Final thoughts upon return home

Final thoughts and Feelings upon return

August, 2010

These are my thoughts, a few weeks after our return, stream of conscious, off the top of my head, un-edited, not spell-checked. This is my first trip to Africa, so I definitely don't want to claim to know more than I do about the culture, the politics, or the people. I don't want to be mistaken either, however these thoughts come to mind, so I am going to type them out.

1. Scriptures and Quotes that come to mind:

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. -James 1:28

The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,

because the LORD has anointed meto preach good news to the

poor.He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim freedom for the captives

and release from darkness for the prisoners

-Isaiah 61:1

A small body of determined spirits fired by an unquenchable faith in their mission can alter the course of history. -Ghandi

2. Two things are universal- a coke and a smile. All you have to do in Africa is smile and you will get a smile and a wave back. And, coca cola is everywhere. Thank goodness.

3. One of my favorite experiences was during the day the kids were riding bikes. Most of the kids were in a heated soccer match, but Chelsea and I were doing some bike riding lessons (on a dirt road with no pavement). One sweet girl, Mary, said, “Ma Amy, when you teach me to ride a bike todayI will give all glory to you.” Don’t you know that competitive side of me was certain that Mary would learn to ride a bike? And when she did, after jumping up and down, I asked her, “Now, who will you give all glory to?” I love retelling that story, because it shows how sweet Mary is and how egocentric I am....

4. I am sure there are many happy children in Ghana, but I am certain that the happiest, most well-behaved and well-adjusted children are at the village of love. Pam and Randy Cope, and the touch a life staff have done an amazing job locating the right staff and personnel to make it possible.


5. Hospitality is everything in Africa. We were treated like royalty. Erica prepared our meals with a pot over an open fire, never tiring or complaining. Kofi escorted us everywhere, keeping us safe and informed. We were honored guests, and I think I have much to learn about hospitality.

6. Our children here in the US have it so easy, I think. The children at the VOL never allowed us to carry a bag. “Ma, let me get it for you.” They come home from school and without complaining, and begin their daily chores. I can remember every day seeing alternating boys and girls washing the lunch dishes from school. A pot of soapy water, then clean water, then setting them to dry. Can you imagine our kids come home from school and the first thing they do is clean out their lunch boxes, rinse the plastic containers, set them out to dry, without even thinking about it?

7. We all agree that children need parents, food, shelter, and education. But what else do they need over and beyond after that? Maybe these precious rescued children have psychological effects far and above what I can comprehend. I personally think God has completely rescued and redeemed them from their past. But, if these rescued children experience joy and contentment like nothing I have ever seen, is it possible that we are doing something wrong here in the US? Could our over-scheduling, over-indulging, over-enriching, over-worrying parenting styles create children who are not content, never fell as though they have enough, always wanting more, and lacking real joy? I’m pondering the thought.

8. When we first arrived in Ghana, I was shocked and saddened as we drove up and down the streets. In my mind, I thought, “oh, they could use a sanitation system” or they need better paved roads or this or that… Nothing in the poorest parts of the inner cities that I have seen can compare to the poverty I saw in Africa. And yet, by the time I left I realized that this is really life as these people know it, and although it may not meet our standards of acceptance, it’s not my place to offer suggestions (of course, given that everyone has food, shelter, and access to education). As we flew in to DFW, looking at the master planned communities, neat rows of houses and pools, clean plots of land, and straight, paved roads, I felt a little embarrassed for us. Although materialistically, the people of Ghana have so much less, they don’t seem worried about the trivial things of this life; what kind of birthday party to throw for their kid, whether or not they play a particular sport or that they are on a particular team, whether they got the teacher they wanted, whether or not the church service goes as they had wished, if the AC isn’t cool enough or the internet connection is fast.

Can't wait to go back! -Amy

Day 7 Party in the USA/Ghana and Day 8 Compassion Visit

Today we went to the Village of Hope, another orphanage about 3 hours from our location. About 21 of the touch a life kids are there, so it was fun to see all of the children we had read and heard about over the past few years. We got to meet the original Mark, and here is a photo of the three of us together.

We also enjoyed time with Hagar and Sarah, some of the original rescued children. Another group from Texas was there, working and doing some educational training. Hagar was a doll, and we loved talking with her about her favorite books, one of which is The Secret Garden. Claire, wouldn't you would love reading with her?

We left the village of hope and came home to the light of our Ghana lives, the 25 children waiting for us in Tema. Chelsea, Beth and I spent some time helping the children make acrylic paintings to bring back and sell to raise money. You are gonna love them. Each child

will have their picture taken with the artwork, and we will frame them and you can all fight over them!

