My sense of Ethiopian pride has grown exponentially this Olympic season. As camp staff we do have access to a television with satellite cable in the main dining hall. It may be the most uncomfortable place to watch tv. Wooden benches and tile floors are not exactly ideal for channel surfing :) haha. Anyways, during camp we put the tv away so that both the staff and the campers won’t be distracted. So the last two weekends we have pulled the tv out to watch the London 2012 Olympics. Can I just say, the Olympics are absolutely amazing. You get to watch the best athletes in the world compete against the underdogs from countries you can’t pronounce and didn’t know existed!
A tv remote rule has been developed: the channel can be changed unless there is an Ethiopian competing, when an Ethiopian is competing the channel cannot and will not be changed until the athlete has finished the competition. Last Sunday the women’s marathon was on and several Ethiopians were competing. When the lead group of four pulled away from the rest of the pack, it was as if everyone watching was willing the Ethiopian runner to finish strong. The race was close until the last 0.5 km and at that point the Ethiopian runner was a few strides ahead. Everyone in the dining hall started going crazy. People were up on top of benches and tables chanting, dancing, and singing! When she crossed the finish line a cheer of pure joy and excitement rang through the camp. It was so fun to be able to watch an Ethiopian win gold in Ethiopia! :)
A tv remote rule has been developed: the channel can be changed unless there is an Ethiopian competing, when an Ethiopian is competing the channel cannot and will not be changed until the athlete has finished the competition. Last Sunday the women’s marathon was on and several Ethiopians were competing. When the lead group of four pulled away from the rest of the pack, it was as if everyone watching was willing the Ethiopian runner to finish strong. The race was close until the last 0.5 km and at that point the Ethiopian runner was a few strides ahead. Everyone in the dining hall started going crazy. People were up on top of benches and tables chanting, dancing, and singing! When she crossed the finish line a cheer of pure joy and excitement rang through the camp. It was so fun to be able to watch an Ethiopian win gold in Ethiopia! :)
