Recycling With A Purpose

 “Good garbage breaks down as it goes. That’s why it smells bad to your nose. Bad garbage grows and grows and grows. Garbage is s’posed to decompose” These are lyrics of a song by Tom Chapin, an incredible children’s song writer (google the song Good Garbage. You will love it).  In order not to add to the bad garbage problem here in my village, I put my empty water bottles to good use. Last Christmas I made a Christmas tree out of empty plastic bottles.

Now I am using plastic water bottles to grow vegetables.  The process begins by cutting an empty bottle in half and inserting a sponge in the top section.  I invert it and place it on top of the bottom half which is filled with water.

Next I add soil to the top and plant a seed. The sponge continuously absorbs water from the bottom and keeps the dirt moist. My first plants to germinate were zucchini.

I also make planters out of empty plastic bottles and once the seedlings are large enough they are transplanted. Pigs, goats, sheep and chicken roaming around my bungalow keep me from having a conventional garden outdoors, therefore my “water bottle garden” is located inside my gated courtyard.

The zucchini fruit on my plants have yet to be plentiful but the flowers are beautiful.

I am also growing cucumbers and green beans.

Although it does not seem that recycling a few water bottles will make a difference, if we all do our small part it will. And let us not forget that God gave us this beautiful planet. He is the Creator. We must show God that we love Him by stopping and even reversing the destruction we have already caused.  To quote again from another Tom Chapin song: “This pretty planet spinning through space, you’re a garden, you’re a harbor, you’re a holy place”.

Novice Night

Every year here at St. Anne’s Girls’ Senior High School (SAGISS), where I live, Novice Night occurs. The Freshmen, or Form 1’s as they are called, are "hazed" by having to take part in a silly tradition. Those being "hazed" dress up in togas, wear hats made from leaves, paint their faces then parade around campus singing.

Does not sound like "hazing", right? Did I leave out that on their face is painted the word FOOL! And as they parade around they sing “We are fools!”

It really is silly but that’s where the silliness ends. For the rest of the night the Form 1’s take part in modeling, dancing and singing competitions. They are also required to give a speech on a topic of their choice and answer questions presented by the judges. At the end of the evening one of the new girls, a Form 1, one of the “Fools” is crowned the school’s Queen. Not such a foolish event after all! 

Seedlings

Over the years Ghana has experienced depleting forests. There are numerous reasons for this such as: forest fires, Illegal charcoal production, China’s exploitation of Ghana’s rosewood trees, uncontrolled mining and logging as well as the expansion of cocoa farms. In April 2021 Ghana’s Lands and Natural Resources Ministry launched a GREEN GHANA initiative which aimed to plant 5 million trees in a single day across the country. The government provided free seedlings to people of all walks of life including those in our little village here in Damongo.

The date set for the big event was June 11, 2021. On Thursday, June 10^th 6,600 teak and 700 mahogany seedlings were delivered to our Secretariat. That very day over two hundred Primary and Jr. High students came and collected 460 seedlings. On June 11^th, the day of the event, hundreds of trees were distributed.

Fr. Felix from St. Anne’s Cathedral collected 200 mahogany seedlings to plant on the grounds of the new Cathedral. Fr. Francis Xavier drove over two hours to deliver 250 seedlings to one of our Diocese’s 13 parishes. Other parishes sent trucks and cars to collect their share of these very healthy gems. When I left the Secretariat Friday at 5:00 p.m. men were busy planting the 500 trees they were allotted. The students at St. Anne’s Girls’ Catholic Senior High School where I live planted over 500 teak seedlings in just two days.

I am so proud of the country which I have called home for over two years now. WAY TO GO GHANA!

Climate Change

There are two seasons in this region of Ghana, the dry season and the rainy season. The dry season is just that; HOT and dry! There is no vegetation and everything is brown.  

It is not uncommon to have bush fires at this time of year. Several have come very close to my bungalow. The girls here at St. Anne’s Girls’ Sr. High School where I live are used to battling the flames, one bucket of water at a time. At first I ran in the other direction when the blazing flames were approaching. Now I help fill buckets.

The rainy season has just begun. It is beginning to look more like a jungle than a desert. It is amazing how quickly brown turns to green. 

While fire destroys the environment during the dry season, rains and wind will take a toll during this season. This year’s rains and wind, however, have caused immense damage not typical for this area.  Roofs have been blown off homes and shops, and floods have washed away entire dwellings. Here at St. Anne’s several sections of the wall surrounding our compound have been washed away.

