The African Dream

~Leaving Ghana~

2008-08-17T06:56:00.000-07:00

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.

Last Moments at Lake Bosumtwe

2008-07-30T07:28:00.000-07:00

Little heads hanging out windows, the patter of little feet on the rocks, the cries of ‘sister Akua’, the sunset over Ancasse lakeside and the stream of children following us wondering where we will go or what we will do.

These are just a few of the things that greeted me as I walked past Atafram and on to visit Ancasse last night.

I saw my salon, I saw the little girl that is always on the front row of the children singing her heart out and dancing and I saw the Queen Mother who sold me some minerals once again. For my last Thursday night at Lake Bosumtwe I was living the surreal life once again. We walked down to the lakeside followed by our entourage of course and I finally got on one of the boats that I had been wanting to try since I got here. I wasn’t bold enough to try it out in the actual water lol but hey I did get on it.

We took pictures of the beautiful sunset and sang songs with the children. It was time for me to say goodbye to this village that I have sang and danced and ministered at. It was a fond farewell. The sky was absolutely amazing! As we left to go we stopped at the Atafram Chiefs house.

I had bought him some rice and some chocolate as a farewell gift and I wanted to stop and talk to the man that has become a friend and encourage him. I was a little discouraged because I could tell he had already had something to drink but I was determined to talk to him before I left. He had mentioned to me once before that he was thankful that I was open with all the people and that the people could really tell that I cared about them. I reminded him that he had said this to me and I told him that the thing that he saw in me was Jesus on the inside and His love being shown to all the people. With Michael as my Okyiamie(spokesperson/translator) I spoke to him about the influence that he has over the village of Atafram and how he can use that for good. I encouraged him in his desire to start a church in his village because there is no church yet in Atafram. I told him that he has the potential to be not only a great physical leader in the community but also a great spiritual leader as well. He informed me that I would be remembered as his second wife and if there was anything I wanted to send to him I could do it through Abena who will be staying till February. I asked if I could pray for him as I left and he agreed. I prayed that God would be glorified in his life and that he would yearn for the Word of God. I prayed that he would lead the whole village of Atafram into a deep personal walk with the Lord. He has great potential to be an incredible leader and I will continue to pray for him always that the Lord will touch his life and empower him to make a difference. He walked far with us that night to send us off and say his farewells. I think it went really well. We went home after this and ate very American spaghetti before walking to the village of Adjimim to order gari and beans for my going away party on Friday. I stopped by to see my friend Grace in Amakom and invite her to my party the next day (which I was throwing for myself by the way lol). On Friday I woke up very excited because I knew that we were having the party and then in the afternoon we had a football match to attend in Adjimim. I bought and cut bread from YaYa in the morning and made sure the waters were on their way to getting cold. It has become sort of a thing for me to buy something for the workers on Friday and sit down to eat it with them. I was very intentional all summer in trying to build relationships with these men to arrive at this very point on this very day.

On this day, before we ate I shared with them how they have made a difference in my life with their smiles, friendship and encouragement with my Twi and the work at the lake. I told them that the most important thing in life is to have a relationship with Jesus Christ. If that’s not in line nothing else matters. Michael went on to tell them that they can never pay me for coming here and encouraging them and that they could never even help as far as when it came to my ticket but that I was not there to receive payment for anything but to just build relationships with the people and tell them about Jesus. They started cheering and after we ate many came to say a big thank you and to inform me that they would write. It was so sweet! They were all pumped up and ready to go to the football match after this and Michael and James let them go early to prepare.

Abena Rebecca went this time and we had so much fun at the football game cheering Amakom on and playing with the children and eating off the women selling things in the baskets on their heads.

I even tried on the local hairstyle to see if it would work for me.

The game was very competitive and the cheerleaders were out in droves. It ended in a tie 2-2 which no one was really happy with but at least Amakom didn’t lose again. After the game some of the guys were walking with us all the way from Adjimim to the clinic side singing and dancing because they were so excited and in such good spirits. They kept singing Sister Akua followed by a lot of stuff I didn’t understand.

Someone told me the song talked about dancing with them so of course I started dancing. I then learned that the rest of the song talks about your sweet work for the Lord and how the person that they mention sits with the Lord as they sit with the person. It was one of the best send offs ever. They shook my hand and hugged my neck and we took a group shot to commemorate our last moments together.

James and Michael came over for dinner and shared with me sermon after sermon about how they have been impacted by my life and what they have seen of my life since I have been here. I was so touched by their kind words and the friendships we share with men of God that are sold out, love Jesus and are not one bit ashamed of it. We talked about how different our cultures are but how united we have been able to become because of the same Spirit we all share.

We shared Scriptures and they encouraged me as I move forward to more ministry away from the lake in America. We prayed together and they let me know that they would be accompanying me away from the lake and it made it easier to know that they would be with me when I left.
So my last night at Lake Bosumtwe has arrived and I am busy packing, doing laundry and saying goodbye to dear friends. What the Lord has for me next I don’t know but what I do know is that he placed me smack dab in the middle of one of my biggest dreams and it was more than I could have imagined.

~These Are Those Special Times~

2008-07-22T10:54:00.000-07:00

Saturday was another busy day here. The team is here for just a couple more days and they wanted to work Saturday to get more accomplished so all day we continued to hear the noise of the workers. Louise decided to stay on this side of the lake to hang out with us one last night and we were so excited because we have been missing her. She is actually staying another month now but it was the last night for all three of us to be together since I leave this week. I made hamburger pie for her which was her request and she made me boardwalk fries at my request. I even made pepe by myself for the first time and I think it turned out pretty well by the way it was finished off at dinner. Michael and James came for dinner of course even though they were exhausted. They are such special friends. They have been so tired but they say they are determined to hang out with me every minute I have left here and soon after dinner they start dozing off but refuse to leave. It’s so cute! It’s amazing how close you can get to people in such a short time. After dinner we were talking about the things that we loved about the time we’ve had here and all of us mentioned the crusade at Ancasse, ministering in the villages and the game times and dance times and prayer and singing times. We have had lots of good memories. I had to excuse myself at one point because I didn’t want everyone to see me crying. Please pray for me because God has allowed me to give part of my heart to these people and it is going to be very difficult to leave.

Sunday morning Rebecca and I woke up bright and early to travel to Dompa with Michael and Betrum and set up the sound equipment.

