In Accra
It's now Saturday afternoon. I'm in Accra and my parents are getting here soon. Needless to say, I'm totally not excited or anything. I'm in a bit of a rush so I'll just say that it's sweet to be in Accra and I've got two separate posts within this post below this paragraph. See if you can decipher it. Enjoy!
It’s Wednesday night but I doubt I’ll put this up til Friday. Today was really good. As I think I mentioned in my last post, we had a ceremony to distribute school uniforms and books to twenty needy girls as part of a program that was initiated last year. We had some of the things left over and some people from a village near where we live asked for them. Ask and ye shall receive.
So Grace and I went up there to give them out. There was a big ceremony in the church with the teachers and some village elders and parents, plus at least 200 hyperactive kids. I gave a little speech about Dr. Addae, stressing the importance of education and remembering your roots. In truth, I think most of it went over the kids’ heads, but the few sentences I spoke in Twi got me a huge cheer.
It was rewarding to be able to do this, but it was also unfulfilling in a way. I wish we had more to give but I know that it would never have been enough. That’s the way it goes with this kind of work-it never ends.
One more thing: kids here go absolutely bonkers when you take their picture, especially after the flash goes off. I got a few good shots today and took a bit of video as well so I’ll be able to remember the noise. What I really need is two cameras, or at least a separate flash, so I can take a photo of how they react to the flash going off. Crazy.
It’s Friday morning now. Yesterday I finished creating an application form for the college and then we went up to the clinic to deliver everything and start putting things in order…finally. It’ll take a few more days to get everything done but it should be up and running by the time I get back on Wednesday. I spent about half an hour putting outpatient cards in alphabetical order (fun!). It seems like half of Ghana has a last name that starts with ‘A’ and the other half has a last name starting with ‘O’. Not one ‘C’. At least I know that if I got sick there they could find my card quickly.
I’m about to head to Accra but hopefully I’ll get this posted before I leave. I’m staying with Nana Aba tonight and my parents are getting in tomorrow night. Not too sure how often I’ll be writing after they get here, so it might be a while. So long, everyone…
It’s Wednesday night but I doubt I’ll put this up til Friday. Today was really good. As I think I mentioned in my last post, we had a ceremony to distribute school uniforms and books to twenty needy girls as part of a program that was initiated last year. We had some of the things left over and some people from a village near where we live asked for them. Ask and ye shall receive.
So Grace and I went up there to give them out. There was a big ceremony in the church with the teachers and some village elders and parents, plus at least 200 hyperactive kids. I gave a little speech about Dr. Addae, stressing the importance of education and remembering your roots. In truth, I think most of it went over the kids’ heads, but the few sentences I spoke in Twi got me a huge cheer.
It was rewarding to be able to do this, but it was also unfulfilling in a way. I wish we had more to give but I know that it would never have been enough. That’s the way it goes with this kind of work-it never ends.
One more thing: kids here go absolutely bonkers when you take their picture, especially after the flash goes off. I got a few good shots today and took a bit of video as well so I’ll be able to remember the noise. What I really need is two cameras, or at least a separate flash, so I can take a photo of how they react to the flash going off. Crazy.
It’s Friday morning now. Yesterday I finished creating an application form for the college and then we went up to the clinic to deliver everything and start putting things in order…finally. It’ll take a few more days to get everything done but it should be up and running by the time I get back on Wednesday. I spent about half an hour putting outpatient cards in alphabetical order (fun!). It seems like half of Ghana has a last name that starts with ‘A’ and the other half has a last name starting with ‘O’. Not one ‘C’. At least I know that if I got sick there they could find my card quickly.
I’m about to head to Accra but hopefully I’ll get this posted before I leave. I’m staying with Nana Aba tonight and my parents are getting in tomorrow night. Not too sure how often I’ll be writing after they get here, so it might be a while. So long, everyone…
posted by Tony at 12:06 p.m.
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