Songee Festival comes early this year. It’s date varies each year, something like Easter. It’s calculated as the first taboo day, starting sometime after a particular day in June, that falls on a Wednesday. Taboo day falls on every sixth day; it’s a day when women are forbidden to go to farm, and men are allowed to go but not to do any farming work. In any case, Songee Festival began this year on June 20th.
Continue reading Songee Festival →

Wednesday night

I was doing my dinner dishes when I heard singing coming from the direction of my counterpart’s house. I looked over and saw that a taxi had been backed up to the house. I wasn’t sure what was going on. Stephen mentioned that they’d spent the entire weekend in a big group choir activity, so I think perhaps it is related to that.
Continue reading Diagnosis: Uncertain →

“Stop crying,” Stella, tells me as we leave the husband’s house, tears welling up in her own eyes. We’d already visited the mother in her house, and I’m feeling overwhelmed by all of the feeling around me.
Continue reading Burial Rites →

Sometimes it seems like the rain clouds can linger for hours before it actually rains. Sometimes the clouds move in from the east, sometimes the west. For a while I thought I’d try to learn the patterns. I’d ask Stephen, “Will it rain today?”
Continue reading Rain and Tears →

Today was an interesting day. I hope that the “interesting” parts are over.
Continue reading Electricity and Its Friend, Fire →

I set out about a week and a half ago on a trip, and am happily back home in Kabile now.
Continue reading A Not So Long and No So Strange Trip →

I swore to myself that I wouldn’t do the typical post about Ghanaian funeral traditions, but I find myself sort of stuck and having to go ahead and do it.
Continue reading Funerals →

Some stories that have been queued up in my head…
Continue reading Some Stories →

A common issue for volunteers here: marriage proposals.
Continue reading Husbands and Wives →