Soon enough we were ready to visit our first Care Center at a small community center called Kechene. We were led into what seemed like a one room school house where all the children (60 or so) were sitting in groups behind little desks in three straight rows. Their big eyes, happy smiles and polite manners greeted us as our group filed in and stood around the room. A couple teachers and our guides helped with translation as we sang and taught them silly songs and played a couple of group games. After our last song of “Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed,” we served them fresh little bananas we had picked up from a nearby market on our way through town. 
This community center room was small, had a couple windows, a large black chalkboard sitting on the floor, and a few map posters on the wall. When the rain let up we followed the children outside to their playground filled with mud and rain puddles. They were so proud to have us with them jumping and dancing in their circle song games. Sliding and hanging from their rusty play-set and watching them play checkers with glass soda tops.
This community center room was small, had a couple windows, a large black chalkboard sitting on the floor, and a few map posters on the wall. When the rain let up we followed the children outside to their playground filled with mud and rain puddles. They were so proud to have us with them jumping and dancing in their circle song games. Sliding and hanging from their rusty play-set and watching them play checkers with glass soda tops. 
We ended our time by listening and singing to each other’s countries national anthem. It was inspiring and beautiful to hear. Then, what I never expected to be hard, happened for the first time. Saying goodbye to children I had just met, enjoyed for a few hours, and probably won’t meet again till heaven. You could tell, these children loved to be hugged, held, and cherished-better yet-these children were the generous ones…happy to share all their love through hugs, smiles and kisses on us-American strangers! A half hour later we finally loaded the vans with tearful eyes and drove slowly down the steep, cobblestone muddy one lane path as the children followed with waves behind us.
As soon as we made it to the main road the thick smog of the polluted air greeted us and our other van was pulling into a tire shop with a flat tire! We were worried we’d be waiting awhile as the shop was full of cars and the streets were becoming busier as rush hour was nearing. Our van full just watched out the windows as semi-sized trucks, rickshaw cars and taxi vans scurried by…besides all the people walking beside, in front and in between cars. We were grateful for how close a tire shop was located, and within 5 minutes the other van had a new tire and was pulling out in-front of us! God provides, and fast, doesn’t He? Driving-even riding-through town is quite an eye experience! Watch out for darting people, aggressively yielding cars at every corner’s roundabouts, or stray horses, goats, and mules walking through the streets…there would be no time for talking or texting on your cell phone! I was very grateful to only be a passenger with all the swerving, horn beeping, and jostling of motion on the busy streets. Amazingly enough, I only saw 2 traffic lights the entire time in Ethiopia, and one was just a flashing yellow light. 
Our eyes rested quickly after our first day in Ethiopia. It had seemed like an exuberantly long day since most of us hadn’t slept well on our 15 hour flight and then we’d made it through a whole day without much down time. What would our eyes behold for another week in Ethiopia? We could only imagine…
“The Lord is king forever and ever; the nations perish from his land O Lord, you hear the desire of the afflicted; you will strengthen their heart, you will incline your ear to do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed so that man who is of the Earth may strike terror no more.”
Psalm 10:16-18
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