Home sweet home

After another 22-hour trip including stops in Amsterdam and Detroit, I'm finally back home in Hudsonville. My first thought? It's really cold. My first meal? Cheeseburger and fries in the Detroit airport. Quite possibly the best cheeseburger I've ever had in my life. The first thing I did when I got home? Took a hot shower. It's great to be home.

Thanks to the 5-hour time difference, I spent most of the hours between 3 and 7AM laying awake in bed. While not ideal, this did give me a chance to really reflect on my last two months in Ghana and my last day at NAP.

Let's start with my two months in Ghana as a whole. I don't think I could have asked for a better experience. I was talking with a friend after getting home yesterday and I told her that my trip to Ghana was possibly the best two months of my life. I wasn't exaggerating. It's hard to put into words exactly what made it so great... it's one of those things that just was. Maybe it was the combination of a completely new experience, the chance to teach little kids, and amazing new friends. Then again, maybe it was just the unbelievably cute kids. Whatever it was, I loved every second.

Moving on to my last day at NAP. Saying goodbye was even harder than I had imagined. Right when I  got to school that morning, the teachers told me that I looked down. It's funny... I didn't really realize I was down until they said something about it. Or maybe I wasn't down until they said something about it. Either way, I found myself feeling unbelievably sad to say goodbye to everyone. The first goodbyes were with my students. I called each of them, class by class, to the library to give them a small parting gift and take a picture with each of them. This took most of the day because I had to call them in between their exams. During the exams, I just went around and took as many pictures as possible. Actually, I was probably a little annoying -- I wouldn't appreciate it if some random dude kept on taking pictures of me while I was trying to write my English exam. Sorry I'm not sorry. It was my last chance. Near the end of the day, I had one final rehearsal with my choir because they'll be performing at a program next week. This time, though, instead of directing them, I just sang and danced along with them. It was fun to be on the other side of the music for a change.

All too soon, it was the afternoon assembly and time for me to say goodbye to everyone. I took a few more pictures and videos and then came Sir Dun and the staff's final farewell. He walked in front of all the students and asked one of them to come to the front and say what she was going to miss most about me. Then, he told all the students that were going to have once last chance to hug me so they should take advantage. Have you ever been swarmed by a hundred kids? Neither had I. It was all I could do to stay on my feet. I stumbled a bit, I think I cried a little, but mostly I just laughed a lot. I'm really going to miss those kids.

The next few hours were a bit of a blur. There was a staff picture, goodbyes with the teachers, and last-minute packing. Then, I was sitting in the car with Madam Gifty, her husband (Sir Richard), Sir Dun, and Fifii and Izzy on the way to Accra. After checking in at the airport, all six of us sat at one of the restaurants for about an hour until it was time for me to check in. As hard as it was to say goodbye to the other teachers and students, it was definitely hardest to say goodbye to this group. Fifii and Izzy were the kids I spent the most time with and Madam Gifty and Sir Dun were as close to family as I could get while in Ghana. I hope with all my heart that I see them again someday.

I guess that (and a couple flights) bring us to right now. I've put a couple pictures up, but look for tons more on my Facebook in the next couple days. While most of them won't see this, it would feel wrong if I didn't take this chance to thank a few people. The entire NAP staff for welcoming me as one of their own, the students of NAP for treating me with the same respect and love as if I were a regular teacher, and most of all, Madam Gifty, Madam Olivia, and Sir Dun for giving me a home away from home.

My Class 2 students. From left to right: Akim, Opata, Gabriel, and Desmond

My Class 3 students, Ezekiel and Sherifa.

Class 4, Jonathan and Selina

A picture of all the students at afternoon assembly.

The staff, from the back and left to right: Sir Richard, Sir Richard, Sir Besman, Sir Dun, Sir Edward
Sir Adu, Sir Ernest, Madam Esther, Madam Dora
Madam Flora, (me), Madam Dorcas, Madam Diana, and Madam Mercy
Unfortunately, we were missing Madam Gifty and Madam Mavis

Me with Madam Gifty's family

Sir Dun on the left and Sir Richard on the right.

I went to Ghana as a single volunteer worrying that I would be unbelievably lonely. Well, two months later, I came home with a whole new group of friends that I'm sure will stay with me for a very long time. So, as it turns out, "1" isn't always the loneliest number.