While we were painting it up, Brad Gautney and the rest of the team, along with nurse Shannon and nurse Megan were doing medical assessments on the children. This is a pretty remarkable venture, and touch a life, along with His Chase has made Brad's visit here possible. You have this amazing man, who someone described as Indiana Jones and Jesus rolled into one! The fact that a guy with his credentials and experience is here with us is amazing.

Then came the most fun dance party ever. Throughout this trip, our meals have been prepared by Ericka. This most generous and hospitable woman works all day long, over a hoot fire to prepare meals for our group and the 25 children. I have never seen anyone like her. So selfless. The Americans eat in one patio room and the Ghanaians eat in another area. It is just a custom. But tonight we had a treat--the tables were all set together in one big area, and we all ate together. About 5 minutes after we sat down Kofi started playing music and the kids started jumping up and dancing. We listened to a lot of Ghanaian songs, and then Rachel hooked up her ipod and we had a little Michael Jackson medley along with others. I hope the photo of Colin doing the thriller dance shows up. And yes, Summer and Tika, I actually did dance. One of the few, if only times in my life I let loose in a public place. You can't be with children in Africa and be a wall flower.

This was the perfect time to pass out the silly bandz. Each child got their own package, and they loved them. When the trend of silly bandz spreads throughout Africa, we can credit Alison and Tammy in Castle Hills. Thanks girls, it was a big hit.

While the kids were finishing dancing, we snuck around the back wall and lined up all of the flip flops that were donated by my very generous bunko group. We made a tunnel (like the ones after little kids soccer games) and each child came through the tunnel and chose their shoes. They were very excited. Funny thing, the boys chose all kinds of colors- pink, purple... They don't have the stereotypes we do. There was not one incident of arguing or fighting or not sharing. It was perfection.

Yesterday was fantastic. Today has been great so far. We were able to go with the Jacobs to visit one of the children they sponsor through Compassion International. It was delightful. The kids at the school were so happy to see us. We passed out dum dums to the whole class (thanks to someone at Walnut, sorry, I can't remember who).

We returned to the village of love on friday, after the compassion visit. we spent the next 5 hours playing with the kids, finishing the painitngs, and reading lots and lots of books. It is so much fun to have children, hanging all over you, crowding behind you listening to you read. i don't think I will ever tire of hearing "mama amy, you read a book to me." You finish a chapter of a book aand they say "let's do more!" I still can't figure out how a child, just 12 to 18 months ago, was a slave, never attended school, and can sit and read and write at such a developed level. I am even more impressed with their writing skills. We came home with stacks of handwritten letters, in beautiful English. Very impressive. Blake, Emily and Ellie better get ready for some serious training for the rest of thre summer.

While we read and played, the medical assessments were completed. A remarkable feat for Brad g, Shannon and Megan. We said our tearful goodbyes and headed to the airport. We are currently in atlanta and will be home in three hours.

I plan on editing and sorting through photos of the last few days when i get home. I think this blog has been a great journal of facts for us. i hope we can assimilate the facts and document them for our memory and share with you as well. I also hope we can convey some of the emotions and reflections we experienced in addition to the facts. it is hard to put them into words for me without sounding cheesy. I will try tomorrow, before the hustle and bustle of life in the US returns. I definately have not missed that busy life we all lead. I know you will all be happy to know that i ate a personal pan dominoes pizza while walking to our connecting gate. delicious. Also, can you imagine the joy when I located the chick fil a? A drink with a straw for the first time in 10 days! Styrafoam cup, too.

Pictures to come later.

The real rainforest Cafe and Happy 39th Colin

We were unable to post yesterday because of computer access problems. Yesterday was probably the toughest day for me, physically. I guess it all boils down to the fact that I am a wimp when it comes to long, hot bumpy car rides. It is a trait I share with my sister, so next time WE come together I will have her heavily medicated for certain parts. By the time we had returned home I had been awake for almost 40 hours, so I think sleep deprivation played a big part.

We drove about 4 1/2 hours to head to the Rainforest Canopy walk. I kept thinking there was no way the treacherous drive could end in anything that would make it worth it, but I was wrong. Walking though a real Rainforest, from the canopy floor to above the trees was breathtaking. I took lots of vegetative photos that will be of no interest to anyone except the second graders at my mom's school. We walked on a bridge across the canopy, and it was remarkable. There are ropes to hold on to, and you walk over the rainforest hung by ropes in mid air. We got really giggly walking across. Colin pulled many of his best "one-liners", which make me giggle and snort and took the edge off of the nausea/headache/sleep deprivation at the time. And, what a fantastic birthday for Colin. He got to have a special lunch of peanut butter crackers and I treated him to a grape fanta.

