Happy Day

Do you ever have one of those days that leave you glowing and feeling like you are 100% in your right spot? Welcome to my day.

The highlights-
I woke up to the sound of Evelyn knocking on my door peering in from the verandah through my window to see me lying flat on my back still in my mosquito net, enjoying the “cool” morning temperature, “The day has broken! The water is boiled! You bring your cup.” We both laugh, she’s been up for a while now and must think I’m insane for sleeping until 7:05 a.m.

After tea and some clean up and work at home, I head to town to fix my bike basket, the men do a great job and they only charge me 1.2 Cedis (90 cents or something insane!). I love not being cheated so I give him 2 Cedis…is this weird? We both leave this transaction feeling totally satisfied.



I feel celebratory so I stop at my friend Oliver’s egg-bread stand. He is awesome. In the craziness of the tro station, where you are constantly shouted at, “Where are you going” (I like to say Bolga because it confuses people and makes me laugh) “White person” “Somiya” “Please buy, I beg you” “Where to” “Taxi” “Somiya” etc. etc…he is a much welcomed retreat and safe heaven. All of his regular costumers know me and chat kindly, and Oliver doesn’t let people come up to me and beg me for money or try to sell me things that I don’t want to buy. I am so grateful for Oliver and for egg bread and his amazing tea and great conversations.



After sitting in a city-wide power outage for about 2 hours I have made a new friend. She is paying for University by working two jobs. One from 8-5 pm and then her own business after hours and will start a distance education Bachelor of Commerce from Cape Coast University while working those two jobs. Rock on.

Got on the internet and read something one of my best friends wrote that spoke to me. I have taken the liberty of copying it onto my blog.
I began to realize that we all have a shared responsibility in helping one another. I believe that growing up means you are able to put others needs before your own, you are able to truly sympathize with others, and you try to make a change in the world. Does it sound idealistic? Sure. Does that mean we shouldn't try to make an impact on our world? I think once I realized that simply because I did not see the immediate affects of what I was doing did not mean I should stop trying, this was the moment I felt I had grown up. Being part of the real world means having to face real problems and deal with them, not just go on living your life, ignoring what is going on around you. Ignorance is bliss simply does not cut it. No one can do everything, but everyone can do something...so it is crucial that we as humans find something we are passionate about and pursue it with all we have got, even when we cannot see any affects from our efforts.
I am so honoured to have her in my life.

Farmer Group Meeting – Riding my bike to the meeting I pass women from another farmer group that I work with and they see me and smile real genuine smiles and say “Ayinsonba!” to me (my local name).

My farmer group meeting went well and the women are really starting to think about ways to be INDEPENDENT rather than waiting for good to come to them and are searching out for it on their own. They have applied to the Ministry of Food of Agriculture for some equipment but are coming up with a plan of how to buy it on their own if it doesn’t come and how to build their dreams for themselves even if progress is only in baby steps.

After ending the meeting because of some pretty intense rain clouds, I stop to buy a few small things and the heavens open up on Bolga! The rain is POURING down, lightening like you have never seen before and I am grateful to understand what it means when people talk about the rain in Africa. I sit inside the store with the store keeper in the dark (the power went out) watching the lightening show. I couldn’t have asked for a better seat!

When I get home Evelyn tells me we aren’t having TZ because of the rain, instead we will have tea. I’m not sure if she’s joking - tea for dinner? Is she pulling my leg? I go to my room and find some random items to bring to our indoor picnic! I find two packages of biscuits (left here by Carissa, an EWBer who stayed for the weekend I think?), a coconut (a gift from Carissa from Tamale), and some groundnut cake (think peanut butter brittle). We are all sitting in Evelyn’s room. Evelyn produces bowl fruit from the morning to add to the mix and starts pouring out tea. “Ahh, dinner is fine tonight” says Evelyn and smiles her beautiful smile. I laugh and ask if we can do this again before I leave, she is still laughing and replies “OK!”. Sometimes I forget that she’s only one year older than me because she has three kids.

When Shaman and Amelia leave to sleep they both tag me and say “Sister Clara, Ta-co-lay” (Claire, Tag – you’re it!) and leave. I love these girls.




