Week 7: Let Your Love Grow Tall

I have now passed my halfway point and am no longer counting up but counting down. I cannot believe the growth that I have already experienced on this journey and I am excited to see how much more I can learn and grow. I apologize if you are looking for a quick read, for the purpose of my family i just cant leave anything out!! Love you all!

June 12, 2012

I spent a few more hours transcribing interviews this morning and then went into the hospital to observe for an hour before we left to go to Agona. We met up with Cassie and Natalie at the Gentle Spot to eat our fried rice lunch and to get a drink, today there were these malt drinks with a pear taste that were soooo good! I don’t ever like soda or carbonation at home but I drink it every once in awhile here because it helps my stomach and I think the carbonation might kill off some stuff that resides in my stomach so I might even start drinking it a little more often. The café was great as it always is and Cassie and I got the best email from Professor Bibb. We had both been freaking out about our requirements and were feeling overwhelmed with the numbers that the syllabus was stating and we felt like we could not accomplish all that we needed to while still being able to focus on exactly what was important. Professor Bibb vanquished all our concerns as she does every week, gave us a little guidance, and told us to keep up the good work so we were both very relieved and I think it is going to be a beautiful week since I feel confident and good about my research progress and about what is going on with the way it is developing and such. Not having to worry about if I am getting the right amount of stuff for a grade makes it all a little bit easier as well because now I feel like I can just really live here and I can just spend my days with the people learning and growing and I am going to try to do 5 interviews a week though tomorrow I have 2 set up and I already did two on Monday so I may even get more than that so things are just going swell. We went to the café later than usual because Cassie had an interview this morning and didn’t get done until really late so the market was super annoying. Usually it is fun and we enjoy just wandering the market and getting all the things we need but there were fights going on with swinging fists and yelling drivers in the midst of all the taxis and everyone seemed super tense and people just kept hitting all our backpacks and not being patient at all because we were apparently walking too slow and so we just felt like we were kind of getting jostled around so we got out of there as quickly as we could. We were not able to get everything we wanted either because the good stuff is gone by the end of the day. the only fruit we could scrounge up were a few bananas but we can have them with our oats in the morning so we are happy about that. Before we got in the taxi we got a sweet bun and a fan milk which is the worlds best and it makes us so happy to eat because it actually tastes super good to us, the sweet bun is kind of like a cake donut but with a crunchy outside and the fanmilk is vanilla ice cream that tastes like vanilla cake batter so its all sugar basically but it put us back in a good mood as we rode the taxi home. All of our laundry was ready to be taken off the line and folded and placed back in neat piles on top of our suitcases when we got home so we got to work. it is really fun to take the laundry off the line buuuuuut the worst part of hand washing is that the soap is never entirely out of the clothes and my clothes are getting wrecked big time. Towels are the worst, they feel and smell super weird and I felt mine this morning when it was still wet and it was just sticky with soap so that’s awesome. My shirts are all 3 times bigger than they were when I bought them so they are all just falling off my shoulders throughout the day because the necks are so wide and the V’s just keep dippin lower, soon I think you will be able to see my stomach so that will be a fun adventure. It’s a good thing I didn’t bring anything I planned on keeping because these clothes are definitely going to get left behind. Washing machines are a dream I tell ya. Once again it was just a spiritual feast reading my scriptures today and I loved every minute of it. Look at this centipede!!!

June 13, 2012

TODAY IS MY HALFWAY POINT! Nuts I say, my second week here I would have told you that this day would never come. Research was great today as I was able to get a lot of good information. I spent a good part of the morning reading my textbook and developing new interview questions and observed with one of the Doctors for a few hours. I really enjoy observing with him and I learn so much every time. I especially learned a lot about malaria in pregnant women and what the complications are as well as the risks and difference in treatment for the different trimesters and such. Malaria is everywhere here, I hear that it is not as bad in the cities for obvious reasons but in a rural community with lots of jungle around it is a huge threat. The worst part of my day today was when a nurse rushed a mother and her child into the room while I was observing. The mother looked terrible and I could see that the baby was in a bad way. The Doctor got up the minute the woman sat down with the baby to get his gloves so he could examine her…to make a long story short the baby was dead when the mother arrived. The mother had been at a health clinic about 30 minutes away and was referred to our hospital but the Doctor said that in the shape the baby was in she should have been on oxygen and in an ambulance but instead the mother was just given a referral and expected to find her own way to the hospital. Looking at the babies chart her temperature was only 2 degrees below normal which had to mean that she had not died too long before the mother made it to us. I did not realize that the baby was dead at first but then when the mother starting sobbing softly I had my suspicions. I did not get a good look at the baby which I am now grateful for because with the urgency I felt from the Doctor I did not want to intrude by peering around the mother. When the Doctor had pronounced the baby dead I wanted to crawl into the corner to cry. The mother just placed her baby right back on her back and tied the cloth around her as every mother does with their child and she walked out with the nurse. I just sat there numb for a moment as the Doctor ran out to call the clinic, he was very upset with how the situation had been handled. The child had malaria. He made a comment about how children should not be dying from malaria in this day and age and I just could not even believe what had just transpired before my eyes. I feel weak now as I type this. That poor mother came in with hope as she prayed that the Doctor could heal the child she probably already suspected as dead. My heart was broken as I thought about the Plan of Salvation and I just wanted to chase after her to tell her that it was going to be okay and that she could see her baby again. I have been so blessed in my life to have never experienced the death of a loved one when I was at the age where I could understand it but my own child, I just do not even know what I would do. The baby was not even one year old, she was tiny. I prayed for strength to continue as I told the Doctor that I felt like crying. He said that as a Doctor you just have to be strong for the patients. You talk about it for a minute and vent your frustrations and then life goes on. And it did, the next patient came in just about 8 minutes later and we continued on. Driving to Wiamoase to go do an interview with one of the teachers at Cassie’s school I was just looking at the beautiful jungle as I always do and my heart was so full of gratitude for the Plan of Salvation and the knowledge that I have about returning to live with my Heavenly Father again. I am sure that losing someone I love will be very hard but not knowing that I would ever see them again and thinking it was the end would be unbearable. Seeing death is something that really changes perspective and hits a place in my heart that has never been hit before.

Jackie and I got to Cass and Nats and Cassie and I headed off to Pats house. When we got there she had prepared a dinner for us and it was so good! The father of a family that lives in Pat’s little compound had just returned from business in China so he had prepared it and shown her how. It was just cabbage, tomatoes, carrots, and a little pepper with meat that looked and tasted like steak. So good. She gave us almost a whole plate of rice which I had to shove in because I felt rude not eating it all but the stuff with it was so good that it was not too hard. Nothing like the mackerel I ate for the first week here. The father came out and was talking with us and somehow we got on the topic of the Gospel. He had read the Book of Mormon but got scared when it came time to get baptized because there is a notion in Ghana that people who join the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints become rich through “juju” or spiritual money. Apparently the members of the church start to become more successful in their businesses and happier in their families after joining the church and all around they start to live richer lives so it puts a stigma on members who join as sort of sell outs. Cassie and I tried to explain to him about the Church Welfare Program and how our principles and values instill hard work and morals into the lives of the members and how it was not the church that was giving them money, but they themselves were learning how to live a better life and that, in turn, could be what is helping them to lead a richer life monetarily speaking. We did not go into tithing but I am sure the families are also being blessed when they pay their tithing but it was the most interesting thing because I never would have thought there could be a stigma against joining the church because you became “rich”. That is just not something I would ever encounter in America and I wonder if the same notion stands in other countries and continents as well. We talked with him a lot about the Book of Mormon because he was under the impression through talking to some anti-mormons, that we worshipped Mormon himself. We told him that Mormon was just a prophet like Moses and that he abridged the Book of Mormon so that is why the book is name after him but that we only worship Jesus Christ. Cassie and I were sitting in chairs across from the man and his wife and child were sitting on the step just diagonal to him and Cassie looked over at me at one point and laughed saying that she felt like a Sister Missionary. We aren’t supposed to preach too much to people here because we are not missionaries but we answered his questions and referred him to the Branch President when he kept trying to ask us more. It was so fun though, I now have an idea about how it feels to be a missionary expelling rumors and fallacies about the church from peoples minds and teaching them about the truthfulness of the Gospel. It is so cool. I respect all my missionaries out there so much, they are doing an amazing work. I got home around 8 and I could not even stay awake to write my notes because it had been such a long day. At home I can get 5 hours a sleep a night and still do hw into the wee hours of the night but here with the heat and the nature of the work, I don’t know why I am just exhausted all the time.

