~ Don't Quit ! ~

When things go wrong as they sometimes will,
When the road you are trudging seems all uphill,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit --
Rest, if you must, but do not quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As everyone of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about
When he might have won, had he stuck it out;
Do not give up, though the pace seems slow -
You may succeed with another blow...

Success is failure turned inside out -
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you can never tell how close you are,
It may be nearer, when it seems afar;
So stick to the fight, when you are hardest hit -
Its when things seem worst, that you must not quit.
.....................................Leo Piggoti

NEVER EVER GIVE UP!

Don't give up trying to find your way. But do remember that sometimes it takes bending to avoid breaking....... Katinka Hesselink

Never give up, never give up!
Even if you lose your way
A great many times,
You must realise that your destination
Is sleeplessly expecting your arrival.
............Sri Chinmoy

Never give up
Never lose hope.

Always have faith,
It allows you to cope.
Trying times will pass,
As they always do.
Just have patience,
Your dreams will come true.
So put on a smile,
You’ll live through your pain,
Know it will pass,
And strength you will gain.
..................Charlie Remiggio

Between you and every goal that you wish to achieve, there is a series of obstacles, and the bigger the goal, the bigger the obstacles. Your decision to be, have and do something out of the ordinary entails facing difficulties and challenges that are out of the ordinary as well. Sometimes your greatest asset is simply your ability to stay with it longer than anyone else.........Brian Tracy 

 It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop.......Confucius 

 Perseverance is a great element of success. If you knock long enough and loud enough at the gate, you are sure to wake up somebody....Henry Wadsworth Longfellow


SO, DO NOT EVER GIVE UP!!!

Happy Meskel Celebration to all Ethiopians!!!

HAPPY MESKEL FEAST!

Demera

It's time again to celebrate another grand celebration which is celebrated throughout the country by Ethiopian Christians! Meskel or the feast of finding true cross is a religious holiday celebrated annually by Christians in Ethiopia. It's a way of commemorating the finding true cross by Queen Helena in the 4th century.


This event happens annually on Meskerem 17 according to Ethiopian Calendar (which is equivalent to September 27 in the Gregorian calendar). Therefore, it coincides with the World Tourism Day, which falls on the same day, except during the leap years according to Ethiopian Calendar in which case the Meskel occurs on September 28.

During the Meskel feast, all christian family in Ethiopia celebrate together with their neighbors. This feast is also known as the Feast of exaltation of the holy cross in  Orthodox, Catholic or Protestant churches in other countries.The Meskel celebration includes the burning of a large bonfire, or 'Demera', based on the belief that Queen Eleni(Helena) had a revelation in a dream. She was told that she shall make a bonfire and that the smoke would show her where the true cross was buried. So she ordered the people of Jerusalem to bring wood and make a huge pile. After adding frankincense to it the bonfire was lit and the smoke rose high up to the sky and returned to the ground, exactly to the spot where the Cross of Jesus Christ had been buried.

This Demera-procession takes place in the early evening the day before Meskel or on the day itself, according to local traditions. The firewood is decorated with daisies prior to the celebration. Afterwards, charcoal from the remains of the fire is collected and used by the faithful to mark their foreheads with the shape of a cross (compare Ash Wednesday). There are a number of beliefs with regard to Demera. Accordingly, some believe that it "marks the ultimate act in the cancellation of sins, while others hold that the direction of the smoke and the final collapse of the heap indicate the course of future events -- just as the cloud of smoke the Lord over the Tabernacle offered guidance to the children of Israel (Exod. 40:34-38).

Ethiopian Cross

Besides its religious significance, Meskel has a special festive atmosphere to it because it comes in the wake of the Ethiopian New Year, celebrated on September 11, and heralds the end of the rainy season. Meskel also ushers in the 'Tseday' season, a season with cool, pleasant weather, when the Ethiopian countryside is covered with multitude of colors from the ripening crops, blooming wild flowers and green pasture.

