I am the Traveler in the story of Stone Soup

Hello Friend,

I am ready to report again and regret that it has been so long since my last report.  Today I've been in Ethiopia for 662 days and have only 137 to go.  I have accommodated to life here and found the experience rewarding, still when I think about you and life back home I miss you. 

 

I'll post some photos here to help you get something of my experience.  Photos help tell the story but there is more of course.  In my mind I experience myself as the Traveler in the story of Stone Soup.

The Story of Stone Soup

a story about making something from nothing

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Once upon a time, somewhere in post-war Eastern Europe, there was a great famine in which people jealously hoarded whatever food they could find, hiding it even from their friends and neighbors. One day a traveler came into a village and began asking questions as if he planned to stay for the night.

"There's not a bite to eat in the whole province," he was told. "Better keep moving on."

"Oh, I have everything I need," he said. "In fact, I was thinking of making some stone soup to share with all of you." He pulled an iron cauldron from his wagon, filled it with water, and built a fire under it. Then, with great ceremony, he drew an ordinary-looking stone from a velvet bag and dropped it into the water.

By now, hearing the rumor of food, most of the villagers had come to the square or watched from their windows. As the traveler sniffed the "broth" and licked his lips in anticipation, hunger began to overcome their skepticism.

"Ahh," the traveler said to himself rather loudly, "I do like a tasty stone soup. Of course, stone soup with cabbage -- that's hard to beat."

Soon a villager approached hesitantly, holding a cabbage he'd retrieved from its hiding place, and added it to the pot. "Capital!" cried the traveler. "You know, I once had stone soup with cabbage and a bit of salt beef as well, and it was fit for a king."

The village butcher managed to find some salt beef . . . and so it went, through potatoes, onions, carrots, mushrooms, and so on, until there was indeed a delicious meal for all. The villagers offered the traveler a great deal of money for the magic stone, but he refused to sell and went on the next day. The moral is that by working together, with everyone contributing what they can, a greater good is achieved.

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In my small town of Iteya, Ethiopia I have been given a certain amount of trust, credibility and respect.  I have used those tools like an entrepreneur, catalyzing opportunities into reality.

 

Here I am making a speech to a crowd gathered at Iteya's Health Center - something short and sweet.

Participants of our Permagarden training. 

Students setting potting tubes for what will become our tree nursery.

 

 

 



 Students and teachers at Iteya High School greeting Mark Gelfand who donated a 100 station computer system to them.

 

  Elsabet and three of her five children outside of her laundry business.  Two were adopted by a US couple. I was able to reconnect them all through Facebook! 

 My metaphor for Ethiopia.  A very old culture sprouting new growth.

These men wanted help to find a way to raise money to support vulnerable children, the elderly and "bar ladies" (sex workers). 

Here I am congratulating a women's organization.  They completed a training, learning to manufacture and sell fuel efficient cooking stoves.

With less than five months I expect to make one or two more entries on this blog site but that is it for this blog entry. 

Being in Iteya has been a privilege - not always easy but in the end, worth it!


Counting the days and hoping to make them count.  Blessings and Cheers to you,
Dex

Peace Corps Volunteer
Ethiopia 2011-2013

 

Images from life in Iteya, Ethiopia

Life is a series of moments.  In an effort to give you a bit of a sense of what mine is like here I offer these photos and a bit of commentary.

A field behind my house. This region in Ethiopia is prime wheat producing farm land.

Parent/farmers cooperatively preparing land for planting wheat.  The property belongs to the school - harvests support the school. 

Much, but not all, of the farming is still done in this way.  Harvesting may be mechanized or might be done by hand with a scythe.  It is not at all uncommon to see animals threshing the grain.

Children:  Some of the most touching aspects of life here are experiences with children.   Most all of them are open and delightfully eager to connect.  The young boy in the bottom photo is named Obama. Folks here are delighted with our President, children, buses, trucks and businesses carry his name.  

Kids ingeniously make their own toys

This little guy was given the name: Obama.

This is Mita.  She lives in my compound.

                                                                                                                                                                                              And speaking of children, on a recent visit to Jawi Guticha,  a rural village 8-10 kilometers from Iteya  I was hosted by Haji Adam Kimo.  Haji Adam has two wives and 25 children.  Pictured here are some of his daughters and in the next photo his sons. 

Haji Adam's house

The women preparing a coffee ceremony

Some of Haji Adam's sons

                                                                                    

One of the four computer rooms the project equiped.

The topic of children brings to mind the studens at Iteya’s High School and the computer project I helped implement there.
When I arrived in Iteya in December, 2011 there were only  20+ computers for the 2,500 students.  One student would sit at a terminal and 6-8 students would sit behind observing. They would switch periodically and that was their computer training.  Now there are 100 work stations. Big thank you to Mark Gelfand and Eyoel Hailu who made this project possible. 

Market Road before trees were planted.

Another amazing project was implemented when I discovered that the city had a plan to plant trees in the median of some streets.  With the help of the mayor, Mr. Musa, we formed a committee.  That committee inspired citizens and businesses to donate 6,000 Ethopian Birr ($335 US) to fund the project.  The city then chipped in some funds and presto change-o trees with their protective cages (browsing goats and sheep) were planted along 300 yards of city streets! 

Trees planted in the median of the road.
Cages are protecting them from browsing goats & sheep.

The really cool part of both of these projects was the excitement they raised in the people.  They are very big on “seeing is believing”.  Seeing change is a BIG deal here in rural Ethiopia.

