ABC's of Life in Lawra

A Ali's Tea Shop is the BEST place (and only place) to buy bread and egg.
B Bicycle repair shop is under the tree at daily market
C Cakes - local cakes are made out of white bean flour and look like tortillas. They are eaten with fresh vegetables.
D Daily market is where you go to buy your vegetables.
E Eggs have brown shells
F Fruit is not easily available, but, when it is...yum!
G Ghana Post Office is where I pick my mail. There is no home delivery.
H Harmattan is a season of cooler temperatures, high winds, no rain. It is usually mid November to mid February.
I Indigenous people group with whom I work is the Dagaba. 
J Juju is anything worn to prevent evil spirits from attacking you, usually in the form of some type of necklace or bracelet.
K Kalsagri is the village where I do most of my work. The church for which I am a caretaker is in Kalsagri.
L Lights out (no electricity) happens periodically. It is a way of life.
M Maakum is the Dagaari word for "Grandmother," a name that is music to my ears.
N Naa is the word for "Chief." The Traditional government has a chief and runs through the bloodline.
O Oppressive. During hot season, temperatures can reach 120 degrees - very oppressive!
P Parcel. Receiving a parcel in the mail is most exciting.
Q Q...there is no "Q" in the local language. A "kw" makes the needed sound.
R Religions. The three main religions of the area are Traditional, Muslim and Christian.
S Superintendent Minister. I work along side The Methodist Church Ghana, and more specifically with the superintendent minister posted in Lawra, the Very Rev. Ernest K. Baiden.
T Tro tro is how I travel to the nearest city. A tro tro is a van that has seen better days and travels between Lawra and Wa.
U Under a mango tree is the best place to relax on a hot afternoon.
V Vegetables are quite limited here. If you like okra, you will be ok!
W Weekly market is a much larger market and a variety of items are sold. It occurs every six days!
X Xylophones are made locally. They are made from teak wood and calabashes.
Y Yelmenga, the Dagaare word for "Truth" or "True." Everything on this list is true!
Z Zinnias grow wild during rainy season.

 

 

Home Again

 

I arrived in Ghana on Tuesday, February 17, 2015. But, I didn't arrive home until Friday, the 20th. Jasper picked me up at the airport. Then, I exchanged money and went meat and cheese shopping before going to the Jackson's house to spend two nights. When we arrived, I discovered one of my suitcases was broken and in a matter of minutes, I dropped my phone which was now beyond repair! I was thankful for the phone that was given me while in the US. I put my stuff in the freezer. Later that night, the electricity went out. (Accra is on a schedule 12 hours on, 24 hours off.) I prayed my food would survive!

 

Wednesday, Charlie took me to Vodafone to buy a new one. (The phone from the US does not support the apps I use. The operating system could not be updated. But, it works great as a second phone!) I also prepared for my trip north. We decided to take two days, not pushing a 14+ hour drive in one day. Jasper and I left Sunyani on Thursday, and on to Lawra, Friday. We stayed with the Methodist bishop in Sunyani. His deep freeze was working fine and the electricity was on, so everything of mine was solid before we left on Friday. On Friday, we stopped in Wa so I could buy vegetables at the market. Lettuce was available! We arrived in Lawra around 1:00 in the afternoon. There were things to be done before going to my house...greet the pastor, drop off donations to the Lawra Methodist Children's Centre and buy fuel.

 

Finally, home! Sydney was there to greet me and unlock the door. The truck was unloaded and Jasper was on his way back to Accra. I was greeted with dust...EVERYWHERE! I had to clean as I started to unpack and put things away. Even so, it was good to be home!

 

Since Friday, I have had my motorcycle serviced, twice. Once for an oil change and a new battery and once for a flat tire. The tube was spoiled. The plumber is here for the second time. Yesterday, he fixed the kitchen sink. Today, he is fixing the wash sink. The clothes line was spoiled and needed replaced. Monday, the laundry was done and floors were well cleaned. I also found out that I needed to buy a new SIM card for my internet. the one I had was too old! I have worshipped in Kalsagri, visited the pastor, the Lawra Methodist Primary School, and the Tea Shop. I visited daily market and saw some of the ladies from Kalsagri selling their shea butter. (See above picture.) Now, I am trying to catch up on church work, emails, etc. Even though the pastor told me to rest this week, it hasn't happened much. I am just so glad to be home! I thank God for bringing me back safely. 

