Produce and Positivity

Long time no post! The last time I wrote a formal post I was in Wisconsin, it has officially been one week (and a day) since my arrival in Ghana! It feels weird to say but it seems like a longer amount of time has passed. To be completely honest as promised, the adjustment has been slow. I arrived in Accra on Friday the 25th at 3:30 p.m. greeted warmly by the most loving host family. This unfamiliar place suddenly seemed less lonely, knowing that my host family was just as welcoming and supportive as they had seemed prior to arriving. My host Father was right, the traffic in Ghana was horrendous, especially during rush hour, even more so horrendous during rush hour in the rain. Google told me that the 30km from the airport to my new home would take 50 minutes but little did google know that driving in Ghana is unpredictable and that 50 minutes easily turns into two hours. The night went quickly as we arrived home and began to eat dinner as a new family of six, laughing over stories of their life in the U.S. and their life in Ghana now. I took the weekend to settle in from the jet lag, beginning school on Tuesday.  

Greenshield International School is a short 10 minute drive from home, John told me that I will be driving myself and his youngest to school by the end of next week. I think after driving in Ghana I will have become a seasoned driver, I never thought I would be driving outside the United States but that being said it truly contributes to authentically living in said area. I took the school week to observe, since the education system in Ghana differs greatly from the United States, I am a guest in the school and am not there to disregard their strategies with my own, but to learn from the teachers and students. Greenshield has a smaller population of students compared to the surrounding schools because of the change of leadership and philosophy. In short, it is a year of rebuilding. I have been working closely with the headmistress during my time, she has been helping me navigate the school system, her purchasing the school and taking on the leadership position has been a very progressive and positive change for this specific school community. Madame's  goal is to change the communities opinions on education, showing parents and community members who had not attended school how necessary it is for these students. Since she has taken the position at Greenshied, it has been a busy time as the new staff and students must all catch up from being behind prior to the switch.  

       To be completely transparent, I mentioned before that it has been a slow adjustment  as I try to find a new routine and sense of normality alone in a new place. The time difference is throwing my body off even a week after. As I end my day everyone I know is still enjoying their afternoon and when I am getting ready for school everyone has only been sleeping a few hours. Subconsciously I am hesitant to settle into a new place, because I know it is temporary, a defense mechanism in hopes for an easier goodbye in December. I know that in order to fully immerse myself into this place I have to let my guard down and be comfortable with the idea of getting comfortable in Ghana. I took for granted my ability to be independent while in the United States, I can go walk wherever and drive wherever whenever I want. It is common and acceptable but now an adjustment that those commonalities are not feasible in Ghanaian society.  Despite the transition of independence, my host family is treating me as a member of the family and showing unconditional love. My body is quickly cleansed through the fresh organic foods and it seems the fruit trees in the yard could provide enough fruit for a grocery store! My love for fruit has been fulfilled, days consisting of coconuts, papayas the size of basketballs, bananas that boost your potassium levels for years and juicy mangos. Friday was one of my favorite days so far in Ghana, we had a Scientist Day planned at school. The students had a series of presentations and projects for parents. This was not your typical science fair, no the first annual Greenshield Scientist Day consisted of pancakes made by yours truly, freshly squeezed juices, singing and dancing. The presentations lasted couple hours and the rest of the afternoon became a community celebration. Since arriving on Friday morning I couldn't keep a smile off my face or stop laughing, which was a reassuring feeling that I am slowly finding my place in Ghana.

Life is a series of adjustments and transitions whether we realize it or not, sometimes when we are aware of them it is more difficult, but being able to feel and allow for it to happen is the healthiest. Despite unknowns I am in control of two things, keeping a positive attitude and ingesting as much produce as possible.

A new week is about to begin I have set small goals in order to let my guard down and settle in:

1. Read at least 30 minutes a day

2. Journal once a day

3. Find a way to see the sunrise or sunset each day

Keep posted for daily gallery uploads, I attached a little video of Scientist day and hopefully it puts a smile on your face as much as it did mine. Goodnight from Ghana!

xoxo

Corrinne Ruth