Friday, November 10, 2006

E is for Ethiopia I grew up in the swamps of East Bethel, Minnesota. It was easy to find. Just head north from Minneapolis and take a right at the last stop light before Cambridge. Right by the sod fields. Dirt road on the plot next to the collapsed barn. Most of our family vacations were spent exploring the shores of Lake Superior or, if we wanted to get exotic, a trip to Disneyworld. Now I'm poised to make a trip to my third African country. It still totally blows my mind and I am unendingly grateful to be able to take advantage of the opportunity. After voyages through Zambia and Tanzania, the next -ia is Ethiopia. Shown here: There will be visits to ancient Christian churches hewn from living rock, climbs up sheer cliffs to lonely monasteries, the Great Ethiopian Run, a visit to the town where Menelik, the son of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba purportedly brought the Ark of the Covenant. There will be loads of injera. There will be a road trip with loud music by day and lots of beer by night with very good friends. There will be much that is unknown too. But that is why we explore. That is why we learn. Why we peek around corners and overturn stones. It's why we stare at that point on the horizon where heaven and earth meet. And it's why we keep walking towards it. Keep the fires at Base Camp going for the next month and when I return, we'll uncork a bottle of something special, share tales of our time apart and relish the bonds that keep up together. In the days betwixt, please raise a pint and a dram to my well-being and know that it's being returned just one ocean over, next continent down. Ter oo betam! 3:48:24 PM    Say it don't spray it... []

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