A Pocket Full of Passion

 I just got back from Accra after having spent this weekend with some of my friends. A nice break is always good. I realized that I hadnt really missed much in Accra. Coming back to the island I brought back with me is a pocket full of passion. Passion for doing something I love, getting something I want – joyful passion I call it. I have been soo busy this past two weeks trying to fit in, to get adjusted and to finally say, well this is home!! How could I have forgotten good old passion? Coming back from Accra yesterday gave me a renewed sense of that and for the first time since I arrived two weeks ago, I felt the flicker in my eyes and the anxiousness that comes with wanting  to live every bit of this passing moment instead of enduring it. This past week has been great!! I am officially an islander now. If you call me a stranger I’ll tell you I’m from here. If you call me an acquaintance I’ll tell you I’m a friend. Some days have been hard, when trying to control a bunch of 30 kids in one class does not seem to work and the only option is to use a cane but I still refuse to do so. Kids screaming, complaining, fighting, running around and not paying attention – this is a typical characteristic of a day that’s not going too well but the ones that hit hard on my heart are days when the kids don’t do class work because they have no books, can’t afford to buy pencils or have no 50 pesewas lunch money to pay for the lunch that is served at the school. There are some days where I seem to lose my patience with myself and with the children because they either don’t make any efforts at learning or just really need help in grasping what is being taught. On days like this I am ashamed of myself because I can do better, be more patient and be more understanding. Most times all they really need is a little bit of attention from me. But no one learns everything in a day and as time comes and goes, learning and experience brings maturity.

This past week something bizarre happened. A 5 year old Kindergartner was sent to the hospital at night. What happened? She had been stabbed by her father on the head. He came over to their hut to threaten his wife who he does not live with anymore. She is a single parent as he does not take care of any of his kids. The wife tried to escape and unfortunately this little girl was also in the room. He stabbed her instead and afterwards, without any remorse slashed her cheeks as well. He was of course arrested and put behind bars but from what I am hearing he has probably been released. I still cannot comprehend how a father can do this to his own daughter? How this really beautiful kid is now scarred physically and emotionally and how she is going to grow up with scars on her face? I saw her at school a few days later; she had bandages all over her face. All the other kids were staring at her. She says no words and when you speak to her she only nods. She is a really strong kid and I hope that she will do fine. According to the other teachers, she was seen dancing at church days later and no one could make her sit down, she refused. What an amazing spirit she has J

The island is a great place to live. I like it more with each passing day.it is very big and full of kids. There are kids everywhere. Most of the families have at least 5 kids or more according to my observations. They never tire of screaming MADAM- MADAM every time they see me. I gave my KG’ers a treat this past week by showing them the Lion King animated movie. Imagine a class full of 50+ small faces looking intently on a tiny laptop screen with the look of surprise on their faces. I am unsure of whether they have seen a laptop before, it is probably unlikely judging from their reactions but it was a good movie hour of silence and some chaos when some kids kept standing instead of sitting in order to see more. They did not understand the language but they intently followed the story with their curious eyes. Tomorrow I will be showing them another animated movie and again every Wednesday of the week. This promises to be fun. I have been doing lot of creative things with the kids and I have realized that they enjoy doing new things. They are always so excited to do something new. We have been painting and drawing using most of the school supplies I brought (colours, crayons A4 sheets) because most of the kids don’t have any. You should see their enthusiasm, it’s absolutely amazing. Kids are amazing!!!

On the lighter side.......

This is what one of my kids drew today. We were learning about the parts of the body and we taught them about the lungs for air and the heart that beats in our chest. We asked them to draw  the human body and this is what one of the kids drew….LOVEABLE!!

A PLACE I CALL HOME

This past week has been a long one for me.  For me, it’s been the most challenging week of my year yet. On Monday I was dropped off on an unknown Island, cut off from the rest of the main Ada land. Days before coming, I was restless, finally realizing that I was about to embark on a crazy adventure. I was restless because I couldn't back out and wouldn't be able to anticipate my reactions to things, and interactions with people and the environment. I have been here for 8 days and have endured the really warm nights in a mosquito net. I have no choice since the insects here bite with a menacing vengeance, and the thatched roof does little to ease my current sufferings from the heat.

