Wheels on the Bus go Round and Round

This past weekend I went to Aburi (Ghana’s hilltop haven) with Mawuvio’s Outreach Program.  This was the VERY FIRST excursion MOP has ever been on.  I arrived at MOP and discovered that every child was on time and excited to rock and roll.  We managed to fit 60 kids on a small tro-tro bus.  It was crazy to see how hectic it was.  Kids were on other kids laps and they sang the entire way up.  Some kids gasped when they saw the mountains of Aburi.  They couldn’t believe they were in a different region.  They were ALL ADORABLE!

Once we got there, we found a spot to play games and just discover the gardens.  It reminded me of all the days I spent in the park looking for bugs and climbing trees.  I felt like a little child released into the woods.  We found caterpillars and I talked about how they turn into butterflies.  Some of the kids were so fascinated by this that they proceeded to ask me questions throughout the day. 

We moved places several times in hopes of finding a flat ground for the older boys to play football (American soccer).  This happened to be right next to a helicopter.  The children jumped in and around fascinated with this new jungle gym.  One of the teachers climbed in and made it into a tro-tro calling out places it would go.  Then the children told Renee and I that they would fetch our families.  Oh how I miss being a child, where your imagination takes you to so many beautiful places.

I took several of the children to the bathroom and at that moment I did feel like a mother to them…checking in on them and holding their hands.  When we returned, so of the kids wondered off discovering other parts of the garden, while three of the children and I lay in the grass.  They confided in me, telling me that they loved me and saw me as an important friend and “aunt” in their lives.  I almost cried in front of them because what they were telling me was so moving.  I opened my heart up to all of these kids and I received love in return.

At that moment, I did NOT want to leave.  I don’t want to leave Ghana for that reason.  Just as I am starting to really impact children’s lives I have to get up and go back.  This is indeed how life is…but sometimes it is rough to swallow.

The rest of the afternoon was filled with Ghanaian games.  Mommy was a very popular one—this is where one person is picked as a mom and everyone swarms that person until they fall down. Another, was a version of duck-duck-goose, called fire on a mountain.  This was HILARIOUS to watch because some of the 5 year-olds would pick a 11 year old to chase them…what a sight to see.

I was blissful the entire time in Aburi…what more could you want?

Finals and the Wet Season

Finals have been…interesting.  What is very curious indeed, is how serious Ghanaians take their finals.  Many of them only show up to several classes but the finals are treated as AP/IB tests.  You are only allowed to bring your ID card, pens, and yourself.  Everything else you have to leave outside the building.  I finished my first history final thinking…well at least I am done with that one. I had to write three essay in three hours (I left the room with over an hour to spare).

For the dance final, you had a number pinned onto you so they could identify who you were at anytime.  During the dance final I felt like I was on “So you think you can dance?” but I was obviously not going to make it past auditions.  For the third dance we learned…I LOVED IT…it was about life and the different stages.  You started by working hard and then sliding on through and finally you showed off your talents with the free style (this is where I did a front handspring).  Finally, everyone ended up as an old person.  The dance had a lot of meaning for me.  The previous two dances were fun, don’t get me wrong, but they seemed more important to Ghanaian culture than myself. 

It is indeed the rainy season, and it has been so for several weeks. Mosquitoes are more prevalent and bugs in general seem to appear out of nowhere.  The rain is interesting because it does not rain all day; it rains hard for 30 minutes to 3 hours and then stops…leaving everything wet and muddy.  The vegetation everywhere is lush and green.  I am going to miss this green area a lot.  I have worked up to running twice a week and every time I do run all the lush foliage that engulfs me mesmerizes me.