I Saw a Hyena.....

12/11/07

I saw a hyena.....hole. ;)

Last weekend marked the third anniversary of the death of a closefamily friend, Eric Dvoracek. He was one of the most amazing men I'vemet and died at age 28 while flying his plane. In honor of hisyoung, adventurous spirit, Beline took me, Mo and Yibe on a 7 hourhike up a mountain that her dad used to take their whole family upevery Sunday when they were growing up in Ethiopia. We hiked throughhyena forests, though all we saw was their holes since they only comeout as the sun goes down. The view of Addis and the surroundingmountains was breathtaking. And what a joy to be ABOVE all the city'spollution for once!!! At the top of the mountain we stopped into therestaurant/bar where Beline's dad used to take the family. In honorof Eric, who liked to drink Jaegermeister, we bought a bottle of the Ethiopian liquor, OUZA, that tastes closest to Jaeger (exactly likeblack licorice). I had the bartender distribute shot glasses toeveryone in the bar (which consisted of the four of us and a few oldvillage men). Then Mo gave a toast in AMharic as I poured shots ofOUZA for everyone. He told them that the "Farengi" (Gringo) hadbought them all shots in honor of her friend Eric who had died on thisday. At that, everyone in the bar stood up, raised their shot glassesand we threw back a bottle of OUZA. (Which, by the way, has a pictureof a stag on the bottle, just like Jaeger). I was very moved thateveryone stood up for him.

After the bar, we continued along the mountain to the ruins of a veryold rock-hewn church called Washa Michael Rock Hewn CHurch. Twobrothers had built the church into one enormous slab of bedrock over1000 years ago. At the church's gate we met a little girl namedRahel, probably six years old. When Beline asked her what she wantedto be when she grows up, she said a pilot. I was SHOCKED. Here wewere hiking up a mountain, celebrating Eric's life and of all theprofessions in the world, this little girl wanted to be exactly whatEric was!!! The whole day was a beautiful celebration.

Peace and blessings,
HT