Market Day

Imagine you are a seller in a market. You have a stall in the back corner. You sell shoes, all kinds, heals, sneakers, flip flops, slitters. You make a small profit, enough to support you five children. Your friend sells beside you, a young women who sells cloth, traditional and untraditional. To your other side is an old woman who sells tomatores, onions and pepe. In front of you is a hairdresser, she earns most of her income by selling weaves. Its a sunday, mid-afternoon. You arrived only hours ago, right after church. Today is busy as ever, you've made enough money to bring home cassave and plaintan for fufu tonight, the children will be thrilled. When things are quiet at you stall you look up, you see a young man whom you see everyday. He sells friend egg sandwiches. You've had one before, only once, you thought he was a little over sealous with the salt. But you see someone is purchasing from him. They are fairly far, at the end of the row about 50 metres away. but you can see him as he turns on the gas, to start cooking. He uses a gas stove with one burner. He picks up his match and lights the element. He then throws the used match on the ground, it wasn't fully estinguished when it hit the ground, you watch it fall to what looks like a small puddle of water. You were wrong, the tank had leaked, the lit match fell into a small puddle of gasoline. It lit up like a full moon in the pitch black sky. As people around realized what was happening the crowded market became chaotic. There are eight small enterances to the market and buyers and sellers rushed them with their arms full. You had a choice, you could quickly go or collect what you could of you shoes and avoid losing hundreds of cedis (dollars). Without your shoes you wouldnt be able to support your children. You made the choice you had to make, you started to fill your bag. You looked to your friend with the cloth, she had made the same choice. You yell to her to collect what she can and you\d come back to the rest. You follow her out, both carrying your valuable on your heards. She stops at a spot that is a decent distance from the market. She will gaurd the items while you go back in. You know the fire will spread fast so you have to hurry. You race through the crowds like a fish swimming up stream. You arrive at the stall and start to grab what you can, shoes on your head and cloth in each of your arms, a small bag of onions you manage to save for the old lady beside you. You can smell the weaves burning. You remember back to a month ago when the hairdresser commented to a potential buyer that they were made from real hair, you were certain of that now. You can also smell the burning leather of your own merchandise you couldn't save. You look to your left to see some young mean looting, stealing what they can of sellers precious livelihood, you know those sellers hadn't abandoned their things yet, but they would come back to see it almost all gone. You hear sirens in the distance, thank God, you know you have to go. You've saved what you can. You run as fast as you can wit h the things you carry and smoke in your eyes. As you pass the old woman you give her her onions, she is greatful. You made it to you friend who is in tears because of the thousands of cedis she has lost in expensive cloth. You both lean against a railing and watch the market go up in smoke. You hear someone say that the fire department can't do anything because it's a gas fire. We have to wait it out. You watch the police and ambulance struggle to make it through the narrow roads, overflowing with people and cars. You watch as people continue to run out of the market with as much as they can carry. Peopl risking their lives in order to avoid losing their money. The fire dies out about three hours later.


A similar situation happened in Koforidua market on January 27th. I watch smoke fill the sky, people screaming, crying and scurrying with piles upon piles on their heads and the police about 75 metres away because they couldn't make it though the traffic

The Days Continue On

So many times I think foreigners came into places like Ghana expecting to teach the people. I walked into Matthew 25 to discover everyone there has a higher education then me. It is them who will teach me.

I have learned more in two weeks then I have in my entire 12 years of schooling. Its really beautiful about how much you actually learn when you stop talking and listen.

To days I met with Amanda, Aryn and Mark and went to a funeral. We lost our dear dear friend, teacher and sister Bernadette. She was a nun who has been the Ghanaian coordinate for One World for years and she will be dearly missed. The funeral was huge, it included ex-president Rowling's who sister knew well.

I think the hardest part of the funeral was the wailing of all those who mourn her lost including many nuns. It scared me to think that those who put so much faith in the existence of God and Heaven are this sad when someone goes there.

Sister B had taken in Orphans over the years, she paid for them to go to school and live a normal life in Ghana, they called her their mother. My heart broke as I saw them all, the youngest being close to six. It scares me what could happen to them but I know they have a strong support system that extends to Canada. I wish I had had the opportunity to thank Sister for everything she has done for not only me but so many people world-wide. Its truly a shame God felt that he needed her.

RIP Sister B
January 10th 2008
Age 49

"What you have done to the least of my brothers and sisters you have done onto me" (Matthew 25-40)

I have found the most beautiful place on earth. Don't be fooled by the lush green mountains that surround it, for inside its as busy as any city. The air is full of exhaust fuel from the many car and the market is over populated with people. The corners are scattered with 'spots' that serve alcohol and coca cola products and women who make a small living selling food they have slaved to live. But, it's not the things that make it beautiful, it's the people.

Quick, hide the screen of the computer and I'll tell you of this secret, magical place not known to the western world. It's called Koforidua.

