May 16, 2006 (April update)

Check out my photos from April!!!

The month of April felt like a long one for me. I traveled to the southern half of the country – mostly business, some pleasure. This was the first time I was in Accra, the capital of Ghana, since we flew in last September. I spent some time learning the city and eating a lot of good (but expensive) food. It takes about 16-19 hours on a Greyhound-type bus to get to Accra. Typically there is A/C and the bus is usually very clean and comfortable. It’s still a really long time, though … certainly not a trip I want to make often.

I really missed my friends and quiet village life while I was away. My community has truly become my home. God must have heard my prayers because Binaba got three really good rains and it cooled off dramatically. The rainy season isn’t quite here, but it’s definitely not as hot and the farmers are sowing seeds and getting ready!! I’m about to start planting my garden. I’m also going to farm groundnuts (like peanuts), so that will keep me busy. For those who know me well are probably laughing right now – city girl farming!! Ha!

The first night I was home, we got a really strong wind/rain storm that blew the roof off my summer hut. I locked myself inside my room and listened to everything blow around outside. The next morning, my neighbors and close friends all showed up to make sure I was okay. They saw the mess when they came inside and spent the whole morning helping me clean. Nearly every home in Binaba had at least some (if not a lot) of damage, so it was humbling to have my community come to help me first! It’s just one (of many) examples of how hospitable and welcoming these people are. They continue to amaze me every day.

More great news in Binaba while I was away!! My counterpart, Vic, delivered a healthy baby boy on Sunday, April 23rd. They’ve asked me to give the child his English name, which is such a great honor. The pressure is stressing me out, though. By this time next month, I will have given the baby his name and we will have performed a big naming ceremony.

I mentioned in my last update that BWFA was trying to get a loan for the women to purchase onions to fill our storage facility. Like I explained before, farmers all over Ghana harvested onions at the same time. In keeping with the laws of supply and demand, the price of onions dropped way down. So, the women purchase and store onions until the price goes back up in June/July timeframe. Well, we did in fact secure a loan with an interest rate of 28% - before you choke, know that this is a pretty good rate here. So we are pleased.

I’ve posted several pictures from my travels on my website, as well as updated the “ ghana” section. I hope you’ll check them out whenever you get a chance.

Until next time, MJ

p.s. Did you know that Ghanaian English is a recognized language? Well, it is and it’s actually quite different from American English. Ghanaians have a difficult time understanding Americans when we speak, so to facilitate communication I’ve altered my speech. I’m realizing that my writing has also changed. So, if you’re reading my letters and wondering why something sounds weird, this could be why. I will add that my language trainer told me once that he understood me much better than other new volunteers because I speak much slower than them – they, of course, used this as an opportunity to pick on southerners.

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