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[teodroseIII]

Teodrose Fikremariam was once a noted political activist, a prolific writer who later fell on hard times in the United States. With much accomplishment and willing to reflect on his own life in order to promote a slew of public causes and issues he cares about, the Ethiopian – American recently reflected on his own American story, on his activism, on the recent conflict in Ethiopia and on how others can learn from his, if they want to follow in his footsteps.

You are many things to many people – a prolific writer, an activist and an entrepreneur.

First of all, thank you for this opportunity. I am just Teodrose. For a long time I did not know who I was. I arrived in America at the age of eight in 1984 during the height of the famine in Ethiopia. The one place I felt at home, the land that gave birth to me, was all the sudden taken away as my family and I became refugees.

A life of sedet erased my connection to the land that I loved, whereas I once lectured adults about the need to love and honor Ethiopia at the age of six, all the sudden I felt muted by sadness and, frankly, depression. My life has been that of overcoming this depression, of trying to fit in while never feeling accepted. I write a lot because it’s my form of therapy. Between music and the pen, I am trying to bleed out years of sadness, of seeing my father struggle with PTSD and my mom struggle with depression.

I really struggle with whether or not I should tell their stories but since their stories are my stories, I feel moved by Fetari to tell it so others don’t struggle in shadows and cry alone as I did for such long stretches of my life. Who am I? I am a man who has many wounds who is trying to heal, who misses his dad Fikremariam and his mom Sara Shewangizaw. I am every Ethiopian, my story and my tears, my sorrows and my joys are that of our people who float back and forth between desta and hazn. [continued]

READ FULL ARTICLE AT: https://ghionjournal.com/in-interview-t ... d-in-love/