Jan's Blog

• NOTE: To read from the first blog on this trip, scroll all the way down the page.

Nov.26,27, 2010

A Sweet hello

In Pok’s new house, we sat for breakfast and expressed our deep respect for each other.  This trip has touched all of us in ways we never anticipated even after the 9 years we have been working together.

The sweetest kisses of all

We “goodbyed” each other, then Ayamdooh and I took off for Tamale where my flight would leave the next day.

Entrance to the beach club

I arrived in Accra to find the small car packed with four people already.  Two of Akunz’ students from the Netherlands and his wife Mary. We all squeezed in, bags and backpacks and went on an excursion for about 2 hours before arriving at a beach club.  We took a boat ride to a place to eat lunch and socialize.  Beautiful area I had never seen.

Bridge from Ghana to Togo (another country)

I met another white Queen Mother today.  She is from the Netherlands, married a Ghanain man and has been here for eleven years.  She started an eco tourism business and gave life to a small shanty town that is now the center of her tours.

Yours truly on the boat ride

Mary, Akunz' wife

I met another woman who has been working for Cadbury (large corp) having made huge differences but had to work outside the perameters of the unrealistic and culturally insensitive results they expect.  I also met a woman on the plane today who is an artist teaching in Sirigu (near Yua) and we discovered how alike our approaches are ; just doing what needs to be done in the moment without having to plan.  She travels all over the world using her art as a tool to teach creative thought.

Seeing a happy,kissy dog at the end of my trip is perfect for my soul

I am not sure why I met these women all in one day, but I did discover that there are more of us here than I even knew.  We

My first waterfall in Ghana

discussed the impact that helping even one person can have and agreed that even with all of the cultural barriers and mishaps, it is all worth the effort.

While we were all getting to know each other, a huge rain storm brewed.  Lighting up the

Akunz and Mary using tablecoths to protect them from a huge rain storm

sky and throwing wind and rain into the restaurant shelter.  People were covering up while I enjoyed getting wet with the cleanest water I had showered in yet.

I have really enjoyed this adventure and so appreciate taking you all along.

I will keep you posted as I hear back reports from Ayamdooh and Pok.

Many hugs to all of you, Jan

P.S. I am attempting to put laptops with DVD capability into the Yua School.  I would like to have more than one for 75 students.  If you are getting a new one and wondering what to do with the old one, please contact me. This is a public site so contact me on my private email with personal info.

Nov. 25, 2010 (My last day in Yua) KI Now Delivers Babies…Well, Almost

Like I said, the mornings are always interesting. The exception this morning was that it didn’t have to do with the truck. On our way to Yua, a woman on a bicycle hailed us to stop and take a pregnant woman to the clinic. She was having contractions. This woman was walking to the clinic which took us ten minutes to drive.   She sat next to me in the back seat as we drove over those huge pot holes and small mountains I told you about (Nov. 24).    I massaged her neck and tried to hold her body down when it wanted to go flying into the ceiling.

Loading up before the trip to Yua

I started breathing like I was having the baby.  She just held her breath while she was spreading her legs wider looking like she was in a lot of pain. I told Ayamdooh to step on it otherwise we would be delivering a baby today. He kept looking back at her while I kept checking the floor for her water to have broken. Between the two of us, we looked like those little dolls that never stop bobbing their heads. I felt a bit nervous about this to say the least. I am willing to try most anything just for the experience of it, but being responsible for someone’s birth was a bit much for me to think about.

Barber shop with picket fence

We got to the clinic and I helped her out of the car.  As the nurse came towards us I shouted, “She is going to deliver any second,” like this was something catastrophic that we should all prepare for and take cover. Carrying the woman’s bag, I held her arm, while the nurse guided her with the other. I was so relieved that we made it to the clinic before we had a baby being born in the truck that I finally stopped breathing La Maz style. I said to Pok and Ayamdooh, “It’s going to be a great day, I can tell. I wanted to override the possibility that we were going to have any more close calls. But, we did anyway.

