09/06/2025
“The Light at Kidist Home”
In the heart of Addis Ababa, hidden behind an old blue gate, stood Kidist Children’s Home—a modest orphanage filled with loud laughter, quiet tears, and dreams far bigger than its walls.
Among the thirty children was Eleni, a quiet 10-year-old with bright eyes and an even brighter imagination. She had come to Kidist after losing her parents to illness, carrying nothing but a small backpack and a deep silence.
At first, she didn’t speak much. She watched. She listened. She drew pictures in the dirt. But slowly, the warmth of the caregivers and the kindness of the other children began to melt the ice in her voice. "This is your home now," said Sister Makeda, the head caregiver, placing a hand gently on Eleni's shoulder.
Months passed. Eleni began to thrive. She helped the younger children tie their shoes. She painted colorful flowers on the orphanage’s old concrete walls. And one day, when a visitor asked what she wanted to be, she smiled shyly and said, “A teacher... because everyone here taught me how to love again.”
Though life at Kidist Home was not easy—meals were simple, supplies were scarce, and sometimes the power would go out—there was always light. It came not from lamps, but from laughter, hugs, shared meals, and the unwavering hope that tomorrow could be better.
And for Eleni, and many others like her, it was.