June 14, 2012

This morning I went to the hospital for the clinical meeting but it was cancelled because a team was coming to accredit the hospital today. There are 6 SDA Hospitals in Ghana and ours is leading. People from other hospitals throughout the region come once a year to ‘peer review’ one another’s hospitals in service, cleanliness, and all that jazz. I know understand why our whole hospital was painted, new signs were brought in, new chairs, the tops of the desks were redone, all kinds of things, it practically looks like a different place but it looks super nice; so there was a lot going on today with them. The Doctor who intimidated me before came up to me and talked to me today without me needing to shyly address him and we had a short conversation but there was a laugh or two and it felt so good. I am still not confident enough to ask if I can observe him in his room but he read over my IRB form and told me to take it to the Secretary we she could print it out on letterhead and then he would sign it and fax it over to BYU so I think we took a huge leap today. Observations were good and I had another interview this afternoon and I really love all the nurses and Doctors that I interact with here so it is super fun to be here as I learn more about malaria and the peoples perceptions of gender roles every day even though I always think I have learnt more than there is to know. The good thing about knowledge is that it is endless and there is so much to learn every single day. Walking home from work I was in a super chipper mood as well and talking with everyone on the streets and dancing Azonto was such a joy. Sometimes when I am walking I wish I could just look at myself through a camera from up above to take in the whole picture of where I am and what I am doing. Thinking about the spot where I am on the world map right now is nuts too! I even had a good time writing my hours of field notes today which was certainly a tender mercy from the Lord because sometimes it is so repetitive and tedious that I can hardly stand it, though I think the hardest part is just not having a comfortable place to sit or lay to do it, the actual writing is enjoyable sometimes, like today. I realized that the part of my brain which recognizes language is all clumped into one because a lot of times when I am trying to say something in Twi random Spanish words will pop into my mind and I cannot think of what I am trying to say in Twi because I can only think of Spanish. I haven’t taken Spanish since Sophomore year of High School, I don’t know how that happens. Another great thing about today was that I made a list of things that I miss about America and the things that I love about Africa and the things I love list was longer than those things I could think about missing but man I sure do miss those things sometimes. I just try to tell myself that one day I will be missing the splendor of this place and will be wishing I could take a bucket shower and will be missing going to the bathroom in the dark because I don’t want to see what bugs are lurking in the corners, and being so hot that my clothes are drenched and especially when I have to put on makeup and do my hair again I will be wishing I was back in Africa. This place is truly incredible, this experience is truly incredible. King does these great Azonto dance workouts all the time so tonight I asked him if we could join him and we ended up dancing in the courtyard for about an hour and man it was hard. I was soooo sweaty because the moves he was teaching us were tough and they worked me good. it was so fun though we are going to start doing it more, though I said that at the beginning too and this is only the second time but realllly this time. It’s the best kinda workout and you forget that you are actually working out because you are just dancing your feet off. So fun to have King around!

June 15, 2012

Today I went on an unexpected trip which was quite the adventure. I walked up to the female ward this morning to use the restroom and one of the male nurses started talking to me. We chatted for awhile and then I left. A few minutes later he came and found me and said that they were going to Agona for blood donations and that they wanted me to come so they would be waiting for me. It did not exactly click in my brain what was going on because he said it so fast and just walked away so I went and got my backpack and was directed to the hospital van and I hopped in. It was myself and 6 other men and there the adventure began. In the car on the way there I was still confused because they were all just speaking in Twi and we made a few pit stops picking up various items but when we pulled up to Agona Senior High Technical School it all made sense. It was just the equivalent of a blood drive. We unloaded the van into the dining hall and it drove away. The dining hall reminded me a little bit of ones at Girls Camp because there are just a bunch of wooden tables lined up with benches and the cooks were distributing identical silver pots to every table. The students started filing in and everyone brought their own mugs and glasses. A blow horn siren blew and they all stood up at once then sat back down. One girl at the head of each table dished everyone up their porridge and handed them a piece of bread. They all ate in near silence and the only spoken words were whispered. After a few minutes a girl got on the blow horn and delivered some announcements and then the siren rang and they all filed out. That is when we got set up. I have never had the opportunity to donate blood but after seeing how it is done in these circumstances I will be less scared to do so in the future if I am even allowed to, I don’t know if I will be able to since I’ve lived in Africa. I was put in charge of labeling the Blood Bank bags with blood type and donor number along with today’s date and the date of expiration for the blood. One of the tables was set up for testing the blood type as well as for testing HIV and Hep B, both of which can be transmitted through blood to blood contact.

I have a tiny cut on my foot and bloody cotton balls are just thrown on the ground after being used to be cleaned up later and though they were not at my table I was honestly terrified that I was going to get HIV. I prayed so hard that I would remain unexposed and that I would be kept out of contact with any of that blood because man I was scared. I feel silly now but it was such a real fear at the time. There were about 65 kids who signed up to get their blood taken and the whole process took us from 9 am to a little after 2 pm. Throughout the process there were about 20 male students around me at all times, there were a few girls every once in too. The boys were all from ages 18-25 and they were asking me all kinds of questions about America, some so absurd that I honestly wish I knew where that rumor had started because some of their misconceptions about America are SO WEIRD! But at the same time, they think that America is the land of gold. They all want to go there. They would talk about how they were suffering in Ghana and I tried to explain to them that it is their generation and the next that can make the difference in Ghana. It is all the children being educated now that are going to continue to develop and modernize Africa because that is what they want. They want to lead easier lives and I explained to them that the solution was not to move to America but to work hard to earn all the education that they can so that they can solve their own problems. I explained that the only way for Ghana to continue to improve is for those that live here and understand the way it works to come up with the improvements on their own. Even if I was some great innovator and had all these wonderful ideas with my experience growing up in America, I would never be able to come up with the solutions to fix the problems that the Ghanaians see facing them. It is such a different life here and if you don’t understand every aspect of the way the culture works and what it thrives off of, there is no way successful changes can be made. Some people think that America can solve all their problems but so many people in America and other countries are so incredibly ignorant of the circumstances the rest of the world lives under so there is no way they can come up with solutions to problems they cannot identify with. It just has to be these kids that strive to better their world, that is the only way Ghana will continue to improve and I believe that it will. I too was so ignorant of so many things going on in the world before and I honestly had no idea what it would be like living here. It is a different experience from anything I ever could have imagined. Travel truly is the best medicine for ignorance. I wish everyone had the opportunity to learn about the world outside of their own sphere of existence because there is so much to learn.As the nurses and I were waiting for the car to come get us we got into a discussion about marriage as always happens but this is what they were eating...this is typical street food its rice, beans, noodles, and fish and they just eat with their hands out of bags -->

They were obsessed with me today finding thousands of ways to tell me that I am so beautiful and that they love me and want to marry me, I really commend their creativity. All that talk led to another Gospel discussion because they didn’t believe me when I told them I was saving myself for my husband until I told them which church I belonged to and then they understood. This was not as productive a discussion as some others have been as they were determined on telling me what I believe and would not listen when I tried to explain about Joseph Smith. There are far stranger things in religions around the world than the Father and the Son appearing to a young boy in a grove of trees but they would not listen when I tried to explain that Jesus Christ is the founder of the church, not Joseph Smith. I don’t see how anyone can deny the truthfulness of this Gospel when they see the way we are attacked. Satan works so hard to turn peoples hearts away from this Gospel which is yet another testament to me of its truthfulness. These men made the same comments about the members of the church becoming rich and I explained the concept of tithing to them which made them understand a little bit but one guy made a comment about how a new church building was being put in near his home and it has a basketball court and all kinds of things which are so regular to me but to them, that means that we are receiving juju. It is frustrating when you just want to shake all the false notions out of someone’s brain but have no way to do so. I just pray at night that one of these times someone’s heart will be softened to just listen and not dispute. I hate it when people try to tell me what I believe but testifying of the truthfulness of the Gospel is something that I will forever do. I took out my hair today, it was driving me nuts but Im proud of myself for keeping it in, it took Jackie and I about an hour to undo all the tiny braids, a lot of them were halfway undone already but it still took a surprisingly long time.  

June 16, 2012

Today was super fun! Jackie and I were dying when we woke up at 5 this morning and couldn’t go back to sleep until 7 because there was a little boy in our courtyard being so loud. Of course my iPod was dead this morning as well so that did not help at all. We didn’t have to be anywhere in particular this morning either so we wanted to sleep in since we never get to but on top of that my back was in the worlds worst pain and I wanted to go straight to the hospital to get my slipped disk operated on because it hurts so bad….but then I realized that I was in Africa and that the bed I am sleeping on is not helping my situation so I just tried to put in ear plugs and go back to sleep. When Jackie and I were really awake we just sat/laid in bed for like an hour just chatting. Mama came and knocked on our door telling us we should eat breakfast and we were laughing because it felt like a sleepover when you are a kid and your mom comes up to wake you up and make you get out of bed but the breakfast is usually cinnamon rolls or muffins instead of the same old oats and banana. But it was still fun. We did school work all morning so we could be productive and then left around noon for Wiamoase. We met Cassie at the Secondary School and hung out with the girls at their dorm for a few hours. We went into the room and I swear there were like 30 girls in one room. Their bunks were so close together we could hardly walk through, its crazzay! It was laundry day so the laundry was just strewn across the whole campus and some of the girls were ironing their uniforms for next week. They were ironing each pleat on their skirts and have to do so each week with irons full of coals. COAL irons.

 It was like ‘Little House on the Prairie’ status. We sang songs and danced and just hung out with the girls until we had to go back and meet Natalie. We made crepes again for dinner mostly because Jackie and I needed a break from the past week of bean stew. Were going on day 6 today. They were so good though! It started raining super hard and since we took my hair out yesterday it desperately needed a good washing yet washing with a bucket is extremely difficult and quite ineffective so I was just going to take a shower at their house since they have running water. The rain solved that problem though and I just decided to wash my hair in the rain since it works just as well!
Cassie and Natalie joined me and it was so fun, not to mention the best wash I have had since I have been here. It was the closest thing to a shower I have experienced and I hope I can do it again because it was great!! Then Jackie gave me a trim because i felt like my hair was in the best shape it would be in until i got home so i wanted the ends to be healthy. It was a very fun night. When we got home we just hung out with Mama and King and settled in for the night.