A Ghanaian boy

It wasn’t market day today so Sirigou (Nov. 24) wasn’t crowded.   I wanted to get a photo of how close the shops are to the cars to go with my story.  There was a stand that looked like it was selling bottles of liquor.  I asked to stop and take a picture. As soon as I snapped, a man came from the back of the shop raging mad. He laid into me for taking a picture without asking. I showed him that I had not taken any people’s photos only the bottles.

The infamous bottles

Then, he shouted I could be spying or selling the photos to make money and that I was breaking the law. That was the point where Pok jumped out of the car and got in the middle of this shouting match which now attracted half the village it seemed. A policeman, a postman and the guy selling the bottles which I found out were filled with petrol, were leading the brigade. As is always the case, Pok won because it appears he is everyone’s uncle in Sirigou which demands respect. When the postman found out that Pok knew who he was and that if the man took my camera, as he threatened, Pok’s brigade would be much larger and angrier. Pok is well respected here and no one who really knows him would tolerate this behavior towards him and Pok knew it.

An Obama Fan

I was in the backseat very afraid that Pok’s blood pressure would go up again. I kept begging him to get back in the car and I would delete the photo. I apologized to the people but as loud as I can shout, my words were drowned in the cacophony of angry men. Finally, Pok got in the car.  We drove off and Pok explained that he never felt threatened.   Once the men found out who he was, they backed down a bit with their tail between their legs.

Clementina practicing opening and closing windows,changing the size of icons

Relieved to arrive at school, Clementina greeted me. Two other girls, Milicent and Milicent, followed.  We were chatting through the back door of the truck. Clementina didn’t understand all of the English in the book I gave her, but she started to recite organs of the body to me which she had remembered from this book. She called her brother to come help her read the rest of it. I was so happy to hear that she had been pro-active in calling for help, rather than saying, “I don’t know how to do this, so I can’t do anything.”

"My" ICT students

The three girls and myself went into the back office and we turned on my computer.  Sitting on the concrete floor in a room with no windows, we watched a slide show.  I didn’t touch the computer, the girls did everything.

It was another fabulous day of watching “Planet Earth” and ICT class. Clementina and the two Milicents were the leaders for my class. They showed the others how to move the cursor so things would happen on the computer, like a slide show and picking their own song for it and even picking a style for the photos.

Student making a keyboard

I gave them all paper and a pen and at that point more students were eager to join. I knew it was for the supplies, so as they entered the class I warned them that they would not be leaving until they finished the assignment. Some didn’t come in.

I told them, "It's no longer a piece of paper. It's a keyboard."

The assignment was to copy the letters on the keyboard so they could take them home and learn to type. One boy called out the letters, another wrote them on the board and all of the students drew a keyboard. Then I typed in the air with my back to them and asked them to do the same. They found which finger typed which letter and laughed the whole way through.

The teachers had prepared a formal “thank you” for me and also explained that in Ghana when a person visits they can come for as long as they like. When it is time to leave, they

Christopher, gentle handling club and ICT

cannot unless they are granted permission. I was not being granted permission to leave and they asked me to stay another week. This touched me so much and I hugged all of them. Telling them how special it was for me to have their support in my trying new things. They thanked Pok and Ayamdooh as well and then said that not only the students, but they too were enjoying themselves much more.

My last ICT class this year

The day was coming to a close but there were still things to do. We gave two of the male leaders who live far away and attend all of the meetings, bicycles. They will bring at least one other person on their bike to the gatherings. I have seen four people riding on one bicycle here.

The women who made the shea butter gathered.   I thanked them and paid them. They said they wished they could do everything for me for free, but their circumstances required that they take my payment. I expressed much gratitude to them for their part in honoring my mother and told them that it was one of the most meaningful moments in my life. We all hugged and as Ayamdooh says, we “goodbyed them.”

