AAAAAHHHHH!!! Where do I begin? Well, I just came back from the Indian Embassy – its 11:15 right now. I got there at 8:50 and left around 10:50. Even though I wanted it to be longer, the 2 hours I spent in the embassy was by far the finest 2 hours of my life.
Ok, when I arrived everything was okay. Dad was with me – we circled the embassy countless timeless. The embassy is enormous; as you enter, you encounter a wide grassy area where you park your car. In front of that is the ambassador’s house. Not the main ambassador (His house is somewhere in Bole) but the deputy ambassador. The house in the embassy is huge and somewhat luxurious, painted white and red. In their fairly large garden, lies a hut painted blue and brown. You could practically see the entire house from outside. The fence that bordered the perimeter of the house was made out of wood, painted green and brown, and quite low. Hindi music played loud in the background as Indian men and women exchanged gossip.
Dad and I were admiring the embassy and saying how smooth and subtle the security was. Then this tall, Indian man in a black suit approached us. He was Mr. Kumar’s friend and also a parent at Sandford School. He knew my name; he said “Hello Eden” and shook Dad’s hand. He told us Mr. Kumar would join us shortly.
When he left, Dad and I continued our long walks around the main garden in front of the offices. The kids my age were curiously staring at me, I didn’t know what to say or do. Loads of Indian men showed up in their fancy suits, looking tall and wealthy. Mr. Kumar showed up with his wife, his family friend and his adorable daughter. His wife said “Tena yistililegn – Eden, how are you? Congratulations. I was the first one to see your website; Very nice.” And I thanked her and we moved on. Mr. Kumar was intentionally walking slowly so he could introduce me to people.
It was phenomenal. First, the deputy ambassador’s wife; a gorgeous woman dressed in a pink sari. She also congratulated me and said “Yes we have something kept for you” yaaaaaaay I thought to myself. I smiled, modestly. I shook her and her children’s hands. And I also greeted other Indian men that passed us by – I couldn’t believe it, everyone knew me – my name and what I had done for the embassy. Mr. Kumar had told everyone and I’ve never felt so proud of myself!
Then the main ambassador’s wife, another beautiful lady dressed in a white and gold sari, was coming towards us greeting everyone. Mr. Kumar stood in front of us, awaiting her warm welcome. “Muri, how are you?” she said. They didn’t hug or anything, they simply waved at each other. “This is the student I was telling you about” he spoke, pointing at me. “Ah, yes, Eden, Congratulations, you did a very good job.” She said shaking my hand. I thanked her sincerely. “You should be proud” she said to dad. He couldn’t stop smiling.
The ceremony was about to start. Dad and I followed Mr. Kumar – everyone stood in front of the stage. We found a good spot and we stood there patiently waiting for the Ambassador to come. Until he came, the deputy ambassador’s wife sang for us. She has an amazing voice – accompanied by a drummer and sitar player. When they finished, the deputy ambassador read the president’s speech then gave his own.
When he finished giving his own speech, he concluded “I’d like to invite Eden Tadesse to the stage, the brightest student in Sandford International School, for designing a website for the embassy”. I froze. I didn’t know what to do. Indian men started looking around wondering who it was. Dad shook me, “That’s you” he said. Still frozen, I looked at Mr. Kumar who said “Come” and everyone looked at me. I thought I had to make a speech, boy was I nervous. My heart stopped beating for a moment and even though I looked confident, I was trembling inside. I was of course staring at the ground; there was no way I was going to look up at all those Indian people without looking clueless. I approached the stage, nervous as hell.
The main ambassador’s wife stood holding two presents. “Eden…” she began, “I just want you to know that we are all very proud of you, ok? Keep it up! You are doing a very good thing and we are very pleased with you. Congratulations” I shook her hand for a very long time and received my presents. She hugged me and said “Come, let’s take a picture” I stood beside her. Mr. Kumar was already in front of us capturing the moment. The minute she hugged me, I’m not even lying, like loads of Indian men came out with their cameras and smart phones and started taking pictures. I felt famous and… accomplished! That was a beautiful moment. Finally, she shook my hand and whispered “Thank you” – I said the same to her. It was moment of great contentment as I walked back to dad, people clapping but not just ordinary people, Indians. “Excellent” Dad exclaimed.
