Leading up to this trip, I thought that eight weeks seemed like a long time. In the past, the longest I had traveled for was two weeks, so two months was hard to even imagine. Since we’ve been here, though, time has been positively flying. It certainly doesn’t feel like two months has gone by, and at this moment I feel like I would be perfectly content agreeing to stay for another two months. I would gladly pass another few weeks with my friends in Lolito, and there’s also so much of the country I simply have not had the opportunity to explore.

Although, ideally, I would have been able to travel to the Northern Region, experiencing at least a bit more of Ghana’s ecological and botanical diversity, my unfortunate contraction last week of “severe malaria” prevented me from doing so. TIA: This is Africa. I suppose visiting the North will just have to be one more adventure that awaits me when I return to this country sometime in the future.

And I do have every intention of one day returning. Future of Africa has made considerable progress over the course of the last two months in establishing itself here and preparing for the work it plans to do in Ghana. I see myself continuing to have an active role in the organization, so it seems inevitable that I’ll wind up here sometime down the road.

What’s more, I have loved what small part of the country I have been privileged enough to see, and I’ve made too many friends, shared too many experiences, and established too many special relationships to fathom the idea of not coming back someday. I’m getting excited for this trip already, no matter how distant it is into the uncharted realms of my future!

When I think about how I will share my experiences with family and friends upon my return home, I find myself at a loss. No words will be capable of expressing the lessons I’ve learned, let alone describe the personalities of the people I’ve encountered or explain the elements of culture that are really only understood when you are able to feel it for yourself.

But as I reflect, I also realize that every day of this trip has a story to accompany it, for even many of the activities and events that have come to be routine parts of daily life in Ghana would be perfectly out of the ordinary occurrences in everyday Canadian living. For example, yesterday on our way from Cape Coast back to Accra, we paid a bribe to an officer at a police barrier and later experienced a completely ridiculous traffic jam where the division of lanes was completely abandoned and taxi and trotro drivers were wrecking havoc for all. Akwaaba, this is Ghana.

There are now just over 24 hours remaining until I board my flight. I am getting nostalgic about Journey for Change, and technically, it isn’t even over yet. I’m not ready for it to be over just yet. I am thankful, however, for the time I have been able to spend here, for it has been an amazing experience.

I look forward to sharing stories of my adventures with family and friends, but also look forward to keeping some of those experiences just for myself. They tend to be pretty meaningful that way, which is exactly how some memories need to be held onto.

Although we tackled the most disheveled parts of the palm frond walls within the first few days of being at Smile Child, we had our work cut out for us in order to finish the task. Over the course of our project, we successfully removed all the palm fronds and replaced them with wooden exterior walls (tin roofing sheets in areas subject to damaging weather conditions), as we clearly witnessed the weaknesses of the palm fronds in the deterioration of these original building materials.

We also completed the library space, finishing the uncovered walls with plywood and fully separating it from the classroom next door. Additional bookshelves were also placed inside the space and a small seating area was designated in the corner as a cozy little reading nook. Unfortunately, when we left Lolito, the library had not yet been populated with reading materials, but the books which has been donated to the school did arrive…in copious amounts! The books were too numerous, in fact, to even fit in the library. Instead, for the meantime, the books have been placed in an alternate storage location until an appropriate plan of action is determined.

Much like the covering of the library walls, the interior of the final classroom–the one which was previously in the poorest condition–was also finished with plywood sheets to provide separation from the roofing sheets, which were used for the exterior. Walls were also erected to define the teachers office (where some teaching materials are also stored), which was previously a joined space with the kindergarten classroom (and library before the dividing wall was built).

In addition to the carpentry work, we were also kept busy with the task of beautifying the school. We did a great deal of painting on the exterior of the school, attempting to enliven the atmosphere with a colourful palette. We also had the pleasure of entertaining the company of Samuel, the local painter, once again, who graciously volunteered his artistic services to paint images representing the alphabet across the front of the school. We couldn’t thank him enough for his wonderful work, it looked amazing when he was finished!

