. And then he told us that they had died, and that he lived at the Mother Theresa orphanage. I felt like someone had pulled the rug out from underneath me. I had assumed he was at the park with his family like the other children that were playing with us. There are not many parents looking to adopt a 10 year-old boy and I knew his chances of finding a family were slim. Yet I knew this boy would make a wonderful son to someone. A guard came around and chased him out of the park and we were horrified. How could such a sweet and handsome and wonderful boy be alone in this world? He hadn’t asked us for a thing except our company for a small while, and when we gave him a pack of gum and a small momento it felt so meaningless that we were almost ashamed. He really affected all of us that met him.”

After our experience at the park, we had to clean up and get over to the Sheraton for lunch with a missionary couple from our church. Now if you have never been to Ethiopia and you have never been to the Addis Sheraton, it is hard to describe. The Sheraton is the posh-est place in Addis, and it is truly out of place in a city full of poverty. Palm trees, immaculate pools, huge and perfect-looking air-conditioned buildings and manicured lawns abound. Uniformed guards stand at the gate, checking all cars over before allowing them in, even looking underneath the vehicles with little mirrors on sticks. And yet right across the road, bare-footed children in rags herd donkeys past the rows of scrap-metal lean-to's. The poverty runs right up to the very edge of the Sheraton property, almost as if the white iron fence is holding it out.

We strolled the grounds and commented that we could have been in the Caribbean or Europe or somewhere exotic, and that it definitely did not feel like we were still in Ethiopia. The company, the conversation, the food and the atmosphere were all extremely enjoyable, as was watching Ben experience his first ice cream cone. And yet I was feeling almost guilty for being there because I knew how people lived in Ethiopia, and I knew that what we spent on our meal for six people at the Sheraton was equal to a year’s salary for many people.

Our plan was to finish lunch, and then head on over to AHOPE to visit and photograph the children, and then we had an appointment back at Ben’s orphanage to visit with his doctor.

Although I had been unsure if emotionally it would be a good idea for me to visit AHOPE before we got to Addis, at this point in our trip, I was not even worried about it. I felt that I had seen so much since we got to Addis that I would be fine. I had seen so many beautiful, sad and needy children. I had seen so many heart-breaking images. I had seen desperation in the eyes of so many people. And yet I had also seen the love and hope that still some how managed to shine through, and I knew that I would be fine at AHOPE. The day had been so busy for us too that I did not have the time to put a lot of thought into going to AHOPE before we got there, so I was not feeling emotional at all as we got into our cab.

We gave our driver the phone number for AHOPE so he could call and get directions. In Addis there are very few streets that are labeled with names and the numbering system is less than systematic, so it is pretty much impossible to find a place unless you have someone tell you where it is. The driver got directions, but told us that the director was not there at that time because she had misunderstood an email and thought we would be there next Wednesday. Well, I figured that we could at least get photos and video of the kids, even if we didn’t have the chance to interview Sidisse.

To be continued...