June 17, 2012

HAPPY FATHERS DAY!! shout out to all the fathers out there but especially to mine, I love you Dad! I did not sleep well last night, again. I laid awake for what felt like hours during the night and Mama woke us up early this morning because she wanted to make our breakfast so I have been pretty tired all day. Church today was great as usual even though we don’t understand what is going on for the majority of it but just the opportunity to take the Sacrament and be with the members is nice. It is a bit rough to sit through 3 hours of something you don’t understand though that is for sure. I guess its rough to not understand much of what is going on in speech almost at all times though so that is nothing new in being here. I have come to understand Twi to a certain level but this circumstance does not provide time for a thorough study of the language and it is not like a mission in that sense where you need to learn the language and you know that you will be in a place for an extended period of time so it just calls for a much different focus of learning. I was reading Sheri Dew’s God Wants a Powerful People tonight and there was a part where she talked about God’s perfect creation and how everything fits together perfectly within the world working together to make perfect harmony…just look at nature, yes I am obsessed with it but seriously, there is no way the world just happened with how beautifully nature fits in with itself and with human life. In thinking about that perfect harmony I am reminded of my scripture reading right now. We are in the middle of the war chapters and man are they frustrating. Moroni is the worlds best though, he was only 25 when he began to lead his army and he was able to strengthen and protect his people for a long time with the Lords support but man he was young, its so cool. It shows us just how much trust the Lord has placed in his youth over the years and it gives me strength to know that I can do amazing things even at a young age. In all the reading though I get so frustrated with the Lamanites who have such hatred in their hearts. Reason for them to continuously attack the Nephites is no longer apparent but pride leads wicked men to attack and destroy thousands of people just because they fail so many times and cannot accept defeat. It is disgusting, reading this while I am in Africa, so close to so much destruction and hatred happening on the very same continent makes it all seem so much more real. The news here is much more descriptive and graphic than it is in America. It shows a lot of brutality that happens all around Africa and talks about the unrest in Syria and other places along avenues that would never be shown in America. We are so sheltered at home. It’s a beautiful life really, because some of the things I have seen here on the news I would really rather have not seen ever but at the same time I am grateful that I am no longer ignorant of such things because along with many other things, this experience has increased my awareness of certain issues. It is so sad though to see how there is so much hatred and violence going on around the world and God’s children are still fighting for power and glory just as they were in the ancient days. I don’t know if that fight will ever end until the Second Coming. Peace is just something that the whole world will never have the privilege of knowing as long as Satan still roams around. Ghana is safe though, don’t worry. There have been a ton of ad campaigns on tv with Ghanaian celebrities and sports stars calling for a peaceful election at the end of the year and they really value their democracy and peaceful life here in Ghana so at least there are still pockets of the world that understand what it means to live a joyous, peaceful life. Its just such a shame that there are so many other places where fear dominates the existence of the lives of those who live within its influence.

June 18, 2012

I did not have any interviews set up today since Friday is my planning day and I was swept away to the Blood Drive for the whole day so I did not get the opportunity to set up the week. Because of that I just planned to observe with the Doctors today and hopefully get some interviews planned today but the Doctors were both super busy today so I spent a lot of time trying to chase them down so I could catch them down in their rooms. I did go on rounds in the maternity ward today though and let me tell you these babies are so beautiful. They are so tiny and have the cutest heads of curly black hair and man they are cute. One of the babies skin was so light that she almost looked white minus the hair on her head but it is so interesting how the children are born with such light skin. There are a few people here and there that have a touch lighter skin than others but most of their skin gets dark super fast. I wonder if they would still get so dark if they were living in a different environment because their skin gets so dark in the hot sun and heat of Ghana but I wonder if there would be any change without the heat and the sun here. I went home a little early today so I could get some homework done and the kids were all out at school having one of their breaks, I made the mistake of taking my camera out because within seconds there were a ton of them swarming around me pushing and shoving each other to get in front of the camera. They go nuts! The moms and the teenage boys in their soccer clothes who were waiting for the field were all just watching and the moment I put the camera away and started to shoo the children back to school they were all yelling at the kids to leave me alone. It is so funny to see the way I am treated here sometimes. I wish that just for a day I could be black so that I could really see this culture the way that it is from their perspective because I will always be somewhat of an outsider. I came home and then realized that Jackie had the keys to our room so I just decided to take a nap. When she came home we watched Mari Mar with Mama and then I commenced with my field notes and assignments for the day. When I got up from the couch my stomach was itching me like crazy and I had all these tiny red bumps so I freaked out for a second thinking I was getting some disease but then realized that was probably ridiculous so I asked Mama what it was and she said it was just heat rash but man it was killin me not to itch it so we rubbed some cream all over it and hopefully that will help. I don’t know how people live in this heat for their whole lives. Today was cloudy and breezy and Jackie and I were in heaven but then it still gets so hot at times and according to Mama, the hot and cold brings the rash. I added up all my in country costs today as far as travel and trinkets and food goes and in 7 weeks I have only spent about 300 US Dollars which blows my mind. Cheapest in country costs ever, now getting here was no walk in the park but thankfully my in country cost is not going to equal that or I would really be in trouble. 

Week 6: In the jungle the mighty jungle...

June 5, 2012

     I observed in the hospital this morning for 2 hours with one of the Doctors whom I have not seen much since the first week and it was very interesting to see the contrast between the two personalities and styles and how it affected their interactions with the patients. I like being with this Doctor because he speaks directly to me more and speaks in English when he is discussing medical stuff with the nurses so that I can understand what is going on. The other Doctor would tell me if I asked but I always feel like I would be taking up too much of his time and interrupting if he had to explain it to me all the time because he does everything so promptly. It is hard not to feel like I am intruding sometimes so I just try to use context clues a lot of the time when the case is not specifically malaria related. With the malaria patients I ask many more questions and ask for clarifications since they are who I am most concerned about in my research but even just seeing the Doctors with every patient is very interesting. It was super cool today because it rained way hard, which stunk because our laundry was done this morning so it still isn’t dry as I am getting ready for bed, buuuut it was awesome because I actually felt cold today when the storm was raging. Walking to the café today tons of people were talking to us and being super friendly which is usual but one guy yelled from across the street, “Obruni, you are in Ghana! Hoorah for you!” it was so funny because he voiced exactly how we feel a lot of the time! The light went out when we were at the café emailing home today so we decided to go get our favorite fried rice meal to take back to Joyce’s bar, the Gentle Spot, to eat and wait to see if the light would come back so we could finish up at the café…while we were waiting there was a straight hurricane blowing outside and it was SO LOUD on the tin roof so we were basically yelling at each other to have conversation but then we just started to sing songs that had the word rain in them which turned into us all belting out “Let the Rain Fall Down” by none other than Hilary Duff which led us to playing MASH since we were already in high school mode from memories of good old Hil Duff and it sure was funny. Of course things never ever play out how you wish they would on paper but it was super funny because we had added in places and people from Ghana which was just great. Everyone should play MASH if they are wondering who they are going to marry and such because I just know that mine was completely accurate. No doubt (not talking about Gwen Stefani’s old group). When the rain slowed down to a drizzle we went back to the café and it was running on generator power so we quickly sent a few last emails and then Jackie and I went to market to get our food for the week. We found our way to our usual ladies and I love being able to know where to go and what to get by myself. It really contributes to thinking that you actually belong someplace. Before getting in the car we got a vanilla ice cream so we could make a creamy banana smoothie when we got home, forgetting that the light was out. It was also basically melted by the time we returned but we just cut up bananas and mangos and stirred them into a puddle of vanilla in a bowl and it was actually really good. It is my favorite to figure out ways to use the random ingredients we have here. I think I ate 4 bananas today because we don’t want them to go bad so we are just eating as many as we can and working up all kinds of concoctions. I love it. Erica would be crying just thinking about all these bananas. She hates anything with a peel, she would hate all the fruit here haha, miss my Russian gal! E, I know you are in the MTC but I hope you are happy and doing well!! Today in my scripture reading I reached Ammon smiting off the Lamanite arms when they tried to scatter King Lamoni’s flocks and the whole time reading I was just visioning the Living Scripture cartoons and it made me so happy. I am so glad we were only allowed to watch church movies on Sunday growing up because otherwise I would not have cherished those movies the way I do. Reading about the sons of Mosiah and missionary work hits me especially hard seeing as so many people I care about are out serving the Lord right now and I am so grateful that I get to be here because though I am not a missionary, the church comes up sometimes and I enjoy being able to point to the church building and to hopefully be an example to those of other faiths while I am here. One language we all speak here is our belief in God. Most people are very religious and stores and taxis all say little sayings about God and his Grace. I started transcribing my interview today and I feel so weird listening to my own voice, I sound sick to me. Its weird how our voice sounds different to ourselves when we talk as opposed to playing it back. I don’t really get it. but it takes FOREVER, I am going to do another interview tomorrow though so I gotta get this one done as fast as I can. I copied and pasted Maddies emails at the café today and just died reading them later tonight because I miss her so much. I have been so blessed to be happy without all my best friends, in making and developing new relationships but I miss my Maddie, Carley, and Erica a lot. I think about them all the time and how awesome it would be if we were all together but I know that we are all doing what the Lord wants and needs us to do right now and for that I am grateful.