Such artistry is, in fact, Samuel’s specialty. Although he does a lot of painting, his primary work is making signs, which was also quite convenient for our purposes. We had created a design for a new Smile Child signboard, but had taken little action since we were unsure how exactly to approach the project. Once Samuel was on the scene, however, he showed us, first, how to make stencils, and then how to use them to print on the signboard. We also enlisted the help of the children to make a border of hand prints, which got messy and chaotic at times, but all in good fun, of course.

Aside from the renovations and repairs, we also dedicated a portion of each day to facilitating a youth centre program with the children. Amber and Wellie headed arts and crafts, Mike and John organized sports activities, Tk instructed the Class 4 students on computer skills, and I ran a reading and literacy session each day. The children seemed to greatly enjoy the activities, and there was excitement among the students on a daily basis for each of the different programs being offered. On our part, feeding of the cheerful vibes of so many energetic youth was definitely a positive way to start the work day.

Often, the biggest challenge was putting a firm end to the program and vacating the children from the construction area for long enough to allow us to get some serious work done!

Although Future of Africa and the Journey for Change team are pleased with our accomplishments at Smile Child Foundation, we recognize the fact that so much more work still remains to be done. We feel confident that when the students of Smile Child return to school his year, they will be receiving their education in improved physical conditions, but we remain optimistic about a future of much greater development and change at Smile Child Foundation.

Discussions regarding next year’s project are already underway, and the plans for improvements and growth far exceed what we have been capable of completing at Smile Child this year during our short time in Lolito. We’re certainly looking forward to the action and changes yet to come!

Prior to beginning our work at Smile Child Foundation, the Journey for Change team determined that we would facilitate an after school program—a quasi youth centre consisting of arts and crafts, English literacy, computer skills, and sports—for the children of Lolito. In the interest of not interfering with the students’ final exams and studying, the program started the day after school had finished for the year.

It was on this day—the first day of the students’ “summer” vacation—that we observed their keenness to continue learning. School was out of session for the term. The teachers were nowhere near the school premises. Yet the students all arrived early (many exceptionally early) dressed in their uniforms and ready to undertake the morning’s activities.

In the classroom where I was facilitating a reading program, it was just as attention was starting to wane and minds (and some bodies) were wondering outside the classroom that I found a boy tugging at my elbow. “Heather,” he implored, “teach us about something.”

A little taken aback by this pupil’s keenness in the midst of the general restlessness, I asked in return, “What should I teach you?”

“Anything!” Minadze Nuseli replied. “I want to learn about something.”

In that moment I felt as though I possessed no knowledge that would be profound enough to satisfy the need for information that that small boy was expressing. I was overjoyed by his interest in learning, and yet oddly terrified by the fact that I had the capacity and the position to facilitate some of that process.

What a grand responsibility! But also a great privilege to have the power to make an impact on our youth.

And unbeknownst, I’m sure, to this one small boy, I too have been impacted by his inquisitive nature. His attitude toward learning has caused me to reflect on my own value of education and reawaken my passion and love for learning. I hope, indeed, it may it never falter.

Although on that particular day we did not have a groundbreaking or awe-inspiring lesson (we settled on doing dictation, which Nuseli enjoyed, so that he could practice writing English), I have no doubts about such a child’s learning potential, and by association, the brightness of his future. I was so pleased to see his excitement when I told him about the new books that would be coming to the school! Not only did this remind me of my bookish child (and adult) self, it also confirmed for me that even if the formal education should ever be lacking, this boy’s natural curiosity would undoubtedly lead him to become self-educated through books, and any other means possible.

Education, so often, becomes pigeon holed to the content and pedagogy of traditional, formal systems. But a true passion to learn, when we allow ourselves to embrace it, enables us to be educated in unforeseen ways from even the simplest experiences in our everyday lives.

