The bittersweet end…

One of my ‘small boys’ was coloring at my house the other day and he stops for just a second to look at me and asked why I was giving everything away.  I replied with…

“Well Maxwell, my time in Ghana is finished and I’m preparing to go home.”

He responded… “I want to go with you.”

And I’m thinking if I could only take all the children that have made every moment in the village unforgettable I would. 

Maxwell continues to color for another minute or so.  Then he stops, hands me his drawing and asks…

“Sister Abra (my village name) will someone be coming after you”

“I don’t think so, but maybe in a year or two.  And Maxwell if someone does come to replace me, remember to show them all the love and kindness that you showed me, ok?”

Maxwell looked me in the eye and replied, “but Sister Abra they wont be you.”

He was ripping my heart out.

It’s hard to believe that the end is here… two years has gone by, that I am a RPCV (Returned Peace Corps Volunteer). 

There were of course many moments along this journey had me questioning this ‘crazy’ decision… to live in a developing country for two years… to try and help a rural village… to live as a minority in Africa… to live without running water, constant electricity, and a permanent connection to the world.  But this journey had moments that made these two long years soooo worth it… seeing my women’s group earn their first round of money, watching the girls during the Camp GLOW learn that they can achieve what they want, coloring with my children, initiating all the volunteer led trainings and somehow succeeding in Ghana. 

These past two years have been challenging, educational, inspiring, humbling, and at times absolutely incredible.  Ghana has opened my eyes to a whole new world, filled with different languages, customs and culture.  Ghana has shown me different ways of living, helped me to be more accepting and taught me patience.

Ghana, thanks for challenging me, educating me, humbling me, and creating some of the best memories of my life.

Year 2… the books I’ve read
* Year 1 book list ended on book 54 read…

55. German Boy – by: Wolfgang W.E. Samuel
56. The Shack – by: William P. Young
57. Oxygen – by: Carol Cassella
58. Post Mortem – by: Patricia Conwell
59. Autobiography of a Yogi – by: Paramahansa Yogananda
60. The Kite Runner – by: Khaled Husseini
61. Angles and Demons – by: Dan Brown
62. Ford Country Stories – by: John Grisham
63. The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake – by: Airnee Bender
64. The Catcher in the Rye – by: JD Salinger
65. The Bourn Identity – by: Robert Judlum
66. The Grapes of Wrath – by: John Steinbeck
67. Smashed – by: Koren Zailckas
68. Memoirs of a Geisha – by:
69. The Samurai’s Garden – by: Gail Tsukiyama
70. The Rape of Nanking – by: Iris Chang
71. The Outside Boy – by: Jeanine Cummins
72. The Legend of Colten H. Bryant – by: Alexandrea Fuller
73. Velva Jean Learns to Drive – by: Jennifer Niven
74. Nineteen Minutes – by: Jodi Picoult
75. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone – by: JK Rowling
76. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets – by: JK Rowling
77. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban – by: JK Rowling
78. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire – by: JK Rowling
79. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix – by: JK Rowling
80. Harry Potter and the half Blood Prince – by: JK Rowling
81. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – by: JK Rowling
82. East of Eden – by: John Steinbeck
83. The Rainmaker – by: John Grisham
84. The Client – by: John Grisham
85. The Firm – by: John Grisham
86. The Hunger Games – by: Suzanne Collins
87. The Hunger Games, Catching Fire – by: Suzanne Collins
88. The Hunger Games, Mocking Jay – by: Suzanne Collins
89. A Thousand Splendid Suns – by: Khaled Hosseini
90. Cold Sassy Tree – by: Olive Anne Burns
91. About a Boy – by:
92. Moloka’I - by: Alam Brennert
93. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet – by: Jamie Ford
94. Game of Thrones – by: George RR Martin
95. Tripwire – by: Lee Childs
96. The Shining – by: Stephen King
97. For Time and Eternity – by: Allison Pitman
98. Bridget Jones’ Diary – by: Helen Fielding
99. Winter Garden – by: Kristin Hannah
100. Sweet Ophelia – by: Kenneth Rosenberg

Woot Woot!!! Hit my goal of 100 books read during my two year service!

