It is actually the 26th today but I am findng I cannot write before bed now. I am too tired, and with us being in one room, we go to bed at the same time as Mikiyas. You'd think that meant we get lots of sleep but we're up often through the night with him. So the 25th ...We enjoyed breakfast, which Mikiyas outdid both of us on eggs. He took his medicine, wanting more, and let me brush his teeth. Brushing his teeth means he spits on the floor. We then headed to Hope International with Mestafin driving. He is Selemnah's brother. Mikiyas was still not feeling too great, but well enough that we could go for a while. Mikiyas really took to Mestafin too.
We met Freihwot from Hope and toured the offices and library. The trip to Hope was not what we expected. It was much larger than we assumed. They provide huge libraries for studying, and art facility and instructin / information on health, including AIDS awareness. We were there for about an hour and a half, just touring the facilities. Finally at the end we were able to interrupt a class to play for about five minutes with the cloth Frisbees we brought. Hope is doing a wonderful job, with hundreds of kids benefiting. The organization hopes to have about 3000 kids attending their libraries next year.
There is a huge difference in the kids that attend Hope and those in Canada. The kids at Hope want to be there. They don't have to be, but some will walk hours, just so they can have the opportunity to study and learn more. Them excelling helps themselves, but also helps their families. No one forces them to go. It is through our financial help that the resources become available for these students of all grades to have the ability to attend school, study, and learn about health, hygiene and life responsibilities, and be provided with daily necessities such as food and water. Without help from organizations such as Hope, many of these young people would possibly have died.
Mikiyas was in a bad mood the remainder of the day, right up until bed. We had managed to bring his fever down the night before, but he still wasn't 100% so we kept the day pretty low key, with our two outings being brief. Lyle returned to the German Embassy with the other families to pick up the transit visa he applied for the day before, while I attempted to spend happy times with Mikiyas in our room. The entire hour was spent in a temper tantrum. What a change from the morning, which had made us think it would have been a good day.
In the afternoon, what should have been post nap but he refused, we went to Churchill with the other families to do some quick shopping. Of course Mikiyas fell asleep right away. We joked that we will need to spend nap times driving the city. Selemnah was nice enough to stay in the van while we did some shopping so Mikiyas could continue to sleep. By the time we came back to the Weygoss, he had slept for an hour.
Mikiyas had a lot of temper tantrums today, including hitting, kicking and throwing, but then would switch his mood instantaneously to be laughing and playing. He doesn't say much, but whines for hours on end. By dinner time Lyle and I both became quite stressed out, both feeling the need for some air. We persevered though, knowing Mikiyas was needing to trust and feel better.
Just before we went to bed, for the first time we let Mikiyas turn on the tv. He and Lyle laid on their stomachs with feet kicking in the air. It was adorable and helped wash away the frustrations of the day. Mikiyas fell asleep in between us on the bed, but we moved him to the crib, of which he slept in the entire night this time.
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