Ethiopian's at Peace

The day started out as a most calm, serene and melodious church ceremony. it was attended in Badaro, a district of Beirut with my cousin Anne. I had never seen such a lovely site of people, mostly women, before. It seems that in Ethiopia it is tradition to wear a long white veil/scarf on the head and upper body of the figure while at church...this we may call their sunday best. never had i seen such a beautiful sight.
it was like a sea of white with brown undertones. had the gaze been coming from in front, the perspective of the unseen priest behind a curtain, (or other member of the clergy) colors and brown would have predominated the scene. but it was the sound which was the dominant overpowering part of it. the women would repeat after the voice behind the curtain in unison. their natural unintended harmony created one of the most spectacular sounds my ear has ever known. at one point recognizing the word 'salaaam'. but most pleasant, it must be made clear, was the welcoming nature amongst the sea of those WE were foreign to. as we three stood at the entrance of a church, we were hesitant until one lady said come, and we followed her. she lead us down the center aisle wanting us to go all the way to the very front. we said thank you wisperingly and were satisfied with our places were we stopped, awkwardly next to another lady who did not look Ethiopian and seemingly the only other one like us in the crowd. another lady informing us with discreet eyes and hands when to be seated and when to stand. babies as well as women cried making a tear well up in my eye. maybe the woman behind me was sad, missing her homeland or who knows...there could have been a number of possibilities raising such emotions.
it was spring equinox that day and the time had been moved forward an hour so the masses seemed unusually gathered outside still slowly making their way into the over crowded and only Ethiopian mass Lebanon has ever seen.