May
May is already finished! I love the month of May and this month did not disappoint. It was a very challenging and exhausting month but it was fruitful! The beginning of the month was continued vacation from school and in that time Aunty Janet arrived! She is a former teacher who has spent lots of time at CORM. She came and partnered with me on various math things. The first, a math training for some teachers, was in the second week of May. Each morning for a week, 8 teachers came to learn and practice math concepts and strategies for teaching! We planned for each day to be a different general topic: place value, multiplication, fractions, algebra, and geometry. The teachers were great sports and made the week so fun! The other big math event in May was mapping day! This was a full day of map & measurement activities for grades KG1 through 8. This included everything from coloring and using rulers, to flat Stanleys, Jeopardy, and paper airplanes . Aunty Janet and I planned each activity for the classes so it was quite a lot of work! We spent many hours brainstorming, adjusting, and prepping so that Friday could be as smooth as possible. The teachers did a great job facilitating the activities and the day was a huge success! It could not have been possible without the support of Madam Justina, Aunty Janet, Miracle, etc. Everyone was so helpful and made the day go so smooth. I am grateful! It was a huge task and I am very proud of how it went! I am not sure it is possible to post videos on here, but if you would like to see some videos from the day in addition to the pictures, let me know and I will send some out to you!
A sad thing this month was saying “see you later” to the Acheampong family. Autumn, Richard, Ava, and Jace packed up and headed to North Carolina for at least 12 months to ease some of their document processes. We had a big party to celebrate them and show how much everyone loves them, and it was SO much fun. The boys and girls dance groups each performed, and then there were two surprise dance performances that really were entertaining and hilarious. The boys group uses me for the music access as they are practicing their dance, and so I always spend a LOT of time with them the week of a party. They are funny so I do not mind at all. The most hilarious part to me is that no matter where I am sitting in the Prayer House, they always end up dancing RIGHT in front of me. Probably less than 2 feet in front of me. I do not know why but it always makes me laugh when I have to tell them to back up or they will accidentally hit me during their dance! Anyways, I am so grateful for the Acheampong family and the blessing they have been and continue to be to everyone here. We miss them so much, and are praying that they will be blessed for their obedience to God’s call. My apartment is much quieter without the kids playing on the porch or knocking on the door, it’s so weird!
May has also been a month of connection and creatures! Two very different things, I do not know why I am pairing them in this paragraph. This month, the new CORE ladies have settled into life here and it has been so so much fun to get to know them and their kids. They are all so sweet and it feels special to be here at the start of their journey. Several of the kiddos have grown comfortable with me and I have gotten to hold them as they fall asleep. My favorite! The other night, Elisa, one of the little girls, was very quiet and looking sad so I called her over. She immediately snuggled up on my lap and about 5 minutes later she was asleep. It made my heart so full! The CORE ladies love to speak Twi to me and teach me when I do not understand. It has been a really fun way to connect! Alright now to the very different topic of creatures. Snakes and chickens! We did some more chicken killing and chicken catching this month! The boys spent an evening running and chasing the house chickens to put them into a new coop and it was so funny to watch! Another night there was a big, venomous snake found in the field and the guys went out and killed it!
The other thing this month was my 23rd birthday! The tradition here is that you get wet on your birthday, so all day I was getting water dumped on me. The worst but most entertaining for others was when the water was cold. Rough! It was a very nice day and now I had spent 23 years on earth! Thanks parents! There were several other birthdays this month, but the person who got the worst/best wetting experience was Ernest. He was carried and dropped into several mud puddles in his church clothes. Oof! He was a great sport about it and it was a really fun day!
A beautiful thing about life here is that the friendships are so real. Connections are so beautiful and the culture differences changes nothing about the depth of friendship that is possible, it might even enhance it. I feel so lucky to be surrounded by people that are so willing to love deeply and teach me about their culture. These people are changing me for the better and showing me what true praise in the midst of anything looks like. The hard days, the best days, the days of lacking, and the days of plenty. Through all of it, we have countless reasons to praise God with a whole heart. God is so faithful through the good and the bad, and I am experiencing that every day. The hard thing about the fullness of the relationships is that it is hard to imagine leaving everyone. I still have some months left but I know they are going to fly by. My challenge will be to stay present when I naturally want to think ahead in fear.
Thinking ahead just a short bit, I will be traveling home for a visit on June 17th! My family will be doing a staycation all together at my parent’s house and we are all SO EXCITED! It will be so special to be all together for an entire week!!
Thank you for all your support and prayers always!
Please keep in touch and send your own prayer request and praises!
