Sorry for the lack of communication. There have been numerous power outages, Internet outages, another water crisis, and I have been fighting a sinus infection for almost 2 weeks. Just when I think I am getting better, another fever crops up.
In the meantime, life goes on here in Ghana and I don’t make a good patient. Staying in bed is just not my cup of tea.
Stay tuned for more interesting things after the brief commercial message directly below.
Financial accounting for the donated monies used in the north:
Pastor John & family health insurance for year 70 $47.95
Pwalugu village ladies group 50 34.25
Bag of millet for the three boys 65 44.52
Bread for boys 10 6.85
Large sack of oranges for boys 17 11.64
Bananas for boys 6.50 4.45
Berthilda to help with petrol to go to boys 30 20.55
Car and driver to go to boys’ village 60 41.10
Buckets, soap, clothespins, line ** 70 47.95
Internet café money 20 13.70
Photo album 2.5 1.71
Photo printing 15 10.27
Total of ‘other’ up north 426 291.78
First term sponsorship for boys 500 342.47
** The driver told me that Nurse Berthilda had threatened the boys with a ‘beating’ if they greeted guests again as dirty as they were this time. The above **money will cover 2 stainless steel buckets (the plastic ones won’t hold up to three boys), enough soap to choke a horse, 100 good clothespins, and an appropriate line for hanging clothes. The same buckets can be used to bathe the bodies. I am sending this money up to Berthilda, along with a photo album for the boys and Internet money to encourage Berthilda to stay in contact with us. Romana is going up this Friday.
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Little Miss ‘N’ spent a week with her adoptive parents from the Pacific Northwest. While in their care, N visibly gained weight, began walking, and thoroughly enjoyed her time with Mommy and Daddy. It was hard for them to leave her behind and head for the airport. Since then N is doing very well. She looks right at me, stands up, grins, and starts walking. She gravitates to every obruni (white person) that comes in. She clearly misses her parents.
While fighting a sinus infection, I am not doing much touchy feely with the children, but am talking, clapping, and smiling to make visual contact. I'm sure I got the katah (cold) from the children and staff here, but no sense giving it back to them.
There have been lots of electrical, Internet, and water outages. The tanks and buckets purchased with donor money have come in very handy the past week and 1/2.
I spent Monday (28th) morning in the Accra market (like Medina market, but larger) with Dinah buying second hand sheets and towels to replace ragged ones. This was at Romana's request. She had thought there was other money coming for linens, but this did not materialize. The donated money I brought is almost gone, so I will not be doing much shopping. That will leave more time for the children.
Do you remember the girl that attends public school while awaiting her adoption process, the one that I have been working with after school and/or in the evening? She is almost certainly dyslexic (my diagnosis) and has what she and I are calling ‘brain freezes’, something like having a clamp on her head, where she just can’t focus. Yesterday she came to me after school, all excited. She said “Grandma Judy we had hard math problem at school today and I put my hands on the sides of my head and said to myself … ‘I know its hard, I know its hard, but I can do it, I can do it’ … and I did it, I did the problem right”. Leaving her here without special attention is going to be very hard.
Eight year old ‘B’ came to me late this afternoon (Tuesday 1st) and asked if I would be ‘taking’ supper. (He knew that while sick, I sometimes have not been eating a meal.) He was greatly relieved when I said yes and asked if he could take my bowl to the kitchen for me. Last year he was such a rascal, but this year he is a sweet, thoughtful, helpful young man. What a delight! [See photo]
Yesterday (Wednesday 2nd) I became acutely aware how much I miss our telephone books. There are none here in Ghana. How do you find a needed item without your fingers walking through the yellow pages? You get the best word of mouth advice possible and then hire a taxi to go look for the item. Dinah and the taxi driver Angie (BH teacher) uses drove for an hour trying to find more of the antibiotic I brought with me to no avail. Finally a pharmacist talked me into a substitute in the same family as the one I brought from the US. It was manufactured in the UK so the quality should be OK. Several staff members have already asked me this morning if I am OK … did I have any bad reaction? They know my body does not handle antibiotics well. The Lord has surrounded me with caring folks.
Monies spent last Saturday and Monday
3 flats eggs 21
1 bucket onions 8
6 cabbages 12
Bananas & mangos 20
Total food 61 $41.78
Linens 96 $65.75
(13 bottom sheets, 6 top sheets, 24 towels)
Mercy is pondering how we should spend the 65 Ghc that remain … chicken or eggs or fruit. Even though the funds are short now, due to the linens purchase, the children have benefited from more protein, vegetables, and fruit than we had originally planned. It is time to get back to reality of the limited BH budget.
I am hoping to start working with 2-3 of the older children at a time stringing beads for bracelets. The bracelets will be brought to the US to sell for fund raiser. The word is they enjoy the stringing even though they cannot keep any.
I just picked up a message from the masters degree student at the teachers college in the north. He thinks there are FraFra-English materials available at a university in Winneba. If so, Isaac might be able to help me get there as he is from Winneba. He says the journey there and back by public transport can be made in about 5 hours. It should be yet another interesting adventure.
Time to wrap this rambling message up and send it.
Peace and Joy to you all,
Grandma Judy Griffin