30 things to do when “light is off”

1. Go hang with my ‘children’
2. Go talk with my ‘family’
3. Read a book
4. Finish the book
5. Start a new book
6. Color with my ‘children’
7. Stare at the wall
8. Fetch some water
9. Eat the food in my fridge
10. Continue to stare at the wall
11. Contemplate life
12. Come up with ten new ideas of what to do when I finish Peace Corps
13. Finish all the food in my fridge
14. Disregard all new ideas of what to do when finished and create 5 more
15. Play suduko
16. Watch a TV show or movie and pray that the light will come back so I can charge my computer
17. Pace my room (two steps and then turn around)
18. Attempt to nap
19. Continue to attempt to nap
20. Walk around my village ‘greeting people’
21. Go back to my favorite thing… staring at the wall
22. Dance like a mad man
23. Stare at the wall some more
24. Bake some peanut butter cookies
25. Play another round of suduko
26. Listen to some music
27. Sit in front of my fan pretending that the light is on and I’m being cooled off
28. Continue to sit in front of my fan
29. Consume every last morsel of food in my fridge (just incase light does not come for a long, long time)
30. Stare at the wall till the light finally comes
• “light” in Ghana means power
• And yes I have done all of these things while waiting sometimes only an hour or up to several weeks for “light” to come again.

We are Peace Corps Ghana Environment 2010-2012

The days tend to all blend and I have a hard time telling a Monday from a Friday, and a Saturday from a Tuesday… the only day of the week that I know what day it actually is, is Sunday when my village people dress in their finest to attend church.  But during these past few months, when all the days seem as one I have been working hard with my Women’s Group trying to give them ‘life skills’ before I depart from Ghana. 

The pepper (pepe) farm is up and running with the first harvest just around the corner.  From a previous project… building rabbit cages (so happy to of had that project be a success!)… we have been able to collect the rabbit poop and use it as manure around the pepper plants and well as using the weeds as a carbon layer to add nutrients back into the soil.  The hardest part about the pepper farm is convincing the women that they MUST water, as that was the whole point behind this project of  “dry season farming.”  With the extra space that the Women’s Group was given for farming, we have been planting ginger, the second largest cash crop in the part of Ghana that I live in.  We purchased 15 bowls (not just a salad bowl size, but rather 10 salad bowls put together) of ginger and have been planting it during the past few weeks.  Ginger takes about 10 months to grow, and I’m sad (but not really that sad) to say that I won’t be around for the harvest. 

Osage Gardens has just ordered their 4^th round of Flour Sac Bags from the Kute-Buem Women’s Group… turning the “Flour Sac Project” into a huge success to help the women in my Women’s Group generate money through life skills.

I have been “hanging out” with my “small boy” … as he had been trying to teach me the local language, and I’ve been trying to introduce him to American Cuisine.  He is now a major fan of banana bread, and can successfully make it himself in a Dutch oven.  I’ve also had him try, pesto pasta (unfortunately not from my parents basil), pizza (made in a Dutch oven), salad (with a vinaigrette dressing, rather than just mayonnaise), Asian stir-fry with tofu, as close of Mexican as I can get in Ghana (homemade tortillas, guacamole, etc.)  I’m really trying to show him that the world has more than just fufu to offer.   

I played a small part in helping plan the annual All Volunteer Conference for Peace Corps Ghana Volunteers.  Sponsored by the Feed the Future Initiative, we talked about “Pounding out Hunger” in Ghana through various Food Security projects.  Everything from making cheese, and jam, to soil conservation, back yard gardening, bee farming, and solar drying was discussed during the three day conference.  It was truly a success as volunteers went back to site with ideas that play into all the sectors of Peace Corps Ghana. 

It’s hard to believe that my service is almost up, and in 3 to 4 months I’ll be state side enjoying everything that the US has to offer… excited… VERY!

The Kute-Buem Women’s Group has successfully got the “farm” up and running, and so far so good.

With many complications along the way, such as price increase of supplies and dispute over the border of the land that we were given, the Kute-Buem Women’s Group finally has the fence built, the pepe (spicy pepper) planted, and is now working on cultivating the rest of the land around the farm to plant ginger. The 13 women are working well together to make this project a complete success.

Group farm day planting ginger

digging the mounds to plant the ginger in

weeding the 'pepe' farm

My Real Peace Corps…

 There has been a blog circulating around, causing a ruckus about ‘The Real Peace Corps.’ And the writer had it down to almost a T about ‘The Real Peace Corps’ (you know what we are actually experiencing)… the writer described in his blog “some days I could be perfectly happy watching paint dry”, “I have dreams about a bowl of ice cream with a brownie diving board”, he told the girls to “stay strong”, talked about how his “sweat sweats”, and made reference to when the public transport is full they cram about 15 more people in. And lastly the writer said that when the public transport breaks down, because it’s inevitable that is will, there is only one thing on the side of the road being sold to eat, of which is his least favorite food ‘in county.’

