Hello my Ethiopian friends! This is your Canadian friend Kim! I am grateful that I get to write to you again! I hope that you are all well and that you celebrated and enjoyed your Christmas! I would love to hear more about your Christmas celebrations!

Thank you for creating and sending us the amazing New Year video. What a treat to see your smiling faces and to hear your cheerful voices. I loved your video messages and I noticed that many of you were wearing your Canada t-shirts! How special! We know that it is not your New Year yet so we really appreciate you wishing all of us, your Canadian friends, a Happy 2024! It must have been a lot of work to create that special video! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Do you have any special celebration days in Ethiopia this month? If you do, please write about them in your letter. I love to learn about your culture and celebrations!

This year, our Canadian winter has been very strange. We have not had nearly as much snow as we normally do. It has also not been as cold where we live in Woodstock, Canada either. Instead, we have had rainy and milder winter days. It means that instead of our ground being covered in white snow, we have lots of mud. It is still early though so we could still get lots of cold and snowy days. I am keeping my hat and mittens ready just in case! Do you remember last year that I talked about Groundhog Day and how some Canadians believe that the groundhog’s shadow can predict how much more winter is left here? I still think it is silly that people believe that an animal can predict the weather. It is kind of a funny tradition. What is the weather like in Harar this year?

You may remember that I wrote to you last year about Valentine’s Day. It is celebrated in Canada on February 14 every year. On Valentine’s Day, we like to show appreciation to our friends and family by sending small cards and eating sweet treats. I like to appreciate my family and friends so I love Valentine’s Day! I have been married to my husband, Paul, for more than 30 years. I know that I am fortunate to have a husband who I love and who I get to spend time with. It is special to share a marriage and close relationship with someone special. On Valentine’s Day, Paul and I ate a special dinner together and we exchanged cards to make each other feel special. He also bought me some special chocolate cookies that he knows are my favourite.

In your November letter, you shared some of the things that make you feel scared. You were brave to talk about this and share it in your letter. I am glad that you are comforted when you talk to your friends, to Tesfa and to Grandma Shelley when you feel scared about something. Sometimes talking to someone else about your anxieties can be really helpful and make you feel better. Even adults feel anxious sometimes and we need to have strategies to help us.

In your November letter, you asked about strategies that we have that help our anxiety. When I used to be a school teacher, my students would talk about ways that we can help ourselves to feel less anxious. Just like you, Canadian students have worries and anxieties too. I am going to share some calming strategies with you. These are suggestions that my students used to use so maybe these strategies might help you too.

Four Strategies to Help You When You Feel Anxious:

Talk to a friend or adult (maybe Tesfa) about what you feel anxious about (You already had this idea! You are all so wise!!)
Close your eyes and think about doing something you love. (Maybe imagine that you are playing your favourite game with your friends and that you are having so much fun!)
“Tense and Relax” Strategy
Scrunch up your face and then relax it. Tense up your arms and then relax them. Tense up your shoulders and chest and then relax. Tense up your legs and then relax them. Breathe in a relaxing breath. Breathe out all of your stress and tension.
“Square Breathing”

Step 1: Breathe in, counting to four slowly. Feel the air enter your lungs.

Step 2: Hold your breath for 4 seconds. Try to avoid inhaling or exhaling for 4 seconds.

Step 3: Slowly exhale through your mouth for 4 seconds.

Repeat these steps at least 4 times or until you are feeling better.

I hope that you will find some time to practise some strategies with Tesfa and the other children at the shelter. After you practise some different strategies, you could pick one that works best for you. I would love for you to write back and let me know if any of these strategies help you.

I also loved your idea of making a list of things that you can control and things that you cannot control. This is another brilliant strategy! I know it is difficult but try not to worry about things that you cannot control! Just focus on the things that you can change and control!

Remember that you are loved by Tesfa and by Grandma Shelley and by your friends in Canada!

I cannot wait to read another one of your letters!

Hugs and love to all of you from Canada!

Your Friend,

Kim