It was a little tricky to do since we were carrying our own generator which had a faulty plug in. We left Betrum to watch the equipment and went back to Amakom to get ready and go to the service. Andrew and Michael, the three roommates and James, Juliana and Anas rode in the Patrol and had a good time praising the Lord and praying before we got there. It was a very special time. We arrived in Dompa and I went over to the drummer almost immediately to ask if he knew the Jehovah song I love so that I could sing it for the part that Andrew asked me to do. He got very excited and it was actually the first song they sang. It was an amazing time of worship and dancing in the middle of the square and we had so much fun with all the Dompa churches. I sang a couple of songs with the kids when it came my turn, one in Twi and one English one. It was a lot of fun. The Irish group sang a couple of songs with the people as well and everyone enjoyed it.

Andrew and Michael started praying for the sick as I started singing ‘there is power in the blood’. Many people including the chief came forward in faith believing that God would heal them. I believe He did and will. Andrew brought the word of God and Michael interpreted. Andrew at one point just handed over the rest of the service to Michael and he took over with passion and authority. It was really awesome to see them tag teaming. More people got up to say something and it turned into a sermon each time. Lol.

I turned to Juliana and asked if she was next…I don’t think she appreciated that. We then cleaned up the system and walked to the car. They offered us minerals and cookies which was a very nice, expensive gift for them to give. The sun was fierce but we had a special time of fellowship with our Ghanaian friends. Andrew got a little crazy on the way home jostling us around in the back and Betrum hit his head on the roof many times lol…we could not stop laughing. It’s amazing the special little moments we have together with the people we have met. I cherish every one and I find myself thinking that inside these people will always have a place.

After lunch I walked to Adjimim for a local football match between Amakom and Adjimim. I was so surprised when I got there to see people in official jerseys, warming up, with the crowds gathering.

I had some of the greatest fun I have had here, if that is grammatically correct. Haha.

I teased a guy about being the football police because he yelled at people to move back the whole game, I played clapping games with the children and towards the end moved over to the Adjimim side to cheer with the ladies because Adjimim was beating Amakom 5-2. Being an NC State fan I am tired of losing so I decided to move to the winning side and boy did I ever hear about that. People at the clinic were actually asking which side I was going to cheer for at the match scheduled for Friday. I told them that as long as Amakom was winning I would cheer for them. They just laughed but the coach called a practice today after I told him they needed more practice. That is hilarious! Hearing Akua from the children and the villagers does my heart good and the camaraderie that I felt there is irreplaceable.

This is my friend Atta(Twin) Michael who was determined to hold my things the whole game. I was the only Obruni in the middle of a couple hundred Obibinis and I loved it! I strapped a sleeping baby to my back and got some hooting and hollering once again! When you embrace them just as they are and see them smile it does something inside your heart that you can’t even explain.

Tonight I walked to Amakom to see my seamstress, who has actually become a friend I love dearly, and she was playing Ludo with a guy and we sat in to join them. We had a blast laughing and cheering for each other outside this small room the girl rents with a very dim light to see. It is a custom to see people off and Grace walked us to the bottom of our hill through the village of Amakom when it was time for us to leave. It is such a sweet custom that I love and it makes you feel like your visit was very important and special. She asked us over again tomorrow night and I look forward to the fellowship.

Speaking of customs, I think I would like share with you one of my favorite. It is totally and completely acceptable to pick your nose here and I got a few shots at the football game to prove it.
I know you think these are just children but I can assure you that young and old alike get in on this action with no shame involved at all.

Visiting the local villages

2008-07-22T10:12:00.000-07:00

Thursday was such a good day. I have been waiting to go to a village called Dompa since I arrived here in Amakom and met some people from there who continually invited me to visit them. The fishermen at the lake, some of the workers at the clinic, and my friend YaYa are all from there. It is a long walk and about a 30 minute drive so I have been at the mercy of others to get me there. The team from Ireland was going to greet the chief and I took it as my time to visit Dompa. We travelled a very bumpy road to a beautiful village a quarter of the way around the lake. When we arrived everyone was sitting in the town square with all the chiefs and elders there and the Obrunis sitting opposite them.

We greeted them and received the nice gift of a sheep.

The sheep was going crazy and I was wondering what in the world we were gonna do with such a thing. Well we decided to tie him to the top of the Patrol which I thought was kind of crazy but how else do you get a sheep down a rugged bumpy African road. So there he goes thumping along as me and my roommates are in the very back getting sick and all the sudden you see the thing hanging off the side of the Patrol dangling and kicking to get free. He was literally hanging by his neck. We all started screaming and our driver Charles got out and tied him up there better. The next day I found out what you do with the gift of a sheep while I was eating my sheep soup. Yes it was very sad but tasted very good actually and was the most tender meat I’ve had since I’ve been here.

The time in Dompa was awesome though and we announced that we wanted to do a community service there Sunday so I know that will be a blast.
I can’t wait to come back. I even saw the fishermen I had met at the lake and got to talk to them again. We had to rush away after the greeting and of course I was the last one for Andrew to say tell Hollie we have got to get going. That seems to be the norm for me. I think it’s my ma’s fault. Lol.

We were on our way to a village called Nkwatepong way up in the mountains. We were going to greet the chief and we had surveyors with us that were going to check to see if Nkwatepong would be eligible to receive a borehole. When we got there children ran out to greet us and they set us up in the local church.

It was impressive how many people came out in just a few minutes and filled up the place and also how the chief opened and closed with prayer. It was very unusual to see that but very encouraging. They were very welcoming and informed Andrew that they need a borehole because the water is causing many sicknesses and they also need a stretcher to carry sick people the hour it takes to walk to the clinic. Please pray for this village to get good water because the surveyors said the roads were not passable for the equipment it would take to dig the borehole. I’m praying that God will give them mercy for these people that they saw and try to make a way for it to happen.

Juliana saw a snake. It scared me to death. I wasn’t there when she came upon it in the kitchen but I heard she almost fainted and came out running and screaming. She said it was 4 feet long and the size of her arm. It got away before anyone could kill it so I’ve been a little more nervous walking around after sunset. Other than that one I haven’t heard of any around here so that is definitely a blessing.
Friday I went to Kumasi to run errands and boy did we ever run. We ran here and there and everywhere and I was definitely with a couple of Ghanaians eating off the street and seeing how things work here in Africa when it comes to money, supplies and business in general. Michael and Osa argued and negotiated prices for cement, steel rods and frames and I helped shop for fruit and vegetables and other needs.