Packing for Home

I leave “home” tomorrow to return to my “home.” Which one is my REALLY REAL home is a topic for another blog. Today’s topic is packing.What do I pack when I live in an area where there is so little available and I am traveling from an area where so much is available. Well, here is a list of things that I’d like to pack, but can’t:

• my sister, brothers and extended family
• friends
• worship in English
• hot and cold running water
• snow, for those really, really hot days
• dependable electricity
• a bathtub
• Tula’s pool
• nice, clean rest stops
• home delivery of mail
• the privilege of having a toilet in which I can flush used TP
• home pick up of garbage and recycling
• a/c when it is hot and heat when it is cold
• a washer and drier
• my bed at Nancy’s lake house
• easily accessible doctors
• the ability to shop for whatever I would ever need or want

I will be satisfied with packing some new clothes, Yankee candles, Smith’s hot dogs and tons of other stuff And, I will thank God for providing me the means to acquire all these things for myself and others. May I bless others as I have been blessed.

Random Thoughts

 

As I sit here and look out over frozen Lake Erie, my mind is filled with random thoughts. The first one is...I'm headed home in 10 days! At least, that's when the journey will begin. Although I would never have chosen to return to the United States last September, I am grateful for the things I have experienced since I have been here. And, if all my experiences weren't positive, there was a lesson to be learned in each one of them.

 

Now, I wonder...do I really want to retire in Erie? There is snow here - LOTS of snow. I would miss my brother and sister who live in Erie, but, with modern technology, we keep in touch even when I am in Ghana. Visiting churches makes me examine myself to really see how I respond to visitors to my church. Are they welcomed? Do THEY feel welcomed? What would I do differently at the church in Kalsagri? I hope I will become more aware of those worshipping with us and take more time with people, not just hop on my motorcycle to go home. Medical issues...I am grateful to have had the knee replaced. I am not grateful for the medical bills. I am grateful that God has provided me means to pay them, even if it takes awhile. I am grateful for the people and places I have seen in the past several months. I have celebrated Thanksgiving and Christmas with family. I have attended the wedding of my nephew. I have gone to The Mission Society office to re-connect. I have gone on vacation. I have visited with friends.

 

I am more than ready to move on and go home. I leave in TEN days. I can't wait. Ghana is more home to me than Erie is at this point. Packing is a challenge, even with extra luggage. I am blessed to have so much "stuff" to take back, some for myself, some for others. And, food. I am taking back some food, some things to celebrate special days...hot dogs for Memorial Day. Stuff like that. I am looking forward to worshipping in Kalsagri and seeing my church family again. Oh, how my heart yearns to see them again.

 

Enough of that. Let's just say, my mind is working overtime these days. Ghana, I miss you.  See you soon!

Bus Travel the Greyhound Way

In January, I had the opportunity to travel by Greyhound bus. Boy, was I in for culture shock! First of all, I bought my tickets online. There was actually a schedule of when and where to join on the bus, when and where it would take a break for a rest stop and when and where it would stop and I would alight. 

When I entered the bus station, I noticed right away that it was a clean, shiny bus station! I took my luggage to the desk where it was weighed. I was told how much to pay according to the weight, not just an arbitrary amount, but one that was used across the board!

 

I waited inside until it was time to board the bus. It was clean and comfortable...with wash rooms and flush toilets! (With toilet paper AND running water at the sinks AND soap!)

As I sat and waited, I watched the activity outside the windows, by the buses. Then, I saw it...a bright yellow plastic STEP to more easily get inside the bus. What will they think of next? The announce-ment was made to board the bus, so we all lined up, showed the driver our tickets and found a seat.