Finally, the deputy guy announced that the ambassador will be coming out soon. Dad said to me “When you finish IB, Murali (Mr. Kumar) will help you get a scholarship to India” Mr. Kumar heard him, he smiled and nodded. Mr. Kumar added “Many Ethiopian students are now getting a scholarship to India for medicine or engineering. Almost 75% are being accepted” Dad was impressed by this. This is so embarrassing, I thought to myself. First of all, I didn’t want Mr. Kumar to know about me wanting to study in India, I just feel as if I’m pressuring him and he’s done so much for me already. Second of all, now Dad’s going to expect me to top every ICT exam, which I know is going to be challenging because I have other subjects that I have to work equally as hard for to get an A*.
Anyways, a moment later, the ambassador stepped outside his office, dressed in black and guarded by his fellow associates. One of them was the tall parent I met earlier. The ambassador walked gracefully to a pole and the parent pulled a rope to unleash the Indian flag. The flag wrapped itself with yellow and orange rose petals and as it unfolded, the petals flew peacefully in the air. What a wonderful sight; following the national anthem also sung by the crowd. Dad and I just stood there awkwardly, at the end, everyone bowed and so did we. The ambassador took the stage and spoke confidently about what a wondrous day it was wishing all Indians a prosperous and joyful day. Surprisingly it was short, but a good speech.
We saw everyone spreading out after that, Mr. Kumar said “Ok we can leave now to get refreshments” I was walking steadily with Dad who was admiring my gift. “Oh there he is, come Eden, let me introduce you” said Mr. Kumar pointing at the main ambassador. We walked towards him then Mr. Kumar said “This is Eden”. He seemed delighted to see me. He shook my hand and dad’s as well. “Hello, it’s nice to meet you Eden. Congratulations!” he said as he glanced at my present. And to dad “Hello, you have a bright daughter, you should be proud.” :)
Wow, I’ve been waiting for this meeting for so long and I finally got it. I saw everyone heading to the main room. I walked with Dad inside and I saw a room filled with Indian desserts. The ambassador was standing by the table; he gently picked up a plate of food. He put it back down and said “You first” – I was amazed. He stood behind me and Dad. Dad and I were confused which one to pick, but we realized they were all the same so we just grabbed a plate of food, a drink and sat down.
As we started eating, 2 Indian girls my age came up to me and said “Congratulations” smiling friendly. I thanked them both. Mr. Kumar came up to me and said “Ok come take a picture with the ambassador (the main one)” so I followed him into a crowd of Indian people gathered near the buffet. He was talking with some people so I waited patiently. Meanwhile, Mr Kumar introduced to this man who used to learn in Sandford 55 years ago!! The man talked to me for a while. He seemed very friendly :) At the end when the ambassador was free, he said “Ok, I hope to talk to you soon about a different reward”. Mr. Kumar led the way; the ambassador was already standing near a table by himself waiting for us. I stood next to him holding my present. We took a few pictures.
After that, 4 girls my age approached me.
“Hey!” one of them said. “Congratulations, so wait, what exactly did you do for the embassy?” She asked politely. “I designed a website for the embassy and I was rewarded the best in the class”. She smiled. “You go to Sandford right?” “Yes” “What grade?” “11” “Ok, do you know *******?” “Um... what grade?” “10th” “Maybe, I’d have to see her first.” I replied.
******** came with another girl. I met them all officially. I told them my name and they asked if I was interested in India so I told them the whole story and that I wanted to study in India. They smiled and nodded at everything I said. They were all so nice. I enjoyed socializing with them until I realized Dad was by himself so I went to him. I told him everything. We continued eating. The deputy ambassador came as we were almost finished and said “Congratulations, it was nice meeting you Eden, so is your website online? Can I access it?” I explained to him that it was simply a model. He nodded then shook Dad’s hand and pat me on my shoulder as he left (because I was eating).
