I love...

FOUNDERS WEEKEND IN AKRON, OHIO

For all of you out there that don't know, AA had its beginnings in little old Akron, OH. Two men and their wives dedicated their lives to this simple program that has left a legacy of healing and continues to help people with their addictions every day. Every year, around this time, thousands of people (approx. 10,000 this year) trek to Akron to pay tribute to the people who started this program that has improved if not saved their lives.

It is a tradition for my mom and I to go to the tribute for the founders at the cemetery at which they are buried. The event begins outside of McDonalds on Market St. A procession of hundreds of motorcycles barrel down the street and towards the cemetery. The people on the motorcycles are all unique, people of different racial backgrounds, from different countries, differing in almost every way that you can think of, but they are all united under AA and have somehow been influenced or changed by this program. Their faces are happy and excited, enthralled and thankful. They have been to the bottom, so they know how good it feels to be on top. They rev their engines all the way to the cemetery where tribute is payed to the individuals who started this program which has saved so many peoples lives and well-being.

As an onlooker-someone who has been affected by alcoholism but not felt the grip of alcohol- I feel an overwhelming power by this group of people, this elite club. Seeing the sea of faces, everyone so different but coming together (to my little city) for one purpose. This is their Mecca.

I love this weekend every year. I love that I live in this very special town. I love that all these people love my town too.

Simple, healthy and so delicious!

Salad

-Spinach

-Arugula

-Sprouts

-Dried Cranberry's

-Fresh Strawberry's

-Raw Walnuts

-Raw Pumpkin Seeds

-Lots of Cilantro

-Avocado

-Oil and Vineagar

Mix it all together and enjoy! So yummy!

I love...

Warm sunny days like today that I get to spend with Susie.

Back from Ghana...sort of

I have been back from Ghana for almost two months now, but mentally, I am still there. I miss the kids, I miss the people, I miss the country.

I have lots of pictures and lots of memories to share with anyone willing to listen. I had the time of my life.

I love you/life.

Follow me on Facebook

Hi everyone. Blogspot is really not working very well for me in Ghana. The latest problem is that I cannot get my documents to copy and paste into the text box for my blog. I am going to start using the 'notes' function on facebook. Follow me there!

Let me know if you have any questions about Ghana or about what I am doing!

Love you/life!

Maureen

Decmber 19

December 19, 2009
Akwaaba! I have made it to Ghana. It is so surreal being here and taking everything in. The amount of things to see and learn and look at are completely overwhelming. Everywhere you turn there are welcoming faces, street vendors, wandering animals, and happy children. The weather is VERY hot and EXTREMELY humid. Today was 90F and 70% humidity.
Both of my flights were very pleasant. While I was in the security line in Cleveland, I mentioned to a man in front of me that I was headed to Ghana, and a Ghanaian couple behind me overheard where I was going and were overjoyed about my trip. We had both of our flights together, so they took me under their wing, and prepared me for my trip. They waited for me and the three other Cross Cultural Solutions volunteers to come off of the plane in Ghana, and they helped us get our baggage. One of the volunteers (Katherine’s) luggage got lost, and the Ghanaian couple helped her claim the lost items. They then helped us find our way to our driver, and took some contact information so that they could keep in touch. I feel so lucky to have met them. What a wonderful example of how kind-hearted almost all Ghanaians seem to be.
Once we found our driver, we loaded our bags up and took a 3.5 hour (air-conditioned) drive to Hohoe where I will be living the next 12 weeks. We had lunch, took a nap and then took a tour of the bustling city. Everywhere you look there are people selling fruit and fish, cutting hair right out on the street, singing and dancing, and enjoying life. Three children, about 5 years old, came up to us today to shake our hands. We shook their hands and said hello, and once we left our tour guide, George, told us that we had just made their day. For children in Ghana, it is a very big deal to shake the hand of a white person. It made me really happy that we were able to put a smile on these children’s faces.
So far the food is wonderful. For dinner we had a type of potato with a tomato sauce on top, plantains, and fresh mango. I talked to another vegan today who advised me to make sure that I am very conscious about getting protein. I am going to try to find a jar of peanut butter tomorrow so that I can take a few spoonfulls and not worry too much about protein.
I also was very excited when I opened up my bags this evening to unpack, and my wonderful Akron friends made me an absolutely gorgeous book. Many of my friends took the time to write me such thoughtful notes. I know that I am really going to appreciate having this piece of home with me, and I look forward to looking at the book often and thinking about all the people that I love.
I am really looking forward to settling in and starting to feel familiar with the town and the language. I am feeling out of my element and a bit nervous about this whole being gone for 14 weeks deal. I am sure that once I settle in, the time will fly by. I feel so lucky to be in such a wonderful place with so many great people.
I think that in about a week I will be getting a pre-paid phone so that I will be able to call home and you will be able to call me. The internet here is pretty ‘sketchy’ and it is hard to know when it will work. The electricity also goes out several times a week, so it is hard to know when I will be able to skype or email.
I will be in touch. I love you all!
Maureen