A fun (second to) last day

Today, my last full day in Ghana, was wonderful. This morning, I woke up and realized I didn’t have any water left, so I went to the reservoir outside my house to fill some buckets of water. Fetching water in this reservoir is pretty difficult though, because the bucket tends to float on the surface of the water, so you have to throw the bucket in just right and get enough water fill the bucket and make it heavy enough to sink. Plus, the bucket that you use to get water from the reservoir has a rope on it so you can pull it back up, but it’s very slippery so it’s really easy to let the rope slip through your fingers when you throw the bucket into the reservoir. One of the girls living down the hall saw me fetching water and chuckled a bit at my struggles as we said good morning. Eventually, I filled my bucket and went to go empty it in my tub upstairs. When I came back down to fill the bucket again (for the record, there are two buckets. One to fetch water from the reservoir and one to bring the water up to my room), I found that someone had already filled the reservoir bucket for me. I transferred the water to the other bucket, went upstairs, and when I came back down, sure enough, I found the bucket full of water again. This happened two more times before I had enough water to last me for today and tomorrow. When I finally closed the metal lid over the reservoir, the same girl that had laughed at me poked her head out of her window. Apparently she was the one that kept fetching the water for me. Having the girl next door help you fetch water in the morning because you’re slightly incompetent… definitely not a bad way to start off your day.

After doing a bit of packing and such, I decided to take a short nap since we had gotten home around 1:00 last night and I woke up again at 6:00. Usually, it’s a bad thing if you fall asleep and forget to lock your door, but today, it was secretly a great decision. I had no clue how long I had been asleep for, but the next thing I knew, someone was poking me awake. I opened my eyes and saw 8 or 9 NAP students standing in my room. They knew it was my last day so they wanted to come spend some time with me. For those who have never experienced waking up to the smiling faces of 7, 8, and 9-year old kids, you should definitely try it some time. Frankly, I’m not sure there’s a better way to be woken up.

One of the kids who came to my room, Opata, is the one I was telling you about whose mother just recently had a baby girl. Today, he took me to the baby’s “Outdooring Ceremony” which, from what I could gather, is basically like a baby shower for after the baby is born. Anyway, I got to hold the baby again and got a few pictures with her and her mother. I was a lot less nervous this time holding the baby even though she was only a month older. Probably because she looked a lot less breakable than she did a month ago.

After spending an hour or so with the kids, I came home to finish packing. An hour or so later, Sir Dun stopped by my room to help me pack. In other words, he looked at pictures on my laptop while I folded clothes and gathered my things. Thanks, Sir Dun.

When I got tired of packing, both of us headed back to the school to spend some time with Madam Gifty and her family. We had dinner together and then I got to play with Fifii and Izzy for one last time. It’s sad to think that I won’t get to play with her again and also that chances are she will have absolutely no clue who I am whenever I get to visit Ghana again. I tried remembering some people from when I was 3 years old and realized I don’t remember anyone. Oh well… I’ll just send her pictures or something.

Now, I guess it’s time to finish packing everything and spend one last night in this room in Ghana. By this time tomorrow, I’ll be getting ready to take off from the Accra Airport (scheduled departure of 10:30PM local time, so 5:30PM EST). The only thing left to do after I finish packing is say goodbye to everyone at school tomorrow. And do my best not to completely lose it when Madam Gifty starts crying (she’s already told me that she’s definitely going to cry tomorrow).

Wli Waterfall

The trip to the Wli Falls today was both unbelievable and unbearable. The unbelievable part was obviously the actual waterfall. Surrounded by a lush forest and emptying into a beautiful lake, the waterfall was truly a sight to behold. I don't think I've ever seen anything quite like it. The kids hadn't either, apparently, as they all went nuts they second the falls came into view. I was the designated photographer tonight and the shouts of "Sir Michael, Sir Michael, Sir Michael" from all of the kids wanting to get their picture taken by the waterfall or while swimming was almost deafening. By the time we left, I had taken about 200 pictures of the 40 or so kids that went with us today. (Clarification: I've been calling it a "school-wide excursion" simply because it was open to everyone above Class 4. Only about 40 people had time/could pay the excursion fee though, which is why it seems like there are so few.)