Later, Mr. Kumar approached us with these two catholic women dressed in a white and dim blue uniform. “Hi Eden, congratulations on your reward; Murali showed me your website. Continue with this, ok? You did a very good thing and I hope you succeed in your computer studies” :) She was very nice and her friend approached me and said the same thing. She couldn’t stop smiling. They were both teachers in the most famous cathedral school in the country. Lucky me ^^ They started talking to Mr. Kumar after that and Dad and I continued our normal conversation. I spotted two Indian kids playing and running around. They were so adorable I could eat them both!! XD
Then, randomly, probably the most fun I’ve had in ages, this completely random Indian man came to me and Dad and noticeably started taking pictures with phone. I hugged dad. He showed us the picture after he took it. Dad smiled. It was a nice picture but bear in mind that we don’t know this man; he’s just a random person who offered to take our picture. As he was taking our picture, another stranger approached us. This guy looked younger and more eager to take our picture. I was a little confused. He held his iPhone in the palm of his hands and took a picture of me and Dad individually. When they both left, Dad and I looked at each other and smiled. Mr. Kumar came to us and said “You’re famous now! Everyone wants to take your picture” Lol :) Dad laughed.
When we both finished drinking, dad said “Ok, should we go now?” I didn’t want to leave just yet. We got up and walked to the entrance. Mr. Kumar came just before we left. “Wait, one more picture” he said. Dad and I followed him to the back of the room. There was a huge poster that said ‘INDIA AND AFRICA. SHARED VISION. COMMON GOALS.’ I stood beside it. He took 2 pictures of me. “Thank you” He said as he lowered his blackberry.
Then as we were about to leave – I heard this middle-aged Indian girl say “Wait!” I stood still looking at her. Then her and her friends came up to me, surrounded me and asked this cute Indian guy to take our picture. The flash went off like 6 times! ~ He mumbled something in Hindi and smiled lightly.
“Thank you, by the way, what is your name?” he asked. “Eden” “Nice to meet you Eden. I’ve heard a lot about you. So where do you learn?” “I go to Sandford” “Oh okay. Thank you for the picture anyways” “Okay” I said as I walked away towards Dad and Mr. Kumar. I enjoyed meeting him and many others. We left the main room and as we were walking outside, the main ambassador’s wife smiled enthusiastically and said “Goodbye Eden”. Dad and Mr. Kumar started their own conversation so I drifted away for like a minute.
I saw this Indian guy from our school, in the grade below me, we do MUN together and I remember Arielle and I once teamed up with him to debate same-sex marriages. I remembered him and as I saw him, he waved at me and I waved back. I’m trying to remember his name… Tanay! – A really great guy.
Then Seyoum (my driver) came to pick us up and honestly, I didn’t want to leave. I wanted to meet more people, take more pictures, socialize and interact with other people and chill with the girls my age I met. I wanted to listen to more music and talk to more people about India. Too bad for me, as soon as I saw our green car, I knew it was all over. Mr. Kumar kindly walked us to the gate. We said our goodbyes and left.
On the ride home, I stared out the window and all I can think about was the embassy and the people I met. My head was filled with happy memories, no regret, no doubts. I’ve learnt the words ‘Glee’ ‘Fulfillment’ ‘Satisfaction’ in books, in class, in movies but today I finally get to experience them fully. Fantastic! This is more than I can imagine and not only was this experience touching but it was also motivating in many ways. I wish I could relive this day.
I’m thankful for every single person I’ve met including Mr. Kumar. I’m infatuated with India and most of all, I love my father for always always always being there for me, supporting me through the hard times and inspiring me at my best. When I got home, Mom gave me a speech about God. She said none of this would be possible without him. And she said it’s up to me now, what life has in store for me, who knows? Whether or not I go to India or get one of the best IGCSE result is all up to me. I guess she’s right.
And to my sisters that said they would come but didn’t – Abyssinia and Kalkidan: I’m not proud of what you guys did. I was counting on you and you let me down. You know how much this day meant to me and you didn’t bother showing up. Yanet: I wish you came! One of the biggest mistakes I ever made. You always encouraged me and loved me… thanks for being my biggest supporter! I love you forever and always.