The highlight of the day was visiting Michael’s family in Kumasi. He hadn’t seen them for a while because he is always so busy when he comes to Kumasi but we decided to stop by for a few minutes. It was so cute how excited they were to see him and have guests in their house. Michael started speaking some English to me to explain what was going on and his dad smiled and told him he had never heard him speak English before. He was such a proud daddy that day.
This is me with his ma, dad and uncle.

We got home by 8:00pm which is very late but got a lot of things accomplished which is good since we have a team here trying to get a lot of work done on the clinic.

The clinic looks great! There is so much work going on. Everyday the hill is filled with workers and there is constant noise and action going on til 3:30 every day. It’s been cool seeing the excitement that is going on and to talk with the workers and community about everything at night when we walk into the villages.

Everyone wants to be a part and that is special. This is going to be an amazing addition to this area. I was handed some screw drivers and pliers today and given the job of taking out all the electrical switches, lights, fans from the old portion of the clinic.

It was a hot, gruesome job and so much fun. I even had a little apprentice with me named Gideon who just wanted to hold the tools for me and hand them to me as I needed them. He was
so cute.

I was a mess when I got done but glad that I could help.

Campaigning in Africa

2008-07-16T18:54:00.000-07:00

I’ve been sitting down in the office for the last 4 hours waiting to hear the news from the District Attorney race that my brother in law Christian Coomer is running in. I brainwashed my housemate Rebecca into wearing a Christian Coomer tshirt and sitting down in the office with me while everyone else at the lake has been asleep for hours. Lol. I have been calling and getting the updates and have been anxiously awaiting the results.

Christian didn't win but I am confident that God has a plan and a purpose through all of this and I know that the better man for the job was not selected. We never know what God's divine will is we just have to rest assured that God knows and we just have to put our lives into step with His plan. I know many people helped by giving time, money, and much of themselves for something they believed in. The results can be discouraging but I am proud that my family and my church took the time to stand up for something they believed in and desired to see a change not only in the church but in our community as well. This is not a failure but a success in my eyes and I am thankful to be part of this body. It is time we took a stand and this is only the beginning!

Visit from Efrea

2008-07-16T14:54:00.000-07:00

These last couple of days have been absolutely amazing. On my way from the north through Kumasi I picked up a dear friend that I met in Accra at the very beginning of my journey and she came to the lake with me.

We caught the boat over with the team on Sunday morning and went straight to church. She has been such a blessing and the last few days have been blessed because of her. Sunday I was itching for some fried yam and pepe which we didn’t have any of the ingredients for and so our first adventure was searching through the streets of the villages to find tomatoes, red pepper and yam. We found the onion but nothing else lol. We had a change in plans. Rebecca ended up making French toast and Efrea made fried eggs with the onion. It was very good. We were soon tired though because of the long day and went to sleep. The next morning I was on a mission to get some of my cloth sewn and Efrea helped me find the seamstress that we talked to at church on Sunday and try to explain what I wanted. We walked all over Amakom looking for different things that she needed. After lunch I was determined to take Efrea down to the lake and boy did we have some fun. She quickly realized why I love the villages and the lake so much. We talked to many fishermen and ended up buying plenty plenty fish most of which to give Efrea to take home with her to her family.

Some of the boys at the lake cleaned the fish for us thank God since I’m not too good at that and we were so thankful.

We played ludo and mancala and took some pics.

We came home very tired and on the way up the hill Efrea informed me that the hill to the clinic was much easier to climb down than up. Lol. I think the city girl got a run for her money on all the hills around here. She was such a help though…she fried the fish for us and made some rice. It was a very good meal. We had a very fun girls night with a small visit from the guys and turned in.

This morning Efrea was at it again making eggs with tomato and onion. We travelled down into the villages again to find water and talk to some people. I enjoyed using my small small Twi and learning more from Efrea. I introduced her to the chief of Amakom and also YaYa. We then travelled to Ancasse to go to the salon so I could get some braids. On our way the rain came and the chief of Atafram's wife saw us and begged us to sit on her porch while it rained. We had good fellowship with her.

After the rain we continued on to Ancasse. It was a lot of fun sitting and talking to the ladies there and seeing what it is like to hang out in an African salon.

I finally got my wish and Efrea made fried yam and pepe before she left. It was so hot but so good. I was so very sad to see her go and I begged her to stay longer but she doesn’t have much time left in Kumasi before she heads back to Accra and she has a funeral this week. We had such a blast though and it was a God thing that she was able to come. I know I will be asked where my friend is many times in the days to come. I walked her to the lake for her to catch a ride over on the boat and the rain came hard. She said later that the boat almost sank. lol I grabbed a plantain leaf and started walking but was soon surrounded by obibinis who thought I should not get wet at all. Rebecca of course somehow saw me walking past the office up to the house and was camera ready. I thought the shot was so cute and an amazing photo op!

North to Lawra

2008-07-15T14:57:00.000-07:00

I have just arrived back home at the Lake and am so excited to be back. We caught the boat on the other side of the lake this morning because there is a team staying there taking a boat over every day and it saved us about an hour thank God! When I saw Betrum and Isaac on the boat I could not hold back my excitement. And they were so excited too! I loved it. I brought a friend with me for a couple of days and already today we have had so much fun. We got here just in time for church. I decided to go to Amakom Assembly since that is where I feel most at home. We had so much fun! At one point they motioned for my friend Christiana to come forward in the middle of someone singing and she was like ‘they are calling me’ and I said ‘ok go’. They asked her to ask me to sing again and this time I sang a song that I have grown to love and I knew they would know as well. It starts by saying ‘All other gods, they are the works of man…’ and then the drums started and everyone started singing. They motioned for me to get the dancing started and me and Christiana started to dance. I motioned for everyone to come up and we soon had the whole church on their feet at the front doing their traditional dance. It was a sight to see. After lunch Christiana, James and I went on a mad hunt for tomatoes and some yam all over the villages. I was in desperate need of my new favorite food fried yam and pepe, but we were unsuccessful. It was fun adventures though and we got to talk to lots of people. One lady said she had sent me over some bananas last week as a gift and people told her I had gone to Kumasi. I thought that was so sweet. People were calling out Akua and it made me feel at home again. The language up north is so much harder than Twi and even though I have complained about Twi being difficult I told my Twi teacher today that I was so thankful to come back to the land of Twi because it truly is easier than other languages here in Ghana. Which brings me to the main point of this blog, my trip north to Lawra. I have journaled while away this week and just thought I’d share some of those entries with you.