Last was

Ayamdooh and Pok helping the little lamb

giving the lamb the last shot of phenybutizol for pain. The arthritis was now better. Ayamdooh will be coming back on Dec. 26 to check on a bull and he will check on this little one too. So, this is my last day in Yua and for the first time in eight years, I am not ready to go home. I actually considered that week at the school. But home calls and I need to hug my four legged kids. What a beautiful journey this has been.

NOTE:  Harry phoned me.  I asked if he had been teaching people how to be with their donkeys. He said, “Yes, I have told them at that place,”  (meaning where the water overflows on the road). I told him that next year, we want to take him with us to Yua and show him what we are doing with the animals.  He said, “thank you.”

Nov.24, 2010

Clementina Wants To Be A Doctor

Ayamdooh picked me up to meet Pok for Breakfast at his house.  This was a new home.  Sunny, large living room and through a small corridor was “my room.”  Pok had built me my own room in his house which he says I will be staying in next year.  Tiled floors, large closet, beautiful bathroom and the wiring is already in for the a/c.  His daughter, Laticia has her room in the same corridor but with no a/c, no tile but a huge bathroom.  It has

Peace, Pok's wife and Leticia, his daughter bringing me my dinner

taken him 14 years to build this house and through the years he has sought out my room in Bolga for each trip.  So, he based the room he built on what I would ask him to reserve for me.  What an amazing gift from such a loving family to whom each trip I am becoming closer.

The mornings can be hectic, fixing the truck, buying supplies,eating breakfast and changing some of the day’s plans based on what items we forgot out of my room.  All before we get going on the dusty, deep, pot holed roads to Yua.  On the way, we stop in Sirigu, the market place closest to Yua.  We drive within inches of tables displaying peeled fruit, piles of grain and peanuts that lie on the ground which the  tires barely miss.

Peppers at the market

At the same time, Ayamdooh has to pay close attention to any chickens or puppies that might be thinking about crossing the road as we are coming.  I have almost gotten used to this after eight years but not quite. 

Woman we gave a ride to, carrying about 60 pounds on her head and dancing for her crying child on her back

Today, as usual we were running late, but because the concept of time is changing here, I got nervous that we would be holding up the students during their “long break.”  I was to show them the movie, “Planet Earth,” at 12:05.  Surprisingly we arrived right on time.  I set up the computer with an audience of students so I took the opportunity to start teaching ICT (yesterday’s blog) right away.

When I asked for a volunteer no one raised their hand, in fact most of the girls covered their faces and the boys looked down at their desks.  This is the usual way because they are so nervous to get something wrong.  One brave girl, Clementina stood up and walked over to me in front of the class and said, “I will do it.”

I had met her a few days ago when teaching the “Reproductive Health” class as it is now called.  She interpreted for me and the students.  Today, I asked her to find the DVD slot on my computer and slide the DVD in it.  I asked her to match the speaker jack to the correct port, the small projector port and to turn on the computer.  She did it all without a hitch.  This may sound pretty basic and it is, but these kids have one computer for a class of about 70 children so they are not learning much.

Clementina

They loved the movie and wanted to watch another section of it as soon as it was over.  I told them we would do that tomorrow.  It was then time for ICT class.  I asked which students knew how to plug in a computer and about ten raised their hands.  I sent them with Ayamdooh to teach the more advanced class, while I taught the other sixty kids the basics.  My students learned to move the cursor, open a file, close a file, restart the computer and handle a DVD correctly.  After talking to Ayamdooh, the “advanced” class wasn’t so advanced after all.  He taught basically the same things. The whole day was a blast and it was time to have a student “shut down” the computer.  Almost every hand in the class went up.

Clementina helped me pack and carry my things.  I asked her what she wants to do with her life and she said, “I want to be a doctor.”
I told her that I had confidence she would do just that.   I handed her the book on the human body that I bought at Costco, to take home and study.  You can feel the plastic bones and the plastic organs, while right next to them is the explanation of what you are touching.
My kind of book, tactile and informative.
“I don’t have light,” she said.  So, I asked the teacher if one of his students could please bring her light since now they know how to make it.
He said, “She knows how to make it.  She will do it.”  She agreed.
I really felt that if this girl doesn’t get pregnant, she is going to make her dream come true.