Dear Readers – wherever you may be, I enjoyed sharing my story with you but to sum it all up I must add something important:
If you have dreams, big or small, whether it was 5 years ago or now, I deeply encourage you to fight your hardest to accomplish them. You may think it’s small, perhaps insignificant but remember the smallest spark can turn into the biggest flame. I had no idea that designing a website for the embassy would turn into this. I started off showing friends and family and now I’m shaking the ambassador’s hand as he congratulates me on the hard work I’ve done. I hope this is just beginning to a wonderful and promising academic career!
I will continue blogging guys, keep up with the stories! Ever been in a similar situation? Tell me through my contact box! Xoxo
Dad and I were admiring the embassy and saying how smooth and subtle the security was. Then this tall, Indian man in a black suit approached us. He was Mr. Kumar’s friend and also a parent at Sandford School. He knew my name; he said “Hello Eden” and shook Dad’s hand. He told us Mr. Kumar would join us shortly.
When he left, Dad and I continued our long walks around the main garden in front of the offices. The kids my age were curiously staring at me, I didn’t know what to say or do. Loads of Indian men showed up in their fancy suits, looking tall and wealthy. Mr. Kumar showed up with his wife, his family friend and his adorable daughter. His wife said “Tena yistililegn – Eden, how are you? Congratulations. I was the first one to see your website; Very nice.” And I thanked her and we moved on. Mr. Kumar was intentionally walking slowly so he could introduce me to people.
It was phenomenal. First, the deputy ambassador’s wife; a gorgeous woman dressed in a pink sari. She also congratulated me and said “Yes we have something kept for you” yaaaaaaay I thought to myself. I smiled, modestly. I shook her and her children’s hands. And I also greeted other Indian men that passed us by – I couldn’t believe it, everyone knew me – my name and what I had done for the embassy. Mr. Kumar had told everyone and I’ve never felt so proud of myself!
Then the main ambassador’s wife, another beautiful lady dressed in a white and gold sari, was coming towards us greeting everyone. Mr. Kumar stood in front of us, awaiting her warm welcome. “Muri, how are you?” she said. They didn’t hug or anything, they simply waved at each other. “This is the student I was telling you about” he spoke, pointing at me. “Ah, yes, Eden, Congratulations, you did a very good job.” She said shaking my hand. I thanked her sincerely. “You should be proud” she said to dad. He couldn’t stop smiling.
The ceremony was about to start. Dad and I followed Mr. Kumar – everyone stood in front of the stage. We found a good spot and we stood there patiently waiting for the Ambassador to come. Until he came, the deputy ambassador’s wife sang for us. She has an amazing voice – accompanied by a drummer and sitar player. When they finished, the deputy ambassador read the president’s speech then gave his own.
When he finished giving his own speech, he concluded “I’d like to invite Eden Tadesse to the stage, the brightest student in Sandford International School, for designing a website for the embassy”. I froze. I didn’t know what to do. Indian men started looking around wondering who it was. Dad shook me, “That’s you” he said. Still frozen, I looked at Mr. Kumar who said “Come” and everyone looked at me. I thought I had to make a speech, boy was I nervous. My heart stopped beating for a moment and even though I looked confident, I was trembling inside. I was of course staring at the ground; there was no way I was going to look up at all those Indian people without looking clueless. I approached the stage, nervous as hell.
The main ambassador’s wife stood holding two presents. “Eden…” she began, “I just want you to know that we are all very proud of you, ok? Keep it up! You are doing a very good thing and we are very pleased with you. Congratulations” I shook her hand for a very long time and received my presents. She hugged me and said “Come, let’s take a picture” I stood beside her. Mr. Kumar was already in front of us capturing the moment. The minute she hugged me, I’m not even lying, like loads of Indian men came out with their cameras and smart phones and started taking pictures. I felt famous and… accomplished! That was a beautiful moment. Finally, she shook my hand and whispered “Thank you” – I said the same to her. It was moment of great contentment as I walked back to dad, people clapping but not just ordinary people, Indians. “Excellent” Dad exclaimed.
