Times are Good in Jeyiri

These girls are always at my house. I gave them some flowers to put in their hair because they liked the one I had. Well it made their day and now everyone asks me for flowers.

Master P. Being cute at market.

Market Day in Kolpong, aka the one day a week I can drink and buy food! We are in the one hut that sells beer (sometimes cold!)

My counterpart's kids. Although it is a tough contest, I think they are the cutest.

Here he is! Sleeping with his best buddy. All my neighbors can't believe a dog can have toys.  Thanks mom, what will think of the dog bed you are trying to send???

Update:
1) Master P. is growing very fast and is bigger than in these pictures.
2) I will start doing health lessons on Fridays (this Friday Nutrition!)
3) Health and Creative Minds clubs will begin after Thanksgiving.
4) Considering being the kindergarden teacher because the kids just sit under a tree all day and cry and nothing else.
5) Thanksgiving will be spent in Accra with all my friends at the U.S. Ambassador's house.
6) I am going to start teaching Tao English. He's a man from China who is putting in electricity in my district.

Role Model

Everyone is watching you. They all know what you are doing, eating, wearing, saying, who you associate yourself with and how you do work. Eyes are everywhere. There is no escape. What do you do? Run, hide, and be frustrated from lack of privacy? On the other hand, do you think when is the next time you will have the stage and a full audience?

In Jeyiri I have center stage and I am in front of a packed auditorium.  When people are talking about me I don’t even know what they are saying to correct or support what their thoughts are about me.  So what do I do? I have made my mantra, “Live by example.” How can I tell people to eat more vegetables and a balanced diet if I don’t eat correct? Several people already come up to me and say An La Minne won’t eat the food if it has no vegetables. They are watching! How can I tell people to start a dry season garden (which they think is impossible) if I don’t have one.

Here are some things I am trying to do my example:

1. Wash hands with soap and water before cooking, before eating and after going to toilet
2. Eating Balanced
3. Grow Veggies all year long
4. Read (I want to build a library and start a creative minds club)
5. Diversity in gender roles (doing things men usually do like weed and play soccer)
6. Family Planning (aka not getting pregnant at 23 by telling people I want to continue schooling and saying I don’t have the money to have a family now)

Every decision I make or action I do is being judged and critiqued. Might as well send a positive empowering educational message while I have all eyes and ears on me.

Malaria Killing Real People

Most days I wake up, clean, read, eat and go over to the Jeyiri CHPS (Health Clinic). I have been filling in the books, taking weight and temperature and even doing malaria tests. This entails cleaning a finger, poking it with a sterile needle, squeezing the finger, drawing blood and placing it on the test strip. Then I wait about 3 minutes for the results. One line means negative and two lines means positive for malaria.  Now the test strips are only for one type of malaria. So even if the person is negative, but has bodily aches or a temperature we still give the malaria medicine along with multivitamin.  Soon I will even be able to distribute the drugs to people and write up their prescriptions.  The only thing that will take a while to do would here the patient’s complaints. I still don’t here the language all that well.  I will be getting a tutor with two other volunteers, so we can all practice.

It seems that every person who comes in has malaria. Most are woman and children. One child had a temperature of 42°C. He was rushed outside so we could throw cold water on him. I know that the people in my village are extremely strong and endure more that I thought humanly possible, so to see the suffering on their faces, I know their misery is more than I could bear.  Isn’t malaria that NGO disease that Westerns give money to all the time to help the poor Africans? How come I am in a place where people die because they cannot afford preventative bed nets and when they get sick they have no health insurance. The children die at home with no means for their parents to help them. 

I know that in America people die too without means to medical help, but is it worse in Africa? Who is suffering more? Is it even possible to compare the suffering of the poor in a first world country compared to a third world country? The situations are so different and are complex in their own ways. So what is more important domestic or international volunteerism? Again who is suffering more? Volunteers who have been on both sides like myself always come to this question. Is there a right answer? As long as am dedicating my life to decrease the suffering in the world, isn’t that enough. I would like to hear your thoughts on which path is benefiting the world more domestic or international volunteerism.  

More Pictures!

Sean Blaufuss hard at work

Baby weighing in Gushie, Northern Region Ghana

Waterfall 

The home stay family in Anyinasin. Michael, George, Felix, Yaa, Yaa, Akens

I'm getting a Dog!

Life in Jeyiri is one that goes by moment by moment. I can try to make a list of what I want to do throughout the day, but it never seems to work and is not as fun.  Maybe I’ll go greet the 6 new training teachers at the school. What actually happens is that I get roped into teaching a class. I started talking about malaria and then went into life in America. Some of the questions were: Is it easier to live in America? Does

America have night and day? Do you have a plane? I also told them that there is poor in America where schools don’t have books or supplies. We spent most of the time talking about farms. Their minds were blown to here that we have farms; however, they are under the impression that they are all massive and computers run them. I hope that it opened the children (actually teenagers) to come to me with more questions. The third goal of Peace Corps is to share American culture with Ghanaians. Check.

Another instance of doing something completely unexpected occurred yesterday. I thought it would be a day of mostly relaxing because it was too hot and the village was at farm. In the afternoon a nice new white truck pulls in front of the clinic. The men get out and call me over. They were scientists from Ghana Health Services. They are collecting flies in the town down the rode that cause River Blindness.  They want collect the DNA from the flies and see if they are still carrying the disease or are becoming resistant to the drug that they are giving the people.  The community health nurse, Paulina, will be monitoring the fly collectors. I told the men that I studied biochemistry and I would like to help in any way I can. Unfortunately they were from the Upper East Region and not the Upper West so I won’t be very close to do any of the heavy science things. I will help Paulina out in the fieldwork collecting and recording data. We all piled into the air-conditioned truck and took a ride to the most remote village that happens to be in Mole National Park and has monkeys and if you go into the bush a small ways you will see elephants.  It is beautiful going down the red dirt road with tall green grass on both sides. When I start running at 4 in the morning I will definitely go down this road.