Imposia showing me where they store the shea butter to cool

To keep the book clean, I gave her a Trader Joe’s reusable bag and watched her carry it proudly as we drove away.

The Cooling Shed for Shea Butter

We checked on the little goat (which is really a lamb-oops!) who was walking better but not healing as Ayamdooh would like.  He is going to check with one of his colleagues to see what we can do differently when we go back tomorrow.

Ayamdooh's Truck

We got back to Bolga and I had a nap in the truck, while we were at the mechanic getting it fixed, once again.

Nov. 23, 2010

(Note: “Honoring My Mother” is the blog below this one)

BABIES HOME
It was a short visit to the Babies Home today.  We dropped off clothes for the children, rice and the yearly $100 donation.  There were only tiny kids today and each one of them ran away scared and crying when they saw me.  I am used to this reaction as it has happened every year.  They don’t see many white people and it doesn’t matter how big my smile is or how welcoming my arms are: they don’t understand and therefore fear the sight of me.

BACK AT SCHOOL

A teacher told me that in his science class which was about electricity, he sent the kids home with the assignment to create electricity.  Huh!!  He wanted them to take what they had learned in class and apply it by using things around the house such as wire, the dry cell batteries they have, etc.  Some of the the children reported that they were able to make light enough that they could read that night.  

It’s working!!  Just because the government doesn’t send them all of the teaching materials they are supposed to and because they are a village without running water, electricity or many books to learn about the world, they can use what they DO have to make their studies go farther than a blackboard and words in their brains.

We seperated the boys and girls again to ask questions about the use of condoms.  As prizes for being willing to speak up with the correct answers, we gave out a pretty box of condoms.  I discovered there were instructions included with them when I heard a group of boys reading outloud about circumcised vs. uncircumcised penises.

Next, we taught “Gentle Handling,” which turned out to include philosophy and freedom of choice discussions.  One person said that there are other tribes that believe that if you don’t beat your donkey, the donkey’s spirit will kill you.  I heard this and attempted to help the class dissect this belief before making a choice as to whether or not it was worth accepting as truth.  These were hard concepts for the children to comprehend at first, but after awhile they were getting the idea that repeating what they heard Ayamdooh or I say was not getting them any points vs using rational thinking, choosing what to believe and identifying emotions.
They got a box of condoms when they dug deeper than, “The donkey kicks because of the pain.”
They arrived at, “The donkey is angry when he is being beaten.”

There were so many great moments of students recognizing that they had just reached their own conclusion or they had the guts to speak up and possibly get involved in a discussion in front of their peers.  Some of the teachers came in and joined the class when they heard the laughter.

Ayamdooh was surprised at how poor their english was and he told them so.  He told them that he recognizes the potential for them to learn and make something of their lives if they would just start to read.  None of them raised their hand when asked if they had ever read a story.  So, I asked them if they had books.  They gave a resounding, “No.”

New Ways of Thinking

Both of us noticed that not one student was asleep in class today or yesterday.  In years past, there were always two or three.

This feels like such a fertile field with seedlings that have never had enough sun or water to grow.  Now the teachers are growing in the same field as their students and willing to go the extra mile to push out of that same old dirt that kept them down for years.

Nov.23, 2010

Prayers for Mom

In Ghana, when someone lives over 65 years of age, it is considered a good life that deserves celebration at their death.  The ceremony in honor of my mother today who died at 86, was beautiful and surprisingly intimate.

Cecelia

The usual chaos that accompanies the ceremonies of my last 8 years here, was not present today.  The women sang songs that were meant to comfort me and to speak to my mother at her passing.

singing for my mother

They sang to Mom  telling her that she has spent her life with no good sleep, Now she will have eternal sleep.  They also sang prayers that she would be resting in the arms of “The Almighty God.”

The chief placed on a table; a gourd, a front and back pelvis cover made from straw and string and a basket to carry her things in when she goes.  Normally, because the person’s body is present, they place these items with the person and then all is burned. In this case, they decided to give them to me.

