Perhaps my last post?

Hello friends and family!

I am sorry that I've neglected my blog so much. Hopefully my intense updates at the beginning of the semester made up for the last month I took off! So very many things have happened, but I've got to be real with all of you: I cannot catch you up. Or rather, I could try, but it would be difficult for both of us. I might include some more entries over the next few weeks and even months as I compare my experiences here in Ghana with my "real life," and any revelations I might have along the way. If that doesn't happen for some reason, I wanted to give you Molly's Greatest Hits of being in Ghana. I have had a really wonderful, phenomenal, incredible, unbelievable semester, but I am very much looking forward to coming home for a thousand different reasons, (many of you included!).

We had a re-entry workshop this evening at the academic center, where we learned about the different stages of re-entry (basically "super-excited and relieved" to "frustrated and confused" to "equalized and normal again"). I wasn't especially informed with new information at this meeting, but one of the activities we did was kind of nice. They gave us a sheet of paper and asked us to write down ten things that we did this semester and then share some of them with the group. It was interesting to hear what was memorable and important to each of us, and as the program continued, I found myself writing down more and more additions to my list. It was nice to be given that as a specific task, and it prompted me to write quite a long list. Some things were funny, some were serious, some were impressive, some were kind of scary and unbelievable in retrospect (sorry, Mom, but it's true). Anyway, as a segue into my return, I have decided to share my list. Hopefully this can facilitate some of our first "What did you do in Ghana!?" conversations, and if not for you, it is helpful and fun for me to look back and remember what I did for the four months I lived in Africa.

1.) Swam under a waterfall
2.) Drank huge 2 cedi beers
3.) Walked through a slave castle
4.) Taught English to 70 Junior Secondary School students
5.) Traveled to Benin and Togo (in French)
6.) Rode on taxi-motos and tro-tros
7.) Danced with old women and children
8.) Took a 12+hour bus ride (and a 12+hour plane ride)
9.) Sat in a colonial bungalow with a former mayor of Accra
10.) Beached closer to the equator than I ever had
11.) Stopped
12.) Took some of the best photos I've ever taken
13.) Made great new friends and hopefully new roommates
14.) Blogged and journaled
15.) Realized how traditional and simultaneously quirky my family is, and how much I love it
16.) Got some sweet and cheap clothing made
17.) Loved being driven places and looking out the window at Africa
18.) Learned about a lot of incredible music
19.) Tested standing friendships, which ultimately strengthened
20.) Ate anything and everything that was offered to me
21.) Watched the news more and the election constantly
22.) Rarely sang, but danced a lot
23.) Used the phone MUCH less
24.) Spoke more slowly
25.) Learned and redefined my own personal boundaries
26.) Learned about globalization, especially the IMF and World Bank
27.) Wore braids for a month
28.) Learned some new vocabulary (verbal and physical)
29.) Listened to African Christmas music in a tro-tro
30.) Put my complete trust in complete strangers
31.) Got homesick for the first time
32.) Went to African church
33.) Started working out, eating less, and lost weight
34.) Redefined the value of things (cabs, food, clothing)
35.) Haggled for the first time and got pretty good at it
36.) Learned not to expect a (good) bathroom
37.) Started using British English
38.) Watched SNL via iTunes the week after it finally downloaded
39.) Listened to very long stories
40.) "Good afternoon, Auntie. How are you?" "Fine, how is it?" "Fine, thank you." "You are welcome!"
41.) Shook hands with a snap
42.) Been hissed at, and eventually understood that it wasn't a cat call
43.) Hated taxis so much, and still could never find one when I needed one
44.) Washed a meal's worth of dishes with a cup of water
45.) Used hairspray instead of washing my hair
46.) Learned to expect a different meal than what I ordered
47.) Celebrated my first Thanksgiving away from home
48.) Ate lunch out of a plastic bag
49.) Said hello to people on the street

When people asked me why I was going to Ghana, a big part of my reasoning was, "I want to go someplace where I am the minority and feel really uncomfortable and have to deal with it." So...

50.) Been completely uncomfortable and dealt with it.


I want to send out final, special thank yous to everyone who kept in touch with me while I was here. Above and beyond email or Facebook, EXTRA special thanks to Auntie Sharon, the Garcia clan, Katie Lynch, and my family, who all sent packages and letters throughout my semester. Thank you, Uncle Joe, for trying to send me a package, and I'm sorry it never made it! It's definitely the thought that counts. Auntie Sharon sent me a card almost every week, and I can't tell you how happy it made me to get a little piece of mail so consistently. Auntie Fran sent me multiple packages, including a large donation of hand-made Christmas gifts for my J.S.S. students (Yeah, Gabby!), which was particularly thoughtful and such a nice gesture. Katie sent me a package of goodies, in addition to a Halloween card and a postcard of Ogunquit, which I promptly showed to all of my friends to help explain what MY Maine is :-) Everyone has been so wonderfully supportive, and I can't wait to share my experiences with you in person.

Happy Holidays!

Love from Africa, with only 4 days to go!
-Molly