Ok so today I began my big journey up north. We loaded up at about 7:30 and put 10 people in the tro-tro with us, which made it very packed. I was sick almost the whole time due to my wonderful disease of car sickness. The scenery was beautiful. It looked like an African movie. It was so typical of how everyone views how Africa might look. We made a few stops along the way to meet a Methodist Bishop and to buy groceries. The road was much better than I thought but much longer as well. We had really good conversation in the car and I was wishing I wasn’t so sick so that I could enjoy it more. When we got here (Lawra) the orphans were out singing and John was playing the drum. It was the warmest welcome I have ever received. The Esofu Mami actually picked me up off the ground when she greeted me. I was so surprised lol but turned right around and tried to pick her up and to my embarrassment did not succeed. We did all the formal greetings then went over to view the nutrition center where the children usually hang out and they followed us as they continued to sing. They were precious. On our way to eat I strapped a baby to my back for the first time and started walking.

I was a little scared to drop him and I noticed he didn’t have a diaper on so I was a little anxious about how that all worked since the kid was only a few months old. He started crying some and we were about to eat so I moved him to my front and tried to comfort him.

He rewarded my efforts by urinating all over my lap. It was amazing! Lol I just kept right on going like nothing had happened. It was completely hilarious. We ate some white hard pasty substance in some kind of leafy stew with guinea fowl and mango. It was interesting. After dinner we went to a church service where they do a dance that I don’t know if I could ever get. You have to move your bottom and top in different ways and it was a little too complicated for me but of course I tried it and probably looked silly but as I sat down kids followed me and sat on my lap.

I love it! We sang and danced often and children held onto our hands desperate for attention and love and we were more than willing to give it. We came to our guest house which is quite nice and are settling in for the night. I cannot wait to play and minister with the children tomorrow.

Today has started out interesting. This morning after breakfast we went over to the Aids part of the compound where any child or adult that has aids lives. They wanted us to speak to them and some of them had travelled far to come and have us pray for them believing in faith that they would be healed. It was amazing to see their faith. Esofu Nicole, one of the missionaries to Ghana, spoke very well about how Jesus does not hold people’s sins over their heads to punish them but that He loves everyone and is a very forgiving God. When she went around touching the ‘untouchables’ I was shaken to the core at the power of that and the imagery of Jesus she was showing and the Agape love she was representing. After this very special time together the rest of the team left to get passport stuff done across the border and only Courtney and I stayed behind. We hung out with some of the kids at the orphanage and tried to feed a very young child peanut butter and water. It was very difficult with no bottle or baby spoon but we made it work. I met two boys named Sam and Nad who petted my hair and touched my skin.

We read books to them and they loved the pictures. We even got someone to interpret them into Degardi, the Northern language (which is extremely difficult by the way) and that was very cute to see. We saw a boy who has TB of the bones. He was 8 years old and looked like a 3-4 year old. He was very small and his face was a sad one. I wondered if he was in a lot of pain.

Courtney and I walked off to the market at Lawra to check it out since most of the kids were in school. There was a ton of campaigning going on since the Ghana election is upcoming and I got a picture with some of the campaigners for proof that I can’t get away from those kind of crazy people.

I got distracted by a daycare with many kids out front and went over to greet and hang out with the children who were out playing.

Courtney got held up with a mental person who ended up on her knees a couple of times to pray and every time Courtney would tell her that she had a friend named Hollie that she needed to catch up with the lady would either break out into a ‘Hallelujah’ or a ‘Holy’ song most of which seemed to be written on the spot.I could not stop laughing at the situation at the time but felt a little disturbed and a little bit like the disciples that were being followed around by someone claiming to serve Christ and be doing a good thing but really being possessed and causing a great distraction. We headed back to the orphanage as the kids were being let out of school and we played with the children, read more books and made all the girls necklaces and the boys bracelets.

I thought it was so cute how all the girls ears were pierced. It was very helpful though because everyone, boy and girl, had short hair cuts and wore a variety of clothing that was not necessarily gender matching. It was a very special time together and I was shocked just by the way they slept and what they called a kitchen and play area. It was so completely and utterly heart wrenching. I am blessed by these children however because their joy is so much in the middle of so little and they are intensely happy at just standing or sitting close to us. The ones that made me the saddest were the ones I didn’t see smile once the whole time I was there. What have they gone through in their short little lives? What have they already faced? What does their future look like? Will they ever have a reason to smile again? These questions flow through my head and I am begging God to take care of them. Give them a comfort only He can give and send someone to love and care for them in a tangible way.

I preached tonight. We had a little acting involved and it went very well. I talked about David and Goliath and how all of us have Goliaths in our lives. Be it sickness, disease, lack of food, financial difficulties… I talked about David’s faith and the power of our testimony. I talked about relying on God’s strength to overcome our giants and we prayed over many people. It was very good to hear testimonies at the end of how God had worked in people’s lives and I think it made everyone’s faith grow. After the service we went out the back of the church to pray over an area that sees a lot of demon activity in this village. The story was that a fetish priest or witch had sent a curse to this place and the demon would manifest himself in many different ways tormenting the people of this village and late at night a demonic crying would occur. We prayed against this and it was a very powerful time of casting this demon away and shutting up whoever sent the curse. I have been involved in much spiritual warfare since arriving in Ghana. Ghanaians are very open and aware of the spiritual realm and what is going on it. Many times I have felt the services were over the top and there was a lot of showing out and drama. This night however was very different. They were very serious about it and knew the power they had in the name of Jesus. There was no playing around and many prayed very powerful prayers and they sang very anointed and powerful songs. My faith was increased and I believe that this village is free of whatever curse has been placed on it and this spirit of Python has been cast out.

Once again today we have visited with the Aids patients and gone to speak at the house that many of them live.

A few of us bought strips of woven cloth from them, which they weave to make money for their livelihood and I even tried to use the machine they use to make the cloth.

I wasn’t very good at it. Again it was a very special time and we prayed for healing and protection for these people. As we were leaving they draped a piece of their cloth over us and it was a very special gift that we all loved.

We left part of the group behind which was hard and got on the road today. The children were there to see us off and I noticed the 5 year old little boy who danced at church in just a t shirt and underwear in a way of worship to God that would put most people to shame. I looked at the little boy with TB of the bones and wondered how long he would live and once again thought about his pain. I saw the little girl who never smiles and wondered what would happen with her and I looked at Sam…so full of life and energy and I hope that he stays like that forever and that nothing takes that away from him.

I am being touched and changed…seeing things I never imagined I’d see and going places I never thought I would ever be able to experience. Boy is it a bumpy ride!