Decmber 19

December 19, 2009
Akwaaba! I have made it to Ghana. It is so surreal being here and taking everything in. The amount of things to see and learn and look at are completely overwhelming. Everywhere you turn there are welcoming faces, street vendors, wandering animals, and happy children. The weather is VERY hot and EXTREMELY humid. Today was 90F and 70% humidity.
Both of my flights were very pleasant. While I was in the security line in Cleveland, I mentioned to a man in front of me that I was headed to Ghana, and a Ghanaian couple behind me overheard where I was going and were overjoyed about my trip. We had both of our flights together, so they took me under their wing, and prepared me for my trip. They waited for me and the three other Cross Cultural Solutions volunteers to come off of the plane in Ghana, and they helped us get our baggage. One of the volunteers (Katherine’s) luggage got lost, and the Ghanaian couple helped her claim the lost items. They then helped us find our way to our driver, and took some contact information so that they could keep in touch. I feel so lucky to have met them. What a wonderful example of how kind-hearted almost all Ghanaians seem to be.
Once we found our driver, we loaded our bags up and took a 3.5 hour (air-conditioned) drive to Hohoe where I will be living the next 12 weeks. We had lunch, took a nap and then took a tour of the bustling city. Everywhere you look there are people selling fruit and fish, cutting hair right out on the street, singing and dancing, and enjoying life. Three children, about 5 years old, came up to us today to shake our hands. We shook their hands and said hello, and once we left our tour guide, George, told us that we had just made their day. For children in Ghana, it is a very big deal to shake the hand of a white person. It made me really happy that we were able to put a smile on these children’s faces.
So far the food is wonderful. For dinner we had a type of potato with a tomato sauce on top, plantains, and fresh mango. I talked to another vegan today who advised me to make sure that I am very conscious about getting protein. I am going to try to find a jar of peanut butter tomorrow so that I can take a few spoonfulls and not worry too much about protein.
I also was very excited when I opened up my bags this evening to unpack, and my wonderful Akron friends made me an absolutely gorgeous book. Many of my friends took the time to write me such thoughtful notes. I know that I am really going to appreciate having this piece of home with me, and I look forward to looking at the book often and thinking about all the people that I love.
I am really looking forward to settling in and starting to feel familiar with the town and the language. I am feeling out of my element and a bit nervous about this whole being gone for 14 weeks deal. I am sure that once I settle in, the time will fly by. I feel so lucky to be in such a wonderful place with so many great people.
I think that in about a week I will be getting a pre-paid phone so that I will be able to call home and you will be able to call me. The internet here is pretty ‘sketchy’ and it is hard to know when it will work. The electricity also goes out several times a week, so it is hard to know when I will be able to skype or email.
I will be in touch. I love you all!
Maureen