Cup, body covers and basket

The chief asked everyone to say a prayer that “Our Queen Mother’s mother would leave this earth to be held in the hands of God.”  He thanked her for bringing me into the world and into their lives.

Pok’s speech was so evidently from his heart that I couldn’t help but cry a little. Ayamdooh, who sat next to me, kept whispering, “Stay strong, stay strong,” so I wouldn’t cry.
“Other Pognabas (Queen Mothers) wait in their homes for people to come to them to fix their problems.  Yua Pognaba comes to us, fortunately or unfortunately, to find problems and fix them.”
I was laughing and crying at the same time.  He said every word with such deep affection, which I had not heard from him before.

Pok speaking at the ceremony

With sunscreen glued to the bottom of my sunglasses from the tears that had pooled there,I was asked to stand with the women as they wrapped me in a head cloth and then covered my torso in another, longer cloth.  I felt warm in a cozy way, like a baby wrapped in a tight blanket.  Only my face peeked out from the head cloth and I felt women’s arms around me.  They guided me outside of the circle of other people and stood closer than they have ever stood with me.  I could feel their energy of compassion and love.  It was an amazing sensation.  They were coddling me with the cloth and their intention was to help me to carry the load of my mother’s death.  

It truly is a difficult experience to explain in words because in a way it felt surreal.  The few moments standing in the circle, I felt as if there was nothing but this warm energy holding me and I had no awareness of my feet touching the ground.  It was as if they had transported me to another place.

After a few minutes the women walked me back to the main circle of people and unwrapped me.  I was now back in this world.

A dark malt was poured into gourds and and each one was passed around the group.  The first person to sip from the “cup” poured a small amount on the ground for the spirit of the dead person and then the rest was shared amongst the group. . When someone dies, they believe that a line is marked between those that live and the departed.  The drinking of the malt brings everyone back together as one in their acceptance of that death. I was supposed to partake but, Ayamdooh already told them that I had a foreigner’s stomach.

Drinking malt

So, Pok brought me a very pretty frosted glass bottle of sparkling apple juice with the top wrapped in foil and covered with a metal wire.  It was obviously the cleanest, most sterile bottle they could find.  We all had a chuckle about it.

I was asked to speak to the group and I thanked them for their prayers and support while my mother was in her last days.  (I had been sending emails to Akunz and Ayamdooh periodically during my mother’s last weeks.  They had been keeping the villagers informed).   I also expressed my deep gratitude for their beautiful ceremony honoring her memory today.

I never imagined that I would share an experience that transcended all of the formalities and repetitive greetings that have been the norm for the ceremonies here.   But we did.  It is true for me that women know how to hold each other in their hearts where the electricity of their love is palpable.

Dressed for Prayers

Nov.22, 2010

Yua has two new computer teachers

Pok, a wonderful translator, and the most honest person I know

We met with the Headmaster who is a very nice man.  He was impressed with the improvements of the students and the possibilities of changing the way they teach in Yua.  All of the instructors will be volunteering their time for one or two hours a day after school so students can sign up for a kind of “study hall” if you will.  They can take out the books, computers, DVDs and teaching tools that I have brought them and let the students practice or read, do homework, etc. while the teacher is there to answer questions and make sure nothing gets stolen.  Right now most everything stays locked in a box.

Ayamdooh and I will be teaching the “ICT” (Information and Communication Technology) classes on Wednesday and Thursday.  Ha!  Well, those are big words for computer skills. I kept insisting that we begin tomorrow but Ayamdooh and everyone else vehemently denied me.  I later found out why.

We seperated the girls and the boys today for the “Healthy Choice” How to Use a Condom video and it worked out much better. I taught the girls, Ayamdooh led the boys.  Both groups were glued to the movie and not making jokes like when they were all together.

