1. A CHILD OF THE HILLS

1. A CHILD OF THE HILLS

Yayehyirad was born in 1938, in the mist‑shrouded highlands of Gojjam, where terraced fields climb like the folds of a prayer rug. His father, a village priest, taught him the Ge’ez alphabet before he could even walk, and his mother sang the ancient “saba” hymns that spoke of harmony between man, goat, and sky.