Week 1 at the Home

I have been at the orphanage home for one week now. It is HOT, HOT, HOT and HUMID, HUMID, HUMID and did I mention HOT? So, what I've been doing is sweating and sitting and talking and talking and talking. I will try to upload some pictures from Brother Evans. In Ghana, people of your own generation are referred to as Brother or Sister, the generation of your parents are your Aunties and Uncles. Brother Evans is also the papa to the children since he is the male who provides the financial support for the children. His degree is in social work. He has decided to volunteer 10 years to help the children and then go get a job where he can make money and start his own family.

I'm not the best writer but I'll try my best to describe what I've seen and life here.

First the small village is between Accra and Cape Coast close to Kasoa. You can try to find these I don't know where they are myself. The village is also about 15 miles in from the sea so we get all the dust and humidity without the beach. We are planning a trip to the beach one day though. After you pass through Kasoa you turn onto a dirt road that would be unpassable during or right after a rain. It is rough and rutted. Since we are driving in cars, not trucks, we scrape the bottom every so often. After about 45 minutes on this road we arrive at the orphanage.

The orphanage compound is on the outskirts of the village. The village itself has the traditional mud huts with thatched roofs. There are approximately 1200 people in the village and surrounding area. The children from the village and the home go to the primary school that is in the compound. The school was built by the same foundation that has the home. There is a new school being built that will be the primary school. The building currently used for the primary school will become a vocational school for older children from the villages to learn carpentry, sewing, masonry etc.

I am living at the home with two young women (18 and 19 years old) from Holland named Myrte and Anne Kristen. (Sorry for the spelling.) I have my own room and bed. My two "daughters" share a room and each have their own beds. There is a bathroom inside the home for the two orphanage mothers Sylvia and Beatrice and the volunteers to use. It has a toilet that you flush with a bucket of water. It has a shower stall where you take your bucket bath. It is the most luxurious bathroom in the village. (In reality the mothers do not use this bathroom it is only used by the volunteers.) Sylvia is the hardest working person I have ever met in my life. This includes both my workaholic husband and eldest sister! She is on the go from 5 am until 8 pm every day. Cooking, cleaning, washing clothes, looking after the children, going to the market, etc. You name it, Sylvia does it. Beatrice is also non-stop busy. Sylvia cooks inside the house for the volunteers on a gas stove with a cylinder for fuel. Beatrice cooks for the children over a fire outside. I've suggested that when we are eating the same items only one of them cook in one spot but that is not the way it is done. They must do things as they are told and as they know so . . . . .

The children in the home are wonderful. They range from age 6 to age 12 with a 2 year old son of Beatrice also staying here. They are happy, healthy and oh so eager to learn. There were two previous volunteers from Holland who have left. We were writing them letters. The typical letter went as follows:

Dear Kim and Pieter,
How are you? How are your parents? I am fine. I want a reading book. God Bless you. Are you coming back to Ghana? When you get alot of money please buy me something. Love From, name of child

The children have photos of Kim and Pieter and enjoy showing them to us and telling us about Kim and Pieter. I am constantly amazed at how strong the children are. I look at their little bodies and am amazed by their muscles! When you read about their day you will understand why they are so muscular.

Typical weekday in the life of the orphanage children:
*) Wake up at 5 am. Do their morning chores. All children (except the two year old who follows his brothers around trying to help) have a job. They sweep the inside of the house, the patio where we eat and the compound itself. They must sweep the compound to not get a layer of leaves where insects or snakes could hide.
*) After their morning chores are complete, they go to the water tank ( a big under ground cement tank) and using a bucket draw up the water they need for their bath. Six year old Suzanna stands on her tippy toes and bends over at the waist to reach down in and get the water. She amazes me. Once they have enough water in their bucket, they go around to the back of the home for some privacy and take their bucket bath. They they hang their towels and wash cloths on the line to dry. They now dress in their school uniforms.
*) Once they are dressed for school they eat their breakfast. They give their dirty dishes to one child to do the clean up. (Jobs change weekly so everyone learns how to do everything. (I'm sure Suzanna does not do dishes because she is not tall enough to reach!)
*) The school day is from 8:00-1:30 with two breaks. During the breaks the children play and go home to eat or drink. There is no water and no bathroom at the school. Children who live far from the school must just wait until they get home to get a drink of water.
*) After school the children come home and change into their home clothes. They hang their school uniforms on the line to air out and be fresh for the next school day. They eat their lunch and then play until 4:00.
*) At 4:00 they can start reading and writing with the volunteers. Unlike the children, after being at school all morning we need a break! Myrte and Anne Kristen thought they were going to be working at an orphanage. They are but they are also teaching Class 1 (same as our first grade). However in with class 1 is the nursery age children. Try teaching first grade students when you don't know their language and their younger brothers and sisters are also in the class moving around or crying.
*) Back to the orphanage children. They read and write with us. They then have their evening meal. After eating they do their night time chores. Again the sweeping, dusting and dishes.
*) Lastly, they draw their water and have their evening baths. They play and relax until 7:30 when their mothers send them to bed for the night.

Yes, the children bathe twice a day and draw their bath water into their buckets to do so. The morning bath is because everyone knows it is important to be clean and neat for school. The evening bath is to wash off the dirt from playing all day and be nice and cool for the night's rest. Kofi, the two year old, also bathes twice but his mother helps him both times. Suzanna, the next youngest at age 6, takes one bath by herself and her mother helps her with the other one. This way the mothers are sure she is nice and clean and knows how to wash herself.

On Saturday the day begins the same but instead of going to school the weekly laundry is done. The children draw the water for their laundry and hand wash their own clothes. They wash their house clothes, their bedding, their towels and school uniforms. Sylvia washes for herself and the volunteers. We will learn how to be of some help soon. Beatrice washes the kitchen towels etc., as well as her clothes and her son's clothes. In addition to laundry the weekly cleaning is also done, the floors are washed, the windows wiped down, any extra cleaning that needs doing is done on Saturday. After the chores are complete Saturday is a day of playing.

On Sunday the day begins the same with chores and a bath followed by dressing for church. A previous volunteer sent money for new church clothes and all the children look so very cute and smart in their Sunday best. My daughters have pictures from last Sunday so I'll upload a picture later since they are not with me at this internet cafe. Last Sunday Kofi was the last one dressed and looked so funny and cute marching ahead to lead the way taking Myrte and Anne Kristen to church. His mothers and I laughed and laughed. I will attend church this Sunday. Last Sunday I was busy talking with the mothers about things they need for the home.

After church the children change into their home clothes, read, write and play. They run around and don't even know I am burning up just watching them!

I am going to have another blog of items needed by the village, school and home. Basically it is cash money. Everything can be purchased here in Ghana. The prices on everything I have seen is less in Ghana than in the US with the exception of electronics. Cell phones, digital cameras and computers cost more here. Everything else costs less. For example, I can buy a toothbrush for about ¢3,000 approximately 0.35 US Dollars. It costs $245 USD to ship 70 pounds to Ghana through the US mail. Using any other shipping method is more expensive. So, unless it is something free and light, money into my account is best. I'll point to my new blog from this blog as soon as it is up. In the meantime, start saving your money for me.