The first two days were particularly hard. I felt very isolated and lonely with no one to talk to. My host family is great but even the constant chatter of the host kids did nothing to soothe me. I had forgotten that I needed to allow myself to get acquainted with my new experience. I was still two days behind in time, wanting to take a nice long shower in the morning instead of an untreated bucket shower from the river, wanting to wake up and do whatever I wanted with my day, turning on the fan all day in my room and most of all using power whenever and however I wanted. These past few days have taught me differently and no matter how much I would want to cry during those days, I have finally learned to appreciate simplicity, orderliness and chaos side by side; loneliness and friendly chatter from a person I just met and most importantly, contentment. At night I sit outside with nothing to do because it is dark everywhere, then I watch the stars up in the sky and soak up the moonlight. Nothing beats being able to do that every night in all the calm and cool breeze all around me.

I live with a host family in a compound with two mud house which have thatched straw roofs. There is spacing between the roof and the wall which means insects can come in and out whenever they please. I have my own room, something I am very grateful for. Almost everything is done for me by my host family.  My house is a 2 minute walk to the beach but most of the riverbank is covered with a tree which means less beach space. There are several communities here on the island (I never seem to remember the names. Mine is called Kpetupanya. The main occupation here is oyster mining and fishing. There are oyster shells everywhere, heaps and heaps of them and they are also used for paths and walk ways. I tried some this past week but still getting used to it. My host family kids take me around the island. I have seen about 80% of it, hopefully by the end of this week I will be able to see all of it.

For the past week, I have been interning at the Pediatorkope Basic School on the island. It also serves some of the other islands that do not have schools. I help out as a Teacher’s Assistant in the kindergarten class. My class has a lot of children and most of the class activities are conducted in Ga- Adangme which is the prominent local language here. I don’t understand Adangme as I only speak Twi. This makes interaction very hard for me because the children know little or no English and most children in class 1 and 2 still can’t speak English.  It’s taken me a while to get adjusted with the school and the children. I remember most of their names now and can tell them apart. Now the kids know me as “Madam” or “Teacher”. I wish I was J . Most of them are very slow and have difficulty grasping basic concepts, even ABCD’s; they still can’t write it out. The teacher I work with is great and we get along really well. I hope when I start the research part of my internship in a few weeks, I will be able to have time to still help out at the school.

School starts at 7.30am and closes at 1.50pm, and then I walk home with the children, down by the beach so I can see the calm water moving quietly along the river bank before I get home. No traffic, no congestion, no pollution, just lots of slow and reflective time.  I know my way around now and even though I am still regarded as a stranger, I am getting to know the community more and more. And the coconuts, simply delicious, I have never had such delicious coconuts before in my life. I told my host kids that I am not eating anymore coconuts. They asked me why? I told them that if you eat too many coconuts you will grow fat. They seem to think that it was the most ridiculous and funniest thing ever. I got a good laugh at my expense; even my host mother seemed to think it was ridiculous and joined in as well….OH!! The simple things!!

Things I have learned this past week

1.      People are welcomed here with coconuts, not coffee or Tea

2.      Everybody knows everybody (I get interrogated every time I leave the house: who are you, where you are from; what are you doing here. The questions never end).

3.      Electricity and running water is a privilege here

4.      If you have an opportunity to do something positively different, never say no.

5.      There is always a smile waiting to be shared somewhere around you.  Share it back

On the lighter side…

One guy was shaving another grown man’s armpit at the beach, as I was taking a canoe back to the Island from Big Ada on Saturday afternoon. He seemed very excited and fascinated about having it done with a razor. He kept giggling - am guessing that this was his first time. He had both shaved, and then he touched it and smiled… (TIGO). THIS IS GHANA OH!!