Goodbye Ghana! Take two...

As we say goodbye to Ghana for the second time (fingers crossed), we leave with Ghanian names (Yaa Jones and Adjuata), new hair-do's (the humidity is killer), caffeinated with real Italian espresso (we finally found some!), hydrated with bottles of free water (courtesy of Kenya Airways for canceling our flight), and a new friend named George. Oh! And, we made it into Accra's local Newspaper!

Along this journey, there were stickers on cars, sayings on billboards or names of shops that provided guidance and reassurance for us as the days went on that we want to share with you in hopes that one of them will inspire you today.

Do unto others

Prayer is the master key

Amazing grace

By his grace

Hope is eternal

Take your senses on a journey

In God we trust

Life is nothing without passion

Add some sparkle to life

Integrity

Abundant grace

These were only some of phrases we saw in the streets of Accra, but you get the idea. Again, we say thanks to Ghana and the Ghanian people for their hospitality. 

Next stop, Zimbabwe! 

Giulietta and Melanie 

View from the hotel that put us up as we waited for our next flight

Coffee and water! Yay!

Do unto others

Streets of Accra

ICRI and Speak to Children in the local paper!

Our new friend George!

Goodbye to Ghana....oh wait! Not yet!

Our day began at five am. We were packed and ready to embark on our next journey. Our colleague, Eben Lartey, Director of ICRI Ghana, drove us to the historical town of Cape Coast. The drive took us two and a half hours. Along the way, our senses were filled with fish, sewage, and scents that were unrecognizable. We saw women carrying their wares on their heads, children going to school and fruit stands on the road. Poverty is rampant. People were constantly trying to sell us things. Each of our senses were heightened with each new landscape as we drove through the towns. 

After a veeery long drive, we arrived in front of a huge castle. Unbeknownst to us, the castle had a rich history of slavery. While we toured the castle grounds, walking into the slave dungeons, we both were distraught at the thought that human beings were treated with such unimaginable cruelty. The castle sits on a beautiful coast line. So, one would not guess looking at the beautiful backdrop, that such horrific acts would have been committed against men and women in the name of gold. While we learned about the dark time of salvery and eventually the liberation of Ghana from British rule in 1957, we both felt it was too much to fathom. Plus, being white in an all black community made us both wonder how the community felt when they saw us. When Melanie asked if people in the community were bitter, our host said things were better now.

We pilled back into the car for a quick tour of Ghana's second largest University. The grounds framed each building with lush plants and tall been trees. Listening to Etta James, Frank Sinatra, and Bilie Holiday lulled Melanie to sleep as Eben flew through each town one by one. Who would have thought that we'd be listening to these artists in Ghana on our colleague's iPod?

Eben announced lunch was our next stop. Yay! We were hungry. We landed at a mall in Accra for Chinese food (not the number one choice for Giulietta having just returned from China where she ate Chinese for breakfast, lunch and dinner every single day). The funny thing was, we could say we'd been to the mall before! One phase we have not been able to say in Africa. We has been there on our very first day to stock up on bottled water.

Sitting at the airport, six hours before our flight, we reflected on the last six days. One week ago from today, we were on a plane heading to Ghana, wide-eyed and unaware of what we would experience, especially with the teachers when teaching Speak To Children's program. We learned that it's important to remember why we came. We were here to make a difference in teacher and children's lives. Regardless of the sleeping conditions, uncertainties with the food, sensory overload when out and about, or exhaustion from the heat, we learned to adapt and be patience with the conditions around us. We leave Ghana today with the memories of the smiles on the teachers faces that we trained, and the smiles/awe that the children had toward us. We walk away knowing that despite the severe poverty that is present within this society, the peaceful and hospitable people of Ghana made this journey beautiful. Thank you, Ghana. We hope to return soon. 

Oh but wait...Ghana was not ready to let us go just yet. As we waited for our flight, and continued to wait, we got the message over the loudspeaker about our flight being cancelled with no other flights available until 2pm the next day. Well, thank you Ghana for showing us how much you want us to stay and for testing our patience yet again. 8 hours in an airport with chaos all around, confusion, people angry about the cancellation...what an interesting way to end the day. We have been put up in a hotel for the night and we shall see what the day brings tomorrow. We have no clue when we will arrive in Harare. We will need to figure that out at the airport tomorrow...so who knows what other tests of patience might present themselves.

After a long day, we wish you all a pleasant rest of the day as we go to bed.