 

The bus was not full, so I was able to find a seat by the window. No one sat beside me. The bus left the station before it was full! I had two seats all to myself! In the back of the bus was a wash room! And, under the windows were electrical outlets so people could keep their electronics charged. The ride was smooth and blessedly quiet. We stopped at the rest stop on time and arrived at our final destination on time. Greyhound Bus Lines...I love you!



Bus Travel the Metro Mass Transit Way

 

 

When I travel in Ghana, it is usually on public transport. I love living in Lawra, but, it is not the easiest place to travel to or from. When I need to travel ANYWHERE except Wa, the day begins long before the sun comes up. I leave my house at 3:30 in the morning, carrying my baggage to the bus "station" in downtown Lawra so I can get a seat on the Metro Mass Transit bus going to my destination . Some mornings the bats are swooping down as I walk, sometimes not. Once, I walked through a torrential deluge. Needless to say, I was soaked way before I entered the bus.

Once on the bus, I look for an empty seat and settle in for the duration. It is comfortable at first, the sun is not up, so the heat is not yet stifling. We stop many times along the way, picking up passengers and dropping them off.



People bring whatever they can on the bus. Room in the boot is limited, so the aisles are frequently full of all kinds of things: luggage, yams, paint, chickens, Big 50kg bags of rice or produce...When we have a rest stop, it is challenging to make it to the door. The facilities at the rest stop are usually behind a building, parked vehicle, tree or some other vegetation. But, that is not always the case. Once in a while, there is actually a urinal or maybe just an open space where I take my cues from other women on the bus. The rest areas that I am used to as an American, are not even a dream here. (That is why I quit drinking most everything 6-8 hours before I travel.)



 

 When it is raining, one has to be careful. If you have a window seat, you most likely will get wet. Once, I was on a bus where the water came up through the floor every time we went through any size of a puddle of water. It made for an interesting ride!

After a long day of heat, dust and bumpy roads, my destination is reached. Praise God! In the midst of  a smooth or bumpy ride, heat or rain, break downs or not, I have always reached my journey's end safely. Metro Mass Transit...Moving the Nation!

 

 

 



The Best Sunday Ever

I have visited several churches while in the US. It is amazing to me to see how many churches are unfriendly. Unless I go with a friend, or am the "missionary speaker" for the day, no one greeted me or noticed that I was a visitor. They just handed me a bulletin.  Hmmm....am I that way in Kalsagri? Anyway, this past Sunday, I returned to a church that I had visited with friends. But, I was by myself and at an earlier service. I was handed a bulletin...walked in...and someone greeted me! Asked if I was visiting and had a conversation with me! I sat down, introduced myself to the people who were sitting in the same pew and read the bulletin since the service had not started yet. And, I read...

the prelude was to be The Birthday of a King. I love that song! Sure wished the choir sang it, but, the music was the next best thing! As I continued to read, I saw that the service included John Wesley's Covenant Service. Thank You, Jesus! Love it. It is the ONLY way to start the new year. And, to top it off...communion! O, what a blessed service. The Spirit of the Lord was definitely in that place!

 

So, now, I will leave you with Wesley's Covenant Prayer. As you read it, meditate on the words...can you really pray that prayer with all your heart?

I am no longer my own, but Thine.Put me to what Thou wilt, rank me with whom Thou wilt.

Put me to doing, put me to suffering.

Let me be employed for Thee or laid aside for Thee,

exalted for Thee or brought low for Thee.

Let me be full, let me be empty.

Let me have all things, let me have nothing.

I freely and heartily yield all things to Thy pleasure and disposal.

And now, O glorious and blessed God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,

Thou art mine, and I am Thine.

So be it.

And the covenant which I have made on earth,

let it be ratified in heaven.

Amen.

 

Words for a New Year

The other day I was in a bookstore in Erie, PA and came across the book, Shepherd of Many. It is a book of "lessons" or sayings of Msgr. James Peterson. I knew Father Peterson many, many years ago. As the old year has ended and a new one has begun, I would like to leave with you some of his lessons:

 

~The future will be no more important than today, not in its work or ministry or prayer. No moment is more important or valuable than the present moment.

~God is in charge. I'm the director. I'm only here.

~You have to forgive, not excuse.

~Don't ask about changing the situation. Ask about changing your heart.