The Animal Welfare Club

The Animal Welfare school group of 25 students; boys and girls who are interested in gentle handling and care of animals, piled into Ayamdooh’s truck and off we went to see Shakibu.  He told the kids how his bull died and then spoke about how he handles the other animals on his farm. He told them he talks to the animals and some students chuckled and thought it was silly.   All of a sudden the students burst out laughing and I asked Ayamdooh what Shakibu said.
“He was talking about his dog and the dog came here and stood by his feet.”
I think that is referred to as Poetic Justice.

Ayamdooh and Shakibo teaching gentle handling

Before leaving I gave the group their own frisbees.  I wrote their name in one with a sharpie and watched as they followed suit in the other ones.  The teachers saw that this was teaching spelling, writing skills and P.E. all at one time.  The students formed a group around the girls writing and everyone pitched in with how to spell and write “Animal Welfare Group” correctly.

We left Yua and headed back towards Bolga.  Pok told me that the reason we couldn’t teach tomorrow afternoon is because the villagers asked to do a ceremony for the death of my mother.  They all know that I don’t like big deals and prefer no ceremonies when possible, so they kindly made this a small one.  Ha!  Only 60 people will come rather than the whole village.   They will say prayers for my mother and pay their respects to me.

I told Mom a few days before she died that she was being prayed for all over the world.  I never expected that we would have another memorial for her in Ghana.

We drove to find Harry (previous blog: “Harry, The Little God) as our last effort of the day.  I had packed a Whole Foods reusable bag with a T-shirt and a frisbee.  I wrote a note in big letters: FOR HARRY, A LEADER NOT A BEATER.We found him playing soccer at his school.  He came to Ayamdooh’s window thinking that he would be talking to a stranger.
I got out of the car and yelled, “HARRY.”
As soon as he saw me,he ran around the car to meet me with open arms and a big hug, saying, “Thank you madame.”
We played frisbee which he had done before, while about 50 younger children laughed and watched us.  One carried Harry’s bag for him.

Harry in his new shirt

Before leaving, I asked them all to let me take their picture and Harry immediately put on his new, white shirt.  He hugged me goodbye and asked for my phone number.

I don’t really know why, but when we drove away, I burst into tears.  I felt such love for Harry and I also felt the unfairness of such an intelligent boy being left behind in the world.

When I arrived back at my room about 2 hours later, the phone rang and it was Harry.  He asked me if I would come to see him before I leave on Friday.  I was surprised he remembered when I was leaving.  I told him I would come.  I actually can’t wait to see him.

Nov.21, 2010

It’s Sunday so first we went to church to dance and sing.  Leticia, Pok’s daughter picked me up on her motorcycle and off we went.  It was wonderful to hear a preacher tell the people that the greatest gift to God is to be happy when you wake in the morning, no matter how little you have.  Dancing and singing lots of hallelujahs was a blast.

Pok is doing much better.  He went to church this morning and will eat afterwards.  He had no appetite yesterday and slept all day.  I am so happy he is better.

Harry, The Little God

Ayamdooh and I gave the little goat his third treatment.  He was much feistier today; a

Mama watches her baby but more relaxed this time

good sign.  No chasing him; he didn’t run.  We did some talking about gentle handling and said we would  check up on him in a couple of days.

On our way back to Bolga, we went to the lake where Ayamdooh and I had gone last year.  We passed by more small fires out of control and left to burn.  The lake is lined with trees and green grasses.  It was peaceful and the wind was just right as we sat on a log and absorbed the calm of this day.

Part of the road was under water.  A boy was whipping a donkey senseless because the donkey was too scared to cross with the cart floating in the water going every which way. He would keep making the cart straight and then whip the donkey on the head.   I was very upset needless to say and kept asking Ayamdooh to tell the boy to stop whipping the donkey and instead, walk in front of him so he would follow.  Finally the boy did as we said and the donkey got to the other side.