The fun really started and ended at the falls though. The journey there was pretty miserable and the journey back was only slightly better. First major problem of the day was not having a bus. The driver that the school had hired totally flaked and Sir Dun was scrambling around at 5 in the morning looking for a bus to take us on this excursion. The result was that a trip that was supposed to leave at 5AM didn't end up getting on the road until closer to 9. Then, this bus ride that was supposed to be about 3 hours ended up taking us a little over 5 hours because the bus kept on having minor issue after minor issue. Finally, when we were only 15 km away from the falls, the bus broke down completely and we had to wait while we found enough taxis and trotros to take us the rest of the way.

To be honest, the ride home really wasn't all that bad. It was just late and everyone was tired and the AC stopped working so everyone was hot. That said, everyone had a really great time at the falls and most people slept so it could have been a lot worse. I, unfortunately, didn't get much sleep because I was sitting with a Class 6 girl and two Form 1 girls in seats that were supposed to fit two people. We made it work just fine, but it just made for a pretty uncomfortable sitting situation. And then the two Form 1's decided they wanted to fall asleep on my lap which, again, was fine but, again, made it pretty impossible for me to sleep. Oh well. They both said that they slept really well so I guess it was worth it. I figure a couple 13-year old girls need more sleep than I do anyway.

All in all, going to the waterfall was a fun trip... just with a few hiccups along the way. Would I do it all again? Definitely. The falls really were amazing (look for pictures when I get home on Tuesday). That said, I wouldn't complain if we had a bit more luck with the bus next time either.

Tomorrow marks my last full day in Ghana. I still have tons of mixed feelings. Going on the excursion today was really great in that I got to spend a lot of time with the students that I've already built relationships with. On the other hand, it kind of stinks that I went on this excursion right before leaving because I talked to many new students that I would love to have more time to talk to and get to know better. For instance, before today, I didn't even know the name of the two Form 1 girls that I sat next to on the way home. We hit it off right away though and by the end of the day, they were comfortable enough with me that they both fell asleep on me/on each other just hours after really meeting me. After spending time with them today (for the record, they're names are Belinda and Gertrude), I would love to spend more time with them at school but I'm unfortunately limited to one last day on Monday.

So, while I'm happy to be going home after two months, I'm also very sad thinking about all the relationships I'm leaving and knowing that there are so many more relationships that I never had time to build/develop. For now, I guess the most important thing is just that I had an unbelievable experience over the past 8 weeks and even though I don't necessarily want it to end, I have to be content with the fact that the time I was here was unbelievable. That, and the hope that I'll come back and visit Ghana again someday.

NAP Talent Showcase (aka D-Day)

Today was the much anticipated showcase featuring singing, dancing, acting, and most importantly, teachers making a fool out of themselves. (That's where the D-Day joke comes in).

All the performances went really well. It was kind of hard hearing the actors because they didn't have mics and elementary school students aren't really the best at projecting while acting, but it was still really good. The songs and dances were great too. It was a lot of fun seeing the students showcase their more artistic side for a change.

Of course, the highlight of the program was the teachers singing "A Whole New World". The kids got really into it and made so much noise that we could barely hear the music that we were supposed to be singing to. Basically, the teachers just tried to yell loud enough that the students could hear them and gave up on singing altogether. It wasn't ideal from a performance standpoint, but it was pretty great from an entertainment standpoint. I've spent a lot of time over the past few weeks getting everyone prepared for this showcase and I was really exhausted and disappointed after many rehearsals, but after seeing the final product today, I couldn't be happier. For the record, props to all of the elementary school choir teachers that I've met/worked with in the past. It's a lot harder than it seems to get 7 and 8-year olds to pay attention, much less teach them a song.

We're going on a school-wide excursion tomorrow so I'm about to get some sleep before we head out. It should be a lot of fun to have a special extracurricular event with the students just before I leave. Plus, we're going to these waterfalls that are apparently breathtaking. I can't wait.

Rehearsals on rehearsals on rehearsals

First highlight of the day: no walk of shame. Good things are happening.

Today, I skipped all of my usual tutoring and spent almost the entire day in rehearsals. First, I gathered all of the teachers in the computer lab for a final run-through of “A Whole New World”. It’s still unclear whether they’ll be able to get through the entire song tomorrow without someone forgetting the words, but it should be a lot of fun for the students, regardless. Plus, a teacher or two forgetting the words would probably add some more comedic value to what is already promising to be a hilarious two and a half minutes. After the teachers came the young kids with their rendition of “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” and “Silent Night”. They’re almost definitely going to be better than the teachers. Finally, the older students put the finishing touches on “Joy to the World” and “Hakuna Matata”. Both are going to be a ton of fun.