Cheers to another adventure!

Giulietta and Melanie

Picture of Cape Coast

Connection counts

Today we trained the small staff of three at ICRI - Ghana headquarters. As we went and sat on the outdoor porch, hidden from the hot sun, we noticed children from a school next door peaking over the fence at us. As we sat in a circle we began our intimate training while the children at the ICRI preschool were napping.

Melanie opened the training with an introduction of Speak To Children and the program's purpose.  As we sat almost knee to knee with the teachers, there was something especially intimate about how we were able to connect with the teachers. As we went through the training we witnessed the teacher's understanding and excitement about the program. While Giulietta taught her portion of the program, they relaxed more and more as she shared her topics. Melanie talked about the importance of being connected to how it feels to incorporate these concepts in the teacher's lives. It felt as though a light switch had been turned on inside this hearts and minds of these teachers, their eyes seemed to glimmer with excitement.They were connecting the fact that not only could their students benefit from the program, but they themselves could as well. They were extremely welcoming of us and the program overall. We could also see their genuine love for teaching children as they talked about their preschoolers and their own children at home. 

As we wrapped up the training with the teachers, we got a chance to chat with one of the teachers who attended the two day training session privately as we hung out in the office. The amazing thing about this young woman was just how well and how quickly she got the essence of the program. We asked her if she enjoys teaching and whether there was some other job she would prefer. She explained that she does enjoy teaching, but she loves serving and helping others as much as she can. As she explained this it made total sense. Giulietta had noticed her in the training and how helpful she was with everything and anything, She was was always the first one to get up and help someone, even if she happened to be in the back of the room, or c on the other side of the classroom, she was the first to squeeze through to lend a helping hand. It stuck out to Giulietta and the conversation today helped explain why. How wonderful is that? 

She talked to us about the culture of the Ghanian people and the importance of faith for this community. We asked her to elaborate on this and her response was really inspiring. She explained that amongst all the chaos in the world, war, political unrest, people hurting others, believing in a supreme being brings hope and comfort to the Ghanian people. She explained that Ghana is a pretty peaceful country compared to the rest of the African countries, especially those bordering Ghana. So, many Ghanians pray that the unrest present in the neighboring countries does not enter Ghana so that this culture can be preserved.

In addition to sharing the faith present within the culture, she also shared some other cultural things. The one that made us reflect was that taking or giving something with your right hand was a sign of respect and that you should never take or give with your left hand. We had no idea. We began reflecting on our time spent with the Ghanians and teachers we trained, did we give anything or take something with our left hand? We hoped we didn't offend anyone. She also explained that Ghanians understand when whites do not uphold this cultural morae.

We then asked her what Ghanians thought about Americans. She explained that Ghanians thought of people in the U.S. as being loving and kind people. Phew. We also asked her about some of the reactions we have gotten from children over the last couple days. She explained that some of the children had never seen a white person before, so they look at us in either shock, awe, or some may be frightened all together. We had suspected as much and this suspicion came to life when one of the preschoolers who had just woken up from a nap came into the room we were in. His name is Gerald. He walked in and his eyes got quite big as he stared at Giulietta. As Giulietta tried talking to him he just stared back in total surprise. Melanie also tried just about everything to bring Gerald out of his shell to speak, but the most he would do was raise his eyebrows and nod. Although he never uttered a word, he did agree to have his photo taken.

Today ends our training, but we know that as long as we stay connected to ourselves, our learning will continue thoughtout our journey in Africa.

Melanie and Giulietta

Gerald posing for the photo.

Group photo with Gerald and his friend. 

In the hearts and minds of teachers and children

There are many ways for people to learn. One way that has been successful for Melanie is to reveal the benefits of embracing Speak To Children's program.That strategy has consistently worked for teachers and childen. Today, once again, it was evident. Her ability to connect with teachers, help them understand how they benefit from the program has proved itself while we watched them teaching Speak To Children's program to their students. Having Giulietta share in the facilitation further cemented the success.

When we arrived in the scorching heat to each school, we were greeted by wide eyed childen in uniforms, waving and yelling out "Hello! You are welcome!"  Even the teachers were thrilled to see us visit them, welcoming us into their classrooms with open arms. 

 We watched five teachers demonstrate three topics: What it means to have a conscience, self- esteem, sharing and appreciation. Four of the five teachers were part of Giulietta's group during the facilitation and practice sessions over the course of the two days. Watching them practice what they learned with the children and see them bring the content to life was quite heartwarming. 