~Remember Mary doing laundry pleasing God where she was.

~It takes humility to accept God's gifts and courage to use them.

~God wants your friendship more than your ministry.

~Seek trust, not understanding. When you trust, nothing else is needed.

~You're in God's care. You don't have to rush Him. Stop trying to help Him so much.

~There's a world of difference between the uncertainty that is frightening and the uncertainty that is promising.

 

There are many more lessons in this little book. But, if I learn the ones listed above, I will have learned a LOT!

 

May God be with you and draw you close to Him in this New Year.

He Loves Me!

 

Being Caretaker of a small village church in Ghana means that I don't often attend a worship service "just being part of the congregation." I am always busy...making sure things get done (which, they usually have been done.) I preach. Sometimes, on a Sunday morning, I will also teach Sunday School. Then, there are all of those books in which we keep church records...attendance by age and sex, collection, special collection...are people interested in a Baptism class? A visitor two might happen before I ride my motorcycle home. Even when the pastor comes to preach and to give communion, it is a busy day for me. So, even though I am able to see God work in many ways before, during, and after the service, I don't often personally feel the renewal of my spirit after a time of morning worship in Kalsagri. It is hard work! I guess that is where personal devotion time steps in to meet that need.

 

Anyway, while in the States this fall, I have been attending worship at a variety of Methodist churches. And, what I discovered is something I already knew. HE LOVES ME. I could put the "He" in a bold font, because the Lord God almighty, maker of the universe loves me. Or, I could put the "loves" in a bold font because that one supreme God, sent His Son to earth to live as a human being and teach me the Father's love...and to die an ugly death on the cross so that I could be in Heaven with Him, face to face one day. Or I could put "me" in a bold print because, even if I were the only person on earth, He would still do everything possible, everything needed so that one day I could be rejoicing in His kingdom.

 

The first four Sundays I was in Pennsylvania, I went to four different United Methodist churches. Each one of them celebrated the Lord's Supper on the Sunday I was there. It was almost too good to be true...to "just be part of the congregation," to worship, pray, listen to the message, and then to receive communion and meditate on the love of God. Ahhh! Balm for the soul.

 

Last Sunday, I attended Glenwood UMC. It was a communion Sunday. I went up front with everyone else to receive the elements...and as I ate the bread and drank the fruit of the vine, tears formed in my eyes. HE LOVES ME!

Celebrating the Little Things

Ever since my knee replacement surgery, I have been in a kind of a “funk.” Everyone says I am doing FINE. Things are going great. Healing is happening. But, I don’t see it that way. My knee is still tight because of the swelling. There are places on my knee that I have no feeling. It is hard to get comfortable at night, so I am not sleeping well. Sometimes, I have to think about how I am walking. I definitely have to remind myself how to go up and down steps. Getting in and out of cars can be a challenge, especially if the car is a small one. And I wonder…will this ever end? You see, I tend to look at what I can't do instead of what I can do.

So, this week, I FINALLY decided to celebrate the little things. What kind of things? Well, I can drive now. I was able to drive to do my errands. (Something to celebrate!) Two weeks ago, at church, I was able to go down the steps, the proper way, holding onto one handrail! A first! (Something to celebrate!)  I haven’t been able to wear jeans because my knee was too swollen.  They were too tight at the knee. A week ago, I could wear a pair of jeans for a whole day! (Something to celebrate!) Sunday, I wore “normal” shoes to church, not the sneakers that I have been wearing because I could make them loose to accommodate a swollen foot. (Something to celebrate!) The degree of bend of the knee is very important. The goal is to bend the knee at 110 degrees or more. It is a painful part of recovery! Well, this week, I was sitting in a recliner, and I was able to pull BOTH knees up and bend then like a capital “A.” I don’t know the degree of the bend, but, that was the first time I was able do that. (Something to celebrate.) Today, I went down the cellar stairs using only one handrail. Another first. (Something to celebrate!)

So, even though I seem to look at the negative side of things connected with my knee replacement, I am learning to appreciate and be grateful for the small victories. It will be several months before all is healed properly. So, I need to remind myself that God is faithful. He brought me this far and will continue to work in my life, teaching me to trust Him.