P.S. I didn’t get sick on the way back! God is so good!

WEEKLY NEWS!!!

2008-07-06T11:21:00.000-07:00

***Happy 4th of July***
We had such a good week this week. Michael, Rebecca and I got back from Kumasi on Monday evening (You can read about our adventures on Rebecca’s blog). On Tuesday the Ghanaians celebrated a holiday and many people were down at the lakeside and just having a nice relaxing day. We have travelled into many villages this week and opened up our hearts to the people and shared the love of Jesus. Many times I have found myself talking to people that have had a little too much to drink and just hugging them and sharing with them the adverse affects of what they are doing. They have been amazed that someone cares enough about them to do that and I am privileged to be Christ’s hands and feet to them. There is a local HOT drink that many people drink and is by far a leading killer here. It is different than drinks you might find in the states and its potency kills people quickly. Please pray that God will give these people hope beyond this drink.
On July 4th the only Americans on the compound, since the Jernigans are away, were Rebecca and I and we wanted to have a celebration picnic. Our housemate Louise has never celebrated 4th of July before since she does live in Northern Ireland but we quickly got her into the party spirit and made her join along.

Later I asked her what her favorite 4th of July was and she said uh…this one.

I thought that was so sweet. There were 30 workers working on the clinic in the heat and fierce sun so I thought it would be a special treat to have a feast with them. I walked into the villages the night before and ordered coca colas for everyone and gari and beans along with bread so that we could have a special lunch together.

The next day I prepared in the morning for our lunch and when it was time for break we carried our treasures up the hill to serve and eat with the guys.

When we told them what we were celebrating they lifted their drinks and food and clapped and celebrated with us.

It was one of the most special times we have had here and to see their excitement that we would want to share this with them and would offer such a big treat for them was very good to see.

They thanked us profusely and every time I go into a village I have heard people talking about it or thanking us once again for the blessing it was to them.
Yesterday I went to my first funeral.

I have heard how big it is in the Ghanaian culture to attend funerals but what I encountered was more than I ever imagined. Everyone wears black except those in high positions or those close to the family who are also allowed to wear red. I had seen people walking past the clinic grounds all day but when I arrived in my black skirt and top with my black sandals I was overwhelmed to see over 1,000 people lingering about, sitting and greeting the necessary people.

I of course stuck out like a sore thumb being the ONLY obruni in the midst of all these obibinis. I was surprised at how many people I recognized from all the surrounding villages and went around making my greetings to these people in the midst of what seemed to be a massive party unlike I had ever been before. I went through the line to say hi to Georgina, who is a nurse at the clinic and now a widow thanks to the local hot drink I have been told. I greeted my friends the chiefs of Atafram and Ancaase. I stuck around the clinic group of about 15 and we were escorted to Georgina’s house to have minerals(coca cola). When we returned to the funeral, a song that the clinic people had chosen to have dedicated to Georgina came on over the loudspeakers and all the workers stood to go dance in mourning with Georgina. Of course I was more than willing to go with the crowd and dance my sandals off. After this, my friend Ebenezer went and asked the chiefs if I could have my picture taken with them knowing that would be something I would want and they of course obliged me once again. Oh yes, my friend the chief of Atafram informed me today as I passed his house that his present wife was fine with him marrying an Obruni because she might come with money for the family. I wonder if I should tell him about my student loans.
Well I wanted to give you guys an update on this week and let you know that God is working and He is actually using me as a tool! How awesome is that!

Pray for me this week! I travel tomorrow to Kumasi to meet up with the rest of the team that came with us from the U.S. and then we travel north to an orphanage in Lawra. I will stay there this week to work in this orphanage and plan to have a baby strapped to my back and a baby in my arms most of the time since I’ve heard they mostly just lay on the ground due to the lack of staff. I’m nervous about going and the feelings I will feel but I just want to show God’s love and do the best I can. I will bring plenty of pictures and news on this next week. I wanted to let you know that I will not be able to have access to internet at this time but I will update you when I get back.
Thank you for your prayers and emails of support. God is working through you and into me to do the work here and I am truly blessed to have people like you in my life.
Still living TheAfricanDream!

Lakeside

2008-07-03T07:08:00.000-07:00

It didn’t take me long to realize that my favorite place to adventure out into was going to be the lakeside. The first time I saw the lakeside was in Ancase. The lakeside there is spread out and many people go there for washing clothes and dishes and for taking baths. I didn’t stay long that day but not long after decided to travel by myself down to the lakeside in Amakom. The first day that I decided to go I was going for the purpose of getting away with God and writing some and of course checking out the lake. It is quite a hike to get down to the lake. There is a very narrow path through the bush and I have to admit that the first time I went down I was a nervous wreck thinking I was going to run into a python at any minute. When I came out the other side and arrived at the lakeside this is what I saw.
The wind was blowing some, which is always a good thing, and it was so peaceful and serene. I thought wow! This is perfect! I finished my writing and praying and was just sitting on the dock soaking in the privacy and the sun when I see a fisherman coming up on literally half a log and he was paddling with broken bowls. He was smiling and I was like oh my what now lol. He started indicating to me through hand motions and his broken English that he had been out on the water all day and needed some food. I told him I didn’t have any but he was pretty persistent so I went poking through my bag to see if I had anything that I could offer him. I found a beaten up granola bar, probably leftovers from the flight over, and handed it over to him. He was very thankful and showed me the fish that he had caught. He had travelled from Dompa which is a village across the lake and he paddles steady for 45 minutes on this log to get to his nets and fish for the day. After a few minutes of talking to him I saw other fishermen paddling towards us and then rain pouring down. Thankfully there is a boat dock at Amakom lakeside so I sat under the covering of the boat dock and was quickly joined by TEN fishermen. Yes I said TEN! I and my ten new friends sat under the boat dock for over an hour while it poured, talking, or trying to, laughing and having good fellowship. When the rain dissipated I stood up to go with the two fish that I had been given in tow. I didn’t really know what to do with such small fish but I quickly found help and began the process of scaling, gutting and frying up these little fish that are actually very tasty.

I decided to go back to the lake just a day or two later. As I was walking down the hill I saw Obibini’s running up the hill shouting Obruni and I had a little entourage follow me to the lake. About fifteen children were sitting inches from me, jumping and splashing about in the water and loving to try their English out on me and teach me some Twi.

I decided to hike up my skirt and get in the water with them. We splashed around and took funny pictures.

