I was looking through some of our photos from last year and came across these ones of Zoe and I in our traditional Ethiopian dresses. We were dressed up for the annual Ethiopian Orthodox celebration of Meskel ~ The Holy Cross.
The Meskel celebration includes the burning of a large bonfire that is
based on the belief that Queen Eleni had a revelation in a dream. She
was told that she shall make a bonfire and that the smoke would show her
where the true cross was buried. So the Queen ordered the people of Jerusalem
to bring wood and make a huge pile. After adding frankincense to it the
bonfire was lit and the smoke rose high up to the sky and returned to
the ground, exactly to the spot where the Cross had been buried.
During the day huge bonfires were built in the streets or courtyards of homes and then the children spend time decorating them with flowers. As soon as the sun sett and the first stars in the sky appeared, the bonfires are lit. Men and women joined together in a singing and dancing ritual around the fire until it burns down to ashes.
It was quite the spectacle to be a part of, one that we enjoyed watching as a family and community member in our qäbäle. (neighbourhood)
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