A Time to Heal

Three months ago, I was in Lawra, Ghana, enjoying life and the work God has given me...all except for one minor detail. I was in constant pain. My right knee had been bothering me for years, and, little by little, it became worse. So bad, that, after arriving back in Lawra after attending a meeting in Tamale, I called my doctor to set a date for a total knee replacement. I had one on my left knee six years ago, so I knew what I was getting myself into, right?

So, I flew back to Erie, PA. I had all the needed lab work and pre-surgery stuff done. Then, on October 17, I went to UPMC Hamot for surgery. Three days later, I was back at my sisters' house in PAIN! I don't remember the last surgery being this painful. But, then, I am a bit older! A CPM machine (to keep my knee moving at increasing angles, six hours a day) was sent home with me. It seems as if all I do is try to get comfortable, do some exercises and get on "the rack."

This time of healing has been hard on me. When I am on pain meds, I can't concentrate. Reading is difficult, if I want to remember what I read. Even watching a DVD gets old real quick. Sleep does not come easy. And, trying to get comfortable in bed...forget it! Keeping a good attitude is the hardest thing of all. Because of the pain, tightness around the knee and lack of range of motion, getting around isn't real easy.

I had therapy at home for two weeks. Holly, my therapist, was such an encouragement. Now, I am going to out patient therapy. In the 2 1/2 weeks since surgery, a lot has been accomplished. Yet, I want to be 100% healed yesterday! It takes time. A small step here, an increase of a degree in the bend or straightening of the knee - they are all major accomplishments for me. It is difficult to "sit back" and let the healing happen. Yes, I have things to do to aid in the healing, some painful, some, not so painful. I guess what it all boils down to, is do I sit around and mope and think, "Woe is me!" Or, do I thank God for the opportunity to have this surgery, this time to take life a bit slower and enjoy His love and His creation? Honestly, I have done both. But, as time goes on, I hope my attitude would be more positive and show my thankfulness to God and would reflect Him instead of feeling sorry for myself.

For everything there is a season. And, for me, now is a season of healing.

GI Kojo Goes to Church

It was a day to celebrate at Wesley Methodist Church of the Chiraa Circuit. The Foundation Stone Laying Ceremony was going to take place, and it was a day to try to raise the funds to complete building the church.
 

As we got closer to the church on Sunday 31 August 2014, we noticed a few guys in army uniforms with AK 47s in their hands. The closer we got to the church, the more military we saw among the trees, by the church building…all over the place. Hmmm…why was GI Kojo at church today?
 

 

The answer to this question was very simple, His Excellency, Kwesi Bekoe Amissah-Arthur, the vice president of Ghana was going to worship with us this day. As we waited for everyone to arrive and the service to start, we heard sirens…everyone got up and looked out towards the street. The motorcycle motorcade had arrived, with the drivers showing off their unique driving abilities…next came the VIPs, including the vice president. All the GI Kojos were alert, watchful, doing their job .
 

 

The local chiefs and political VIPs attended as well as plenty of “big men.” Worship started – it was a wonderful service. The Foundation Stone was unveiled and dedicated, with plenty of people in attendance. Money was raised. And, maybe when the church is complete, the VP will come again…along with more GI Kojos!

There She Stands

When the night seems to say

All hope is lost, gone away.

But I know I’m not alone.

By the light, she stands.

There she waves, faithful friend,

Shimmering stars, westward wind,

Show the way, carry me,

To the place she stands.

Just when you think it might be over,

Just when you think the fight is gone,

Someone will risk his life to raise her,

There she stands.

There she flies, clear blue skies,

Reminds us with red of those that died,

Washed in white by the brave,

In their strength, she stands.

When evil calls itself a martyr,

When all your hopes come crashing down,

Someone will pull her from the rubble,

There she stands.

We’ve seen her flying torn and tattered.

We’ve seen her stand the test of time.

And, through it all the fools have fallen.

There she stands.

By the dawn’s early light,

And through the fight…

She stands.

 

~There She Stands by Michael W. Smith