In Ethiopia, eventhough all Ethiopian Christians celebrate the Meskel feast, Meskel is uniquely celebrated in Oromo,Gurghe, Wolaita, Gamo, Gofa, and some others (mainly in the southern part of the country) as some of them consider Meskel feast as a the beginning day of their New Year. 

In most of these places, the Meskel is celebrated by slaughtering a fattened oxen and preparing other cultural dishes to eat during the feast. During this time, parents buy new clothes for their children and the children play the Meskel songs at their neighborhood. In southern part of the country the feasting of Meskel continues up to three to four weeks with different activities and events of the celebration.

HAPPY FEAST!      MELKAM MESKEL!                 ENKUAN ADERESACHIHU!

Happy Ethiopian New Year 2003 to all my fellow Ethiopians!!!

ENKUAN ADERESEN !!!

 

Ethiopia has its own calendar, the Ethiopian Calendar, which is based on the older Coptic calendar in the Julian calendar format. It is the principal calendar used in Ethiopia. It also serves as the liturgical calendar for the Christians in Ethiopia.

Like the Coptic calendar, the Ethiopian calendar has twelve months of 30 days each plus five or six epagomenal days, which comprise a thirteenth month. The Ethiopian months begin on the same days as those of the Coptic calendar, but their names are in Ge'ez. The sixth epagomenal day is added every four years without exception on August 29 of the Julian calendar, six months before the Julian leap day. 

 On the New Year’s Eve, torches of dry leaves and wood bundled in the form of tall and tick sticks are also set on fire in front of houses as the young and old sing. Early in the morning everybody goes to church wearing traditional Ethiopian clothing. After church, there is a family meal of ‘Injera’ (flat bread) and ‘Wat’ (stew). The girls go from house to house singing New Year songs for money and the boys sell pictures about New Year that they have drawn. In the evening, families go to visit their friends and drink ‘Tella’, the Ethiopian traditional beer. While the elders discuss their hopes for the New Year, the children go and spend the money they have earned.

 

'Enkutatash' or 'Addis Amet' is the word for the Ethiopian new year in Amharic, the major working language in Ethiopia. The Ethiopian new year occurs on September 11 in the Gregorian Calendar , except for the leap years, when it occurs on September 12.

As we used to do since old times, now also it is time again to renew our covenant of living in harmony. Our country, Ethiopia, is cradle of human kind and a country of various nations, nationalities and peoples. We have been living in unity and harmony since old times and now as we gear up to celebrate and embrace the new Ethiopian year 2003, we hope to see more blessing and bright future full of good opportunities to our fellow Ethiopians.

Happy Ethiopian New year 2003!

Let's take a look at how humble we are

So many people have said and wrote a lot about humility. It really pays to be humble or being humble, really! Unlike this fact, most of us do not accept or find it difficult to accept the truth. Let me share you some of the quotes I have red from different people's books. Hope it helps :)

 ~ Humility makes great men twice honorable ~ Benjamin Franklin 

~ Humility is the solid foundation of all the virtues. ~Confucius

~ Life is a long lesson in humility. ~ James M. Barrie 

~ I believe the first test of a truly great man is humility. ~ John Ruskin  

~Pride is concerned with who is right. Humility is concerned with what is right. ~ Ezra Taft Benson

Written in Early Spring:

I heard a thousand blended notes
While in a grove I sate reclined,
In that sweet mood when pleasant thoughts
Bring sad thoughts to the mind.

To her fair works did Nature link
The human soul that through me ran;
And much it grieved my heart to think
What Man has made of Man. ~ William Wordsworth

~ For the LORD takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with salvation ~Psalms 149:4
~When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.~ Proverbs 11:2 
~For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.~ Matthew 23:12

Humility!

Have I the ability
To see desires of those
Who need, from me, humility
Where once I stood and froze
It would be God given
A change of self and stance
From being cold and inward
To one who wants to dance
With anyone I come across
Samaritan to all
Available to be the sort
Who's ready for the call.
         ~ anonymous Christian

These and a lot others tell and advise us how we can benefit if we become humble. But, the truth is, most us find it difficult to be humble...let's just try. It's worth it! Peace!!!