I'm introduced here as a volunteer, but I really don't think I'm doing much productive work. I'm staying at a place called "Matthew 25 House". It's a Ghanaian NGO that works with people living with HIV/AIDS as well as orphans and vulnerable children. Basically they provide care for HIV positive people by assisting them with medical bills, giving them a place to stay when they need it, counseling them and teaching them income generating skills. They also provide general education and knowledge for the public to reduce the stigmatization for HIV/AIDS.

I have been here only three full days and have already learned so much. In a basic wording, HIV is a virus that weakens down the immune system, AIDS is the final stage of the disease. Because a person who is positive has a weak immune system it makes every other possible disease or sickness they make get, even a cold or pimples a thousand times worse. For example a pimple could cause severe disfigurement. It is another disease that the positive person dies from because their body was not able to fight it off.

Tomorrow I will go with some of the people living with HIV/AIDS to grind palm nuts.

I will write more as I learn more.

Happy New Year

2007 has come and gone. As a group we had planned to spend our last hours of 2007 together but fate did not see it that way. Aryn and I rung in the new year, and Aryns' birthday, in the teaching hospital in Kumasi (about 2 1/2 hrs from Amanda and Mark).

No, no no, don't worry, Aryn and I are okay. We were travelling by tro tro from Ada after picking up our packages from the respective post offices. We planned this trip spontanously and planned to leave Ada on the 31st and be in Nkoranza that evening. Amanada and Mark were waiting 'anxiously' for our return. We entered our a packed tro tro in Accra that would take us straight to Kumasi about 5 hours away. After about 2 hours and man sitting two people to the left of me and behind and to the left of Aryn had a seizure. It lasted between a minute or two, he foamed at the mouth, threw up and passed out for a short time. He was in between consiouness and unconsiouness for some time afterwards. The man beside him jumped into the lap of the man on the other side. Everyone on the tro tro was scarred. I quickly thought back to what I knew about siezures. I realized that knowledge was very limited. I tried to calm the people around us down and convince that man beside me that we had to bring Paul (the man having the siezure to the hospital). The man beside me disagreed, he told me it was just the spirits. I argued with him telling him it was a medical condition that happens all around the world and in Canada we bring them to the hospital after. I looked over and Paul and to me it seemed that he was not breathing, I asked Aryn to ask the woman directly infront of Paul to check. I explained to the people around us that I knew CPR, although I am sure I am a little rusty, I explained that if he wasn't breathing I could help him to breath again. Thankfully Paul was still breathing. Aryn and I continued to argue with the passenger beside me but Paul everntually regained consciousness. Aryn asked if he was okay and not knowing what had happened he said his head hurt. He seemed okay other then that and Aryn and I decided we would wait till Kumasi and then tell Paul what happened and suggest he go to the hospital. We stopped in Nkawkaw and a few passengers got out including the man that had disagreed about bringing Paul to the hospital. We re-prganized ourself and I was now sitting beside Paul.

We kept an eye on him and he seemed to be okay, but as we entered Kumasi Paul had another siezure. Similar to the previous one but this time his head hit the back of the car multiple times. I quickly re-acted to put my hand behind his head so it would lessen the force. He basically had a seizure on me and fell unconsious on me. I tried to move him so he was sitting in a more safe position as we went over the speed bumps. I asked a man close by to help me lift him, he was very reluntant and offered little help so Aryn and I had to manage. We also decided that we would bring him to the hospital. We he regained consciousness we tried to talk to him but it seemed he spoke no English. I asked the women beside me to tell him what had happened in Twi, she said she was to scarred to talk to him. I then asked if she would just ask him if we could bring him to the hospital, thankfully she agreed, and so did Paul.

We got out of the tro tro and Paul had difficulty walking, Aryn and I carried his bags and a nice tro tro mate found us a taxi nad barginned the price for us. We got to the hospital and paied Paul admission fee and waited for 4 hours before he saw a doctor. As we waited Paul had me call his employer who turned out to be a British man to tell him what had happened. Paul is a teacher who turned out to speak perfect English. The employer seemed concerned that Paul would not be able to afford the bill but I assured him that Aryn and I would cover it. We were supported by very nice people at the hospital including a nurse and two security men who assured us that we would find a place for Paul to sleep, and later walked Aryn and I to a close by hotel, it was New Years Eve and they were worried for mine and Aryns safety. I celebrated 2008 in a consulting explain to a doctor what had happened to Paul. At 2 minutes after 12:00 the nurse told us all it was 2008.


Aryn and mys main concern was that Paul was given a place to stay. He was travelling a few hours north for his mothers funeral and hadn't planned on stopping in Kumasi. I asked the Doctor if he could stay in the hospital and Aryn and I would pay the bill. He also gave us a list of medicine to by and told me that this could be the beginning of Epilepsy. I felt so much pity for Paul because by many in Ghana Epilepsy is not a medical condition but something the spirits of witches cast on people, that is why the people in the tro tro reacted the way they did. Aryn and I went to pay for his medicine and left Paul with some money to pay for the place to stay. at 1:30 am we parted our ways.

We left Kumasi the next morning and arrived in Nkoranza at about 12:00 pm that afternoon.

They say how you spend your New Years Eve is how you spend the rest of your year, I am not really sure what that means for Aryn and I.

Happy 2008!