Chasing the Rains Down in Africa

I am in Ethiopia. I am alive! I am well! I am living on a compound in the middle of nowhere in the Ethiopian countryside, Yetebon. Umm, hello it is freaking gorgeous. We are talking round mud huts with thatched rooftops – fires in the huts, the whole fam, goats and chickens all living under the peaked roofs. Life on the compound is peaceful and full of joy and light. Project Mercy (wow) has really made life better for literally thousands of people in the past 15 years or so. The compound houses a school, Kindergarten and daycare up the road, for 1,500 rural kids – and feeds them breakfast and lunch. A myriad off jobs are provided also through Project Mercy. On the compound: basket weavers, kitchen staff, a metal shop, cow/sheep herding, farming, a research project, weavers, teachers. They also opened a clean and fairly modern (as modern as is possible in rural Ethiopia) hospital up the road. Fifteen years ago Project Mercy began by building a 10km road from t! henearest town to Yetebon, opening up commerce for the impoverished village. They developed clean water sources and now pump it throughout the region. They also built a church for the residents. This is very cool. I am teaching English to 4th and 5th graders and also Ethiopian Social Studies (naturally). The children are gorgeous; the people are wonderful. Here on the compound there is a home for around 70 or so 'House Kids' ranging from 2 to 18 yrs old. They are kids without parents who live here and are housed, educated, and fed. They are lovely. They don't have parents. They largely parent one another.