12/19/2009

December 19, 2009
Akwaaba! I have made it to Ghana. It is so surreal being here and taking everything in. The amount of things to see and learn and look at are completely overwhelming. Everywhere you turn there are welcoming faces, street vendors, wandering animals, and happy children. The weather is VERY hot and EXTREMELY humid. Today was 90F and 70% humidity.
Both of my flights were very pleasant. While I was in the security line in Cleveland, I mentioned to a man in front of me that I was headed to Ghana, and a Ghanaian couple behind me overheard where I was going and were overjoyed about my trip. We had both of our flights together, so they took me under their wing, and prepared me for my trip. They waited for me and the three other Cross Cultural Solutions volunteers to come off of the plane in Ghana, and they helped us get our baggage. One of the volunteers (Katherine’s) luggage got lost, and the Ghanaian couple helped her claim the lost items. They then helped us find our way to our driver, and took some contact information so that they could keep in touch. I feel so lucky to have met them. What a wonderful example of how kind-hearted almost all Ghanaians seem to be.
Once we found our driver, we loaded our bags up and took a 3.5 hour (air-conditioned) drive to Hohoe where I will be living the next 12 weeks. We had lunch, took a nap and then took a tour of the bustling city. Everywhere you look there are people selling fruit and fish, cutting hair right out on the street, singing and dancing, and enjoying life. Three children, about 5 years old, came up to us today to shake our hands. We shook their hands and said hello, and once we left our tour guide, George, told us that we had just made their day. For children in Ghana, it is a very big deal to shake the hand of a white person. It made me really happy that we were able to put a smile on these children’s faces.
So far the food is wonderful. For dinner we had a type of potato with a tomato sauce on top, plantains, and fresh mango. I talked to another vegan today who advised me to make sure that I am very conscious about getting protein. I am going to try to find a jar of peanut butter tomorrow so that I can take a few spoonfulls and not worry too much about protein.
I also was very excited when I opened up my bags this evening to unpack, and my wonderful Akron friends made me an absolutely gorgeous book. Many of my friends took the time to write me such thoughtful notes. I know that I am really going to appreciate having this piece of home with me, and I look forward to looking at the book often and thinking about all the people that I love.
I am really looking forward to settling in and starting to feel familiar with the town and the language. I am feeling out of my element and a bit nervous about this whole being gone for 14 weeks deal. I am sure that once I settle in, the time will fly by. I feel so lucky to be in such a wonderful place with so many great people.
I think that in about a week I will be getting a pre-paid phone so that I will be able to call home and you will be able to call me. The internet here is pretty ‘sketchy’ and it is hard to know when it will work. The electricity also goes out several times a week, so it is hard to know when I will be able to skype or email.
I will be in touch. I love you all!
Maureen

Im Here!

After all this time and talk about going to Ghana, I have finally made it. I am constantly amazed that I get to live in this beautiful country with all of these lovely people. Everyone here is so welcoming and so nice.

Since I have been here, we have done so many things. Yesterday, we spent much of the day in orientation. We also had a Ewe (a-way) lesson which proved to be interesting, but VERY difficult. I also learned how to play Texas Hold'Em. We were betting with toothpicks. I got second place! Not bad for a first timer. Dad, are you proud?

Today was our first day at our placements. I am placed at an orphanage called "House of Hope". There are about 30 children there, ranging from age 5-15. They are truly wonderful children, and I cannot wait to work with them. The children learn English throughout schol, so the younger ones create a pretty significant language barrier, but we can still have alot of fun and communicate. Right now is there Christmas break, so they will not go back to school until the 14th. When they go to school, we will go with them and help out in the public school system. The facility is very nice and the children are well taken care of. The mother of the house, Elizabeth is so sweet and so caring. The children are so lucky to have her caring for them. The bathrooms at the orphanage are very basic, as in a hole in the ground. Today, when I peeked in, there were lizards crawling all over the bathroom area. I think it will take a while to build up the guts to use this restroom!

After volunteering today, we went to the market, where there were thousands of people and hundreds of booths selling music, food, cloth, and much more. I bought some cloth so that I could get some skirts made. I think that I am going to come home with MANY traditional clothes from Ghana.

