No Room For Rhyme Or Reason

Good news!  There were several referrals today to Gladney families.  All of these families were waitlisted after we were, one family nearly one month.  This confirms what we've heard: the referrals aren't given out in order, in-country staff do their best at making good matches with the limited information they have about the adoptive parents, and the process is anything but predictable!  We did receive a very nice and encouraging email today from our Gladney caseworker, letting us know that she is thinking about us and our family and that she hopes to be able to contact us soon with some good news.  As I've mentioned before, this wait really hasn't been difficult for us because we remain mindful of all this entails, particularly on the part of a birth family.  The real challenge will be waiting for our court date once we have a picture to look at...

Seven

Yesterday we completed our seventh month of waiting.  Gladney continues to estimate a four to six month average wait time for a referral.  We've had no formal communication about our referral (which isn't unusual), but we have seen other families waitlisted before us receive their referrals.  That means things are moving!  Our referral is just taking longer than the estimated average.  How much longer?  We have no idea.  Rather than think that ours is taking too long, we tell ourselves that our wait is...above average.    

It's Almost Christmas...in Ethiopia!

Christmas Traditions in Ethiopia

Ethiopia is one of the oldest nations in Africa. It still follows the ancient Julian calendar, so Ethiopians celebrate Christmas on January 7. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church's celebration of Christ's birth is called Ganna. 

The day before Ganna, people fast all day. The next morning at dawn, everyone dresses in white. Most Ethiopians don a traditional shamma, a thin, white cotton wrap with brightly colored stripes across the ends. The shamma is worn somewhat like a toga. Urban Ethiopians might put on white Western garb. Then everyone goes to the early mass at four o'clock in the morning.  

Most Ethiopians who live outside the modern capital city, Addis Ababa, live in round mud-plastered houses with cone-shaped roofs of thatched straw. In areas where stone is plentiful, the houses may be rectangular stone houses. The churches in Ethiopia echo the shape of the houses. In many parts of the country there are ancient churches carved out of solid volcanic rock. Modern churches are built in three concentric circles.  

In a modern church, the choir assembles in the outer circle. Each person entering the church is given a candle. The congregation walks around the church three times in a solemn procession, holding the flickering candles. Then they gather in the second circle to stand throughout the long mass (up to three hours long), with the men and boys separated from the women and girls. The center circle is the holiest space in the church, where the priest serves Holy Communion.  

Around the time of Ganna, the men and boys play a game that is also called ganna. It is somewhat like hockey, played with a curved stick and a round wooden ball.  Legend indicates that this was a celebratory game played by the shepherds after Christ’s birth.  Today, teams represent different regions, and the competition can be fierce.  

The foods enjoyed during the Christmas season include wat, a thick, spicy stew of meat, vegetables, and sometimes eggs as well. The wat is served from a beautifully decorated watertight basket onto a "plate" of injera, which is flat sourdough bread. Pieces of injera are used as an edible spoon to scoop up the wat.  

Twelve days after Ganna, on January 19, Ethiopians begin the three-day celebration called Timkat, which commemorates the baptism of Christ. The children walk to church services in a procession. They wear the crowns and robes of the church youth groups they belong to. The grown-ups wear the shamma. The priests will now wear their red and white robes and carry embroidered fringed umbrellas.  

The music of Ethiopian instruments makes the Timkat procession a very festive event. The sistrum is a percussion instrument with tinkling metal disks. A long, T-shaped prayer stick called a makamiya taps out the walking beat and also serves as a support for the priest during the long church service that follows. Church officials called dabtaras study hard to learn the musical chants, melekets, for the ceremony.  

Ganna and Timkat are not occasions for giving gifts in Ethiopia. If a child receives any gift at all, it is usually a small gift of clothing. Religious observances, feasting, and games are the focus of the season.

In Amharic, the official language of the country, the greeting is:

meaning "It is my pleasure to see you in this delightful day of Christmas"

Or you could say:

meaning "Happy Christmas"