They couldn’t get enough of themselves on the camera and if they thought someone had more pictures than they did they would quickly let me know that was not ok. As we were playing, one of my Dompa friends came up and strung up six fish for me and would not take payment for them.

That is the equivalent of about $1.20 in the US and a very big deal here. Especially since I knew from our previous encounter that this man had two ex-wives and eight children to care for.

Besides the fact that my last encounter cleaning and preparing the fish was not the best experience I’ve ever had.

My roommates of course laughed at me and my antics once again as I walked up with my six fish. I could not for the life of me kill them so I had to leave them in the sink and leave the house for a bit until they died which everyone said was really horrible of me.

Yesterday I took my roommate Rebecca to the lake. The children of course saw us coming down the hill and started running up the hill crying out Obruni! Obruni!

They followed us to the lake and this time we discovered we had about 35 children with us and fortunately I had come a little better prepared. I had brought some yarn and beads to make the girls necklaces! Oh my you should have seen the excitement that it brought.

The boys of course went to great lengths to pretend to be a girl, most of which I cannot divulge here, but I quickly shooed them away to keep swimming so that we could have this precious time with only the girls. They loved their necklaces and made sure to count seven beads on each necklace to make it fair. Here are the girls and their necklaces. So sweet and precious they were. All the children were asking for cash and toffees which have been given to them before but we want to offer them something that is longer lasting and amazingly they are ok with that. On our way to the lake I started hearing some of the children sing some of the songs I had sang with them before and we began singing them at random points throughout the day and telling them Jesus loves them and the importance of the number seven as it relates to Jesus and creation. It became a very precious time with them and it was hard to pull myself away when it was time to go. They grabbed my stuff and walked it all the way back up the hill. Rebecca’s and my hands were grasping little Obibini hands and people just smiled at us as we walked with our little entourage up the hill. As I was walking up to the house I thought about the gift the lake has been. Sitting amongst little children, learning Twi from fishermen and sharing the love of Jesus in a place that is more beautiful than words can explain.

Yes the lakeside is one of my favorite spots.

So last night right after dinner I needed to see the sunset lakeside again, so I travelled the mile to the Ancase lakeside and chatted with people on the way and enjoyed the beauty of the sunset. It was definitely worth it!

Ghana Friends

2008-06-27T14:57:00.000-07:00

Ok so I thought it would be really fun to fill you in on the people that fill up my days and make me laugh daily here in Ghana. God has blessed me completely in putting all of these people in my life at this time. They are amazing!

First of all I’ll start with my housemates as Louise calls herself. Louise Monroe is a 28 year old student in Northern Ireland. She has a heart for missions and is exploring the possibility of long term missions while here in Amakom. A group of about 16 people from her church in Northern Ireland will be to the clinic in mid July to help make the renovation of the clinic possible. She has been working hard to tie up loose ends and make sure everything runs smoothly for her team while they are here. She is a die hard Methodist which I razz her about all the time. She is a hoot to be around. The other night the three of us girls were dancing in the living room and she turned on some techno music and was really getting into it lol. We could not stop laughing at ourselves and applauding her dancing abilities. She is used to meat, potatoes and a vegetable for dinner every night she has informed me and does not like to mix them. I, however, continue to mix dinner every night with hamburger pie, chicken and dumplings, tacos, sausage/cabbage. She comes in from the office and just smiles when she seems something that looks strange cooking on the stove. She is a very complimentary eater of the food though so I give her grace when she looks disdainfully on the next meal. She usually comes around.

I often times find her doing funny things behind my back in pictures which the happy photographer Rebecca loves to snap. I love to scare her or do something crazy for her to say she is with crazy Americans. Sometimes she’ll hear me doing something crazy and she’ll say hi Hollie before she even sees me. We have a fun friendship already of sarcasm and hilarious laughter. I love her accent and her love of life. She sometimes has spontaneous bursts of craziness and I am all but willing to jump on board.

My other housemate Rebecca is a joy to be around as well. She is from California and has just finished her training for massage therapy which means she is always itching to give massages. I haven’t ever gotten so many wonderful massages in such a small period of time. It’s so great!!!! She is such a servant. She loves people and performs many acts of service. She helps her parents who are joint pastors at a Methodist church in Houson, California. She is always asking how she can help and anytime I walk to the kitchen or start on any project she is there with hands ready to get busy. It’s not very often where you find such servant-hearted people and she is an inspiration. She is constantly taking pictures and more than once I have been shocked to see what she has photographed or recorded since I had no idea she had the camera out at the time. Rebecca and I have had many adventures since arriving in Ghana.

On our way to Amakom we were tightly squeezed in on a huge bus that would pass two semis at the same time on a curvy road. Us, along with every other passenger, were very concerned during these times and would raise up in our chairs to see if we were gonna make it. When we arrived in Amakom we walked for the first time together down into the village and have often taken adventures going to see the people in villages or taking late night drives to Biposo to pick up our friend James while scrambling around to find change to buy into our Coca-Cola cravings. She is the ultimate driver of the Patrol and we have had some Mudin trips that any country boy in America would envy. When I try to get her to do crazy things involving other people she always reminds me that I’m the extrovert and she’ll just watch, always with her camera of course. She did dance with me and Louise the other day in the living room but informed us that she has no rhythm which I have to admit is true but she’s a blast anyways and doesn’t mind cracking us up. She has a deep love for the Lord and more than once I have heard her say let’s pray about it before we make any ministry decision or any decision at all for that matter.

The three of us recognize how different we are but that it is such a God thing that we have been brought together for such a time as this.

Michael is the ultimate go to guy and most of the day consists of hearing people call out ‘MICHAEL’ and him saying ‘YES’ and running to fix the problem no matter what it may be. He is licensed in electrical work and is the project manager for the construction on the clinic. When he is gone from the village you can feel the absence of his presence because he is always smiling and you can hear him singing very loudly on his porch which is a stones throw above our house. One night we heard him singing for literally 3 or 4 hours and would occasionally stop to laugh at his persistence and his absolute love for the Lord. He is sold out. He is a Ghanaian missionary to villages and has a love for people that is contagious. He has often led crusades where he translates for hours the Jesus film and hundreds have gotten saved through his ministry.

We have also followed him to churches on Sunday mornings where he preaches with anointing, humor and love. He is often at our house and most people come to our place to find him these days. He has been known to pick one of us girls off the couch and go dancing around the living room singing off key to who knows what. He has us laughing all the time and is our built in food disposal. Many times he has been the one to go with me into the villages just because and stops to talk to everyone. He is very faithful and committed to the Lord, his work and the Jernigans and would do anything for them. God truly has His hand on Michael’s life and I know he will do great things.