Godfred is colouring in his colouring book with four waxed crayons and 6 pencil crayons. I think of the boxes of crayola that kids use at home. I go back to my room and get the two pencil crayons that have been hanging out in the bottom of my backpack for several years now and offer them to him. It is magical to watch his beaming face and careful colouring.

Village Stay - Dagaare Festival

For the past two and a half months I have been living just outside of Bolga in a beautiful Zwaurangu. From my compound (house) I look out at the gorgeous Tongo Hills which are home to some small remote villages. I have often wondered what it would be like to live even further away from Bolga and all of its comforts.



So it was with great excitement and a touch of nervousness that I sat behind my friend Mershack on his moto as we drive away from Bolga and turn off the main road toward the hills. The road becomes unpaved, we drive on. It’s starting to get dark and the view is astounding…we keep driving and the unpaved road becomes more and more narrow and slowly becomes nothing more than a rocky hilly pumpy “path”. It’s dark out and I hear drumming. I wonder how far away the village is that I will be staying at for the next days and silently say a little prayer for our safety on the moto. The drumming is getting louder and louder and eventually we arrive at the Chief of Tongo’s Grand Palace. If you’re thinking Buckingham - think again. There are at least two hundred people dancing and drumming and celebrating outside of the palace, which actually looks more like a dilapidated building that is falling apart before it is even finished being built. I realize I am suppost to be impressed by this palace and show due respect. Mershack explains a bit of what’s going on and about the festival of “Dagaare” that has drawn crowds of people to celebrate in thanksgiving to the Almighty and to their ancestors for their harvest. There is lively dancing and it seems like an awesome party. Through a window I can see the Chief sitting with the elders –the Chief has his own personal fanner! I want to be a Chief.



I thought this was the end of my journey, but we get back on the moto and continue traveling further into the hills and finally arrive in the pitch black to a hord of children and adults welcoming us to the village, taking my things and carrying them away. Someone grabs my hand and gently guides me into the compound, making sure I don’t trip as there are no lights. Mershack leaves and as his moto lights fade into darkness I wonder what to do next. I am given tea and made to sit on the one chair they have. It’s a pretty sweet chair – it’s a wooden recliner, with a view of the big bright African night sky. A girl could get used to this.



Eventually we say goodnight and I go to my room – I put a prayer mat on the ground, hang my mosquito net to a string and settle in for a sound nights sleep. WRONG. Apparently the party has moved and outside my door is a roaring African drumming party. I had been told to go to bed so I’m confused and lie in bed enjoying the sounds and laughing about how insanely unique this is! I pull out “A Long Walk to Freedom” and read with my head lamp…by about 2 am I wish they would stop because I’m tired. It eventually dies down and I am woken at about 5 a.m by the gentle pounding of maize and people bringing water from the borehole. Do these people not sleep?





I go outside and am immediately offered tea. After tea I am brought to greet the Junior Chief. He also has a personal fanner. I bring him gifts and tell him my mission for coming to his village. I am then asked to come and see the gift from the Chief – a guinea fowl to be slaughtered in my honour. I watch Mr. Ben (the man in the village who speaks the most English) with a mixture of horror and fascination as he raises the guinea fowl into the air and says some prayers. His other hand is holding a big kitchen knife. He cuts the fowls neck and then throws it on the ground, blood is coming out and it’s flopping around on the ground. Despite my best effots, my face expresses more horror than honour and the children watching me laugh.



The rest of the day is uneventful and spent with me being followed around by about 30 children EVERYWHERE I went. For lunch I am fed a rice ball and soup with a big chunk of guinea fowl in it and a big piece of fish, I manage to get them to excuse me of fish but keep the guinea fowl. It tastes pretty darn good and is probably the freshest piece of meat that I have ever and will ever eat in my life. I think of my dad’s stories of “funny bird” and laugh.



Since it is the festival, nobody is doing much – no hard harvesting and no school. I find ways to become friends with the girls, mostly by asking them questions and answering theirs. Eventually we congregate to watch the Chief exit his room and sit down to watch the festivities.



At night I am ready for the drumming and dancing – I know the girls will take care of me and enjoy several hours of dancing around with them. People see me and exclaim, “Somiya! AHH! You’ve done well.” There smiles are amazing, they seem to love my effort and you can’t help but return their warm smiles. By about 10 p.m my long pants and long sleeve shirt are soaked with sweat and I escape to my bed, full of gratitude and thanksgiving.