Again the writer almost had it down to a T… Some days when the power is out, my computer is dead, I’m sick of reading, I’ve already spent a few hours greeting people, watching people, and I’m bored beyond bored. I probably could be perfectly happy watching paint dry. I was told that in Peace Corps you learn to turn your thoughts off when that bored, and well yep, I’ve hit that point. I know how to turn my thoughts on and off… all the while watching paint dry.

I’ve never had such intense food dreams/thoughts/desires/craving. I could really go for a bowl of ice cream right now, or just a glass of milk, I would settle for something dairy, anything dairy… oh and some chocolate would be great too.

I’m trying to “stay strong” as the writer said… but being a women in a male dominating world is hard, really hard… harder that I ever anticipated.

My sweat does sweat… I never knew that I could sweat that much and then continue to sweat some more, and a little more after that.Public transport is a story unto it’s self… lets just say I long for the day when I don’t have to argue with the mate to put my bags on the car, or when my rear end isn’t rubbed raw by the end of a journey because the seat I was sitting on had no padding. I’m ready to have room for my legs (and I can only imagine how really tall people feel… because the cars sure as hell don’t have enough leg room for me and I’m only 5’ 10”). But mostly I’m ready to be in a car that hasn’t crammed in 30,000 extra people.  

But these are just the small things (that we like to complain about when other volunteers and myself get together)… the writer didn’t talk about what is compelling him to be there, the times that make it all worth it. My real Peace Corps is filled with moments that make my day and make it worth me being here, doing what I’m doing. ‘Ghana Moments’ as we like to call then, are times when my small children around my house help me to bake banana bread, sing and dance, ask for help on their homework. When my little girl would rather I hold her than her mother, when my family knocks on my door telling me that they are preparing my favorite Ghanaian dish and that I will take some with them. Going to farm with my family, or helping the children fetch water and laughing with them as they float down the river in their bowls making fun out of a mundane chore. Ghana moments were watching the girls come alive at Camp GLOW, and seeing them realize that they can make it. Or hearing my Ghanaian Mama tell me I am her child now, and how she will miss me when I go. Seeing my women’s group come together to work, or watching as they have earned something small all on their own from the work they are doing. Ghana moments are giving my family American food, watching as they try it, and then having them tell me that they enjoyed and they would like more. Having my ‘brother’ ask if I can bake him a birthday cake because he has never celebrated his birthday and would like to celebrate this year.

These ‘Ghana Moments’ are my ‘Real Peace Corps.’

nothing but SMILES!

Girls Leading Our World… also know as GLOW, is a chance for PCV’s who are all in a close vicinity to work together to help educate, encourage and empower the next generation of girls to help lead our world.

With many setbacks (primarily due to our budget getting cut in half and not allocated to us on time) the Middle Volta Peace Corps Volunteers were finally able to host the Mid Volta Camp GLOW a month after we had originally planned. But even with all the setbacks we decided that this was our opportunity make this camp better than ever.

In the prior weeks to the camp 10 PCV’s in the Middle Volta area started to invite Junior High School Girls (equivalent age of 7^th graders) to attend a 3 full day, 4 night camp to talk about leadership, education, peer pressure, sex education, HIV/AIDS, and livelihood skills. We invited Senior High School Girls (equivalent of high school girls) to be the leaders of the girls. We had empowered women come speak and encourage these girls, we brought in nurses to talk about sex education, and we brought our own personal experiences, knowledge, ideas, and goodies for an amazing 3 full days.

The Stop Motion Movie says it all.

There are still many things I don’t understand about Ghanaian culture and customs. I’m not sure I ever will. I can really only ask questions and try and grasp what is being told to me in broken English, and every now and then I can try to search things on the internet… but that is far and few between.

My latest quest to understand is Taboo, Juju and Fetish Priests, and the spirits that are connected with them.

Taboo is things that are forbidden… this changes form tribe to tribe and village to village. Some villages have a day of the week that is taboo to farm on, or having a dog is sometimes considered taboo. In Kute-Buem fetching water with a black bowel was once considered taboo, as well a using any sort of black bowel to carry anything. Fridays washing clothing in the river was also once taboo. It was said that if you wash your clothing on a Friday and fall in the river a snack would come a kill you. I was told that these taboos have been lifted because the Buem tribe no longer solely occupies Kute, but rather it has become a transitional town.

To my understanding in Ghanaian Culture a Fetish Priest is a man who has certain powers to harm people that have committed a crime, or done something wrong. The Fetish Priest has the power to cast bad juju upon someone. This can only happen when someone who has had the wrong done unto him goes to the Fetish Priest and the Fetish Priest calls upon the spirits to cast the bad juju.

