Day Twenty-One

Day 21:

This week has been filled with much loudness, all from booming speakers and jolly drunkards wandering the streets. Several funerals have been taking place over the past few days. Funerals here are week long celebrations, with non-stop dancing and partying which lasts through the night. The entire town is invited to come celebrate. If you are closer-ish to the family, you not only attend the party, but also pay a visit to the family at their house and usually they provide a meal for you.

Chelsea and I had the opportunity to be involved in both aspects at our friend Nancy's uncle's funeral. When we visited her family, we were served rice, stew, and dried fish. I received the head of the fish, Chelsea the tail. Pretty much every part of the fish here is eaten meaning our meal included not only meat, but bones, scales, and organs to chow down. With one assuring look at each other, we dug into the challenge of finishing this meal. I can proudly say that Chelsea finished all of her tail and I finished pretty much all of my head. Sadly, we spent the first part of dinner eating with our left hand (a big no-no) and Chelsea did break one plastic spoon in attempt to cut her fish. Thankfully, our blunders were politely overlooked. We've heard that you should try to attend a wedding and a funeral of every culture you visit; we're keeping our ears perked for a wedding to crash now!

Friday, Chelsea and I took a trip to Accra. What a crazy city! We decided to eat dinner at the Accra mall, as we've read that it is the lasting legacy of the previous president. When we walked through the sliding glass doors, we quickly realized we did not belong. This upscale mall was nicer than most of our malls back home. People of all skin colors (that was a shock for our Obibini-adjusted eyes) shopped in stores like Puma and Apple, stylishly dressed and smelling good. Being the Bawjiase girls that we are, we hadn't showered in a few days and our feet were caked with mud and dirt. We literally felt like we were making the mall dirtier. Needless to say, we were out of place. We did however highly enjoy our dinner of chicken burgers and fries, and ice cream and a chocolate croissant for dessert! Yum!



Yesterday we finally went to the right church--the church Pastor helps lead. It was so fun to wear our dresses that Ma made us. She was clearly proud as we received many Twi compliments.

Our outings this week were wonderful, but we really did miss being with the kids. It's only been three weeks, but we are beginning to really know personalities and quirks now. Nathaniel is a little quiet, but he is so bright, such a good reader and always ready to learn. When Irene won't talk, she normally enjoys a battle of silly faces. Zenabu catches on to songs remarkably quickly. When Kofi won't stop crying it's usually because he's frustrated with something that can be solved by taking time to communicate with finger points. It is such a blessing to spend time with them, to always have a child on your lap or tied on your back. We are so blessed to know each child.



Please be praying for educational opportunities for the kids. The school at the orphanage isn't very high quality, mostly because of lack of funding. Pray that money will come in to provide a strong foundation for their future. Also, Chelsea and I are working individually with the older kids to improve their reading skills. Please pray that we will have wisdom and patience with them and that there will be long-lasting improvement made through the one-on-one tutoring.

Blessings to you!
Love,
Chelsea and Megan