The teachers we visited from the training program did a good job teaching children. All the children fully understood each concept and participated in the learning. Each classroom had wood desks, a chalkboard and a stick which we believed they used to establish order in the classroom. In fact, at one of the schools we visited, we actually witnessed a teacher hitting children with a stick. We were shocked. That teacher was not part of our training, but it made us think about how common that form of discipline is in schools. We reflected on how the program could change the teacher's behavior. We believe we have begun to build trust with the teachers and following up is key to continue to change their behavior. The next step is to encourage the teachers to use Speak To Children's program as the alternative to using the stick.

While we visited the classrooms, the voice of the children singing, spelling the words appreciation, conscience, and sharing had Melanie in awe. We were in an Afirican classroom listening to teachers enthusiastically utilizing the curriculum that Melanie created to help children become who they deserved to be. There were moments for both of us that were magical, witnessing how sweet and open these children were while learning. 

 

When leaving the classroom at one of the schools, the children surrounded us staring, touching our skin, and jumping up to touch Giulietta's hair saying they like it. The amazement and curiosity they had towards us and the fact that we were different from them was the sweetest thing.

It was an absolute pleasure and joy to see the impact we were able to have on these teachers and the children. Tomorrow we will be training a few more teachers at the local ICRI-Ghana office and then our time in Ghana will come to an end. It was been amazing so far and we look forward to the adventures and impact we will have in the places to come. 

"Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all." - Aristotle 

With gratitude,

Melanie and Giulietta

Inspiration comes in all shapes and sizes

The second day of training has come to an end, and it proved to be quite a success! The focus of today was to watch the teachers demonstrate what they learned from yesterday by role playing. There were 18 groups of 4 that presented. Each group had one participant act as the teacher, while the rest were students. Each group demonstrated the learning perfectly. They incorporated songs, dance, prayers, poems, and more in each lesson. It was truly amazing to see the content come to life. Melanie's Speak to Children program has literally traveled around the world and is impacting the lives of students and teachers. Truly amazing. What an accomplishment! 

Watching the teachers present the material in these new ways was truly an inspiration to us. It's amazing to see how these individuals internalize the material as well as their passion for wanting to make a difference in not only children's lives, but the lives of all Ghanians. 

We were inspired by the teachers exerburence and the way they embraced the program. The teachers were all shapes and sizes yet their exuberance and ability to inspire us were equally moving to Giulietta and Melanie. It is evident to us the teachers embraced the topics from Speak To Children for their students and for themselves. As we know, if you want to see a change in anyone, you must change their behavior. At the end of today's training, we observed that the teachers were ready to teach Speak to Children's program and that they understood the value of the program for themselves.

At the end of the day, Melanie conducted a mini lecture about Paying it Forward. She introduced the concept to the teachers, asking them to pay forward what they learned over the course of these two days to others around them. It was wonderful to see the teachers engaged and intrigued by this concept. After the closing, we presented certificates to each of the participants (oh by the way, the number of teachers grew today. So we trained approximately 90 teachers in total over the course of the 2 days). The participants expressed their gratitude for the opportunity to attend this session and being able to have food and water at the training as well. We pass on the gratitude to all of you, for without your contributions, we have not been able to make this happen. So, Thank you!!

Tomorrow we are off to visit the local schools to observe the teachers implement the material in their classrooms. So excited!

As we wrap up this post, we leave you with a quote: 

“Giving is a universal opportunity. Regardless of your age, profession, religion, income bracket, and background, you have the capacity to create change." - Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen 

With gratitude,

Giulietta and Melanie

What really matters...

After a long day of training,waking up at 4am, we are sitting outside our hotel discussing the events of today and what really mattered. We traveled for 1.5 hours on dirt roads, surrounded by cars, people, and animals, trying to arrive at our final destination where we would train teachers who were patiently awaiting us. We planned on training 60 teachers but that slowly grew to 86. There were many unexpected twists and turns to our day, but what really mattered after all was said and done was that the teachers enjoyed the training. There were engaged, exuberant and open to learning.

One thing we have noticed in our travels in Accra is that this society is very religious. Each of the shops we've seen has a reference to God and there are Christian based churches all around - Catholic, Pentecostal, Evangelical, Methodist, Presbyterian, you name it. They are all within blocks of each other. This was reinforced today when we learned that traditional training sessions open and close in prayer. 