Finally, the deputy guy announced that the ambassador will be coming out soon. Dad said to me “When you finish IB, Murali (Mr. Kumar) will help you get a scholarship to India” Mr. Kumar heard him, he smiled and nodded. Mr. Kumar added “Many Ethiopian students are now getting a scholarship to India for medicine or engineering. Almost 75% are being accepted” Dad was impressed by this. This is so embarrassing, I thought to myself. First of all, I didn’t want Mr. Kumar to know about me wanting to study in India, I just feel as if I’m pressuring him and he’s done so much for me already. Second of all, now Dad’s going to expect me to top every ICT exam, which I know is going to be challenging because I have other subjects that I have to work equally as hard for to get an A*.
Anyways, a moment later, the ambassador stepped outside his office, dressed in black and guarded by his fellow associates. One of them was the tall parent I met earlier. The ambassador walked gracefully to a pole and the parent pulled a rope to unleash the Indian flag. The flag wrapped itself with yellow and orange rose petals and as it unfolded, the petals flew peacefully in the air. What a wonderful sight; following the national anthem also sung by the crowd. Dad and I just stood there awkwardly, at the end, everyone bowed and so did we. The ambassador took the stage and spoke confidently about what a wondrous day it was wishing all Indians a prosperous and joyful day. Surprisingly it was short, but a good speech.
We saw everyone spreading out after that, Mr. Kumar said “Ok we can leave now to get refreshments” I was walking steadily with Dad who was admiring my gift. “Oh there he is, come Eden, let me introduce you” said Mr. Kumar pointing at the main ambassador. We walked towards him then Mr. Kumar said “This is Eden”. He seemed delighted to see me. He shook my hand and dad’s as well. “Hello, it’s nice to meet you Eden. Congratulations!” he said as he glanced at my present. And to dad “Hello, you have a bright daughter, you should be proud.” :)
Wow, I’ve been waiting for this meeting for so long and I finally got it. I saw everyone heading to the main room. I walked with Dad inside and I saw a room filled with Indian desserts. The ambassador was standing by the table; he gently picked up a plate of food. He put it back down and said “You first” – I was amazed. He stood behind me and Dad. Dad and I were confused which one to pick, but we realized they were all the same so we just grabbed a plate of food, a drink and sat down.
As we started eating, 2 Indian girls my age came up to me and said “Congratulations” smiling friendly. I thanked them both. Mr. Kumar came up to me and said “Ok come take a picture with the ambassador (the main one)” so I followed him into a crowd of Indian people gathered near the buffet. He was talking with some people so I waited patiently. Meanwhile, Mr Kumar introduced to this man who used to learn in Sandford 55 years ago!! The man talked to me for a while. He seemed very friendly :) At the end when the ambassador was free, he said “Ok, I hope to talk to you soon about a different reward”. Mr. Kumar led the way; the ambassador was already standing near a table by himself waiting for us. I stood next to him holding my present. We took a few pictures.
After that, 4 girls my age approached me.
“Hey!” one of them said. “Congratulations, so wait, what exactly did you do for the embassy?” She asked politely. “I designed a website for the embassy and I was rewarded the best in the class”. She smiled. “You go to Sandford right?” “Yes” “What grade?” “11” “Ok, do you know *******?” “Um... what grade?” “10th” “Maybe, I’d have to see her first.” I replied.
******** came with another girl. I met them all officially. I told them my name and they asked if I was interested in India so I told them the whole story and that I wanted to study in India. They smiled and nodded at everything I said. They were all so nice. I enjoyed socializing with them until I realized Dad was by himself so I went to him. I told him everything. We continued eating. The deputy ambassador came as we were almost finished and said “Congratulations, it was nice meeting you Eden, so is your website online? Can I access it?” I explained to him that it was simply a model. He nodded then shook Dad’s hand and pat me on my shoulder as he left (because I was eating).
Later, Mr. Kumar approached us with these two catholic women dressed in a white and dim blue uniform. “Hi Eden, congratulations on your reward; Murali showed me your website. Continue with this, ok? You did a very good thing and I hope you succeed in your computer studies” :) She was very nice and her friend approached me and said the same thing. She couldn’t stop smiling. They were both teachers in the most famous cathedral school in the country. Lucky me ^^ They started talking to Mr. Kumar after that and Dad and I continued our normal conversation. I spotted two Indian kids playing and running around. They were so adorable I could eat them both!! XD
Then, randomly, probably the most fun I’ve had in ages, this completely random Indian man came to me and Dad and noticeably started taking pictures with phone. I hugged dad. He showed us the picture after he took it. Dad smiled. It was a nice picture but bear in mind that we don’t know this man; he’s just a random person who offered to take our picture. As he was taking our picture, another stranger approached us. This guy looked younger and more eager to take our picture. I was a little confused. He held his iPhone in the palm of his hands and took a picture of me and Dad individually. When they both left, Dad and I looked at each other and smiled. Mr. Kumar came to us and said “You’re famous now! Everyone wants to take your picture” Lol :) Dad laughed.