Once we got home from the market, we had a welcome ceremony from the local community in the form of drumming and dancing. After they finished demostrating, we were able to participate in both activitites. Dancing always looks easier than it really is, but it was certainly a lot of fun!

The food here is really good, although overloaded with carbs. This is only a bad thing because I had a few pounds to loose, but it is SO delicious!

I am overjoyed with Ghana. It is so beautiful to see how people with so little can love their life so much. The children at the orphanage use all the toys that American children would have thrown out years ago, but they are so proud of what they have, and they make so much use of these things. They are happy with everything that they have, and they dont have the constant desire for more. The people here are just full of joy and love. It is a great thing to witness.

I have been writing every night on word document, and when the wireless internet works, I will upload them to my blog. I will then be able to put pictures up as well. For now, I will post these overviews as often as I can make it to the internet cafe.

I love you all!
Keep in touch and email me at mfarris29@gmail.com if you would like. I cant wait to hear from you.

And to all of my friends who put together the beautiful <3 akron book, I cant even tell you how much it meant to me. I will cherish that book FOREVER! I am sure that it will help me get through any difficult days that may come.

P.S. I am going to spend Christmas SWEATING...A LOT! Will it be snowing in Ohio?

Love you/life.

I'm Here!

After all this time and talk about going to Ghana, I have finally made it. I am constantly amazed that I get to live in this beautiful country with all of these lovely people. Everyone here is so welcoming and so nice.

Since I have been here, we have done so many things. Yesterday, we spent much of the day in orientation. We also had a Ewe (a-way) lesson which proved to be interesting, but VERY difficult. I also learned how to play Texas Hold'Em. We were betting with toothpicks. I got second place! Not bad for a first timer. Dad, are you proud?

Today was our first day at our placements. I am placed at an orphanage called "House of Hope". There are about 30 children there, ranging from age 5-15. They are truly wonderful children, and I cannot wait to work with them. The children learn English throughout schol, so the younger ones create a pretty significant language barrier, but we can still have alot of fun and communicate. Right now is there Christmas break, so they will not go back to school until the 14th. When they go to school, we will go with them and help out in the public school system. The facility is very nice and the children are well taken care of. The mother of the house, Elizabeth is so sweet and so caring. The children are so lucky to have her caring for them. The bathrooms at the orphanage are very basic, as in a hole in the ground. Today, when I peeked in, there were lizards crawling all over the bathroom area. I think it will take a while to build up the guts to use this restroom!

After volunteering today, we went to the market, where there were thousands of people and hundreds of booths selling music, food, cloth, and much more. I bought some cloth so that I could get some skirts made. I think that I am going to come home with MANY traditional clothes from Ghana.

Once we got home from the market, we had a welcome ceremony from the local community in the form of drumming and dancing. After they finished demostrating, we were able to participate in both activitites. Dancing always looks easier than it really is, but it was certainly a lot of fun!

The food here is really good, although overloaded with carbs. This is only a bad thing because I had a few pounds to loose, but it is SO delicious!

I am overjoyed with Ghana. It is so beautiful to see how people with so little can love their life so much. The children at the orphanage use all the toys that American children would have thrown out years ago, but they are so proud of what they have, and they make so much use of these things. They are happy with everything that they have, and they dont have the constant desire for more. The people here are just full of joy and love. It is a great thing to witness.

I have been writing every night on word document, and when the wireless internet works, I will upload them to my blog. I will then be able to put pictures up as well. For now, I will post these overviews as often as I can make it to the internet cafe.

I love you all!
Keep in touch and email me at mfarris29@gmail.com if you would like. I cant wait to hear from you.

And to all of my friends who put together the beautiful <3 akron book, I cant even tell you how much it meant to me. I will cherish that book FOREVER! I am sure that it will help me get through any difficult days that may come.

P.S. I am going to spend Christmas SWEATING...A LOT! Will it be snowing in Ohio?

Love you/life.