Mr. Alexander Anoff led us in prayer as he kicked off the day, talking about the importance of having a vision and goals in order to fulfill one's dream. He supplemented this point by saying that we have to have zeal in our life -- start off the day with it and end the day with it. Although we weren't expecting this, upon reflection, it was actually the perfect way to begin the day and tie the key learnings from his message to the curriculum we taught. 

The begining of training to a sea of faces with no expression set the tone for Melanie to become more animated. The room was packed, humidity was high, yet we we able to bring the attendees out of their shell. By the time Giulietta went up to facilitate, the attendees had opened open and were more engaged. As Giulietta presented, Melanie watched thinking, "wow, this is amazing. Never could I have imagined being in Africa, watching another person train teachers how to deliver Speak to Children's program." The day was filled with laughter, song and dance. The teachers were truly engaged. There were moments when we both couldn't believe we were in Africa training teachers. Thanks to you, we we able to witness some amazing moments. The teachers were understanding the concepts and were having fun. Initially, the teachers had a challenge understanding how to pronounce Appreciation, but by the end of the day, the teachers were chanting a-ppre- she - ate!

We also got to learn some local customs and language! In Ghana, when you are born, your first name is the name of the day of the week your were born. Then, when you are given a name, they add the ending of your name to the day of the week as a sort of nickname. So, Giulietta learned what her Ghanian name is...she was born on a Monday, which is Adjua for female  (no clue if spelling is correct). Then, they added the last portion of her name to it, so she went by Adjuata during the day. Not only did Giulietta learn her name, but, as expected, she started picking up some of the local language, taking mini-lessons from some of the teachers. Anyone who knows Giulietta knows that she never passes up an opportunity to learn a new language, so she took advantage when possible! Melanie wasn't sure which day she was born, but we looked it up so we will be able to learn her name tomorrow. :-) 

After the session, we got a chance to visit the ICRI Ghana headquarters where we met some of the preschoolers. As we walked into the preschool, there was a sea of toddlers running around that immediately paused and looked up at us in amazement. Two of the kids ran up to Giulietta, taking a hold of her legs and hugging her tightly. It was the cutest thing ever and even made her tear up a bit. One little boy in particular just held on, looking up at her with his big eyes. It's moments like these that fill one's heart with such joy and makes you appreciate what is around you. 

The day was filled with challenges, traffic, heat, interesting foods and unexpected program changes. Yet, even though there were a lot of things that happened that we weren't expecting, it all worked out. What really mattered was that the teachers whole heartedly embraced Speak to Children's program. Because of your support, 86 teachers left the training understanding the concepts and will demonstrate what they learned tomorrow.

That's all for now, folks. We leave you with a quote.

"Time has a wonderful way of showing us what really matters"

Giulietta and Melanie

ICRI Ghana headquarters

Typical classroom.

Melanie facilitating the morning session.

Teachers demonstrating Appreciation. 

Group sessions to practice what they learned.

Song and dance break!

ICRI Ghana and Speak to Chilren team photo.

Adorable preschoolers!

Look at these cuties!

We landed in Ghana!

Happy Father's Day! It's 5:18am, Monday, in Accra, Ghana. We are happy to have landed after a very long 15 hour journey. Before landing, while Giulietta was fast asleep, Melanie snapped a photo of the Africian sky to document the first moments of seeing Affica. So exciting.

We landed Saturday night at 6:55 pm. After weaving through customs, grabbing our luggage(phew), we were greeted by our collegue Eben, the Director of ICRI Ghana. As we drove to our hotel, although night had fallen, Accra was filled with crowded streets, festive music and natives carrying lots of wares on their heads. The rest of the evening was filled with getting settled, covering our beds with mosquito nets, and oh yes, watching Italy win their first game in the World Cup! We were asleep before our heads hit the pillow.

Sunday was filled with a British breakfast of hot dogs and red beans, bad coffee and a tour of Accra. As we toured Accra, we spotted an Italian shop which we anxiously entered in search for coffee! We finally got some decent espresso at this coffee shop where Giulietta stirred up conversation with another fellow Italian from Tuscany. The rest of the day was spent preparing for the training of the teachers and enjoying an outdoor meal on the beach until jet lag hit us.

We are now off for our first day of training and looking forward to what's in store!

Sweet dreams America!

Giulietta and Melanie 

First sighting of Africa!

Welcome to Ghana!

Streets of Accra

National Ghana Museum

Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park