How Do Ethiopians Celebrate Christmas?

Ethiopia is one of the oldest nations in Africa. It still follows the ancient Julian calendar, so Ethiopians celebrate Christmas on January 7. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church's celebration of Christ's birth is called Ganna. It is a day when families attend church. The day before Ganna, people fast all day. The next morning at dawn, everyone dresses in white. Twelve days after Ganna, on January 19, Ethiopians begin the three-day celebration called Timkat, which commemorates the baptism of Christ.

What is Timkat?
Timkat or Epiphany is the most important festival in the Ethiopian calendar. It is celebrated all over Ethiopia, but the most spectacular celebrations are reserved for Lalibela, an isolated mountain town in the arid north of the country. Lalibela is famous for its unexplainable rock-hewn churches. Over a thousand years ago 11 churches were carved out of solid rock, and many Ethiopians believe they were built by angels.

How is Timkat Celebrated?
The festivities begin in the 3rd week of January, usually around the 19th January. Crowds, all dressed in white, dance and sing in the streets to the beating of drums. Priests, decked out in jewel encrusted velvet and satin robes, carry a replica of Arc of the Covenant called a talbot. They lead grand procession through the streets.

The real celebration begins at about 2am after the processions lead the people to a place symbolic of water baptism. Priests perform mass and bless the water. A communal baptism follows, with the most fervent Christians throwing themselves fully clothed into the water.

What's the History of Timkat?
Ethiopian history teaches that Christianity came to Ethiopia long before it spread to Europe. Missionaries arrived in Ethiopia some 40 years of the birth of Jesus. Epiphany is the 12th day of Christmas, when the three kings were said to have bestowed their gifts upon the baby Jesus. This day falls on 6th January in the western calendar.

Here is a video of a young mans personal journey to Timkat.

The Family Genes - Paternal

Heredity and genes are always interesting. What gets passed down by who and how? Here is the paternal family tree. From my dad's side I think we got big eyes and a lot of hair!

The only picture that I know exist of my great-grandmother Mary Almeda.

My paternal grandmother and my aunt.

Me as a little girl next to my niece.

Not long ago and today.

The Family Genes - Maternal

Here are a few pictures from my mother's side of the family. You can see pictures for my father's side too.


Below is a picture with both of my grandmothers. I believe it is the only time that they ever met each other. Left to right is my father's mother Virginia, my mother's youngest brother Pete, my oldest brother Michael, and my mother's mother Louise.

And...here is my mother. Miss Myrtle or (Aunt) Myrt as she was called. Here she is in New York in the 1950s and later in the 90's.

The only sad part about this adoption is that she is not here to see it. December 27 will be the third anniversary of her death. One thing that she talked about a lot before she died was that she wanted me to have children of my own. Well, now I can tell her that she got her wish.

Me and my mother at my graduate school graduation. Even that was a long 14 years ago. But, one of my mothers many many sayings was, "I'm not getting older, I'm getting better." So, I must be getting close to being my best right now.

This picture isn't very recent but it is the only one that I could find with everybody on it (except for my youngest brother). My father, my sister-in law, oldest brother, my mother, and me.

Pilgrimage to Ethiopia

The Abyssinia Baptist church of New York that was named after Ethiopia just returned from their pilgrimage to Ethiopia. You can read part of the story below.

It took a 7,000 mile journey for the congregation of New York City's Abyssinian Baptist Church to find themselves.

One-hundred-and-sixty members of this historic Harlem house of worship traveled in September to Ethiopia on modern-day pilgrimage to birthplace of the church's founders.

Click here to read Lauren Green's reflections on her trip to Ethiopia

"We believe that that's the real center of the redemption of Africa, the real heart of Africa," said the Rev. Calvin Butts III. "Because it's peaceful, it's never been colonized and its people are fiercely independent and self reliant, and that's how we see ourselves."

Ethiopian merchants cofounded the Abyssinian Baptist Church in 1808 along with African-Americans who deserted the First Baptist Church of New York City when it decided to racially segregate seating.

Click here to view photos from the trip.

The Adjective for Today is EXCITED!

I was always taught to be grateful for small things and this adoption process takes that to a new level. I find myself getting excited by every single thing in the process except for delays. But even with the slightest delay my good friend said to consider that a blessing because it just means that the process is slowing down just enough so that the most special children can be found for me.

Today I learned that my home study will actually be finalized and OFFICIALLY approved by my agency this week not in 4-5 weeks as I had originally believed. It could even happen TODAY! The faster the home study is approved the faster I get official program acceptance and go on the Wide Horizons' waiting list. With the approved home study I am only waiting for my dossier to be approved (Wide Horizons received it today also) and for my CIS approval.

I received the receipt from CIS (immigration) that they have received my application. The wait is now for fingerprinting -- again. This I really don't understand but it is a part of the process. What seems weird about it is that one of the very first things that I ever did in the process was get fingerprints taken that were sent to the FBI. I was cleared by the FBI in about a week and now a few months later I have to wait to take new fingerprints and have them cleared too.

Oh well. It comes with the process. Nothing will damper the excitement that I feel today.

The Dossier Is In the Mail

Yes! I completed the dossier and sent it off on Tuesday. It wasn't difficult getting any of the documents but it felt really good to take it to the post office yesterday. I had this really funny postal clerk. She asked me what I was sending off and then she said, "they are going to call you in April to give you the children." From her mouth to God's ears. April would be a great time for a referral.

So for those of you keeping up with this the Ethiopian Dossier is a collection of documents that go to the ET government body MOWA for Ethiopian adoption approval. What's in the dossier?

• Power of Attorney documents allowing a representative to work on your behalf in ET.
• Statement describing why you want to adopt from Ethiopia.
• Letters of recommendation
• Police Clearance stating that you are not wanted for any crimes.
• Financial Statement
• Medical Attestation that you are free of TB and other serious illnesses
• Photos of you, the outside, and the inside of your house.
• Birth certificate
• CPA letter of the self-employed or Employment verification letter for others.

Since I sent it express mail, my dossier is now in the hands of the adoption agency. I think it now has to be sent to Washington D.C. for some certifications (not sure) and then sent to country.

The Family Tree

Since I've been talking a lot about the significance of names in the Bible I thought that I would post a family tree that I found from the Bible. The names in red are said to be the geneological links to Jesus. You can click on the picture to enlarge it.