Climate change is occurring here as it is all around the world. The changes can be devastating not only to the environment but also to the health of those already marginalized. Flooding increases cases of malaria and cholera. A decrease in the water supply due to an extraordinary dry season, which we had in Damongo last year, increases the incidence of guinea worms, and an increase in temperature causes more cases of cerebrospinal meningitis. Unfortunately, these are just a few examples of how climate change can affect the health of those I live amongst. Living in this part of the world makes me realize more than ever how important it is for us to slow down the global warming that our way of living in excess has caused. Let us pray that the world comes together to save our planet as well as all of us who call it our home.

Resourcefulness

One way to survive is to be resourceful. Ghanaians living in my village have to manage with what they have available to them. I witnessed this recently at St. Anne’s Girls’ Catholic Secondary School where I live and help out when necessary. Every Sunday after Mass, when money is available, I drive the Headmistress into the village to buy 23 loaves of bread. This is a real treat for the girls. They enjoy bread and tea. If they are lucky milk will be provided as well.

Recently the school decided to build their own bread oven. The ant hill you see here, which is made from clay that the ants obtain by digging down into the earth, was knocked down and mixed with water. Bricks were formed and an oven was built. An old bicycle wheel was used to form the opening. Because the rainy season is approaching a roof was erected using fallen down limbs from trees. 

Now that is being resourceful!

I can’t wait until the oven is fired up and the smell of freshly baked bread fills the air.

Mission Dream

Being a missionary is something I had dreamt of for years. I would picture myself working overseas in an orphanage. I love being around children; holding them, singing to them, laughing with them. 

God had a slightly different plan for me, so it seemed. The Diocese of Damango, Ghana, was looking for an accountant. Lay Mission-Helpers felt I was a perfect fit. I wouldn’t be working with children in an orphanage but I trusted this is what God wanted of me. 

Little did I know as I traveled to Ghana that I would get exactly what I had dreamt. I am around children daily. I hold them, sing to them, laugh with them. My joy is twofold. I use my expertise as an accountant working with the Diocese, something I enjoy doing, plus, I experience daily the happiness of being around God’s little ones. 

God is good all the time. Jesus, I do trust in You!

Joyful in Ghana

After eight months being isolated in my son, Joshua’s, apartment, two Covid-19 tests in the USA and one when I arrived at Kotoka International Airport in Accra, Ghana, as well as 12 days in quarantine at my bungalow, I was finally back to my Ghanaian life.  It will be a bit different here now that my fellow missionary, Diane, will not be returning. Diane is well missed not only by myself but by the entire Diocese of Damongo community.

I have been back nearly two months. While in the USA I had time to fully comprehend the 14 months in which I lived here. I thought, WOW, did I really do that? Was I really chased by an elephant yet not able to wait until I could go on another safari? Did I really find a scorpion in my washroom yet not worry about how many more were living in my bungalow? Did I really eat dumplings and sauce with my hand and decide I would never go back to eating certain meals with a fork or spoon again? What seemed like unusual behavior when sitting in my son’s apartment in the USA reminiscing about my way of life in Ghana is not unusual at all now that I am back. 

Since returning I celebrated Thanksgiving with my adopted Ghanaian family Francis, Paulina and children Anne and Nathan. As I did last year I made a Christmas tree to give my bungalow some Christmas spirit. Ghanaians do not typically put up Christmas trees; evergreens do not exist. This year I made a tree out of plastic bottles. 

I enjoyed a quiet Christmas Eve watching a live stream of my home Parish’s (St. Florian in United, PA) Vigil Mass, attended Christmas day Mass at St. Theresa of the Child Jesus church in Canteen, Ghana, the parish of my dear friend Sr. Rubina, and watched a live stream of Christmas day Mass from the Greensburg Diocese Cathedral in Greensburg, PA.

For the New Year’s celebration I traveled with Madame Pauline, the Headmistress of St. Anne’s Girls Catholic Secondary School (SAGISS) to her hometown of Nandum. Many of Madame’s nieces and nephews were there for the Holidays as well as her brother, Fr. Remigius Siesegh who works at the Vatican in Rome. The children and I kept busy doing what I am now famous for, making Christmas trees.

I attended a vigil Mass on New Year’s Eve and a Mass on New Year’s Day. Both Masses were held outdoors. 

An ensemble of xylophones and drums played as anyone who could stand danced. The congregation enjoyed seeing me join in. Many young men gathered around showing me steps and helping me dance to the rhythm of the drums. During one Mass it was announced that a clan had adopted me. What an honor. In the village everyone has two names; one English and one tribal. I was given the name Noriree (I’m sure I spelled it wrong), which means JOYFUL, and joyful it is to be back.  

GOD IS GOOD