The same sky

-And maybe it does take time to realize 9.29.07
That this is life;
And everything else lay in the commentary of our perceptions,
As if those were important.
If only time were natural and the rain cleansed the depravity of this red dirt
A little more than the innate abundance of its competition.
So maybe perceptions are important
Because this could be the best day of my life
And yet all you see is sorrow in the surroundings.
Even if that be,
I will still see you
Fuller than I
Of the joy it takes to sustain this
that is life.-

I’ve arrived at my host family’s house. I’d have to say that the anticipation of meeting my host family was almost as bad as walking the green mile down the Wichita airport after saying goodbye to my family and friends. Today my host father, I call him father, walked me around the village and as we greeted those who lived in the town I couldn’t help but comment on the storm that was forming and the way it was making the sun illustrate the clouds. I told my father that they had a very nice sky over the village and he laughed and said “But you have the same one no?”

I like it here.

Today has truly been a day where I’ve tried all my emotions; perhaps I was just making sure they were all still intact. When I arrived in the town the only thing I wanted to do was cry. I’m not real sure why but it really seemed like the thing to do. And so I did. But the thing about being a new white person in an African village is that someone is always watching. They want to meet you and greet you and ask you all sorts of questions about America and why you are not married. There is no time for breakdowns when you’re trying to establish a reputation.

But I still cried.

I missed home and I missed being normal and I missed having a conversation where I could say more than “Good afternoon” and “how are you?” So in the words of Anne Lamott, I prayed the deepest, most profound prayer that one could utter:

help.

And he did.

And for the next ten weeks I will be a part of this family. I have brothers and sisters and a father and a mother and they will teach me how to cook, clean, socialize, and in essence, become an African. They are very protective of me and I think it’s funny that they worry so much. The thing about being white in Ghana is that they assume you are rich, and that because you are rich you don’t do things like walk or lift heavy objects or cook or anything else back home. They worry if I go out and want to know when they should expect me back and they are very concerned that I eat well and fully.

Right now I’m sitting in the dark listening to the rain fall outside my window. There are bugs crawling up and down my computer screen and I can hear the children in the room next to me laughing. The amazing thing about grace is it’s comparison to the sky. Completely vast and seemingly tangible but when it is reached for we're somehow surprised that it is too big. And so we stand under it and marvel at all the ways it chooses to inspire us.

I love and miss you all.

10.1.07

Last night I finally broke out the guitar for the kids while we were sitting outside looking at the stars. They kept wanting to see what was inside that crazy box and so I played them a song. I told them that if I played they had to dance. And they did. Even my mother who speaks no english got up and started dancing around. I was playing a rendition of your love is extravegant and they wanted to know the words. So I told them and then we translated it to Twi so that the mother could sing too. It translated to "God's love is go good." It was awesome.

The kids are amazing here. They are all very intelligent and most speak english. Most of the time one of the children are translating between me and my mother. They are so fun to be around and I'm thankful for my brothers and sisters.

I'm going to get off of here and head back home. I should let you know that I will be in the Volta region for my pernament placement, the very north end of it. It's called the Nkwanta District in a village called Sibi Hill toop. It's somewhat isolated because the roads are pretty bad, most people travel around by bike.

Talk to you soon.

-Brenna