With the Ethiopian Christmas upon us, celebrations of the birth of our Savior and King are well under way. From hearing the bible story of baby Jesus to ornament making and holiday singing, it’s happening here at the BCI Academy. One special event has been the visit of Ababa Gena or as we know him, Santa Claus.
Children from Nursery to Grade 1 anxiously awaited their turn to sit in the jolly Ababa Gena’s (Father Christmas’) lap for a quick photo in the BCI Academy Library. The stage was set with a traditionally decorated Christmas tree, a red chair for our visitor to sit in and a very funny and dramatic Santa suffering a very sore back from carrying toys to boys and girls in the western part of the globe the previous week.
Chants of “Ababa Gena” and songs like “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” could be heard radiating throughout the room. One group even broke out into dance as they waited their turn to hold the green ball ornament and sit in Santa’s lap. The kids were dressed in their best and some were even sent to school wearing traditional Ethiopian clothing.
Blessing the Children International 