June 6, 2012

    Walking to work this morning there was a pack of guys in blue jumpsuits carrying what looked like containers of liquid attached to power washer spouts. They had a slogan on their backs along with some guys in neon orange jumpsuits with the National Mosquito Control Program something or other on their suits…it immediately made me think of summer sales and pest control. In that moment I imagined Trenter and his pals taking on the streets in Arizona wearing their jumpsuits and their slogan on their backs. I know that is not what its like but in that moment it was super funny! Shout out to you my Trenter, keep killin those pests in gool ol AZ! I officially have two boyfriends at the hospital now so couple that with all the marriage proposals and I am one hot topic here, so are the other three girls. It never gets old. The first, Prince, is currently applying to BYU and wants to follow me there and the second, Collins who I interviewed the other day called our phone 5 times yesterday ‘just to say hi’. It makes me laugh so hard especially when Prince winks at me but he grabbed my arm today when he was saying hi so I guess you could say things are getting pretty serious. I was totally worried about the lack of fellas this summer but let me tell you, I grossly underestimated the way it would be. This is much more overwhelming than Provo. My favorites are still the rat pack though. They are there when we leave in the morning and there when we get home at night saying the same things in English that they say everyday and I just love them to death. In the MCH this morning, Sister Felicia brought in this odd looking fruit that looked like a cartoon. It was green and shaped like a huge peanut but it had spikes all over it. She said it was called an apple, a local apple. We tried it and it had the sort of texture of a mango yet it tasted like an apple/pineapple mix. Very strange. I didn’t really like it because of the aftertaste but it was super cool looking. I love love love long hair but man it is so out of control here and it gets bigger and frizzier everyday I swear. Today we had the opportunity to go to a hair salon with Sister Felicia who works in the MCH so we took it. Little did we know it would consume our whole day… we arrived there at 10 am and another girl, a nurse from the hospital, was getting her hair plaited (where they braid fake hair into real hair to make it longer because all Ghanaians have really short natural hair). We waited for awhile and then Jackie started getting hers plaited. I already have so much hair that I just wanted to get my natural hair braided. I stood up to go see how Jackies was coming along and then walked back over to see what the girls were doing to the nurses hair and they handed me a strand so I started braiding.

My neck hurt so bad after awhile of just looking down and braiding braiding braiding and I cant imagine how they do that all day. I was tired of it after about 20 little braids. We talked and laughed as they taught me Twi and they would tell everyone to ask me what I was doing as they would come in and talk to them because I had learned how to say, “I am doing it” in Twi, talking about braiding the hair, and it was giving everyone a good laugh. We arrived at 10 and around noon I was starving so Natalie and I went to go get food. We got our same fried rice but she put a ton of this spicy sauce called Shito on it so I was sweating and my nose was running as I ate it, I really hate spicy foods but I loved the rice. Jackie and the nurse were not near being done so I went to the internet café with Natalie to say hi to King and to help her with her IRB and then when we came back they were ready for me. It took be about 7 minutes to convince them that I didn’t want fake hair because you cant wash it and they snip off all the flyaways and then burn it so it stays looking nice and shiny for up to a month yet, I didn’t want my real hair to suffer any of that fate so I finally convinced them just to braid my hair as I endured 3 hours of tugging and pulling and braiding that felt like every single hair on my head was being ripped right out.

It hurt so bad. I kept saying ‘beauty is pain’ but who made up that slogan anyways, no its not. Collins lives in Agona so he of course came to visit while I was getting my hair braided and turns out his sister was one of the ladies braiding my hair. Small world, everywhere. My hair looks weird and my head hurts from all the tiny hairs pulling. I am glad because it will let me not worry about it for a week or two and the frizz and mess won’t be out of control but man it hurts to get done. I wanted dreads so bad sitting there though because every time I see people with them they look so cool but I promised my mother I wouldn’t so I am going to be a good girl. Jackie looks sweet though and if I wasn’t so worried about my hair I totally would have plaited it though it took 6 hours for Jackies and I have a lot more hair so I think it would have taken like 9 hours for mine. Not worth it. That basically took up our whole day and when we got home it was dinner time. I really did nothing research worthy today though I did talk with the women a bit about gender roles but I was not anticipating the hair thing to take so long! I will never complain when I curl my hair and it takes 20 minutes, never again. I ate plain rice and avocado for dinner tonight because I have noticed that I wake up sick every morning after eating one of our stews on the third day. They aren’t kept in the refrigerator, nor do they even have lids on them so after a few days I am positive they are spoiled but Mama feeds them to us as long as they seem okay and we have it because their stomachs handle things differently but I am sure I am getting food poisoning every other day. I was going to do a real experiment but I am pretty sure I’m right and I’d rather not sacrifice my stomach and continue feeling that way so I am just going to stop eating third day stews. I actually really liked the plain rice, Mama cooks it with salt and onion so its got a little flavor. I just know I am either going to come home loving rice or hating it because it is all I eat.

June 7, 2012

     Today was adventure day. We got out of bed earlier than usual this morning so that we could leave at 7 and get to Agona to meet the ‘bus’ that was supposed to take us to the Monkey Sanctuary. We should have taken African time into account but sometimes we are just too faithful to our standard of time. Because King was coming with us, he wasn’t ready until about 8:15 so we got to Agona around 8:35 or so. We thought ourselves lucky because the bus hadn’t come yet and we went to wait at the Gentle Spot with Natalie and Cassie for it to come. We kept asking King when it would be here and he just said ‘soon’ which I have come to realize means any amount of time up to 3 hours away. After about an hour and a half King said we should go out and wait by the road because it is getting closer. We waited and waited and waited and finally started to go a little crazy but we made the best of it by singing ‘Down By the Bay’ and rhyming words and then we laughed about Youtube videos we could remember and then there was a taxi playing loud music so I got up and danced. I was just trying to keep myself busy since I had been sitting down for so long but before I knew it I had an audience of about 100 people along the street and at their various booths. I was obviously having the best time and I kept trying to get the people and the kids especially to join me but had no such luck so there I stood by myself in the dirt dancing all around. I got a few good laughs from the people and at least I was busy. It smells like my Mom’s ground beef, the one she makes for tacos, right now and I am dying for a taco right now! Anyway, it turned out to be a fine time waiting because I have come to realize that I am very good at entertaining myself when I need to. The “bus” which actually turned out to be a tro tro arrived at 11:38 and we hopped on and were on our way. Somehow I always get stuck in the back row where the tire is and I have no leg room and sometimes the ceiling is so low that my head touches it. Tro tros are less than ideal for comfort but they do the job. Luckily that seat is a window seat because I at least get to just stare at the jungle for hours which I never ever get tired of so that helps me to enjoy those rides. Driving through one village I swear it smelled like Wendy’s BBQ sauce the WHOLE time so for about 20 minutes my mouth was watering as I craved chicken nuggets and I don’t even eat fast food but I will admit that BBQ sauce is good. Green already was my favorite color but every time we drive through the jungles, which is every time we drive anywhere, I just cant even handle how beautiful the color is. It will forever be my favorite especially now. After about 2 hours we arrived at a station where we switched over to a taxi which would take us the rest of the way to the monkeys. Natalie and I shared the front seat in a car which is probably the size of a mini cooper while the rest were in the back. A lot of the taxis are super loud because the whole car rattles so you can hardly think while you ride in them but I was just trying to enjoy the scenery and there was a moment when the road and the trees opened up and you could see this vast valley of green trees and open land and it looked incredible SO naturally, I started singing the opening lines to the Circle of Life and proceeded to sing almost the whole song. I noticed the taxi driver speed up while I was singing and I am sure he wanted to get me out of there quick but I was having the best time. 

When we arrived at the place it was much less than I was imagining it would be but then again, nothing here is as I ever imagine it will be so I was not surprised. After a lot of convincing and the taxi driver, and the people at the office trying to manipulate us out of our money we headed into the jungle. 

Not too far in we got out some bananas and bread that we had from Agona and held it out. Monkeys can smell it or else they were just waiting because they all came out of nowhere and before we knew it they were all over. It was incredible to see these guys coming up to us and just letting us play with them.

They were greedy monkeys and would only come to you if you had food but it was still so fun to see them outside of a cage and the zoo. When we were basically out of food we went deeper and found these amazing trees that were the coolest things ever and I even found one that looks like a giraffe. We then went further in to find the real monkeys, the ones who don’t like humans and who just like to live the dream up in the trees and man they were beautiful. They made a less than beautiful sound but just seeing them leap from tree to tree and climb around way high up in the canopy was amazing. 

I wanted to be tarzan and jane so I could swing around on the vines and just be up there with them. Cassie and I were walking around and exploring to see some of the big monkeys up closer and we thought we were being really sneaky and quiet but that was silly because they could obviously see us and all of a sudden it sounded like it was raining and Cassie was just inches away from being peed on.

There was one monkey right above us who had a real nice sense of humor and just let the rain fall down. We had a good laugh as he moved back to join his friends. We kept on exploring and just went wherever the wind led us through the jungle and found this spot that was entirely covered and the trees made a sort of ceiling and it was so beautiful and peaceful. I had the idea to separate and just go off and ponder for a moment so we all found a spot and nestled in. I don’t know how long it was but I sat down and prayed to my Heavenly Father and read my Patriarchal Blessing. The Spirit testified to me as I sat there listening to the monkeys calling and the birds chirping, that I am on the path that my Lord has lain out for me in order to accomplish all that I was sent here to do in this earthly existence. It was such a distinct and a profound feeling and I could not contain my tears of joy as I took in the scene and realized where I was and just what I was doing. I don’t know what is ahead for me but I do know that with the Lord by my side that I can accomplish anything he needs me to as long as I remain faithful. 

