Sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly

November 2011 - Arrival in Ethiopia

Before the trip to Ethiopia I thought I would update my blog right away, keep writing while I was on the road, add updates along the way and then wrap it all up when I got back to Minnesota.

Well this is not how it went, but that is okay.
Inspired by the bold actions of two women I greatly admire, I thought I'd update this work in progress, just a little bit, just for now.

Sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly - this is how life goes for me.

The photo above was taken as Maddy and I arrived at the airport in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
It was quite a long process getting there - we missed a flight in Frankfurt, ended up flying to Cairo on Egypt Air, and then to Addis.

Let's back up a little bit...here are a few more pictures.

Here we are in front of my apartment the morning of the first day. Packed and ready to go on the adventure! Yes, we traveled with carry on luggage only, and we were very grateful for that!  A couple of our traveling companions lost their luggage - just clothes, but that meant 5 days in the same clothes.

This was taken at the Minneapolis Farmer's market. We had a photo shoot with videographers. We've never seen any of the footage. Sometimes you take the action and let go of the outcome. I'm grateful for the photos we have, the notes I took, the experience, and the friends I made in Ethiopia. Through Facebook, Skype and LinkedIn I've been able to stay in contact with a few people.

Maddy on the plane, her travel pillow/frog is wrapped around her.


This photo below is my favorite from the trip. This was on our last day in Addis. We had come from Mekele and rural Tigray, we visited 3 villages where they were getting wells and clean drinking water for the first time, we had hiked and walked and explored and met people and we were happy to be rested and cleaned up and enjoying a beautiful day back in Addis.

Maddy took other pictures, we posted a lot of them on Facebook.
We seem to have a lot of pictures of goats.
Facebook Albums - Ethiopia 2011 http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150593486965460.452341.657830459&type=3&l=504eac071a

Countdown - one week until Ethiopia

Today is November 6, 2011.
One week from today, November 13, 2011 we will leave Minneapolis and get on a plane to go to Ethiopia. We are starting to pack, since this week will be busy and we don't want to forget anything important. We have our passports, visas, shots, travel insurance and meds. We picked up a few last minute things and now probably have to go out and get a few last-last minute things we missed yesterday.

We wanted a couple of bug repellent shirts and realized when we got home that they have sun protection but are not bug repellent. I think it's worth getting at least one or two...but I'm looking at my bag and wondering how I'm going to fit everything in there.

I'm planning to journal on good old fashioned paper while we are in Africa and then update those pages here afterward.

Madeline has a new camera, so hopefully we'll have a few pictures. I don't want to be obnoxiously taking pictures but also want to document some of the experience.

I'm starting to get nervous.
Calm down.

That didn't work. I'm still nervous.

It's Sunday morning and we are doing some of the usual - watching Sunday Morning News and the DVR of last nights Saturday Night Live episode with Maroon 5. I really like that guy's voice. Ate eggs, cottage cheese and fruit, egg nog...forgot to eat the yogurt. We have to eat up some of the food in the fridge this week. Busy week ahead. I think it would help a lot if I can get to sleep early and get up and get to work earlier than usual. I have been scattered and running behind schedule for a long time now and I think maybe with daylight savings ending or starting or whatever it did when we Fell Back, it's a good opportunity to shape up.

Breathe.
Move.
Eat healthy food.
Sleep.
Read.
Play.
Relax.
Pack.
And don't forget to Breathe.

Ethiopia update email sent to my family October 22 2011 before Trip

This is the first big update email to my family about the trip (edited - removed emergency contact info)



Hi Mom and everyone
updates...
Trip...
We leave for Ethiopia 11/13 Sunday and will be home the following weekend probably Sat or Sun (waiting for visas and flight details)
See www.water.org they have video under Projects and Ethiopia.

Levi's is sending a videographer and a couple other people here (Minneapolis) on Sat 11/12 to interview us and show how we live here and show us using water.
We travel with them to Ethiopia (so the nice thing is a woman from Levi's in San Francisco will escort us the whole way, same flight, same hotels).
She has a phone with internet and an international calling plan so we can call home if we want.

The hotel has an internet cafe nearby but internet access and electricity can be less reliable than we are used to but we may get a chance to send a quick hello.

The Levi's group will release some video of our trip the week of March 22 on Facebook when they run another contest on world water day. Like "hey see these nice people from Mn? You could win a trip like this too..."

Maddy...
Maddy just got a new camera from her dad for the trip.
So we are excited and busy getting ready.
She loves college and is away right now volunteering at a church camp for teens. She calls it "Jesus Camp"
She also is youth leader for a small group of about 10 7th grade girls at our church. Her co-facilitator was a baby with her at daycare! Small world.
She says some of her "sevvies" (seventh graders) are "SO TINY!"

John just had a birthday 10/14. His best friend is visiting from New York they are so happy like little kids! They are ging to visit a friend in Milwaukee for the weekend.

Ok gotta go. I'm icing my knee again. Had physical therapy yesterday at 8:30. Gotta toughen up so I can make ith through the airports.
Love
Kitty

Less than a month and we will be in Ethiopia

So I just got off the phone with one of our hosts/traveling companions for the trip.

Did I mention my daughter and I are going on a trip?

We are waiting for Visas and flight information, and we are leaving for Ethiopia on Sunday November 13th 2011. We will be there for a week, visiting a community getting clean water for the first time. Amazing. There will be videographers documenting this, so next spring there will be some video footage of us on Facebook. It's a lot to absorb.

How do you answer "so, do you have any questions?"  Um. Yep. A lot. But I do not think the answers you give me will really be meaningful, not in the way the experience will be - I expect to be surprised, humbled, amazed and delighted. Is that too much to ask? From Africa? I think not.

It's getting close! Today is October 19th, 2011, just an ordinary day. And then again, I think not.

November

September, November...well we are going to be in Ethiopia for about a week in mid-November. This is just a quick update.

I hope we fly through Amsterdam. Just because.

Too many lists now, lots of things to do.
Shots and Paperwork and Visas Oh My!

I'm grateful to have more definite dates and information. Now those butterflies in my tummy can just simmer down please, everything will be all right.

More news to come.

Mirrors

Mirrors - you can look and see only what you want to see, or sometimes, when you are not expecting it, you just really see. I see myself. I see myself in a bigger size body than I want, bigger than it was. I see myself in other people. Today I saw other people with problems like mine. People with more experience, strength, and hope than I have today. People I might learn from if I can just calm down and listen.

I see myself in my family. Good, bad, it's all there. I can't be critical it's all me.

I see myself leaving. Leaving a place I don't want to be, not listening any more when it's just too much, leaving and saying I just can't do this anymore and walking away.

Now comes the hard part - I need to stay away.

Quitting is easy. I've done it hundreds of times. It's staying stopped - that's the real trick.