Perhaps our first lesson should be in following the example of so many inquisitive children. This way, we might allow ourselves to open our minds to the possibility of learning and admit to ourselves that we do, indeed, have much to learn.

Now cue a veritable educational adventure…

It has been just over a week since we left Accra, heading south-east to commence our stay in the village of Adutor. Our days have been spent at Smile Child Foundation, a primary school in the nearby village of Lolito. We had visited Smile Child one week prior (we came for Tk’s cousin’s wedding in the adjacent village, Dabala), at which point we were warmly welcomed by the school and the children and one of the teachers put on a performance of traditional drumming and dancing, which we all greatly enjoyed.

Upon our official arrival on the worksite, we were again welcomed by the school and community. On our first day, we were led around the village to be introduced to a number of elders and Smile Child Opinion Leaders, and throughout the week there has seemed to be a constant stream of community members dropping by to demonstrate their support for the school, to express interest in our work, and to say welcome and “ayekoo” (well done).

We were pleased to have a prompt start to our projects at the beginning of last week, which I think is the result of our eagerness and willingness, combined with the helpful assistance of our resident tradesman, Nutifafa. While there has been noticeable progress, we are optimistic about the improvements yet to be made at the school throughout the duration of our work and beyond.

In discussing the plans for Smile Child with the Foundation’s secretary and co-founder while we were still in Accra, we decided to prioritize repairing the existing structures at the school prior to beginning any new construction, which is an eventual goal. There are currently two buildings at the Smile Foundation, both of which have undergone changes over the past week.

Perhaps the most prevailing issue was the state of some of the classroom exterior walls. Although the use of palm fronts for the initial construction of the walls provided the benefit of air circulation, the ability to withstand the weather seemed to be lacking. Sections of the palm front walls were in such poor condition that during a rainstorm, classes were unable to proceed at times due to flooding. One of our first tasks was erecting much more durable walls in the problematic parts of the school, which have successfully remained leak-free during recent rainfall.

In the same building which houses the classrooms, we have also begun to convert a storage area into a small library. A supply of books has recently been donated to Smile Child, and we plan to have the designated space prepared in time for the books’ arrival at the school. A dividing wall has been built between the library and the nursery (kindergarten and preschool classroom), which was previously one joint space, and a three bookshelves are built and painted, with others to yet to come.

The second building on the compound is not used for teaching purposes on a daily basis, but acts as a congregation area for the school and also doubles as community space where church service is held on Sundays. Our first task was patching up a number of cracks and holes in the interior and exterior walls, after which we painted the whole building. We were fortunate enough to be assisted by the expertise of a local painter, named Samuel, who showed us how to mix the paint and also helped hugely in the painting process.

Our work on these larger tasks has also been punctuated with smaller projects: Justine and Tk repaired a number of wooden classroom chairs, Mike and John constructed a set of soccer nets for the schoolyard, Amber and I have done the preliminary work to create a new signboard, and Wellie never ceases to entertain the children during their breaks from class.

Aside from the construction aspect of our project, we are also interested in the classroom setting. Justine and Wellie, in particular, have spent considerable time in the classrooms, observing the educational system and also taking on some teaching responsibilities. Although the school year will be drawing to a close at the end of this week, we are in the process of planning an “after-school” program—consisting of creative arts, computer skills, literacy, and sports—for the children of Smile Child and the nearby public school, which will provide further opportunities for interaction with the students, both inside and outside of the classroom.