Driving back Cassie and I talked for the entire time about a whole multitude of things and when we arrived back in Agona I realized how peaceful our talk had been and I had kind of forgotten where I was. It was interesting to talk with her because we come from such different backgrounds and experiences yet we have been able to learn so much from one another, all of us girls have. We never would have been such great friends if we were not in this situation together and I cannot imagine having missed out on the things I learn here from them. It is beautiful the relationships I am learning to build here, not just with them, but with people in Africa. I never thought I was good at this but I am definitely learning how to let people in and to share myself with them. Having read about the pride cycle recently it was interesting to talk with Cassie about how different the lives of the people are here compared to in America. We talked about how many of the people are so humble and God fearing because of their circumstance where as in the US, we have so much, yet so many people refuse to attribute those things to God. We are still going through the pride cycle and are experiencing it all around us every single day. It is so easy to get trapped in it as we can see from reading the scriptures but humility can bring us out. Recognizing the Lord’s hand in all things is a truly beautiful blessing.

  [legend of the monkeys is that there were warring tribes in the old days and the King had found a magical herb that turned people into monkeys so he used it to imprison some and to save others. Before he knew it, there were many monkeys and when another tribe came and saw only the King and no other humans they killed him so the secret of the monkeys was forever lost and the people could not be turned back. There is a monkey cemetery within the jungle and the monkeys are buried like humans which is because the people think that the monkeys are people tooo]

June 8, 2012

    Today was super productive research wise and I was able to accomplish a lot of what I was hoping for which made me super happy. I conducted another interview and realized how difficult it is to interview someone who does not speak English super well and who is fairly uneducated because let me tell you, it is HARD. I was so frustrated during and after it that I am probably just going to have to throw it out because he just was not answering any question I asked him and was so confused about what I wanted to know because every question came with a completely irrelevant answer and I was trying to re-word and reemphasize things the whole time and it was just super difficult. I really miss being able to just talk to people. Talking with Cassie last night was beautiful because we can just talk about everything and anything and my brain is stimulated by conversation which makes me happy. Trent was telling me in his last email how he did not understand what was going on for basically the whole first year of his mission because Chinese is so hard and I cannot even imagine how hard that would be because for me, I am almost halfway through this experience so I see an end nearby where I know that I will be able to hone in and understand everything around me again but then I think that maybe I like it sometimes. Maybe I like not knowing what people are saying when they are raising their voices at one another and maybe I like daydreaming all the time when there are full conversations being rattled off around me where I don’t have a clue what is being said and maybe I like being able to ponder and teach myself in church every Sunday but then I realize nope. I like English, in fact, I love it. Understanding is a gift. Understanding the way society works, the way the world works, the way we function as societies within the world…understanding the Gospel and my role within this existence, understanding the social context within situations at home and how to act within those…understanding is something beautiful that we have been blessed with and not having that leaves a large void. Also being scared to talk to people for lack of understanding is very difficult. I am surprised at the amount of time that has already passed though where I have been able to handle it fairly well. Understanding is something that I miss though I will admit that my lack of understanding with the language has led to an increased understanding in other places so I guess my lesson to be learned right now is that there is always something to be learned, and always something to be understood. I just need to figure out what it is. I spent a long time catching up on notes today and once again I cannot feel my rear. Its numb from sitting uncomfortably for so long. I cant wait to lay on a couch again and to sit in a squishy, comfy chair. That will be the day I tell ya. Jackie and I made our pad thai again with a few adjustments and it was gooooood. Not much else happened today because I was just doing a lot of my research but it was a very happy day.

June 9, 2012

    Before bed last night I listened to Elder Holland’s ‘Safety For the Soul” talk in which he testifies with great power about the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. It means more to me now than it did when he gave it a few years ago in Conference because of the way I am reading the Book of Mormon right now and the Spirit testified to me of the truthfulness of his words. I have gained an unfailing testimony of the Book of Mormon since being here, even stronger than ever before and I know that is one of the many reasons I was sent on this adventure. That talk and the thoughts I had thereafter led to a part of my dream last night which I remember vividly. I don’t know who all was there nor do I know who the man in the dream was but he was challenging me in saying that Mormons are not Christian and was saying that we do not believe in Jesus Christ. I was very happy to silence him as I opened up my Book of Mormon and flipped to various places within where I have marked as a testimony of Christ. I proceeded to teach him about the prophecies which were fulfilled prior to Christ’s birth and of His ministry and death and resurrection followed by his appearance to the Nephites. Even in my dream and as I recollect it right now, the power I felt in the words I was saying was so real. Though it was in a dream, I have never felt such strength and conviction in spoken word. I know that the Book of Mormon truly testifies of Christ and I hope that I will be given opportunities to share that knowledge with those who have not yet received it because a testimony of the Book of Mormon is such a beautiful strength and I wish that every one could feel what I feel. I don’t remember the outcome of the dream, I probably apparated to Harry Potter world after interacting with him but the first thing I thought about when I woke up was how unbelievable it felt to have the knowledge of the Book of Mormon sufficient enough to teach someone about the testimony of Christ which can be gained through the words on these pages, even if only in a dream. I do not even know how to express my gratitude for the understanding and testimony I have gained since being here. I am about halfway as I only have 6 more weeks and seeing the growth I have already made on more levels than just spiritually, I cannot help but thank my Heavenly Father for placing me here at this time in my life. He knows me and He hears my prayers, of that I am sure. We all went to the wedding of a nurse at the hospital today in Agona and boy was it a party. It was at the Presbyterian Church and was a white dress kind of wedding. I just know if I didn’t have the knowledge that I do have, I would have joined that congregation today because the whole wedding ceremony was just full of singing and dancing and hoots and hollers and hallelujahs and amens and it was so fun to fell the energy of the people in their worship (dont get me wrong, i love the peace of our worship, it is the best). Any excuse to dance here is taken for what its worth and old women who can hardly walk get up and boogie with such enthusiasm that you cannot figure out how they are even moving that way. It is beautiful. The main singer, the praise leader, was really tall and was wearing this sweet blue suit and indie glasses and had an amazing voice and he was just having the worlds best time singing all the days and I had the biggest crush on him. He was obviously super talented but I am definitely a sucker for the tall ones. Even here. The whole ceremony was super long though because there was a ton of worship between the vows and exchange of the rings and all that jazz. ANNND they didn’t even get to smooch. They just hugged because PDA is a no no no here. We kept waiting for it but it never came. Let me just say that I am grateful that I live in America cause you better believe I am smooching my husband when we get married. After the wedding we took some pictures with the bride and groom and the other health workers and she said she was happy to have white ladies at her wedding, its so funny. I think I also got married today…this man was the videographer and I swear I am going to be on that video more than the bride. Not really but he loved me and basically told me that we were already married so we are really happy together. Afterward we got in the taxi to go home but Sister Felicia said that we had been invited somewhere so we went to this bar in Agona with all the health directors from the surrounding Districts and just sat and chatted and drank pineapple juice while many of them downed their beers. After sitting for awhile I got restless so I stood under the fan and started to dance a little bit to the music which turned into a mini dance party. Dancing is definitely socially acceptable anywhere and everywhere here. I love it. Issac one of the men there was drinking what looked like milk so I asked him what it was and he got me one, it was almost straight cream and was vanilla flavored and it tasted so good. I wanted cereal so bad after! I cant wait til I can eat any food I want without feeling sick all the time, that’s the pits here, always feeling a little bit sick and never quite satisfied but all in all its great!

