Things I've learned about Ghana

Day 15, Saturday, March 17^th, 2012

Since we have made it through 2/3rds of our stay in Africa, I thought I would revisit some of the things I’ve learned since I’ve been here.

Things I’ve learned in Ghana:

1.      Africa is made primarily of hot.

2.      Lizards will come into your house. Deal with it.

3.      Hand sanitizer is essential.

4.      Toilet paper is not.

5.      Neither are toilets, for that matter.

6.      The romance of a mosquito net over your bed is inversely proportionate to the amount of time you’ve spent sleeping under one.

7.      Vascular clamps make good clothespins.

8.      It is possible to take an effective shower using just two, 1.5 litre bottles of water.

9.      It is possible to drink or eat almost everything, including spaghetti, out of a plastic bag with no utensils

10.  It is okay to love someone for the color of their skin.

11.  It is not okay to hate them for it (I knew this one before. I just thought we should all review).

12.  Greet people. All of them. All the time. Preferably in their language. It feels good.

13.  No matter how many times I tell people my name, I am still the Obroni in the purple hat.

14.  Obroni is the word for “White person” which people, usually children, use to call out to us wherever we are. It must be acknowledged by a wave or reply, or it will continue in sing-song fashion. Sometimes they will come running to us, yelling “Obroni! Obroni! Obroni” and jump into our arms. This is always wonderful, and sometimes makes you cry. It is okay, they can’t tell because of the sweat. It just mixes in. Your cheeks were already dripping.

15.  It is okay to reply “Obibini!” when you don’t know the child’s name, and which means black person. The children are delighted by this and giggle. I think this type of exchange would not go over well in the States, but in Ghana, we are all honored by acknowledging our differences and celebrating our similarities.