Saying Goodbye

The last few weeks in Ethiopia were emotional and painful. As we prepared to leave, everything became “the last” for something. The last work party, the last Sunday market in Chiri, the last Glee episode, the last breakfast of ful, the last trip to Bonga, the last trip to Jimma, the last coffee ceremony with the kids. And on and on.

During the second half of our year in Chiri we fell into a comfortable routine….just in time to leave. And leaving hurt, but we knew we couldn’t stay forever. Too many family members and friends to see. Too many loan dollars to pay off. Too much time away already.

Over this year, we have learned and grown much more than we expected. The education that we received from our Ethiopian family of friends, co-workers, and orphans was more valuable than any degree we’ve received or any school we’ve attended. In fact we can safely say that the most profound change that happened over this year did not happen among the staff or patients that we served… it happened within our own hearts.

But as we packed up our belongings, Ethiopia had one final lesson for us. It came in the tearful, heartfelt embraces. It came as the stern old gray-haired manager kissed us with wet cheeks. It came in the twenty kisses planted on my lips by a poor woman. Ethiopians are willing to feel your emotion, to connect to your pain and sadness. And they do it openly without fear of looking weak or feeling silly. They hold you with open arms and open hearts. They are not afraid to feel fully, and they force you to do the same.

And so we said our painful goodbyes. We traveled many days and many miles by car, bus, and airplane, from this tiny speck in a giant continent to our other home on the other side of the globe. And in a dazed wonder, as we dined over seafood and wine and crawled under a soft down comforter, we couldn’t help but wonder, “was it all real?” Was that tiny town in Ethiopia, which can’t be found on maps or google-earth imagery, the town that suddenly felt worlds away… was it still there?

But in the silence of the night we closed our eyes and listened… listened to the change we felt in our hearts and knew it was always there. Always there with us.