June 10, 2012

I love love love Sundays. Cassie and I were asked to give talks today so last night I spent a fair amount of time pondering and praying and asking Heavenly Father that He would guide me in what the people needed to hear. I was given the topic of Obedience and had downloaded a few talks on Tuesday at the internet café so I could have some material to work with and it was so fun to prepare it. It was interesting preparing a talk for a completely different audience than I have ever addressed before and I was so nervous because I wanted to be able to say just what the Lord wanted the people to hear without sobbing through it but I think I did a good job. I prepared a 5 minute talk because the Branch President said it should be 10 minutes and I figured with the translator it would equal about that but nope, turns out translation takes a bit of time because I did not even get to say all that I had prepared before it had been 15 minutes and I needed to wrap up. It was way fun to speak though I am very grateful for the opportunity. I invited Mama and King today since Cassie and I were speaking and Mama did not come but she let King come. I have made it a goal to really focus on the Sacrament this summer and during the hymn which was “Behold the Great Redeemer Die” I just started to cry because I recognized the beauty of the words in that song, I cant say that it was because of the beauty I heard because it is always a less than beautiful sound which makes us laugh because despite what people may think about African voices, they are not all beautiful. Sometimes we just have to laugh at the way the hymns sound but it is also because there is no one accompanying the hymns and I am sure it would sound equally as comical if no one really knew the tune entirely in America and there was no accompaniment. But anyway, during the song I was really focusing on the words and the spirit testified so strongly to me of the reality and truthfulness of the Atonement and the Plan of Salvation. Even Christ fulfilled his perfect mission and submitted His will to the Father’s understanding what He had to do. The line that says “I’ve done the work thou gavest me…receive my spirit unto thee” hit me so hard and I realized even more than I have felt before that I want to be able to say near my dying days that I have done the work that the Father has given me so that I can be received into His presence having completed all that has been lain before me. I think that is the most beautiful realization, knowing that we can fulfill the will of the Father if we are faithful and that will lead us back into His presence. I glanced over at King after the hymn as he asked if he could take the sacrament and wanted to explain it to him but I was too worked up at the moment for even a whisper but my heart broke for him and so many other like him. He wants to join the church but has to wait until he moves out of the house. It broke my heart because I knew how hard it was for him to be there when he does not have the opportunity to be baptized right now. He commented how it is hard when he cannot enjoy church the way he wants to right now and I just started to cry again thinking about how many people do not even have access to the blessings of the Gospel right now. I know the beauty of this Gospel and it is hard to not just shout it from the rooftops and invite everyone to come unto Christ. I know that there are so many people who are not even fortunate enough to have the knowledge that King has but I am so grateful that there are missionaries all over the earth who are sharing the light with those people who are ready and willing to receive it. I never knew I could come to love this Gospel so immensely with my whole heart the way I do now. After church we just talked and hung out with the girls for a few hours and Cassie and I looked at every picture we have on our computers from the last few years as we laughed at how silly we were even just a few years ago.When we walked her and Natalie to the taxis there was a huge dance party going on in the middle of Konya market so on our way home we walked through to see what was going on. There were about 200 children just breaking it down and doing Azonto in a huge cloud of dust. Jackie and I started to Azonto small just as we were walking through but we got attacked by every child there and they were all going nuts over us. After I was thoroughly covered in dust and sweat we broke away but had about 50 kids following us home holding our hands and singing Azonto songs. I started to sing a Twi song Jackie and I wish I could have just videotaped us as we walked in that moment, children hanging all over us, singing songs as we walked through the town. I love these people, I really do. We got home and King was doing his Azonto workout too so we watched him dance. We are going to start doing it with him every night because he gets a real good workout and boy can he dance! I laid under the stars as I waited for my Ma to call and Booze Man came home. He was being so funny tonight and Jackie and I were trying to convince him to stop drinking because he wanted to marry us tonight and we said that he had to sober up by the time we left and told him to start drinking water and Fanta instead of alcohol. He left and came back a few minutes later with some water which was hilarious because in our broken Twi we cannot communicate fully but man he was cracking us up tonight. I find so much joy in such simple things here, well I always have but I just feel so much joy all the time and I am so grateful for it. I got to talk to my Mama then and boy do I love her. I am so grateful for families. It is one of the most beautiful things about this Gospel. I am just obsessed with my family at home and I cannot imagine how different my life would be without them. Even my family here, I love them all so much.

June 11, 2012

    I spent 2/3 of my day at my computer today transcribing interviews. It takes SO LONG I think that the palms of my hands are bruised from hours and hours of typing. That is one thing about field work. You have to sit at your computer typing more than you have ever typed in your whole life! Its going to be a real nice break when I am home in August I swear I am not going to touch this computer because that is one of the hardest parts about being here. But luckily the end is in sight so I don’t have to worry about doing this for the rest of my life. I don’t know how real anthropologists do this for years at a time typing up their field notes and transcribing for hours and hours every day, its exhausting. In the time I was not transcribing I conducted two interviews and they went really well, I love when interviews produce really great information, it makes me feel so much more confident about my research and reassures me that I can do this and that I don’t need to freak out and instead I just need to do it. Cassie and I are both so scared all the time that we are not going to get the right amounts of information and that we wont be able to write an adequate senior thesis and it is a bit stressful but our mentor is the worlds best Professor and she helps us a lot so I think that as long as I continue to work hard every day to get all the information as I can, talking to as many people as I can, that this will turn out as it needs to in the end. The Euro cup is going on right now and Ghanaians are obsessed with futbol, as is Jackie so I know all about European futbol now and though I do not have a team the games are so fun to watch, they are always on tv so we watch them every time we can and man soccer is the worlds best. I love watching it and playing it and the players are more often than not, super attractive. Win win win. On my way home from my second interview I saw a bunch of pineapples so I bought one for 1 cedi, much cheaper than the 7 dollar pineapples in America though they are growing right in our backyard so it makes sense but Jackie and I ate the whole thing and my tongue hurt so bad from all the acid for hours afterward and I could hardly taste my dinner, which is sometimes not an entirely bad thing. I then transcribed until I couldn’t type any longer and I went and worked out. Booze man was sober tonight because he hadn’t eaten and he doesn’t drink when he doesn’t eat so he was just sitting out with Mama in the courtyard chatting and I kept trying to get him to workout with me but he wouldn’t. It is so funny to try to converse with that man, really a joyous occasion I say. Jackie and I settled in and watched 2 episodes of Friends as is our nightly ritual and I even dreamt in Friends land in the night. I am in love with Chandler. His wise cracks kill me, actually everything kills me the show is so funny. It’s a good time for us to just wind down from the day and take ourselves out of Africa for a moment to keep us sane. 

Week 5: "obruni you are in Ghana, Hoorah for you!"

May 29, 2012

Welp, I completely forgot about Memorial Day and didn’t realize it happened until reading Emails at the café today. It made me kind of sad because I have always loved Memorial Day and going to see Grandma and Grandpa’s grave. Not to mention the Lake and BBQ and no work or school that always comes with it. Lovely times. Maybe that is why I had a hard time yesterday, because my subconscious thought I should be celebrating a holiday. This morning Jackie and I went to meet a traditional birth attendant or TB. She was so old and frail looking and she literally looked exactly like Grandmother Willow from Pocahontas. I swear it was modeled after her face. She was so excited to meet us and we learned a little bit about her role in the community for awhile until her son came out and persistently tried to marry us. I love the marriage proposals they get funnier and more frequent with each passing day. Speaking of marriage proposals, every time I go on facebook for a moment at the café there are like 4 new engagements on my feed. It’s the summer of love I tell ya. The summer of love. I am also in love over here, with the landscape and the people so thank you world for including me in the love fest. Tuesdays are so fun because we get to get out of Asamang and go to the market with the girls and King and it is just a grand old time. After the café we got lunch, the food that Mama brought us home the other day, and took it back to Joyce’s (Mama’s sister) bar to sit down and eat and get pineapple Fanta. 

King got a Coke and I have never been more drawn to a drink before, it looked as good as it does in those commercials with the Polar Bears. I just laugh at myself sometimes when I realize the position I am in as I try to get comfortable while typing for hours, like right now. It is a real struggle with the heat and the lack of soft places to sit down. I swear my bummy is going to deflate from all the sitting on a hard surface. Constant lack of comfort is no good. BUT it will make me appreciate those beautiful couches I have at my house and at school and the memory foam on my bed is going to be my best friend because I surely do not sleep well here at all. Jackie and I just laugh at night when we go to lay down, tuck in our mosquito net as tight as can be to keep out spiders, say our prayers and then begin to listen to a conference talk and the moment we stay in the same position for too long, our hips get numb from hitting the board underneath our foam and we desperately try to find a place where we can lie comfortably.  Most of the time we have taken Elder Wirthlin’s advice and we have just learned to laugh at any adversity. And movie theater seats would be a dream right about now, I will never complain sitting in those things again for not being able to sprawl myself out, also I have come to realize that I LOVE movies. I could watch one every day I think. Jackie and I are always quoting random movies and it makes us laugh because we think we are hilarious and then I just want to watch every movie I have ever seen. Love them. The café was beautiful as always. Being able to sit down and read emails from my family and friends is beautiful and I am so grateful that we have the technology to communicate when we are so far away. I think I shed a tear or two every time because someone or anothers words make me burst with joy and I just can’t contain it. Cassie and I laugh at how obsessed we are with our families because we just want to be with them always and think that no one in the world has a great a family as our own and I feel that’s true, for me. I have the greatest family in the whole world!!! It rained at the market today so it was a big mess of mud and people and let me tell you, the only thing worse than the smell of the dried fish, is the smell of the dried fish when it gets wet. The whole market was engulfed in that smell and oh my goodness it was all I could do to not walk around with my hand straight on my nose to plug out that smell. We walked past the meat place today and I about died. Thankfully I have chosen to only eat chicken here because it was so gross the way the meat was just laid out with flies all over and the men were just hacking at hunks of meat with their machetes. It was certainly no meat department at Costco. But the beautiful thing is that it works for the people here. They eat the meat and they, for the most part, stay healthy. Every one has their way of doing things and I am sure if that is what I grew up on, I would have no problem. Learning to understand and adapt to a new way of life is so cool. The challenges and blessings are unmatched with any other experience I could be having right now and though I do not REALLY love every single minute…I love every minute of this! I read my scriptures outside as I lied on the bench today and watched the sky turn from grey to black as the wind picked up and the rains came a down. I am totally a broken record by now but I felt like I was glimpsing into heaven watching that transformation. It was beautiful.