James is our other friend who is constantly at our house. He followed a little after Michael started coming and always enters our house with a song on his lips.

He has taught me all my Twi songs and has sang with me once in a church and then I heard him sing a solo later at another church and it was truly anointed. He is a talented painter and has been hired to stay here at the clinic to help with the construction. He is a hard worker. The first night that he and Michael were over together, he stood up before they were to go and started singing and praying and it became something very special that we still do together whenever we have spent the evening together playing games or just talking. It is a great comfort and we have experienced fellowship in the true sense of the word with him taking the lead. His love for the Lord is very good to see in a community where many people are only Christians in title and not in life.
Ebenezer is the chaplain at the clinic, leader of morning devotions and our Twi teacher. He is such a fun older man and I love to chat with him on a little bench out next to the road. He knows English very well and often interprets for me when I don’t understand.

Isaac is the boat driver at the clinic and I hear him saying out loud ‘Aquia’, which is my African name, more often than I can count. I visited him at his home one night and he teased me about my Twi and refuses to talk to me in English because he says I need to learn Twi. He is always smiling and I love to chat with him.
YaYa is the bread lady. Can I just say I LOVE HER!!! She brings the best fresh bread, which we always buy, and I have sat there with her many times laughing and trying to communicate when neither of us can speak the others language. We sang Twi songs today and somehow I figured out how to say I love her and she is my friend. She has a two hour walk from her village to come here with her bread and I always tell her she is sooo strong. She is always calling out ‘Aquia’ as well.

Then there are the workers that travel from various villages to work on the clinic. I have developed a friendship with them and have often bought them lunch from ladies that travel by selling things. Either kikii or bread are the favorites. I can feed 20 men on less than $10. The other day when I got stuck in Kumasi (which you can read about on my housemates blogs) I came back the next day and the guys were telling me how much they missed me. Rebecca says they don’t know her and Louise because the girls are too afraid to talk to the men. Sounds like a future embarrassing moment to me.
The chief of Atafram is quickly becoming a great friend and he brought the youth from his village to a fellowship the other day. I have visited him often to sit on his front lawn and he has visited me wearing his entoma which is a very formal outfit. I was so honored! He has asked me to be his wife twice and anytime that I see him during the night he has been drinking which makes for very funny conversations.

Hubert and Seth, along with Yow and Betrum, are the guys that I have picked to be my gophers. Haha. Hubert and Seth helped me plan our weekly fellowships/competitions with the youth and have run many errands for me in regards to these programs.

They are a joy to be around and Rebecca was teasing me about how I look like I am always sandwiched between the two of them and she heard me constantly calling them the other day for one of our first outreaches.

We had around 100 young people from a village called Atafram come and play table tennis(ping pong), draft(checkers) and Ludo(Parchesi) as well as a dance competition. We awarded prizes and everybody seemed to have a blast!!! I know I did. Betrum runs sound and set it up for us the other day as well as the times that we go out on crusades. They are all great guys and I love working with them.

A little funny thing was the other day when I handed Hubert and Seth some food to eat thinking they would eat it in a hurry because it was getting time for the program and they disappeared for like 30 minutes. Haha I learned not to hand our food till the job is done.

There are others but these seem to be the ones that stand out the most to me right now and they all bring me joy each and every day.

Village Life

2008-06-19T14:12:00.000-07:00

As I gaze out at the glorious sunset over Lake Bosumtwe I am amazed at how beautiful it can be once again. I don’t think you could ever get tired of the change in the sky over the mountains and the lake. Every day it is different and even more gorgeous than the day before it seems.

I have just finished dinner which was very American lol and am now itching to walk into one of the villages. It’s my favorite thing to do in the evenings and this time I have forgotten my torch (flashlight) and stepped into a big mud puddle. I just smile and someone says ‘oh this is just another story that you can write about’. I laugh because everyone notices that I am always writing things down but it’s only because I don’t want to forget a minute of the time that I am here.

One of my favorite things about the Ghanaian culture is the depth of community that they have. Everyone that knows me knows that I talk a lot on the phone but it is not something I like to do. I would much rather sit face to face with you and talk that way. Because of the lack of phones or service around the lake, it is often a necessity to go to find someone to tell them your message or send someone with your message. Oftentimes I have gone on these visits with people because of my love for the village and the friendships they share. I just want to be a part of it while I’m here. Tonight I walked to Adjimim on beaten paths of soft mud and rocks. In the distance I hear many families pounding fufu, the most popular local food which I have helped prepare and have tasted. It is not my favorite but it was definitely fun to make and we invited everyone we saw to come and eat it with us. I think they got a kick out of our reactions and our desire to share the experience with them. Everyone stops to greet you in the village which takes any errand twice as long but also makes it twice the fun! I get to practice my Twi greetings which I am becoming quite a pro at and the people love to hear you say anything in their native language. All around me I hear children yelling and running to me crying out ‘Obruni’ which I don’t think I could ever get tired of hearing. I will miss that when I am gone.

Bugs are flying all around me and it becomes pitch black. People are walking like they can see through the dark and I am stumbling all over myself which just makes people laugh at me all the more. Am I miserable or scared? No way! I am more content that ever before. Why is that? I can become so antsy in other situations but in this village at this moment I am at peace and my heart cannot stop smiling.

I saw some of the workers that have been hired daily to work on the clinic addition and they smiled and came up to me to thank me for buying the group of them bread yesterday. It cost me $3.80 to buy 20 men some bread while they were working and it made a difference in their lives, in addition to the fact that I bought out the bread lady and her work all the sudden was done for the day. Something as small as that speaks to people in a way my words cannot. How amazing, once again, that God has given me this opportunity!