A bit about Smile Child Foundation…
Smile Child Foundation was established in 2002 upon the vision of putting an everlasting smile on the faces of underprivileged children in Lolito, a rural community in Ghana’s Volta Region. The late founder identified a need for preschool education in the village, as it was typical for young children not to receive the standard two years of preschool instruction prior to commencing school as primary students. Beginning as a preschool for the first year of operation, Smile Child Foundation soon expanded to primary schooling, recognizing the fact that students tended to lack an adequate education foundation upon which to successfully continue their schooling at the high school level. Smile Child Foundation currently educates youth from preschool to class four and has aspirations of further extending its instruction class five as well in the near future. Prioritizing its dedication to providing affordable education, Smile Child Foundation has experienced some challenges in maintaining and improving its teaching facilities, which has led to the discontinuation of the boarding house and caused classrooms to fall into ill repair as a result of limited resources.

Today I had a truly unique experience, which I think adds a new dimension of meaning to one of our most popular phrases of the past week: “This is Ghana.”

In the busy streets of Accra, countless vendors walk amongst the traffic selling everything from ground nuts and plantain chips to cell phone calling cards to airplane figurines and end tables. One of the most ubiquitous images, though, in both the streets and the markets, is that of women or children selling 400mL pouches of water, stocked in basins they carry on their heads.

In admiration of the strength of these water vendors, and many other women and children who eke out a living in a similar way (such as kayayo, women who work and often sleep in the Accra markets to make a living by carrying goods for people), our curiosity was piqued. Amber and I decided that today we wanted to experience this livelihood first hand, selling sacs of water and attempting to carry the basin on our heads like they do.

We travelled to Madina Market this morning to find each of us a water vendor who would act as a mentor and business partner and would agree to accept us as apprentices for a couple hours. Although the first few water vendors we approached were highly sceptical and declined, once we met a young girl named Fusina, there was a water basin on my head in short order. Fusina must have recognized my water-selling potential, for she agreed to walk through the market with me as I sold water on her behalf.

First and foremost, I was shocked by how heavy the basin was once I put it on my head. I definitely faltered under the load at first, but soon became accustomed to the weight. Unlike the pros, I had to support it with one hand the vast majority of the time—especially when the container was full and so heavy!

The “obruni” (white person) selling the water was an immediate novelty. Amber found a buddy as well, a young boy named Evans, and began selling water on his behalf. We also gradually collected a small posse of other children (some also selling water) who were intrigued and decided to join us. In Amber’s words, we turned more heads than you would if you decided to go downtown somewhere and run through the streets naked.

I promptly sold out of water, and Fusina and I went back to her supplier, who eagerly refilled our stock. The locals in the market were both shocked and curious about us, and without fail, everyone laughed when we called out “Puuure Wataaaa,” just as the vendors usually do. Many inquired about why we were doing it, to which we responded that we simply wished to gain a different perspective and experience this way of life lived by countless women and children we have seen since our arrival in Ghana.

The water pouches are sold for 10 psewes each, which is one tenth of a Ghanaian cedi (1 cedi = 66 cents). During the couple hours I was selling with Fusina, she made a profit of 7 cedis. Once we met up with TK and Wellie (Fusina and some of the other children with us could not speak any English, so TK translated), we realized that this profit was twice as much as Fusina would typically make selling water for the day. She usually makes only 3.5 cedis for a whole day of work.

Fusina explained that her mother cannot afford to send her to school, so she sells water in the market on a daily basis. Although she did not know how old she is (this is not entirely uncommon among those who were born in more rural areas), she guessed she was around 12 years old. While some children working in the market, like Fusina, do not have the opportunity to receive an education due to their economic situation, others do go to school. Like Evans, the boy selling water with Amber, some children work in the market either before or after school in order to earn money to ease their costs of books and tuition.

Today was an opportunity to experience a different reality. While one of my first impressions of Accra was that it is much more developed than I had anticipated, there are nevertheless an abundance of people who are struggling and impoverished. It was hard to just leave the market today, knowing all those children we met will carry on selling water, day in day out, for no more than a few cedis profit.

While the exercise of selling water today was not undertaken with the goal of affecting long term or widespread change, it was nevertheless an eye opening experience, from more perspectives than only my own. And with a little ingenuity and thinking, perhaps Future of Africa can make this idea into something more…