May 30, 2012

      This morning when I first arrived at the hospital I went in to greet Salid but he was busy with a TB patient, I sat down to plan out my day and one of the nurses came down and sat next to me. I noticed he was holding a Watchtower which is the Jehovahs Witness magazine that sort of mimicks the New Era and Ensign. I recognized it because Erica did a study on Jehovahs Witnesses in her religious anthropology class last semester so I saw Watchtowers at our house all the time. We started talking about it and he asked me where I went to church which led into a Gospel discussion. He had read the Book of Mormon before and had a lot of questions. He had a hard time understanding how Joseph Smith got the plates and we got into a discussion about Heavenly Messengers which led to Heaven and Hell and the Second Coming talks, it was really cool to talk with him about what I believed about those concepts and to explain to him how we got the Book of Mormon and to just testify to him about what it is that I believe. Being at BYU for the last 3 years I have not had the opportunity to really share what I believed with anyone who did not understand and believe the same things that I do so it was really cool to learn about what I would say in that situation and I think the Lord guided me in my speech because the way I presented ideas and what I believe was in a way that was better than I feel like I know. Certain facts or ideas would pop up into my mind so I could tie things in to explain how Joseph Smith did not just make it all up and it was so fun to talk with him. It also led me to scheduling an interview with him so I am excited for that. I did my first observations in a consultation room today. It is much easier than observing in the ward where there are a ton of other people present and the interactions whizz right on by though these interactions were all super speedy too. The doctor averaged about 3 minutes per patient today. There are so many people in the waiting rooms each day that I assume that is about all there is time for. I will never complain about waiting 3 hours at the surgeons office ever again because some of these people wait forever to see the doctor and then he is with them for 3 minutes and then they are done. That’s really how it is in America too though I guess. Being a Doctor would be a hard job. The one I was with today was so tired and I could tell it was hard for him to see patient after patient today and we were talking about it and that is what he does all day every day. It was a good day at the hospital today though, a lot going on and I had little conversations with a lot of people today in Twi. What I know is very limited but it is fun to be able to communicate, however so small, with the people. when I got home and was reading the Book of Mormon I truly had a hard time putting it down. This morning walking to the hospital all I could think about was how excited I was to get home so that I could read. Gaining an appreciation and a love for this book has been so amazing. Because of the experience I had earlier in the morning I stopped to ponder after my daily reading and opened up the front cover and read Joseph Smith’s testimony. It is a beautiful illustration of how he got the plates and how the Lord sent his messengers to prepare Joseph Smith for the task he was to complete on this earth. Ry, Emma, Sarah, go read it and really learn to appreciate this book. The sooner you do, the more you will love and appreciate how your learning will increase. As Jackie and I were getting ready to prepare our dinner we asked Mama if she would like to eat with us but she always says no, she likes what she likes just as we like what we like. She then started talking about Ghanaian culture and how she needs to take care of us because we are her children and if she couldn’t afford to take care of us she would not have accepted us into her house. She buys us food and does so much for us, Jackie and I feel like we are not giving enough back sometimes but she tells us stories about how much joy she feels when people know she has obruni children in her house and she jokes with them saying we are her biological daughters and that our father is white and she just laughs and laughs because people believe her…I love this woman, she is a crack up! Man, there are these little bugs that are always crawling all over me and the computer screen, I will not miss those. I am totally just thinking about going to sleep right now as I type because I am always so excited to sleep, even though it is never super well but I love to see what weird things I dream about because the malaria pills give me the craziest, most vivid dreams. Last night in my dream I had a smoking hot boyfriend and we were fighting dementors and other strange creatures together but I was sick so I was in a hospital bed the whole time and he was just wheeling me around as we fought the bad guys…I tell you this doxy gives me stranger dreams than I have ever had before it is so awesome. One thing I have noticed though is that I am always good at fighting. I think if I had a super power it would just be that I was a super skilled fighter.

May 31, 2012

 HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY MADDIE…For Latvia!!! I cant help but think about Maddie today because she is celebrating her first birthday on her mission. Crazy times being 21 I tell ya, it’s a great year! It is weird not really having the means to communicate with my best friends on their missions. I can email Carley at least because she has not left yet but I cannot talk to Maddie and Erica because the computers here wont open up Dear Elder. It is weird too not being able to tell people at home everything because I am used to doing that, and I see things all the time that remind me of this person or that and it is weird to just think it and move on because I cannot talk about it with that person. Its all just weird. BUUUUT I am so grateful for Jackie because she is the best gal and we have so much fun together here and she listens to my stories and rants and raves all the days so we are a great duo. Today there was a clinical meeting at the hospital and some pharmaceutical representatives came again to present their new drugs. After the presentation today they brought out these huge paninis and cold chocolate milk. I could have died of happiness and I at the first half of that sandwich so fast it was so good I could hardly stand it. I ran to Jackie so that she could try it too because oh man it was good. It had really thin pieces of steak in it which is better than any meat we see here, which we just don’t eat and it was brought from Kumasi where they have pizza and we are going to go find it. It was just the best. I was going to go watch a surgery after that but I didn’t end up doing it because the Doctor who invited me switched shifts with one of the others who ended up doing the surgery for him. It is cool that I have built a good enough relationship with the Doctors for one to be comfortable with me watching him perform a surgery. I have realized that my life is a song. All day everyday there are the randomest songs popping into my head and I never know where they come from. I want to start making a list of the songs that pop into my head randomly throughout the day but I think it would end up being super long. The same thing happens with movies. Scenes from the most random movies that I haven’t seen in a way long time pop into my head all day long and I just want to listen to the songs and watch the movies so bad, I think it happens to me all the days back home too but it is different when I can go home and watch the movie or hop on youtube and listen to the song. Its funny how much my life has been influenced by these technologies though, we don’t really realize these things all the time until we are removed from them I think. Walking home every day we walk past the same men playing a sort of mancala game and today we stopped and watched them play as they tried to explain it to us, it is basically the same but involves a little more detail that regular mancala. 

The old men were being so funny and everyone here is just a crack up I tell ya.The Azonto craze has spread and even the adults are now saying ‘Azonto’ as we walk by. I just start moving and shaking and they laugh their heads off and I keep on movin down the road. Life is just a party here I tell ya, everyone should come and join!

June 1, 2012

     I am such a grandma here, no offense Gigi. Its only 8 pm but I can hardly keep my eyes open. I get so tired when I try to type my notes at night here. Being in this heat seriously wears you out! This morning I went to Wiamoase to teach dance to kids at the Secondary and Junior High Schools with Cassie and I realized that some of the best and worst times are in the taxis. Worst because I always think I am going to get in a crash and die because the taxi drivers are usually nuts and we don’t have seatbelts, but best because driving through the jungle from Asamang to Wiamoase is so beautiful. Especially early in the morning when there is fog rolling through and later at night around dusk…I see some of the most breath taking scenes as the green is brilliant and the trees have either HUUUUGE awesome leaves, or they are the really skinny tall tall tall trees with a flat top that just jet out over the others and honestly I just sit there breathless because I cant believe I am here. When we arrived at the school the girls went nuts over me. They were all asking my name, my real name, and grabbing my arms and hands all over and were just fascinated by my skin. We danced around with them doing Azonto and I was teaching some of the girls how to do a pirouette and they were loving it. 

They were 17-20 years old and were asking all these questions about colleges in America and boyfriends and it was so fun talking to them. The kids here are so smart. They really value their education and learning and it is beautiful to see the dedication they have to their learning and to reaching their goals. After that we went to a hospital which is an SDA hospital like mine but much much smaller. I was introduced to every one there and just saw the differences and similarities. Then Cassie and I went to another school and taught dance but it was younger kids this time and there were a few boys so we just taught them the Macarena, the Hokey Pokey, and the Chicken Dance because they would be able to sing the songs and remember the moves. It was pouring down rain super hard while we were doing that and with tin roofs it was so loud so we were yelling at the top of our lungs and I lost my voice by the end. Later in the teachers lounge we had hilarious conversations with the teachers about dating and American culture and my voice was super hoarse and Nemo, one of the teachers who is seriously in love with Cassie, told me I had a romantic voice…I agree through I think hoarse voices and voices when people are sick are the best! It was a super fun day and then we met Jackie in Agona because they wanted to go to the café but the light was out so we just got our favorite fried rice and ate it at Joyce’s bar. For scripture study tonight we were on Alma 5 and obviously it is a super hearty chapter so I just ate it up. It was all I could do to not underline every single thing. I love this book so much. I was really interested in what it says about gaining Salvation because of the talk I had with the nurse the other day about Heaven and Hell. He really wanted to know what I believed about the wicked being burned and such but was arguing that there is a point where the wicked don’t get to change their minds and repent even if they want to and I had a hard time explaining to him how I believe that they can repent and change because of God’s mercy and grace but realized that I don’t know everything about how that works, not even close to everything and I had to accept that fact. That is how it is with scripture reading, I can never remember everything I read because there is just too much but that is why we read the scriptures over and over and over. I am so grateful that I get to learn and grow every day because there is an endless amount of knowledge out there and that is the only thing I am going to be able to take with me after this life.

June 2, 2012

    Today was so fun! The girls, Vickie (a 4’9 British woman who works with Natalie), and I hopped on a tro tro this morning and headed for Kumasi. We are all running low on funds so we needed to go to the bank to pull out more cedi to last us for the next few weeks and we love weekend adventures so off we went. I love tro tros because I get stuck in the most awkward positions where I am too tall and my head is hitting the ceiling and the man in front of me is leaning back against my legs and I just laugh and realize that I can never complain about driving from Utah to California in a full car again. They pack 30 people into these vans which I swear are made for 15. We were ready for a challenge since we did not have King to guide us but we just asked for directions every once in awhile and we made it to the bank with no problem. After the bank we went to the obruni market which has all the comforts of home, brands of soap I recognize, butter, cheese, oreos, ice cream, even dog and cat food. Its just a regular supermarket and we were so happy to be there. I got some chocolate milk, saltines, pasta, twix bars and some Ghanaian dark chocolate because we don’t see that often. I also bought a thing of soap because the bar of soap we had before to wash our hands always made our hands sticky and we could never get it all off with the bucket so this is much better. Jackie also found these ice crème bars that she had in London and they were soo good! Leaving the market we met a man who knows Professor Crandall, an Anthropology professor at BYU, who is an artist and he came with us to walk around this little section which has all the Ghanaian stuff we have been looking for, like the touristy stuff that we want to take home so we spent a lot of time looking at everything and we all got some trinkets. Then the man showed us his paintings and he is incredible. They were all of these beautiful African scenes and I could hardly even choose because I wanted so many. There were these huge ones of giraffes and elephants and lions that were so beautiful I almost dropped 150 cedi for one because I wanted it for my house…until I remembered that I don’t have a house. So I didn’t buy it. But if I had a house it would have been a done deal. Maybe one day when I am married and actually have a place for it I will buy it, or I will just buy it anyway because I love his work. It is amazing. I bought some smaller ones and I am obsessed with them, I have such respect for people who are so talented because especially being here there are so many times where I just want to sit down with an easel and paints so I can capture the landscape and the splendor of what I am seeing but I can barely even draw a decent stick figure so that is out of the question. I just wish that these things could be captured with a camera but there is no way to capture the things that the human eye can behold. After buying all our stuff we went to a restaurant that we read about from our travel guide and there were more white people in there than we even knew existed in the whole of Africa, it was so fun. They had burgers and milkshakes and pizzas and Indian food and all kinds of things that reminded us of home, as the true Americans we are, we all got a huge burger and man it was good. Vickie got a pizza and though I know that it was not the best burger in the land, it was definitely the best burger for our tastes considering the fact that were in Africa. 

