~Leaving Ghana~

I was just about to get into the Patrol this morning when I see my friend YaYa walking towards me telling me ‘wait for me, wait for me’.

It was 10:00am on the dot and we were about to pull away. I had told YaYa that I would be leaving at 10:00 and she had said she would be there but with Africa time and her 2 hour walk I really didn’t think I would see her. She put her large bread pan down and handed me a prepackaged loaf of bread. It was fresh from that morning and I was overwhelmed with emotions. This lady that I have bought bread from all summer walked 2 hours this morning to see me off and to top it all off she got there right on the dot Obruni time. I told her I loved her and that she would always be my friend in my broken Twi. I started crying and she said ‘oh sister Akua no crying’. How precious this lady is and how amazing that she would show this kind of love to me. It definitely broke loose the waterfalls. I was with my friends and that helped.

The Jernigans decided to drive us to Kumasi and stay the night along with Abena Rebecca, Michael and James. We had a car full of people. We reminisced and thanked God for what He has done this summer. We had a day of shopping in the market today as well as going to our favorite Ghanaian restaurant Ashanti Home Touch where me and Rebecca shared rice balls and groundnut soup for the last time together.

We walked and walked, visited with people and just enjoyed each others company before having to separate.

When we got home they shared presents with me that they had picked up for me in the market and each one was special to me in a way and I will always hold them dear to my heart.

We got up the next morning and got ready to go to Michael and James’ church in Kumasi and we celebrated Jesus once again with these people and I was able to sing one more time in Africa. I sang ‘Draw me close to You’ and the words ministered to me probably more than anyone else even in the room.

Draw me close to You. Never let me go. I lay it all down again. To hear you say that I’m Your friend. You are my desire. No one else will do. Cause nothing else can take Your place. To feel the warmth of Your embrace. Help me find a way. Bring me back to You.

Thinking about leaving and how hard that was going to be I realized that I had to lay it down before Jesus once again for Him to lead me and guide me just like He always does. We danced and held little babies and then it was time to go.

We picked up take away from my favorite Chinese restaurant Royal Park and headed to the STC station to catch the bus to Acccra. When we started to board the bus I was so thankful that Michael and Abena Rebecca were with me but it was time to say goodbye to James. It was incredibly sad to say farewell to this wonderful friend who loves Jesus so much and my heart started to break a little bit. God is going to use him greatly and I can’t wait to hear all the good reports. The bus trip took us about five and a half hours to get from Kumasi to Accra.

I was very entertained by the Ghanaian and Nigerian films and could not stop laughing at some points which I think the rest of the bus found interesting. When we arrived in Accra we had a reunion party with the Sims, Rebecca Jones and Michelle and our guy friend Daniel. We celebrated seeing each other again by going to a local pizza joint called Mama Mia’s and getting some very tasty ice cream. We stayed at a very nice American style guest house and were up very late trying to enjoy a few last moments together before we cut the group in half. On Monday we had a bit of debrief time and then some time in the market before eating together for the last time and heading to the airport.

I cannot begin to describe to you the feelings of knowing I was leaving these people I had learned to love and the country I have fallen in love with. I felt a gigantic hole starting to develop and the tears starting to pour. I am so thankful I had Rebecca Jones and Michelle with me to keep me sane. They were my rock during this time. I learned so much and gained so much from this summer and that will have to be saved for another blog but what I will say is that God is good, I didn’t deserve to have this time but I am so thankful He chose me and I can’t wait to see what adventures He has planned for me next.