Summer Remains Salient in Early September

    

Flying insects frolic toward the Centre for Spiritual Renewal's foliage

Akokoamong kids. Some students; all amiable neighbors. 

Hannah, Margaret Marry (Maggie), Godfred, Francis, and Princilla among others.

"Garden eggs", which I formerly mistook as "golden eggs" with salted tilapia and other smoked/preserved fish.

My new best friends. Convent novices Sr. Patricia (left) and Sr. Georgina. Laughter comes easily in their presence.

Priests in perfect repose, speculating while the alms extravaganza takes place at Sunday mass. I forget the location; about an hour from Kumasi.

Sr. Marian (FST), Sr. Vida (FST), Sr. Mary (FST-a convent mate, far right), among others after mass. 

A Kum tree in Adum. The tree from which Kumasi gets its name. 

Celebrations of birthdays at the FST motherhouse in Dakodwum. 

Oh yes nuns can dance..and they do. 

With Archbishop Anokye and FST Superior General Sr. Alice Matilda.

The Eucharist doesn't fall from the sky after all. FST host factory, where workers and sisters produce the host that fills every Catholic church in the diocese.

Paige loves Sammy. 

The BTLA school bus and my blue friend who graces me with her presence every morning.

Donning the BTLA teachers' uniform. Polkadots have the euphemistic name "dove eggs" here. I'm grumbling over how the male faculty members are exempt.

Ms. Regan goes elementary teacher. New posters for the ICT classroom.

 The 2012-2013 BTLA school year commences on Monday. I have been moved from English and ICT teacher to Creative Arts, English and ICT teacher, back to simply being the all-school ICT teacher. I will hopefully have opportunities to tutor students in English outside of school hours, especially the boarders. I miss my loved ones across the Atlantic, but Akokoamong is great company. Although there are many times during the week where it is exceedingly difficult, I am trying to refrain from ethnocentric thinking to the best of my ability. As much as I try to unpack Peggy McIntosh's coined invisible knapsack of white privilege, I find the sack always remains. Nonetheless, the human spirit wears no color, is free from the scars of history and because it remains fervently flowing through all of my encounters, I almost always wake up with a smile in spite of any hurdles in my way; literal or imagined.  

In Akokoamong

Backside view of BTLA

Hurry up September 10th.

The convent

Principal Sr. Martha Danso and baby Sammy. Sammy spends a lot of time hanging with us at the convent as his mother Vida works with us.

View from the top: the brinks of one of Kumasi's marketplaces. 

Vida and Sammy with Sr. Patricia making Kenkey.

First experience with kenkey. Takes sometimes more than a day to prepare and devoured within an hour.


Living in a true community is uplifting. The sisters are brilliant and have a wonderful sense of humor. I spend my nights studying twi, as learning the language of the people will make or break my success with the students. I am also preparing lesson plans for first through fourth grade art class; teaching shapes and patterns is a little different than fostering critical thinking skills through literature. Rock n' roll Ghana. 

In the Beginning

First week. 

The first night was spent with Wendy and her most hospitable family in Accra. 

Wendy donned in her graduation attire. Kente belt and trim. 

A residential section of greater Accra. Accra is the capital and largest city in Ghana.

I spent two nights in Accra and then flew to Kumasi on Friday where I met Wendy and her friend Miriam to celebrate in their graduation from KNUST. 

pups outside of the engineering apartments at KNUST. 

Congratulations Miriam (left) and Wendy! 

     On Saturday, I continued on to The Centre for Spiritual Renewal outside of Santasi. The Centre is situated amidst government-protected rainforest. Legend has it that an Ashanti warrior leader is buried in the forest's depths. The Ashanti are infamous in Ghana for their valor in fighting off and temporarily  preventing British colonization in the Ashanti region. 

The Centre's chapel.

Lizards seem to be as plentiful as the mosquitos.

                                                 

These guys were enthralled by the fact I'm from Colorado. From what I have heard, Trey Parker and Matt Stone have given CO quite the name. 

Common spider.

Road leading to the Centre.

Kumasi street food. 

      On Wednesday, after a few days at the Centre, I made my way to Akokoamong. Sr. Alice, and Sr. Vida FST picked me up and drove me to the convent and school where I will spend the better portion of the year. 

Blessed Trinity Leadership Academy (BTLA)

My lovely chambers in the convent. Medase pii FST sisters.

School begins September 10th. I will try to post to this blog as often as possible, although we will be very busy in the upcoming weeks with planning and registration. Instead of my field of study English, I will be teaching all-school IT and Creative Arts. 

I am adjusting to eating dishes such as goat fufu with my right hand, and am also becoming accustomed to being the first obruni (white person) many of the village children have ever seen. If I step outside of my room, the kids will join together shouting: "obruni obruni". If I do a little dance for them they quickly imitate the motion and we instantly connect in spite of our notable differences, smiles across our faces. I'm completely out of any comfort zone I've ever known, but slowly I'm starting to feel like I'm home.