After a large burger and milkshake, we had to head to the tro tro so we would get home before dark so our painting man lead us back to the tro tro station and we got in line. It is the most confusing, yet hysterical thing to witness the madness at this place. African time is so real, 9:00 could really mean 10, or 11:30 even and the people are so patient waiting for taxis to fill and there is so much sitting around here so it seems like everyone should just take their turns in the tro tros…not the case. There are perfect lines when people are waiting and they get mad at each other if someone cuts in line but the moment the tro tro pulls up it is a mad dash to get in and the people at the back of the line disregard that there was a line at all so sometimes if those at the front ran slower, they would not get a spot on the tro tro because everyone else runs and pushes and dives in and you have to be aggressive or you will never get on. When the first tro tro came we didn’t even try because we were at the back of the line but for the second one we tried because we realized we had to do something if we were going to get on, there is no semblance of order to this though the people pretend there is when they are in line. We ran and tried to get on but Vickie was the only one who made it through the door because she is so small and the rest of us were unsuccessful as the whole back of the line swung around and somehow made it in front of us. When the third one came we had been waiting for about an hour and a half and even stood in the rain while everyone else hid under the overhang because we were determined to get on. 

It rolled up and there was no way we were going to push through the door so seeing that the back row was empty we started to throw our bags in the window and we all hopped up on the tire and climbed through the window. Having an audience as we always do, there was applause when the last of us climbed through. A real experience I tell ya. Once again, driving back, as uncomfortable as I was, I just took in every sight around me and was left breathless at the splendor of this place. Everywhere I look there is something intriguing or something beautiful and I cannot even describe the way the landscape makes me feel, it cannot be captured by photographs or words. I am just so grateful that I have been able to appreciate the beauty of this place and to recognize it in every moment. It is incredible.

Driving through I was thinking about all the people I saw. There were people all over, everywhere. I started thinking about the creation and how it all started with Adam and Eve. Now the world is inhabited on almost every surface with human beings. Our hearts all beat the same and our minds all have the same capacities and though there are so many differences from place to place, culture to culture, we are all the same. Everyone is just trying to survive and you go about your day doing what you know best. The way the world is set up is amazing in itself and it amazes me to think about the millions of people everywhere going through the same emotions in entirely different places and circumstances. Heavenly Father has blessed each and every one of us with a unique experience that is completely our own. We are all here as human beings but no two people will ever live the same lives. How incredible is it that there is one thing on this earth that is completely our own! That is what makes us all so different while we are all so alike. I feel so blessed to be having the experiences that I am having and I love my Heavenly Father for granting me the unique experiences which teach me in the ways that I need to be taught.  

June 3, 2012

    Sundays, as always, are truly wonderful. Fasting is hard here though and we have to drink water or else we will die. During Sacrament Meeting today I just read and sang hymns about the Sacrament the whole time to myself and it was beautiful to ponder and think about Christ for the whole hour. Maddie, in one of her emails home, wrote a beautiful thought about dedicating that whole hour to Him and I can truly say that it is worth every minute of thought. I was in my own world completely so when the Branch President got up and said “We’d like to invite Sister Akua to give the closing prayer” at the end of the meeting I didn’t even hear. Jackie had to nudge me and tell me to go up because I was in the zone. I love the people in this humble little branch. They love the Gospel so much, you can feel it. I was talking with one of the Young Women aged girls after Sacrament and she mentioned that her teacher had not come today so I said that I would teach. They were learning about the principles in the For Strength of Youth pamphlet and were on Education. Turns out it is not as easy as I thought. Half of the girls did not understand English well and the other half would not answer any question asked. Natalie, Jackie, Cassie and I just started taking turns presenting thoughts and posing questions as the girl I spoke to translated and we ended up spending most of the two hours just going around in a circle and reading paragraphs from the pamphlet and discussing what we could do to strengthen that or what we could learn from it etc. We only lasted an hour and a half before we did not know what else to say because the girls would not really participate but I think it went well considering. It was fun to see the girls because one was just 15 and she is an only child and her parents are not members but she learned about the church from a friend and got baptized and comes every Sunday and was asking us how she could get her family to do FHE with her even though her mother and father are not members. She was so sweet and just knows how good the Gospel makes her feel, I admire members like that so much because being faithful while growing up with a family invested in the Gospel is even hard so I cant imagine doing it on my own. When we got back to Mama’s we had our group meeting and then watched the Testaments. Watching it this time with such a better understanding of the Book of Mormon so far made me appreciate the movie even more than I have before and we were looking in Third Nephi trying to figure out which characters matched up with who and such while we were watching. It is a beautiful movie. The testimony of Christ is something that I cannot deny and I know that the tears people cry in the movie when Christ is atoning for our sins and dying on the cross are real, my tears sure were real. I could feel how much He loves me and I know that if I was the only person ever created, He still would have atoned for me just as he did for the whole world. The Atonement is so personal, I can feel it. The portrayal of Christ’s miracles are so beautiful and the depictions are so vivid that the feeling you get while watching them testifies that those miracles really did happen and that Christ did suffer and die for us. We were all just crying and laughing after because we love it so much. Walking Cassie and Natalie to the taxi later we were all so happy and hyper, which we always are when we are together and everybody out on the street was just making us dance and laugh and sing and it was so fun. When we walked by a group of people at their store they were talking to us in Twi and Cassie just went off blubbering in jibberish and luckily the people were laughing because I was literally on the ground dying because it was so funny. She kills me. Walking back home from the taxi after dropping them off Jackie and I were just in a state of bliss. I was so incredibly happy in that 10 minute walk and I could not help but smile so big at everyone and everything. Being here in Ghana has been truly amazing so far and I cannot believe the growth that I have experienced while I have been here.

June 4, 2012

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRADEN BOY!!! I lit the gas stove by myself this morning which Jackie and I usually do together whenever we have to cook and the wind blew in right as I lit the match so the flame flew back to my hand and burned the hair right off of the back of my thumb. It was way cool, only because I didn’t get burned but now I am kind of terrified to light it on my own. Despite it being a Monday, today was great. I was very productive at the hospital and I conducted my first interview so I was stoked. One of the security guards who tries to teach me Twi all the time came up to me this morning saying something about bananas and I was confused so he left and came back a little later with this huge bag of bananas and I was so excited. A week or so ago, he randomly asked if I liked bananas and I made the mistake of saying yes, anything people find out you like they will buy for you. Its so kind but I always feel so undeserving and I don’t know how to thank them properly but its just the culture. I ran down to show Jackie and we both ate one and they tasted just like home, we were told these kind of bananas are ‘Western bananas’ because they are brought over and planted. The Ghana bananas are tiny little guys and plantain is very different from both. Taste is all similar but these tasted exactly like those Im used to. I did some observation in the consulting room and then went to eat a rock bun and a banana with Jackie for lunch until my interview. I was super nervous because I really didn’t know what exactly I was going to ask but I wrote out some questions hoping they would illicit responses that would give me good data and I rolled with it. It went well and it was way fun to just sit down and talk with someone as opposed to just observing to get data all the time. His phone went off during it because he gets texts with the stats for the economy and the Dollar to Cedi exchange rate today was 1.9. Almost double. I wish I had been in Kumasi today because that works out beautifully in my favor but it is really unfortunate for Ghana, their money is depreciating in value. After the interview he walked Jackie and I home. Phyllis had brought Jackie and I plantain chips today as well so we bought some chocolate powder on the way home so we could make choco banana smoothies and we also made mango guacamole to eat with our plantain chips and it was worlds best snack.

 We really wish we had ice or something to make the smoothies cold but they are still good. It was a lovely day. Now here I sit after writing field notes for two hours, I am already burnt out from trying to write 5 pages a day. it is so hard but also rewarding for the information that it forces you to recall from the day. My scripture reading today was awesome as usual. I love love love it! It is interesting to see how reading at this pace makes me have so many more questions about the deeper doctrine than I have ever had before from my own personal reading. I really wish I had my Bible and LDS.org and other things here because I have so many questions that I just cant find answers to and Jackie and I can only do so much with our little Book of Mormons that don’t even have the D&C or Pearl of Great Price so I am limited with my cross-referencing and clarification. Buuut it is cool to understand so many other things in a way that I never have before.  

 

Ghana bananas, the small ones...Western bananas...and bananas growing!