Visit From Home

After the first three months here in Ghana I can safely say that there are little things that I miss from home that I never thought I would. After sitting down to really ponder what exactly these little things were, I discovered more than what I had originally thought. The biggest one, that I never thought would be one, is people saying my name. I think it is such a small thing that we all take for granted. How when we are home with those we love and the accents we are used to we don’t notice that there is a specific, and dare I say meaningful, way that people pronounce our names. Here because of the Ghanaian accent it is very hard for them to pronounce Karlee. It will often come out as Carolyn or Curly. They truly struggle with it and oftentimes will ask if I have another name that is easier to say. So like in high school I am back to being known as Duffey. Another little thing that I noticed making me feel entirely homesick is the fact many people here have no idea as to the slang and movie quotes that I throw out in conversation. Again something we entirely take for granted when surrounded by those in our culture.

Through this time of reflection I have really been trying to see what God may be revealing to me. What I think I have discovered is that when taking in the whole of our day, in the comfort of our mundane lives, we should look at all the tiny little things that made us smile, feel safe, loved, joyful, and known. Many times in the rush of the day we struggle to see past what we must get done in the moment, or the one negative thing that may have happened. I am seeing now that I should take each day and really look at the miniscule details that make it a day worth remembering even if it feels like another monotonous day. 

So with the reflection in hand I have been trying to apply that to everyday that I have been here. One of the biggest joys that I had, that helped assuage the homesickness was the visit of Amie, the program director of Mission Doctors Association (MDA), and a dear friend. She came for a site visit and to just give wonderful company and the best hugs. She arrived on May 26th. We had a wonderful week that we got to spend with her, showing her around Damongo and even traveling to Kulmasa and Kalba. We also got to enjoy an exquisite dinner at the Bishop’s house.

Her first day she arrived we got to unpack the very large suitcase of supplies from home she brought. It felt like Christmas in May. Never in my life did I think the sight of vanilla extract, cocoa powder, and bouillon cubes would almost bring me to tears of joy. What a blessing it was that she was willing to lug all these little things we were missing or needing all the way across an ocean for us!

The next few days of her visit she came and took pictures of us at the hospital and met with the staff we have been working with. She also got to tour the facility and see all the new additions since she last visited.

Friday we went out to dinner with Lin, Noah, and Lu. Lin is a doctor from the Netherlands who came to Damongo to finish up her specialization in tropical medicine. Noah is her wonderful husband who works in tech and while he was here wrote an imagery filled collection of short stories about Damongo. Lu is their now two year old daughter who loves to sing in Dutch about several things, especially a peacock. 

Saturday was a day of adventure and exploring. We went to Mole National Park for a Safari. We got to see four different types of antelope, three male elephants, a very large lizard, warthogs, and baboons. The baboons were our welcome crew when we first arrived. Mothers with babies on their back were waiting at the entrance of the park to see all the people that would be coming to visit them. The baboons were also our companions for lunch. They came up onto the veranda to see if our lunch could be theirs. Thankfully the staff scared them away. While on the safari we went to the man-made watering hole where we saw all the elephants. Two were cooling off in the water when we first arrived. One decided to show off for us by walking out of the water. It was very slow going and the whole time he was walking out I kept singing “I like ‘em big, I like ‘em chunky!” from Madagascar. Granted that song was for a hippo and these are elephants but at the time it felt like the right soundtrack for that elephant. Another elephant appeared right before we left to continue the safari and we got to watch him enter the watering hole. As we continued we came across a small little tribe of warthogs. Of course more music came into my head when I saw them. I kept singing “Hakuna Matata” but mostly just Pumba’s parts about being a young warthog. I had such a relaxing and joyous day!

 

Sunday we were up bright and early to travel to Kalba and Kulmasa to visit some other clinics. Kalba just built a new maternity ward and a theatre (OR). We attended mass there and it was said in the local dialect. It reminded me of another reason I love the Catholic church so much. No matter where you are or what language mass is being said in, you can still follow along and know exactly where you are at in the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist. From there we went straight to Kulmasa where we had a delicious lunch with the Mission Sisters. They had potatoes, so I was instantly overjoyed! Their little polyclinic was beautiful and extremely tidy. You can tell how much love and commitment they put into their ministry. I believe I may even get to go help out there for a few weeks in my years of mission here. 

Monday we went to Tamale for our monthly stock-up as well as sending Amie off. We got to explore the cultural center where I will definitely be returning to purchase some more homemade Ghanaian gifts for the family. I was awestruck by the artistry of all these wonderfully hardworking people. After our day about town we went back to a wonderful hotel where we enjoyed a delicious dinner. We all were so tired that we went back to our rooms and crashed after dinner. I got to have a hot shower for the first time since arriving in Ghana and boy was that a luxurious feeling! The next morning I woke up very early to give Amie one more big hug before she returned back to the States. 

 Our home away from home!