Communication cross-culturally can be problematic, even when the mother tongue of two people is English; as we see between people from Australia, and people from the States, or even state to state within the US. Communication cross-linguistically adds more layers between which can be folded irritants and hidden messages, indirect barters and missed physical cues. Ethiopia operates, much like China, on its own unique calendar, but also on their own unique time of day. When the rest of the world sets their watches to noon, Ethiopians set their time pieces to 6AM.
David, Deng and I were at the airport eight hours before our flight. The man assisting us in Addis was certain, and certainly wrong that our flight was at 5:30AM. I only use this as an example for the propensity of problems to arise in this unique and beautiful part of the world; ones position in life is often times either strong or weak depending on the flaws in ones understanding of truths.
For some time now, a year perhaps, perhaps a little longer, the SSGMA has been operating on the assumption that the information coming to them out of Ethiopia was accurate. Seeing the land for the first time, walking the hard soil, inviting the bugs to bite and the plants to sting and irritate, must have been a moment of relief for David and for Deng; they haven’t been swindled and what’s more, the land is rich, green, beautiful and ample to their needs.
This was my first time meeting the Gambella contingent of SSGMA; Joseph in yellow and Quatch in red. Joseph has been our delegate in government affairs. Young Quatsh, a student at university, is Deng’s nephew and was to be our errand runner for the trip. Both are sincere and hard-working.
albaniacalling 