The next drive was to the Cape Coast slave castle, which everyone seemed to enjoy but me. I'm not a huge museum girl, but this was too much. I got emotional walking to the "women's dungeon" and decided I would quietly protest the rest of the tour and stand in the back. Two reasons. First, I kept thinking about friends I have met through our Circle of Support program in south Dallas whose relatives, hundreds of years ago, may have been transferred and sold from this castle. It was too much for me. Second, as you walk out of the castle, which is on the Cape Coast, you can see hundreds of fishermen on the bank of the ocean, pulling in their catch for the day and mending their nets. You look down and see boys, young boys, who should be in school, not fixing boats and nets. Kofi told us that some of the boys were trafficked. I just don't get it, under a old slave castle. Just too ironic. There is a great picture you can see when you browse the facebook photos. Read what the sign says on the building. Just too much. Incidentally, this is where Obama spoke from last July.

Well, what goes up must come down. Goes for driving, too. Had to go back the same way we came. We told our driver there was a video game in the US called "Mario Cart" that paralleled our drive. Thankfully there were no crashes. Kingsley is a great driver, who has carted us all week.

One really fun thing happened when we stopped to get gas. Across the gas station was an elementary school. The kids were playing recess outside and many were kicking around old soccer balls. We had an extra ball in the car (we brought 12, but VOL doesn't need all of them) so Brad and Colin walked across the street into the playground. Brad held up the soccer ball and the kids started jumping and screaming! They tossed the ball in the air and the kids went nuts. They ran over to Brad and Colin saying, "God Bless you. We love you." They stood there waving and jumping up and down until we drove off. Just a soccer ball.

Thankfully joy comes the minute we drive to the Village of Love and the kids are arriving home for school. Brad Gautney has come from Global Health Innovations. He will be doing health assessments for all of the kids this week, and next week as well. So, if you see a new white man in our photos, that's him.

Today we sang songs, and the kids were pumped up! Hopefully I can upload a video. Our craft was decorating a new pillowcase. Each child was able to color with fabric markers their name on a new pillowcase. I always think about Jen Hobbs during craft times. If only Jen was here to give me guidance with all of these crafty things. The kids loved it and it was fun to see their smiles with the new pillowcase on the bed. The scripture on the top of the pillowcase is "O Lord you have searched me and you know me....you know my coming in and my lying down; you have laid your hand upon me. I love that in light of their pasts. We had an ice cream party to end the day. The kids thought it was really funny that I had never seen ice cream that way. They giggled and giggled and pointed at me and giggled more. I had to draw an ice cream cone and demonstrate how we lick off the top. This gave way to more giggling.

The highlight of my day was watching Moses read The Giving Tree. This precious child was rescued just over a year ago. He is so so so smart, and has a smile as big as Texas. If you watch this video, you will see him throughout (he has a visible hernia). And look at him yesterday- Been here for a short time and reading like a champ! Pictures here. Also, no time to spell check, so forgive mistakes. Today was a fantastic day that ended with a joint African and America dance party. Can't wait to show you photos.

Our Mama Beth and Self protraits

It is about 2 in the morning and I can't sleep. Colin wrote a nice description of our day yesterday below, and he is a much better writer than me so see below.

I thought about some things and I might as well use this insomnia (sitting in the bathroom as not to wake the snoring husband) to write about them. I think if we don't write them now, we will not remember these moments as clearly when we return.

Mom and Patti- I want you to know that we have been well taken care of here this week by Rachel's mom, Beth. She is part of our team, and has sweetly taken the role of mama Beth to us. She lives in Chicago and this is her third trip here. Every day, she makes sure we have sufficient snacks, wipes, mosquito spray, pats on the back, and sweet encouragement. She never fails us with her backpack full of necessities. We think she has CVS pharmacy stowed away in her bag. Just say, "I wish we had some of ....." and she replies with, "Oh, I think I've got that." She is so kind to us and our husbands-- she thinks they are funny, and sometimes she is the only one laughing! We really have grown to love her and think she's done a fabulous job raising her daughter, our fearless leader.

We didn't get any photos of the self portraits, so I snagged some off of the Voss computer that I am using. Here they are. I think they are priceless!

Day 5 Posting from Colin

At the end of every day, I think to myself, how can we possibly top this experience. Yesterday (Amy's 37th birthday) was quite a day to remember. Today did not disappoint either. Thankfully, the goats have moved on and there has been no more early morning "fighting."

