Ash Wednesday, Lent, and Volunteering



This Wednesday was Ash Wednesday – the day that Catholics are reminded that we are dust and unto dust we shall return.  We had service under the tree with the school and the community.  In this part of Ghana during this dry season we receive dust in our eyes, ears, nose, and mouth every day so a little ash on our foreheads is like icing on an iced cake.

School and community joined under the ebony tree for Ash Wednesday service

Some of the small children from the primary at the service.

Lent is traditionally a time of penance and sacrifice – giving up something.  Being a Peace Corps volunteer in the Upper West Region of Ghana I think I’ve got the whole “giving things up” covered.  I see the value of working to reject the material things in our lives – not everything – but certainly a lot of the extra baggage.

Jesus gave multiple warnings about worldly possessions – possessing and being possessed by stuff.  I think that lesson is needed in both Ghana and in the United States – but more so in the later.

I really like this new Pope – I like his ideas about helping the poor and not being so judgmental about other people.  He encouraged people during this Lent to think less about giving up things (although that might still be important to some).  Rather, he encouraged all to the more important work to help make the world a better place.  As a Peace Corps volunteer that is obviously my focus and the reason I’m able to deal with the inconveniences and problems.  I think it is also a focus of many people around the world and something this Pope and these times can bring into much clearer focus.

I hope this season is helpful to my family and friends – even if they are not Catholic.  Reflecting on death and life is healthy.

Volunteering


Thinking about Lent reminds me of the hardships and frustration that I face each day.  I think life would be so much easier if I had this, that, and the other thing (like running water, a refrigerator, and a car).  But no matter how hard and frustrating it gets I remain comfortable with my decision to be a Peace Corps volunteer and to continue my service in Ghana.  Less than 200 days for those counting.

I am reminded of the time when I was a team leader for Red Cross local disaster response.  In that position I would get paged out in the middle of the night in rain or snow.  I would have to wake other people up, including my wife, so we could go and see if it was possible to help the people impacted by the house fire or whatever and also give some refreshments to the first responders.

There were MANY times that I was unhappy and frustrated with the pager.  A page out at 2 am would likely mean getting back home just in time to go to work.  Times when it was very cold or hot or frustrating in some other way made the idea of getting up and going out all the more challenging.  The work once we got to the disaster was not always easy or pleasant.

But for all the problems – and the internal complaining along the way – there was NEVER a time that I got back from helping family or fire fighters and thought it was a waste of time.  I was always glad I went.

That is sort of how Peace Corps feels.  I know that things are not always easy and even a few changes could make service easier.  I could get frustrated that the culture of the host country or the Peace Corps makes some such changes impossible.  I could complain about the problems and the difficulty, but it would not help.  I’m content enough to make do with what I have while continuing to look for improvements to make my life and other’s lives easier.  Seeing that I’m helping in some small way brings satisfaction and comfort in the hardships.

Rabbits


The kits, baby bunnies, all died this week.  I guess the recent move of the doe to the new cage environment and whatever I did wrong – contributed to the deaths.  But she may just be a bad mother.

Health


Not much has changed: I’m still working on my shoulder exercises and using ear drops.  My shoulder seems to slowly be getting better.  I don’t know about my ears – but as I have a trip to Accra at the end of the month to have another checkup – I guess time will tell.

I made it down to Wa for the shot (pneumococcal meningitis) and got back without having to stay overnight.  The 2 hour bumpy, crowded tro ride each way made for a long day on Saturday.

Love always,

John

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Pito – brewed millet

Image
Corn, rice, and millet are the common grains grown in my region of Ghana. All three are used food, but millet is also used to produce the local brew – pito, or daa in the local language. “N nyu daa” - in Dagaree means “I drink pito.” There are several varieties of millet grown here – a red and white varieties have loose heads. These are used for pito and other foods. There is also a smaller seed variety with a tight head of seeds that is mainly used for porridge. (Don't have a picture of that variety yet.) In all varieties millet grows on a stalk with the grain head at the top of the stalk. White and red millet in the field Two bundles of while millet to be used for seed next season Converting a grain to alcohol is a common practice in various cultures. It provides a way to capture and digest the nutritional value of the grain. In some places, like Germany and the beer brewing monks, the making a beer was a way to preserve the harvest. In Ghana the millet is
Read more

Yam harvesting

Image
Roger and I went to farm to harvest yam on Saturday morning, September 13, 2014.  In Ghana a yam is a root crop that is different from a sweet potato.  We have sweet potatoes here as well. Yam recently harvested Preparing a yam for boiling The yam has a white flesh – softer than a white potato. In this area the yams are planted between April and June.  Harvest continues into December and January depending on the weather and pigs getting into the field. The plant is a vine – which is grown on stakes rather than allowed the spread out.  The plants are placed on a raised bed about 2 feet high.  The beds are surrounded by flat trenches.  This allows the rains to flow around, but not wipe out the yam crop.  Intercropping seems to be common practice with yams planted in the raised bed, soybeans around the edges, and rice in the trenches.  The occasional corn or okra plant is also among the yams – although the bulk of those crops are in other fields.   Row of ya
Read more

Mid-service Training

Image
This past week was mid-service training (MST). The conference was held on St. Lucia at the Mount of Prayer Coubaril run by the Benedictine Nuns. It was a lovely place with hospitable people as you would expect from Benedictines. A couple of years ago in Ghana I was able to spend a little time at a Benedictine Abby (popular with volunteers) – so it was a nice connection with the two Peace Corps services. I got a little spoiled with the great meals and the WiFi. I intentionally don’t have WiFi at my house so I’m less tempted to stay inside. I do have better data service than Dondometeng in the Upper West - no complaints there and so none here. Their Church Their view Their conference room Getting ready for a meal My room was the only one with a television.  It did work, but I didn't watch anything. My guess is the picture was a little fuzzy because of all the estrogen, but that's just a guy theory with a dirty phone This was actually my firs
Read more