These Are a Few of My Favorite Things (fourth entry for November)

I had an interesting experience the other day.  Terry and I were visiting his dad in Amonokrom when his dad told me I’m looking slim.  I said, “Thank you,” and then it was explained to me that being slim is not a good thing.  In Ghana, when you’re fat (they just call people fat, not big or plump or chubby, etc.), you’re given more respect.  If you’ve recently gotten married and the husband or wife is getting skinnier, the spouse is blamed for not taking good care of the other.  Terry explained to him that in America people are always trying to be skinnier, and his dad tried to understand that.  Later, after we got home, Terry asked me to promise to do something for him.  He wouldn’t tell me what it was until I agreed.  With some prodding, I finally agreed, and he told me I need to “eat heavy” for him until I put on some weight.  Really?!  I love living in a place where I don’t have to obsess about my weight!

I know I’ve talked about this plenty before, but I’ll never get over how much I love the Ghanaians love of football/soccer.  I saw some little boys at school cheer with as much excitement as Jacob when Lebron scores a 3-pointer because one of them had found an old, plastic water bottle that they could kick around.  I saw the mechanics who weren’t working on our car play a pick-up game on the dirt lot behind their “shop” after a long day’s work.  And I’ve seen kids who really struggle in school become heroes on the school pitch as they play with skill and heart truly deserving of the admiration they receive.

For the past week or so, every day after school some of Terry’s old students and current students gather around my head to plait and brush my hair.  They are so cute, as the old ones explain to the new ones that the braids might not be there the following day because Aunty Jaclyn’s hair is slippery and she washes it every day.  And they’re so funny, how they’ll put my hair on their head to see how it would look on them and tell me that I should never cut my hair (unless, of course, I give it to them).  I love having people play with my hair, so this has been quite heavenly for me (well, except for the occasional pull and tug).  Plus, I’m hoping that by the end of this I’ll have a full head of braids! = )

We live in a super cute little town.  I’ll explain more about our home in another entry, but one of the things I truly love is our 2-minute walk to and from our car.  In Ghana, the term “indoor/outdoor living” has a completely different meaning than what we understand it to mean in America; most houses don’t have kitchens or bathrooms, so on our way to and from the car, we’re greeted by our neighbors as they’re brushing their teeth, cooking, sweeping (the dirt) bathing, and once, even using the toilet (well…we weren’t actually greeted that time.  When we pulled into our “parking spot,” our headlights shone directly on a man who was sitting on the john.  I guess he had kept the door open because it was a dark night.  I didn’t see him, but Terry and I had quite a laugh when he told me what had just happened).  There’s a certain bond that you naturally create when you share in such intimate activities.  It’s been a really cool thing for me to experience.  And along the same lines, I love the way that I see the husbands and wives working next to each other.  It’s not common in Ghana, or even Africa in general, for men to participate in the daily chores, especially cooking and cleaning, so I guess the men who I’ve seen in our town are the sweet exceptions to the rule.

I actually got these braids done from a hairdresser (in an outdoor alley...haha = )