Ayamdooh's Lake

The boy came over and I was asking Ayamdooh to ask the boy if I beat him with a stick would it make him want to do as I ask?  The boy looked at me angrily and said, “I am a human being.  I know what you are saying.” 
Ahh, he speaks english.  So, I asked him directly if he likes it when his father beats him.  He said, “No.”  (One can unfortunately assume that a boy hitting like he was, was getting beaten himself.  It is common here).
“Does it make you want to do what he says when he beats you?”
“No.”
I asked if he noticed how the donkey followed him to the other side of the water even though he was scared because it was deep?  He said he did.  Then I told him that he could be a leader for the animals across the water.  I explained that is how they feel safe, is that they have someone to follow that is confident like him.
He understood and said he would be a leader and not hit animals anymore.
I asked his name and it is Harry.
“Harry, would you like to walk with us, we are going to the truck.”
“Yes, madame.”  He said.
Harry proceeded to show Ayamdooh and I another boat and a part of the lake we could actually boat in where it wasn’t so high.  I invited Harry to come with us and he definitely took command of the boat; paddling like he was a strong ox.  Yet, he was small and slight.  He looked about twelve and said he was eighteen.
We all laughed and had a conversation with Harry about his schooling and his life.  He pointed out where he lived and just as quickly as I had been angry at him for all of the beating, I was loving him.
I asked if I could give him a hug and he opened his arms.  “Yes, madame.”
I still can’t pronounce Harry’s last name, but it means, “Little God.”

Nov. 20, 2010 With the good there is sometimes not so good

The worst part of the day is that Pok is home with the beginning of malaria. He hates missing our work but he is staying home to heal. We pray that this will pass quickly as malaria sometimes does.

The meeting with the men to show the movie on condom usage was competing with a funeral and a school meeting. As it turned out, the small group of men that came were the ones very dedicated to gentle handling.

One man told me the story of his bull who comes to him and “begs” for his gentle hand to pet him. Another man says he talks softly to his bull and feeds him by hand. They also said that none of the bulls have ropes or rings in their noses and they come when they are called. They looked appauled at the thought when I asked them about the rings which is a regular Ghanaian practice. Mind you, these are bulls with horns and a healthy dose of bull testosterone. There were about ten bulls and some cows hanging around us and none of the men had willingly brought them. Some of them were snorting and throwing their heads up because of the other bulls around. But there were no fights and Akonyure gently approached the biggest and made kissing sounds while the bull eased away. I sound like I am making this scene seem unreal. When I turned behind me to see this pack (?) of bulls, within ten feet of me, I was a little nervous. But these men were watching and the bulls knew it. I wondered if they knew we were talking about them.

CONDOMS

I asked if everyone used condoms and only one man admitted he never had. I suspect there were others. Everyone was paying close attention to Ayamdooh’s words as he interpreted Mindy’s voice coming from the DVD. They were able to answer my questions afterwards and everyone got a package of condoms.

They were not quite clear about what the condom should look like before using it. To demonstrate, I asked one man if I could use his ski cap. It was perfect; I held the tip and rolled the hat down. We passed it around and men practiced. Ingenuity goes a long way to increase enthusiasm.

Some women had said yesterday that they would be nervous to ask their husbands to wear one. The men said it would be a joint decision and they would comply with this new “technology.” The man is the boss here and women are mostly compliant so this is progress in empowering women.

The men’s cheer at the end of the meeting was: “We are men who care about our families. We will wear condoms.”

BABY GOAT

Our second day giving the baby goat penicillin and phenybutisol was an adventure. Ayamdooh sat in the truck  while I ran with the owner to find the goat who was grazing with his mother. We had to corral them because the baby was already running better than yesterday. I carried her to the truck and mom followed me while they both bleated each other’s call. The mother got bored and took off while we gave the baby his injections.

I held him to my chest and he looked up at me smelling my chin. Mom was gone, so I guess he was seeing if I would do.

I took him to the edge of a ravine where Mom had gone far. He bleated and bleated and no one was coming. Finally one of the goats looked up and took off running. Mom and baby were reunited. Ayamdooh and I high fived at another wonderful day. I thought today we would be called,

“Veterinarian and Animal Wrangler Without Borders.”