In order to make my house a little homier I have decided to get a dog. When I went to market I walked with Naama (Chief’s mother), the PCV next to me, to go pick my dog out of a litter of six 8-day-old puppies. I choose the only black one. It has a white belly and tail. Keeping up with the tradition of naming pets after American food that we miss, the little boy is called Master P. The idea came to me after we ate pork in the market and I brought my Masterpiece BBQ sauce to put on it. I can’t wait to here the Ghanaians yelling, “Master P wa wa wa [come come come]!” All the dogs here are about the same medium size with short hair. Most of the dogs are a brown red color. If it happens that I fall in love with this dog and bring it back to America (yes mom welcome this possibility J), than I will tell everyone that Master P is an African dingo.

I hope all is well with you all readers and you are enjoying the beginning of the change in seasons. Ghana is really making me appreciate America. Here are some things Naama and I discussed:
1.   Teachers that take that job because they want to educate and not because the job is available (generalization)

2.     Free public flush toilets, even in McDonalds

3.     Malaria is eradicated

4.     Parents don’t yell/forbid for kids to go to school (generalization)

5.     A woman can tell off a man if he calls her “Woman” even if he knows her name

6.     Free Internet in libraries

7.     Abundance and diversity of food (generalization)

8.     Washing machines

9.     Running water

Meeting the President

On September 1, 2011 the Peace Corps class of 11-13 met with the President of Ghana. This just happened to also be my 23^rd birthday.  We originally found out that our going to site would be delayed because the President wanted to recreate a picture with us. 50 years ago on August 30^th the first ever Peace Corps group came to Ghana and met with the president.  These were group of strong idealist individuals that had no idea what they signed up for. Imagine the US President John F. Kennedy choosing you to go to Africa to help them.  No one has ever experienced or done what you are about to do.  The personal willpower and ingenuity of these people completely blows my mind. We were able to see some of the first volunteers at our swearing in.  I just kept thinking what if my mom, dad, grandma or grandpa were one of the first PCVs. What stories they would have! I will think of these people and channel their strength every time I have a tough time here.

Alright back to my birthday. I woke up that morning extremely worried. The day before I left my wallet on a tro with my PC ID, ATM card that had all my moving in allowance, a lot of cash to travel to my site and a flash drive.  We were sent to the PC Accra office before we met with the President so I figured I would talk to the safety and security people when I got there. After being in a very sassy mood all morning the PC staff said that a man called and said he had my wallet.  The first wave of relief hit. Although this man was far away, I was put on a PC car and sent to go pick up my wallet. I heard Rob the PC training Coordinator say that we have to be back at the site by 12:30pm or we won’t meet the President. It was 10:30am.  I didn’t even know if there was still anything in my wallet. A very large group was going to the bank because they were having ATM card problems. What if mine has problems? When will I have the opportunity to get to a Standard Charter branch bank? Worst-case scenario: I get my wallet back with no money in it, my ATM card is hacked and I miss meeting the President. This is all too much for me to worry about especially on my birthday.

Here is what actually happened.  The driver and I got stuck in traffic. It was almost noon by the time we reached the guy. I actually recognized him. Isaac was sitting in front of me in the tro and we had small conversation.  He returned my wallet with EVRYTHING in it.  I was so shocked. People really can be honest and trustworthy. My expectations now for the human race are very high.  Another wave of relief hits me.  Now its time for the race back to the Accra office.  The office calls us and tells us to hurry up (you would lol if you knew what the Accra traffic is like).  They give us until 1pm to get there. We do our best, but 1pm comes around and we still got a ways to go. The tell us to just go directly to the Castle.  I start thinking this ain’t that bad. Maybe I will miss the beginning of the ceremony, but I won’t miss all.

We make it to the Presidents Castle on the beach.  We have to go through many gates with men with big guns. The driver rolls down the window and tells the men with guns, “She is with the group.” They say ok and wave us through.  I felt like such a VIP. I then get escorted to the royal gardens where there are tents and a red carpet. I sit next to Sean and he says, “Happy Birthday! I arranged this all for you.” A man comes and brings me water on a silver platter. I feel underdressed in my Ghanaian made dress in such a high-class place.  Could this be happening? I hadn’t missed anything.  The Country Director, Ghanaian US Ambassador and Ghanaian President all give a speech. The President talked about how he had a PC English teacher and how he has not forgotten them. He told us that there is no way to repay the volunteers that have come to Ghana. It was a really touching speech that I believe you can find on the Internet. After the talks was a reception where they gave us friend chicken and beer. It was so laughable. There we were dressed the best we could, in a castle gardens, the President just walked down a red carpet and took a picture with us and feasting on chicken and beer. We could not have been anymore content with life. 

That night I said goodbye to some people, but Sean convinced PC not to let me travel 7 hours on my birthday. I stayed in Accra with him and friends to celebrate my birthday. I did not spend any money and had a fantastic time with people I am so blessed to be able to work with. BEST 23^rd BIRTHDAY OF ALL TIME.

Small Small Pictures

Children in Jeyiri

Boy herding cattle in Jeyiri

Stirring shea nuts in Jeyiri