For the last few nights we have been travelling to a village called Ancase to show the Jesus video. We set up out in the midst of dirt and rocks and everyone sits on the ground to watch this 4x4 screen with a projector and an English movie about Jesus. Michael translates every word into Twi. The first night we stepped out of the car, children came running from everywhere and I ran up to them and started singing Twi songs and doing hand motions and hugging children and teaching them how to give high-fives! I CANNOT BELIEVE I AM IN AFRICA!!!!! We finally got the system working through the sound problems (yes they happen all over the world I have realized) and started the movie. At one point a little girl started crying and no one went to get her so I stood up and brought her to where I was sitting and just a few minutes later she was fast asleep. The next night we played some games with the children and I found myself stumbling over rocks and falling on my tail trying to keep up with these kids that can run on rocks barefooted better than I can walk on pavement. This night I sat in the middle of all these black little faces who every other minute glance over to smile at me and I have 10 little hands touching my shoulder or leg or holding my hand. There is a little girl in front of me who continues to tap me on the leg and point to children that are falling asleep. She must remember how I held the girl the night before. Someone takes her up on her offer of my lap and a little girl falls into my lap and is asleep almost immediately. Now I must be dreaming. Michael, who leads the program, calls to those who want to give their lives to Christ and many hands go up. He then asks the people if they want to be healed of any sicknesses and the same amount of hands go up. As he and the girls are praying for these people I start singing There is Healing in this place, Nothing but the blood of Jesus and We are standing on Holy Ground. A sweet presence of the Lord is there and in the dark, with only the light of the moon, people are turning their hearts over to Jesus and then being healed. It is miraculous and powerful.

I know I say this a lot but I cannot believe God has given me this opportunity to live a dream. I have to pinch myself oftentimes and thank God that He has called me for this time, in this season and this place and that other people gave to this dream spiritually, physically and financially. I will be forever indebted to all of you!

I will close with the biggest news on the compound this week. Dr. Juliana Jernigan gave birth to Lucas Jernigan on Saturday. He weighed a little over 8 pounds. Dr. Ju went into labor at about 2pm and we saw her walk across to the clinic. We knew that she would have no pain medication and the closest hospital is about 2 hours away so if there were any complications it was going to be very serious. We saw some of their closest loved ones pacing outside the room praying with all earnestness and we could hear the pain of the Dr. along with the praise and worship music they had playing. Wanting to stay out of the way, the three of us girls sat on our porch waiting to hear the news, praying and seeking God for the Dr. After only three hours we saw our friend Michael run out into the rain pumping his arms and we thought what in the world is he doing. There is no way the baby is already here. But only 20 minutes later we see the Dr. and her whole family including the newborn walking across to their house. You could hear our screams a mile away. We sat there for another hour talking about how inspiring this lady is and what a miracle the Lord has performed in her life. God has been so good!

Stay tuned for more testimonies and news from Lake Bosumtwe!!

Africa News

2008-06-18T14:19:00.000-07:00

Hello Hello my wonderful friends and family!!!!!

I have so many wonderful things to tell you and I’m sure you’re anxious to hear! I’m sitting here under a helicopter fan trying to get a little cool. Lol. That is very hard around here haha. The electricity went out today for a couple of hours and as soon as it went out we just carried on as normal and turned our flashlights on and our little chargeable lamps beside our beds. No electricity is very common here.

Life is different here but I love Ghana!! We went to a little church today called Amakom Pentecost. We had so much fun! The three of us girls went with two guys that live at the clinic compound. We danced and Michael, the guy we hang out with the most around here, went up front and told one of the elders to get me to sing. So the elder said, “Sister Hollie is going to come up and sing for us”. Lol I was so nervous and I have been learning some Twi songs but I was afraid I would get the words wrong so I didn’t sing them. I sang the song ‘Hallelujah’ and they sang along with me. James, the guy who has been teaching me Twi songs came up and helped me lol but my first experience in an Amakom church was so great. A mom in the church came up and brought her little girl to our aisle and I held out my arms to her and she sat on my lap and then fell asleep throughout the whole service. As you can imagine, my heart was so taken with her. She was adorable. I seriously want to bring a child home. J haha make room ma and dad!
The other day when me and Rebecca, one of my roommates, walked through the village I heard all these children yelling and I was wondering what they were saying. When I stopped to listen I realized they were yelling Obruni, Obruni which means white person in Twi. I looked around and all over the village were little children yelling and waving and smiling and oh my word my heart smiled and I started taking pictures and showing the pictures to the children and they couldn’t get enough of it. I was giving hugs and hand shakes and then adults started coming up and wanting their picture taken lol. They were so cute. I took pictures with some of them. One of them said, ‘When did you get here?’ and me and Rebecca said, ‘Wednesday’. He said, ‘It’s Friday and I am the Assembly Man. Why haven’t you come to see me?’ I almost wanted to laugh because he was so serious but greeting those people in the village that hold a place of authority is very important in Ghanaian culture so we made sure to set up a formal meeting time and I am looking forward to the special time we will have with the Assembly Man and the Chief of Amakom.

Amakom is a village of about 700 people and I have no idea how people make a living. We are at least 40 minutes back into the bush in the middle of mountains next to this big lake. When you come over one of the hills the beauty of the lake and the villages takes your breath away. I was overwhelmed at how beautiful it is here and how nice our house is. We love it! We have mice often times and spiders as well. I let Rebecca sweep the mice out cause I’m not too keen on doing that. Lol. And she says she’s swept the same mouse out five times lol.

It’s the rainy season and when it starts to rain everyone stops what they are doing and goes inside. The rain is so hard and so loud you are just amazed at the splendor of God’s creation all over again. We often just sit on the front porch and look at the lake while it’s raining cause you can’t talk it’s so loud on the metal roof. Yesterday when I went to visit another village on the other side of us to meet with the chief we were on our way back and got caught in the rain. Everybody was running inside but I was already wet and it felt so good I just stayed out in it until it was over. I think the people here thought I was crazy. It’s really big here to get inside and everyone keeps asking me if I got sick though the temperature is so hot even through the rain. They were all covering up with long sleeves. It’s so funny!

We are now sitting here with our new roommate since yesterday Louise. She is from Ireland and has an Irish accent which she just said is actually Ulster but I figured you guys wouldn’t know what that was but only because I don’t lol. I have been mimicking her accent, which throws her into gales of laughter. We have had a good time together so far.

People come in and out of our house all day long. I haven’t figured out how I feel about that. Lol but the people are just so excited that we are here. Our friends Michael and James come over a lot and seem to show up at about dinner time every night. This morning though, I was woke up by a little clanging on a cup because our neighbor Michael had come over and cooked breakfast for us and was waking me up. I started just laughing as I heard my name and came out to a full breakfast on the table. They are such loving, beautiful people here. This week we will start going to the schools and teaching and playing games with the children. We are so excited to get to do that!!

I know this has gotten really long and I could write forever already but I will end with these things. Keep praying because there are not a lot of true believers on the clinic compound. We are striving to be good witnesses and good examples and help the Jernigans and the village as much as possible. Your prayers are greatly appreciated and any emails I love!! It might take me time to respond because my email is kind of slow here and internet is hit or miss.