Nov. 19, 2010 in Ghana

On our way to Yua today, a large group of people were standing by their truck which had a flat tire.  I saw a small head peeking out from the overloaded open bed and got out to investigate.  It was a baby goat hiding his head under a box and the sun was beating down on him while the metal of the truck bed he was leaning against was getting hotter.  Ayamdooh offered the people a ride and I grabbed the goat saying he was not being left in the truck.  He sat in my lap for the entire ride and was very quiet.  I was grateful that he was healthy because he pooped while I was holding him.  Most have diarrhea.  He didn’t. I knew this day would be another good one.

As we were driving back from Yua yesterday I noticed a baby goat in someone’s paddock that had a limp and we decided that we would load up our supplies and treat the poor little guy today.  I had everyone within a mile radius looking for him and his mother.  I, of course went searching far and wide and then saw that he was within yards of Pok and Ayamdooh who had stayed by the truck.  Oh well.

By the time I arrived at the truck, the owner was holding him and Ayamdooh was getting ready to inject the affected area.  “It’s arthritis,” Ayamdooh said “and we will come back tomorrow and the next day so he feels better.”  Many children and other land owners were watching this crazy, white lady running in the fields and followed me to the truck where they thought it was pretty funny that this crazy person was now talking to a baby goat and petting her tiny head.  I don’t mind, since I gather most people learn by example.  That has certainly been true in my experiences here.  Even through his laughter, the owner was holding his little goat more gently.

“We are women and we are responsible for our own bodies,” was the opening chant for our women’s meeting.  Pok spoke about STDs and having too many babies.  Then we watched a new DVD on how to use a condom, that Mindy helped me put together. Last year’s obviously got results but was really quite funny with a glossy looking banana in the leading role.

The women were raising their hands to answer questions about the use of condoms while I gave them a small box of three.  They got over their discomfort of being out in the open talking about something that had been so private in their culture. Even so,they spoke out.  I was really proud of them.  The men will get their turn tomorrow.

This year, we had a real, Ghanaian wooden penis.  Akunz handed it to me last year just before I boarded my plane.
He said, “Please don’t use a banana in the next film, this will be much better.”

Nov. 18, 2010

Many Improvements

Today was a great day.  First Pok, Ayamdooh and I met with the teachers of the school in Yua.  My goals were many but in the course of discussion I realized there is a main problem with the teaching here; it’s not fun or interesting and the students and teachers are bored.  As a result, there are very few students who learn much while teachers come and go.
I challenged them by asking them to participate with me in an exercise that would require them to think outside the “box.”  Afterwards, we talked about this way of teaching and I asked for other examples of what they could do differently to make learning fun.  They were excited to challenge themselves and their students tomorrow while taking the risk of teaching outside of the perameters their superiors have given them of stiffness, punishment and tedious tasks.

I then asked about the aftermath of the students seeing the condom video last year.  What they told me was astounding.  The year before I showed it, “many, many” young girls were coming to school pregnant.
One teacher explained, “Even though they are doing these things, they were not doing it correctly.  When you showed the video, they put it (the condom) on correctly.”
As a result, they all added happily, “Not one girl has become pregnant.”
I thought he said “only ONE girl.”  I was so happy with this.  Then Pok corrected me to say there were NO girls pregnant.  I find that quite amazing.

We then continued on with the day to the man’s house whose bull died last year, Alobura.  His son, Shakibu was the gentle handler of the man’s donkeys and the bull then and is now.  Since I bought them a new bull with the strict instructions that it would be taken away if any harm came to him, the whole family has embraced the concept of not only treating their own animals kindly, but others’ animals as well.  Shakibu said that he shares the story of the bull that died with his neighbors.  He then helps his neighbors to learn gentle ways of being with their animals.

When I asked him what he does when a bull eats their crops, he said that he finds the owner and talks to him about how to contain the bull and not allow it to graze anywhere but in his home.  He explains that feeding a little more straw helps them to stay at home.
I am so happy that truly the bull last year did not die in vain.  This is his legacy.