 A project that I hoped to undertake but then realized I don’t have the time or resources for is establishing a waste management system.  There is none here.  Letting this project go was disappointing for me and the city officials.  I have realized in the 16 months I have been here – change takes time.  Best to take small doable steps on projects important to them, not my good ideas.

To wrap this commentary up here are some typical sceens from my life here:

My tailor.  I have had the knees of my jeans repaired a number of times by this man.  Reasonable fee too, only about 10 birr. (50 US cents)

 My tire went flat, inner tube needed repair.  The repair took 15 minutes and cost 3 Birr, that is less than 20 cents in the US.

·        

·          Since arriving in Ethiopia I lost 20 pounds.  I don’t care for most  Ethiopian cooking. I do enjoy a few dishes, Tagabino, similar to refried beans with garlic, onion and chili pepper, is one that I enjoy.  Across the table you see spaghetti, another meal to my liking if they don’t use butter.  Ethiopian butter usually tastes rancid to me.

·         The Animal Market is held every Monday.  Farmers buy and sell at this Stock Market.  It’s not Wall Street but I imagine some good deals could be had here. ;-)

·         In Ethiopian culture we men hold hands to express our love of one another.  You’ll see men and boys, young and old holding hands as they walk together.  But . . . being homosexual is punishable by death.  (Really!)

Let me hear from you and I’ll reply in my next blog.

Life is good!  Blessings,

Dex

. . . but names will never hurt me.

Deacons holding liturgical parasols and in the center the priest.

This past weekend, January 20-22 the Gregorian calendar,communities in Ethiopia celebrated Timkat, the Ethiopian Orthodox celebrationof Epiphany. On the first day I alongwith a multitude of others formed a procession escorting the priest and churchleaders from the church to a ceremonial site about two kilometers away.

I was with myEthiopian friend Tesfaye watching all this when a man came up to me and starteda conversation. I don’t understand muchAfan Oromo and he spoke very little English so communication was not good butwith all the good feelings of the day it didn’t matter to me. I was feeling the love. At one point Tesfaye got into theconversation and I got out of it. Icould tell the discussion was getting heated but not until much later did Iunderstand what it was about.

Hours laterTesfaye explained to me that, knowing I was an American, this fellow wanted meto give him money, a lot of money. Apparently he was quite offensive so Tesfaye reported him to thepolice. Two days later Tesfaye and Iwere called to the police station and, as is the custom here, the man apologizedas he knelt at my feet.

The curious thingfor me is I felt no affront at all. Thewords, since I didn’t understand them, were not offensive and I felt no needfor defense or an apology. I see nowthat it is not ever words that give offense, that make me react, it is themeaning I give them. That childhoodchant took on a deeper meaning for me that day.

“Sticks and stones my break my bones but nameswill never hurt me.”

Life is good,blessings to you all,

Dex

“The contents of this Web site are mine personally and do not reflect any position of the U.S. Government or the PeaceCorps.”

January 22, 2012 Eteya, Ethiopia

My aspiration in the Peace Corps is to work with my community, inspiring them to possibilities within themselves and helping to better their lives.  At the same time I will immerse myself in a cross cultural experience. 

This quote says it well for me: “No one is more motivated or better equipped to create change than the person whose life and future is at stake.  It is their potential, their energy and their ideas that ultimately will conquer the difficulties they face.”                                           Dexter Nardella

I arrived in Ethiopia on October 5, 2011 with 19 other PCT’s.  Together we attended 10 weeks of training in one of the local languages (Amharic, Oromic or Tegreian), Cross-cultural awareness, Natural Resource skills, country specific medical self-care and Safety issues.

Each of us were housed and fed by a host family.   Negera, Gete, Senyite, Biniyam, Emabet and Yergelum, not pictured here, were my family for those first 10 weeks.

There was an incredibly steep learning curve for those first few weeks of service. Everything was new, exciting, frustrating, confusing, and tiring. And then there were the medically required drugs and inoculations!  For the most part I was stable even enlivened by the experience.  There were moments though when dealing with a new language, new culture, missing the comforts of home, the weeks of training day after day tested my commitment.  

All twenty of us got through that training and on December 16 we were sworn in as PCV’s by Donald Booth, the U.S.  Ambassador to Ethiopia.  The next day we each moved to our service site.  My site is the town of Eteya, about 150 kilometers south of the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa. 

That was more than a month ago.

Farmers, wives and children gather to build soil bunds, a watershed management strategy, across the face of this hillside.

Week 16 in Ethiopia, January 18, 2012

I had an adventure yesterday.  Tesfaye (my Ethiopian counterpart) and I traveled to a worksite where a group of farmers have been working on a watershed management project.  The land looks nearly desert-like and yet they farm it and somehow subsist.  I also visited their elementary school.  Not much there either.  Kids don't have much in the way of books and are fortunate to have a pen or pencil.  There are 12 teachers working with 750 students. 

Visiting there I felt overwhelmed for a time wondering what I could do to help.   Then I began to wonder.  "What do they have?  That question turned my experience around.  They may not have much outwardly but they do have each other and they know how to work together.  And they have the land and they have decided to care for it.

A street in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia.

Ethiopia is a fascinating country that is a combination of the ancient and the modern. Many of the archeological discoveries concerning early mankind were found here. They still use farming methods developed thousands of years ago. Electric power comes and goes, water must often be hauled to homes and shopping can be a challenge.  It takes about two weeks for a letter to travel between here and the U.S.  On the other hand mobile phone coverage and internet is available in most of the country and both are being expanded rapidly.  

Blessings from Ethiopia!
Dex

“The contents of this Web site are mine personally and do not reflect any position of the U.S. Government or the Peace Corps.”