Meeting Tsehay

Today was amazing. It ranks right up there in the best experiences I have ever had. I got to go meet Tsehay, the little girl I sponsor through World Vision. I have been sponsoring her for two years, and she is now 8 years old. I thought she was 12 (World Vision wrote the wrong year on her papers- they felt very bad!) That explains a lot as I always wondered why she was so tiny. She is 8 and in grade 1 and her brother Hailu is 11 and in grade 3. The World Vision staff picked us up at 7:30 and we made our way out to the ADP (area development project).It is 150km north of Addis, but took us about 3 hours to get there. The main road is paved, but eventually you get to a dirt road, and then you go past the dirt road to an area that barely has a road at all- very bumpy, covered in rocks, etc. We got to the World Vision office and we met some more staff members and they told us a bit about the program. Since they began this project in 2003, the area has gone to having 50% of kids in school, to 81%. There has gone from 40% to 50% of girls in school- still needs improvement, but much better! They also do a lot of work with the families to improve their farming, adding new crops, etc. They do amazing work. We then got back in the truck and made our way to her village. It is about thirty minutes from the office, over the road that is not really a road! The entire drive was the most beautiful thing I have seen- it is just stunning. We just stared out the window the whole time, it was amazing. There were so many kids not in school, taking care of their goats or cows. Women were walking down the road carrying huge loads of firewood, either to keep or to sell. It looked so heavy. We finally arrived at Tsehay’s village, and we parked and walked a short way to her house. Her brother came out first, and I recognized him right away from the picture I have of their family. He was very excited and kept smiling and motioning for us to follow him. He brought us to their house, where a huge crowd of kids had already gathered round, waiting to see the ferenges! I walked in and saw Tsehay first. I am not sure I would have even recognized her. She is so tiny, and her hair has been all cut off since my last picture of her. But I looked closely as I walked over and I knew it was her without having to ask- it is those huge eyes that give her away. She was so shy (it is funny, because I was talking to Alex before and I said I guessed she would be shy!). She shook my hand and then we all went into her house. It was so surreal to see her in real life after spending 2 years of exchanging letters. The house is made of wood and mud, and is pitch black as there are no windows. The only light was coming from the open door, which was crowded from all the kids staring in! I was introduced to Tsehay’s mother, father, grandmother, and grandfather. They were so excited and sweet- each of them came and bowed to us and kissed our hands or cheeks. It turns out, her mother was pregnant and had a baby boy just one week ago! He was so tiny! One of the World Vision staff members talked to the mother about breastfeeding to keep the baby healthy. They have no beds, so her mother had made a little area in the corner of the small house with sheets where she laid with the baby. I gave them each a gift- a bag of gifts for Tsehay, a bag for Hailu, and a bag for their parents. They loved the blanket which they wrapped the baby in, and I explained to them what the vitamins are (the kids each opened their mouths for me to feed them one!). Hailu was sitting beside Alex with a huge smile on his face, and Tsehay was sitting beside me, looking a little stunned. The kids got up and brought over piles of all the things I have ever sent Tsehay over the past 2 years. It was so
touching. There were my letters, pictures, toys, clothes, etc. Some were very well used, and others were being treasured and had not been used at all (like the stickers I sent that decorated their walls, pinned up and still in the packages). We used the World Vision staff members who had come along to translate, as they speak Oromifa. I asked about their ages, and this is when I found out Tsehay is actually 8. She had a copy of her original sponsorship form that I got when I began sponsoring her, and it said she was born in 1996. I showed this to the staff, and they were very apologetic and said that she was really born in 2000. I asked about the family, and what they needed. They began by saying that they would love anything, but when I persisted, the mother told me they needed beds. They sleep on the ground right now, on a blanket made of tree leaves that they roll up and put away each morning. I talked to the World Vision staff, and gave the family 1000 Ethiopian birr ($100) which would be enough for a bed, sheets, and pillows. After awhile of visiting, the World Vision staff asked me if I was ready to leave. We went outside and Tsehay showed me the cow I had bought the family last year. She was wearing the shoes and dress that I had sent money for at the same time. She also showed me the sheep that she takes care of. We took the kids and their grandfather in the car and back down the half hour rocky ride to the World Vision office to have lunch. I am not sure if Tsehay has ever been in a car before- she was terrified. It was at this time that she began to relax a little and warm up to me. When she thought I wasn’t looking, I could see her staring at me out of the corner of her eye. I would look at her and she would smile or giggle and look away quickly. She looked so scared on the bumpy ride and was gripping onto me, practically sitting on my lap by the end. Her dress and hands were filthy, and the dirt was getting on my pants where she was gripping tightly, and the staff kept telling her to stop as she was getting me dirty (of course, I didn’t care- it is just a little dirt, and I told them this!). She tried to listen to the staff (even though I told them it was okay) but we would hit a bump
and her arms would fly back around me. We got to the office and it was time for lunch. Tsehay and Hailu looked so unsure of what to do. We went to the bathroom to wash our hands. Tsehay was last, and she didn’t know how to turn the tap off- she just looked around nervously and then walked away quickly. We filled their plates up with food (injera, apples, bread, and rice)- they had SO much food and they cleaned their plates. They ate a ton! I was stuffing myself with food, not wanting to look rude, and the staff still kept asking me what was wrong and why I wasn’t eating enough! Ethiopians have huge meals! There was a TV in the room, which Hailu and the grandfather were transfixed with. After lunch, we went outside and I took a video of them on my camera, which they thought was hilarious. I pulled out the bubbles then and showed them what to do. I tried to give it to the kids to play with, but their grandfather just lit up and took it out of their hands and played with it himself!

I was so sad when it was time to go! Tsehay was finally coming out of her shell and coming over to me to hold my hand. I hugged Hailu and shook hands with their grandfather. He bent over and bowed his head again and kissed my cheek three times- it is always done in three’s in Ethiopia! I hugged Tsehay and kissed her three times, as the girls and women always do here- left cheek, right cheek, left cheek. It was such an amazing experience getting to finally meet her, and seeing what life is like in rural Ethiopia. You haven’t seen Ethiopia until you have gone out in the countryside- it is beautiful and the culture is incredible. I am so impressed with the work World Vision is doing and I am even more encouraged to support them. The best part of my day was seeing Tsehay pull out everything I have given her. It was amazing to see where all my money has gone and how treasured it is. I can’t even express how much it meant to me to see this and to meet this precious little girl. Child sponsorship has so many benefits and can really make a difference in the lives of kids living in poverty.