Ethiopia Christmas carols

Ethiopia Christmas carols composed by me and visiting guests Anna Ward Martin and Eliza:

1. I'm dreaming of an Ethiopian Christmas just like the ones I never knew.
Where the kids are staring and I'm not caring if it's been a week since a shampoo.
I'm dreaming of an Ethiopian Christmas with every journal entry I write.
May your poops be solid and tight and don't forget to use a wet wipe.

2. Joy to the world: the gate is locked.
Forenjis are hiding.
Let every pair of eyes find some other surprise
and then my heart will sing...

3. Silent night. If only I might
sleep without TV noise on the right.
Round yon mousies scritch scratching so wild.
Dented double bed smoosh mommy and child.
Maybe a few seconds of peace.
Please, a few seconds of peace.

4. You better watch out, you better not cry, you better not pout. I'm telling you why: Erica's our Ethiopia guide.
She sees you when you're sleeping, she knows when you're awake, she knows if you've been culturally appropriate so be good for goodness sake.
You better not eat your food with left hands.
You better follow these cultural demands.
Don't sniff, don't lick, don't use a fork.
In Addis or Hawassa, Amharic try to make.
But elsewhere in Sidama Zone speak Sidamic for goodness sake.

5. Anna the red nosed tourist had a very shiny nose
and if you ever saw it you would say she needs aloe.
All of the Ethiopians used to laugh and call her names:
"China!" "Firenj!" and "Chikwa!". Anna was a fun fun game.
Then one sunny Christmas Eve, Anna came to say:
"Eliza, put some sunscreen on so you don't look like your mom."
When we linked up with WiFi, and we Skyped with family,
they were too polite to say, "Anna - your nose - wowie!"

6. Oh come ye to Haile - joyful and triumphant!
Oh come ye oh come for amenities.
Staff are so helpful and they aim to please.
I love sitting in steam rooms!
I love sitting by poolsides!
I love sitting on balconies and drinking wine!

7. Lumpy fluff, lumpy fluff, good for resting heads.
Airports, planes, and hotel rooms, and squashed in Erica's bed, Oh!
Lumpy fluff, lumpy fluff, good for resting heads.
Huts and Cozy Martin's Place and squashed in Erica's bed.
Dashing to the plane, for a 17 hour ride,
Fluff goes through x-ray, sees through his insides (mwa-ha-ha)
Horns on taxis ring, making fluff go wild.
When ZaZa cries while going home fluff snuggles close the child.

Guest post from sister Anna

I'm dreaming of an Ethiopian Christmas. My daughter Eliza and I visited Erica for about 2 weeks, traveling from Addis Ababa to Hawassa, then to Erica's site and back again. What an adventure!

Lunch in Hawassa!

trash burning

A Health Extension Worker and I helped a family burn their trash (options are: burn, bury, reuse). They will use the ash to put in their latrine hole to reduce the bad smell and presence of flies. We also used trash to create a cover for the latrine hole.

hand-washing station

Today we built a hand-washing station near a family's latrine.

This is the mother and father in a family I work with. Their names are Amarech (mother) and Burka (father). They're really friendly.

enriched porridge

A Health Extension Worker and I worked with a family to demonstrate how to make enriched porridge today.