Amharic at library. Tues, Jan 23, 2007.

01/23/2007. 781. I was running errands on the west side of town, and stopped at a public library to check email. I saw an Ethiopian-looking girl, about 10 or 12 years old in the lobby prior to my turn. Her turn at a public terminal was before mine, and she eventually sat next to someone and talked with him as if she knew him. While I was waiting for my turn, I went out and got an Amharic and an English Book of Mormon from the car.

After my turn on a terminal was over, I found her again in the lobby, and politely asked if her family was from Ethiopia. She said they were from Eritrea. Eritrea is next to Ethiopia and used to be part of it. The main language of Eritrea is Tigrinya, but many also speak Amharic as a second language. So I asked if I could talk to her mother or father, and she said they weren't there, but her big brother was. She pointed him out, and I approached him.

I asked him if they spoke Amharic, and he said they spoke Tigrinya, but that his father and older brother spoke Amharic. Since I've given out many copies already, I asked him if he had seen the Book of Mormon in Amharic and showed it to him. He said they did not have it already. I asked if he thought his father would like a free copy, and he sounded confident in saying that he would, so I gave him the pair of books, and pointed out the flyers and cards inside. He thanked me for them, and I suggested they could call me or the church office if they wanted to learn more.