This morning, we drove to Accra to visit the "Global Mamas" fair trade store. Global Mamas is a nonprofit organization that assists small w0men-owned businesses in Ghana. The vast majority of women in Ghana earn about $2/day. All of the money earned at this store goes to support these women entrepreneurs. It is a very worthy cause and we took the opportunity to purchase a few things. Amy was also charged with purchasing "stuff" for Mama-Chelsea (that's what the kids have started calling the girls: Mama Chelsea, Mama Shannon, Mama Amy, etc.). Mark and Chelsea took the day to visit two of the children they have been sponsoring through Compassion International - please read their blog for an amazing story). Chelsea left Amy a list of things to buy; one thing on the list was "anything African." Let's just say that the Global Mamas had a good day today.

We then headed out to the streets of Accra to do some "real" shopping. Kofi told us, "On the streets, you bargain." Bargaining was the name of the game. In many ways, I negotiate for a living. But this is a whole different ball game. Amy got her groove on. She is very skilled in this art. The streets were lined with vendors selling everything from authentic African drums to Ghana Football jerseys. Due to their recent success in the World Cup, Ghana jerseys were everywhere. All the boys got a jersey. Amy found some very cool African items that she and Chelsea will use to decorate their room for Vacation Bible School in August.

We had lunch with George, Kofi and our team (minus Mark and Chelsea) at Frankie's in Accra. Enjoyed some good pizza and, of course, a coke. It goes without saying that this has been an amazing trip, but I have missed some certain food groups, like - chips and salsa. Yes, that is a food group in our house.

Walking through a typical day in Accra, I was struck by how many modern conveniences we take for granted. There are no street lights, no lane lines (for the most part), no stop signs, etc. Many, many other things that we never give a second thought (like well-paved roads), just are not here. And Accra is one of the most developed cities on the entire continent.

We headed back to the Village of Love to have a third day of VBS with the kids. We got there just after they got home from school. Each day we see them, they are literally waiting by the gate for us to arrive. They are always so excited and (I think I speak for all of us) we are all becoming attached to these children. I have never seen such pure joy. George has told us very specific stories about his rescue of some of these children. They are as bad as you can possibly imagine (what they were required to do each day, where they lived, what little they ate, etc.). Now, thanks to George and Mama Pam, these children have a new life. I truly have never seen happier children. And, you would be amazed at how well behaved they are. Very, very respectful. And, you hardly ever seen any bickering or fighting amongst them. God has blessed this home with incredible house parents named Matthias and Lilly.

Today, we started off with more singing. The kids have learned some new songs this week and it is great to hear them sing. Shannon gave another great lesson on hygiene - this time on brushing teeth. Then we had more arts and crafts time. Shannon is very talented at making jewelry and she brought along enough supplies for each child to make their own cross necklace. Then, the kids used finger paints to to make a very cool "painting." Each child had a different color on their finger (thanks to sir mix-a-lot...that's me) and put their finger prints inside the stencil of a dove and a moon. The end result was a collage of fingerprints with each child's individual prints just below. There will be pictures of this if it is hard to follow this writing at midnight local time. But, it was a fun project that the kids really enjoyed. It was also very meaningful to see the each of the fingerprints and the collage. This is something that we hope to bring back (or maybe get a copy).

This is a good time to say thank you. Thank you to the many, many families who donated supplies for this trip. The kids have absolutely loved using the crayons, markers, paints, paper, coloring books - and the list goes on. The supplies that we will not use will be donated to the Village of Love and the children will continue to enjoy your generous gifts for a long time to come. We were all blown away by the outpouring of support for this trip. Thank you so very much.

After the kids made their necklace and contributed to the finger painting project, they went to learn scripture. I was helping the kids with the fingerpainting, but could hear George talking to them about each of the scriptures. He was talking about their former lives as slaves and how they have been set free. Unbelievable. What a blessing it is to have George here and getting to see him interact with the children he rescued.

Click here for pictures.

The best birthday of my 37 years

I feel giddy at the moment! I am sitting outside with all of our team at at table next to the hotel pool. We just said goodbye to all of the children. Today was a day we will all never forget, and a just a bonus that it is my birthday.

