5 days to go.

On Wednesday, I went with some friends to Green Turtle Lodge which is about an 8 hour trotro ride up the Western coast of Ghana. It's just your typical Ghanaian beach resort that has numerous hammocks with my name on it. It was nice to relax and hang out with other exchange students who are all heading their separate ways over the next couple of weeks.

On our first night there, I was sitting at the dinner table when a rather heated debate ensued. One of the people at the table asked me if I feel like I have actually done anything to help the orphanage. I looked confused. He then said that he feels Americans should pull out all foreign aid going to Africa and let them learn some independence. While I agree that "Africa needs to help Africa", as I have said before; I believe that we should not justify our inactivity by saying we are helping the Africans learn independence in order to further their development. I explained to him that Africa became dependent on other nations when they were stripped of their working class during the 17th-19th centuries. Many scholars believe Africa's under-development is largely a result of its tumultuous and economically unsound past. Do I personally think that Africa could ever develop? Yes, I do--but only if they want to. Just because some African countries survive on the most basic neccesities of life does not neccessarily mean that they are not "developed" or "cultured" people. Is it such a bad thing that kids in Africa are not growing up in front of a brain-washing television screen, or clinging for dear life to a game controller, killing people (virtually, of course). The culture is different here, but that does not mean that it's worse than our own. Of course there are things that need improvement...there always are. A Utopian society only exists in the most hopeful, and slightly nieve, persons imagination. The work I've been doing at the Peace and Love orphanage was not aimed at making the children more culturally acceptable. They are perfectly fine the way they are. I have, however, been working toward making their childhoods a little easier on them. I can't change the world, and I'm not trying to. Maybe what I've done in Ghana hasn't been a very tremendous contribution to the betterment of mankind, but at least I know that there are 40 kids in Africa who won't wake up in a pool of sweat and don't have to lounge around on dirty concrete floors.

The morning after I this dinner table debate, I was reading a book by Dave Eggers. It's not exactly a profound philosophical book, but rather a novel I borrowed from a friend to pass the time while at the beach. I smiled, however, when I read these lines: "For every secretary giving her uneaten half-sandwich to a haggard unwashed homeless vet, there is someone to claim that act is only, somehow, making things worse. The inactive must justify their sloth by picking nits with those making an attempt." I will add that I am not calling my dinner table challenger "slothful". I am perhaps calling him slightly ignorant and misinformed.

*Stepping down from my soapbox now*

My favorite part of this weekend was the tiring trip home. We left Green Turtle around 2 p.m. just as we saw dark rainclouds rolling in above us. We began walking down the dirt road toward the nearby village in order to catch a trotro. This road encompassed everything I love about Africa. First off, the road was dirt, which makes for a really fun off-road-ish experience in a vehicle. Secondly, the foliage surrounding the road was painted in the greenest of greens. It reminded me why that is my favorite color. Lastly, the sky hovering above the road was filled with dark gray rain clouds that moved at a faster pace than they do at home. Everything surrounding me was full of life and vibrant colors. On the way to Green Turtle, we were stuffed into a 12-person trotro that was holding 21 people (plus 2 on the roof). We bounced along the pot-hole filled road and braced ourselves for fear of physical injury. As we were walking down the road toward the village, we saw a similar trotro (with 2 people on the roof) speed by us. We waved at the driver and he shouted out the window that he would be back. Five minutes later he fulfilled his promise and returned with an empty van. Austin, Katie, Kindy, and Zach all climbed inside the back of the van, but the mate told me to sit up front. I just hopped up there before realizing that he probably just wanted a closer look at my [5 days unshaved] legs. I'm glad I did sit up there though because it gave me a great view for the trip into Agona Junction. We flew down the bumpy hills like we were on a rollercoaster--the wooden kind, not the steel kind. Then we topped one of the highest hills in the area. I turned around and saw one of the most beautiful sights I've seen in all of Africa (or the U.S. for that matter). The ocean waves crashed against the rocky shore below as dark rain clouds pelted the surrounding mountains creating a grayish-blue curtain over the landscape. Of course the battery in my camera was dead. It wouldn't have been able to do it justice anyway. Overall it was a fantastic send-off from Africa. It left me with enough intrigue to make me want to come back...

...Which is something I'm hoping to do next summer. I'm embarking on a year-long fundraiser as soon as I get home and will hopefully be able to do more "useless" things at Peace and Love Orphanage. This may sound childish, but I'll help Africa if I want to.

I should give him a tour of the rat-infested orphanage. Better yet, I'll let the children show him around.