In between rehearsals today, I also went around to each class to get a picture of all the kids with their teachers. The only classes I missed were Class 3 and Class 4. I’ll get them tomorrow. Through taking these pictures, I realized that girls go from wanting to be the center of attention in photos to being ridiculously camera-shy almost overnight. The Class 6 girls all wanted to see their picture immediately after I took it, but starting from JHS-1, it took tons of coaxing by their class teacher and me just to get the girls to stand where I could see them. Girls. I’ll never understand them. Ever.

The last highlight of today is that I recognized someone walking along one of the really busy market streets tonight. Through the sea of faces, I saw a friend walking along the other side of the street and we stopped and chatted for a while when I caught her eye. I’ve finally met enough people/been out enough that I can see people I know in seemingly random places. Good thing this happened three days before I leave. As usual, I have the best timing.

As Sir Eric put it, tomorrow is “D-Day” for the teachers. Check back tomorrow night for a comprehensive analysis of how the teachers did (read: I’ll poke fun at the ones who forgot the words). Oh, and I’m technically in the running for the grand prize too, even though I’m the one supplying the prizes. The kids are all going to vote after the performance so wish me luck! Hopefully it’s okay to win the prize even if you’re the one bringing it.

Walk of shame

Last night at around 8:30 or so, I was finishing up some studying at the school (I like to do my work at school because the lights are a bit brighter) when I decided to go to Sir Dun’s room to collect my things and head home. Next thing I know, it was 11:00. I guess somewhere between going into his room and putting my laptop in my backpack, I fell asleep on Sir Dun’s bed. When he saw that I was awake, he told me just to go back to sleep. He usually sleeps on the ground anyway, so it was no problem for me to take the bed for the night. So, I listened to the Headmaster, and dutifully passed back out.

In the morning, around 6:45, I figured I should go back to my own room to get ready for the day. As I was leaving, I ran into a few students coming into school. They greeted me and asked how I was and then one of the said, “Sir, isn’t that the same shirt you were wearing yesterday?” Caught red-handed. Or, in this case, blue-shirted. I never thought I was going to get called out for walk-of-shaming during my time in Ghana. Especially not by a 10-year old.

That small embarrassment aside, today was a pretty special day. Every Wednesday is worship, but today, the entire staff fasted all morning. At the end of the morning, so around 11:30, we all gathered in the computer lab for a staff sermon delivered by Mr. Adu and then some prayers led by Madam Mavis. During the open-prayer section, one of the teachers told the rest of the staff that she’s been having problems with her legs for two years now, and three surgeries later, she still can’t really run and jump. This is made worse by the fact that she’s the Kindergarten-1 teacher and the students often ask her to play with them and, try as she might, she is physically unable to. It was really touching seeing her open up to everyone like that.

After that, I almost lost it when Sir Edward proposed that they all pray for my safe journey home on Monday and my success in life in the future. So everyone prayed for me and then Sir Dun stood up to thank me on behalf of the rest of the staff and said that everyone at NAP from Creche (pre-nursery) to JHS 3 has been impacted by me and the entire school will miss me a lot. It was really kind of both of them to say these things and it made me realize even more that I’m going to miss these people a lot when I leave. Just 5 more days now. Four more, really, if you don’t count next Monday which is the actual day I leave.

Last, but certainly not least, a special birthday shoutout today to my sister, Ming, on her 29^th birthday. You’ve always been older, and sooner or later, that was bound to start being a bad thing. :)

Hold your breath, it gets better

Full disclosure: this blog post will have little if anything to do with the title. I just have that song stuck in my head after rehearsal today and thought it might catch people's attention.

In fact, there really isn't all that much to report from NAP. After a day as Headmaster yesterday, I was back to just being a normal volunteer today. I guess that's probably for the best. I'm not sure I'm quite cut out to be a Headmaster at this point in time.

Other than that, rehearsals for the performance on Friday are still going well and my time in Ghana is still ticking away. I had my last Tuesday today!

Sorry for the lame, super short post tonight. I guess, after 7 weeks, I've already described most of what happens at school on a day-to-day basis. Check back tomorrow for a story about a staff-wide fast though. That should be fun.

And just so this blog post has at least something to do with the title... A Whole New World