The day began with a long and bumpy trip to TK beads. Brad and I claim the front seat due to motion sickness (ugh)! It was amazing to see the apprentices working with kilns and recycled glass to make beautiful beads. Not a single electronic device to make any of them-- men and women hand painting and stringing beads. We spent about two hours browsing and purchasing. We had tons of fun and felt as though we were stimulating the economy and helping with a fair trade business (good excuse for purchasing!) Kofi, the man who cares for all of the children, and George's adopted son, suggested to Mark that he get a particular bracelet to wear. He said, "I will wear it, too." So all of the men have a matching bracelet (Colin is wearing it now. I asked him if he would wear it at home and he told me he would wear it every time he is in Africa!) We met the owners one year old son, and Mark and I tried to coax him with fruit snacks. We finally got him to show us some love, but I did not convince him to let me hold him on my back. All of the moms carry their babies in little papooses on their backs. I keep thinking Colin is going to want an African baby on his back (the daddies carry them too) but the feeling has not yet overcome him.

We returned to the Village of Love after the children returned from school. We completed our second day of VBS. Shannon did the BEST lesson on germs. She used a black light to show them germs on their hands and they were mesmerized. I think Shannon needs to come and give the Batchelors a little lesson....

All of the kids sang "Happy Birthday" to me with several extra verses and at the end said "Hip Hip Hooray"! I wish we had video of that moment, but Colin's birthday is Wednesday and Mark's is Thursday, so we will be deighted again!

Our craft today was self portraits. This did not go as easy as we had planned. These children have not had opportunities to developmentally learn how to draw, paint and color. Nor do they have many mirrors. So, when we told the kids they were going to paint themselves, we got a little resistance. Some of them struggled so much to figure out how to draw a circle for the head and figure out where to put the nose..... But, in the end, everyone completed a portrait, we mounted them on black paper, and will give the kids them tomorrow to hang in their rooms.

NOW GET READY FOR THIS:

We are eating dinner and Rachel (the most amazing girl who works for Touch-a-life and is here leading us) is telling us some of the rescue stories, when all of the sudden there is a knocking at the door and lo and behold.... IT IS GEORGE! GEORGE ARCHIBRA! (If you read the book, Jantsen's Gift, he is the Jesus of Kete Krachi, who began all of the rescues on Lake Volta). We all screamed! He said "This is your surprise". This is a man who we have all read about, talked about, and have been amazed by over the last few years. And here he was, at our dinner table in Ghana. To Colin and I he is a real life superhero. I couldn't see everyone's face, but Chelsea and I were all tears as George gave a 30 minute impromptu talk to us. He really is a modern day Jesus of this country, rescuing the brokenhearted, healing the sick, and releasing the prisoners. His stories are amazing. And as a bonus, he will be with us until Wednesday.

After dinner we headed to the hotel. Tonight we paid 140 cedis (about $100) to let the kids come and swim for an hour at the pool. We decided this would be a perfect time to skype with the kids at my parent's home. A HUGE shout out and BIG thank you to my mom (GG) who knew we would be skyping and prepared my children for it. She had Blake, Emily and Ellie all make a huge flag of Ghana in the background. They had colored pictures for the children here and the kids here at the pool were able to talk to the kids in Texarkana and see the pictures that my kids had made. My mom taught the kids a traditional children's song from Ghana (Thumbs up to Red Lick Elementary for the multicultural awareness!) and to see my kids, doing a Ghanaian dance, and the fact that the kids here could see it was unbelievable. GG made a birthday cake, the kids sang and Emily blew out the candle. Ellie had one of her Ellie moments, and began dancing for the camera. Kofi said "Ellie, you are wonderful. I think you are wonderful." It was a once in a lifetime experience and one of those "moments".... Thank you, mom.

Well, we are still out here by the pool talking, planning our future trips and strategizing.

As much as it pains me to say this, I had to log on to my mom's facebook account and post pictures. Click here to see them! One of our favorite boys, Joseph, is an amazing soccer player. He is the one who made a soccer field out of bendaroos. He is in the second picture in the white t shirt. Is he not JACK SAVAGE? (one of our best friend's child, and an excellent soccer player!)

Ahhhhh

Hello friends-

Click here for pictures of yesterday's photos at the beach. Sorry, we can't load ourpictures to blogger (well it takes 15 minutes to do one) and mark and chelsea are putting theirs on facebook, so it will just show you theirs. Look for "Day 2"

I will let you know how I felt about today tomorrow. Colin and I are both so tired. We've never played so hard. Church, playing, VBS, passed out t shirts, singing, dancing, painting, soccer matches, teaching kids to ride bikes. I don't have the energy to think of anything to write.

Here is one photo I loved from today. The natural leader of the group, Gideon, painting his treasure box.

I am sure that my super-blogger-"ma chelsea" will write about today. If you want to see hers, go to

www.mcjacobsjournal.blogspot.com.

Hope to detail the day tomorrow.

Also, if you are sending emails, I can read them, but cannot respond. So, thank you for the emails!