When we both finished drinking, dad said “Ok, should we go now?” I didn’t want to leave just yet. We got up and walked to the entrance. Mr. Kumar came just before we left. “Wait, one more picture” he said. Dad and I followed him to the back of the room. There was a huge poster that said ‘INDIA AND AFRICA. SHARED VISION. COMMON GOALS.’ I stood beside it. He took 2 pictures of me. “Thank you” He said as he lowered his blackberry.
Then as we were about to leave – I heard this middle-aged Indian girl say “Wait!” I stood still looking at her. Then her and her friends came up to me, surrounded me and asked this cute Indian guy to take our picture. The flash went off like 6 times! ~ He mumbled something in Hindi and smiled lightly.
“Thank you, by the way, what is your name?” he asked. “Eden” “Nice to meet you Eden. I’ve heard a lot about you. So where do you learn?” “I go to Sandford” “Oh okay. Thank you for the picture anyways” “Okay” I said as I walked away towards Dad and Mr. Kumar. I enjoyed meeting him and many others. We left the main room and as we were walking outside, the main ambassador’s wife smiled enthusiastically and said “Goodbye Eden”. Dad and Mr. Kumar started their own conversation so I drifted away for like a minute.
I saw this Indian guy from our school, in the grade below me, we do MUN together and I remember Arielle and I once teamed up with him to debate same-sex marriages. I remembered him and as I saw him, he waved at me and I waved back. I’m trying to remember his name… Tanay! – A really great guy.
Then Seyoum (my driver) came to pick us up and honestly, I didn’t want to leave. I wanted to meet more people, take more pictures, socialize and interact with other people and chill with the girls my age I met. I wanted to listen to more music and talk to more people about India. Too bad for me, as soon as I saw our green car, I knew it was all over. Mr. Kumar kindly walked us to the gate. We said our goodbyes and left.
On the ride home, I stared out the window and all I can think about was the embassy and the people I met. My head was filled with happy memories, no regret, no doubts. I’ve learnt the words ‘Glee’ ‘Fulfillment’ ‘Satisfaction’ in books, in class, in movies but today I finally get to experience them fully. Fantastic! This is more than I can imagine and not only was this experience touching but it was also motivating in many ways. I wish I could relive this day.
I’m thankful for every single person I’ve met including Mr. Kumar. I’m infatuated with India and most of all, I love my father for always always always being there for me, supporting me through the hard times and inspiring me at my best. When I got home, Mom gave me a speech about God. She said none of this would be possible without him. And she said it’s up to me now, what life has in store for me, who knows? Whether or not I go to India or get one of the best IGCSE result is all up to me. I guess she’s right.
And to my sisters that said they would come but didn’t – Abyssinia and Kalkidan: I’m not proud of what you guys did. I was counting on you and you let me down. You know how much this day meant to me and you didn’t bother showing up. Yanet: I wish you came! One of the biggest mistakes I ever made. You always encouraged me and loved me… thanks for being my biggest supporter! I love you forever and always.
Dear Readers – wherever you may be, I enjoyed sharing my story with you but to sum it all up I must add something important:
If you have dreams, big or small, whether it was 5 years ago or now, I deeply encourage you to fight your hardest to accomplish them. You may think it’s small, perhaps insignificant but remember the smallest spark can turn into the biggest flame. I had no idea that designing a website for the embassy would turn into this. I started off showing friends and family and now I’m shaking the ambassador’s hand as he congratulates me on the hard work I’ve done. I hope this is just beginning to a wonderful and promising academic career!
I will continue blogging guys, keep up with the stories! Ever been in a similar situation? Tell me through my contact box! Xoxo