The three stories I’ve heard where someone went to a Fetish Priest because of what was done to him all resulted in death for the other party involved, usually resulting in more than one casualty. The three stories are as follows (please remember that I still don’t fully understand, and all this has come to me second hand and through broken english)…

Story No. 1…

Some man (we’ll call him Fred) lost a large some of cash. The cash supposedly fell out of his pocked as he was getting on a tro tro in his village. Once Fred realized that he had lost the money he went back to his village to look for it, but to no avail. Since his village was rather small he was able to make an announcement about the loss of a large some of money asking that whoever found the money give it back because it belonged to Fred. But no one stepped forward claiming that they found the money. Fred waited several days and repeatedly asked if anyone had found then money. He finally said that he would go see the Fetish Priest because “someone” stole his money.

Meanwhile another man (we’ll call him Joe) found the money. He was rather pleased with himself… having had to do nothing but be in the right place at the right time to get the money. He never said anything to his wife, but rather went to purchase a few things with the money.

Fred went to the Fetish Priest and told the story and how no one had stepped forward claiming they found the money. The Priest mad an announcement that if the person who found the money didn’t turn the money back over in a few days time he and his entire family would die. The Fetish Priest rang the gong, cast the bad juju and the days started their count.

Joe didn’t turn the money over. He wanted it for himself, and after buying a few things he didn’t have it anymore. So on the fourth day Joe, his wife and children died.

(Yes this seriously did happen, not in my village but in another volunteer’s… no autopsies were given, but rather it’s said that the spirits killed Joe and his family for stealing the money.)

Story No.2

A chainsaw operator (yes that is a profession in Ghana… even if it is illegal to cut trees down) was sawing down some trees and apparently cut down one on someone’s land. The landowner (let’s call him Kofi) was furious. Kofi, wanted that tree there, it provided shade and if times got rough then he could cut it down himself and sell the wood (there is a lot of money in cutting down trees to make boards.) The chainsaw operator (we’ll call him Edem) probably knew what he was doing, cutting down a tree on someone else’s land and keeping all the money he received for himself. As they saw in Ghana, shame, shame.

Well shame was cast upon Edem and his family. Kofi was mad; he wanted the money from that tree. He demanded that Edem pay the money, but Edem was taking his sweet ol’ time getting the money back. Just as Edem was arranging to send the money back to Kofi, Kofi went to the Fetish Priest, the gong was rung and the bad juju went out. With in a matter of days, the brother from Edem died because he was the one who was suppose to hand the money over to Kofi once Edem sent it, then three days later Edem died. And to top it off the person whom Edem gave the money to, to give to his brother also died (the money was coming from Accra to the village, and because money isn’t really transferred through banks here its sent through people).

(Again another true story… and this is how my landlady became a widower.)

Story No. 3

This time it’s a lady, Afia, who was married to a man, Elom. Afia wanted a divorce, said she was through, and walked out, but left her things behind. Elom, furious went to the Fetish Priest for the bad juju to be cast.

The Priest spread the juju saying that Afia would die in a matter of days after “sleeping” with another man.

I saw her on Tuesday (yes, someone pointed her out to me) walking with a “new guy” looking strong and healthy; and on Friday she died (the same person came to me in shock on Friday to tell me how the spirits killed her because she wanted to divorce her husband).

All three of these cases are mysterious to me. Why not just do an autopsy, test the blood to see if there was poison, or if it was some other illness that caused the death. But as my tailor was telling me about it she just kept saying it’s the power of the African Spirit.

So this is Peace Corps

And what have you done

Another day over

And a new one just begun

And so this is Peace Corps

I hope you have fun

The Northerners and the Southern ones

The Education and Omnibus

A real Peace Corps Volunteer

And a eager one too

Let’s hope you’re a good one

Without any apprehension

And so this is Peace Corps

For determined and for strong

For young and for old

The world is at your beck and call

And so true Peace Corps Volunteer

Stay optimistic and positive

Be confident and motivated

Let’s be the change agents

A true Peace Corps Volunteer

And a True Peace Corps Experience

Let’s hope it’s a good one

Without any problems

And so this is Peace Corps

What have you done

Another book finished

And a new one just begun

And so this is Peace Corps

I hope you had fun

The Northerners and the Southern ones

The Education and the Omnibus

A real Peace Corps Volunteer

And a cynical one now

Let’s hope you were a good one

Without any fear

Peace Corps is almost over

If you want it

Peace Corps is almost over

Now…