So this post has nothing to do with what I'm doing at the moment. These two things I'm going to post, actually it may only be one for now, I'm not sure if i want to re-write one of them. These two(?) things I'm posting were written one after the other in the first week of prep-month. We had just finished watching ,Life and Debt, a documentary about Jamaica. I wanted to started journaling but i couldn't, i didn't start journaling until i arrived in Ghana. Instead i just started thinking about certain things and all of a sudden words started writing themselves on paper. Usually if i write something i need to think for a while but these just started flowing from some where. When I finished writing i didn't really look at them again. I read them a few times here in Ghana and thought they might be something to post. These are the writings and at this moment i'm laughing really hard as I'm reading what I'm writing. It's like a huge build up to something crazy but it's not. It's just the babblings of Mark Lanca but i always share my babblings how ever true or untrue, ridiculous or not.
Let it be known that all things are up for debate and let it be heard that all things learned must be questioned. People have a tendency to take things for granted. Whether it be knowledge or being materialistic. My fear is that there are those out there that are taking the passivity and the status quo to heart. People have subtly been conditioned to take everything as truth and that our current path has no where left but up. The thought that all we have is damaging and something of a worldwide concern, will be something people will rally against. Again the thought of those on the fence will be that they must give up everything, so they won't and they will go with those that have told them how to live, what to buy, how to act, what to wear, how to consume, what and how to feel and what to do but their concept of this is on of individualism. Hoping to quash the warnings of those that wish to free us, they will pick "their" side, in their minds believing life will always be convenient and free. In the end they will continue to give up there freedoms as has always been done. By trying to accomplish their goals and sustainability, they will lose their only form of life they have known. But as I have yet to see, all will come and pass as the days, months, and years left come to pass. Or everything I, and others, have come to understand is all nothing but a less than fleeting thought. WE SHALL SEE.
I'm going to be free. Free from the pain that has taken place and that's yet to come. Free to express my concerns but will I really be free? As much as I will have is freedom what good will in do. It will be exploited to such a degree that freedom itself will be a contradiction that no one can understand. Right now I'm taking everything that I know is good and wholesome and most, it's fair to say, is a lie. Most countries have been built on the promise of freedom and strive for the well being of their people. It's the means and the path thats been taken which makes these freedoms false. It's taken their people and found those that will achieve their version of freedom by any means necessary. Most of this world knows of these evils that are committed and continue to do nothing. I also have fallen pray to this. No longer can I/We stand by. Something must be done. Countries raped of their hard fought independence by being sold out to companies and corporations. The few benefit from the masses. It's despicable, when I try to think it can't be so but it's the only real truth I know. It's time for people to take back this entire globe for the freedom that has been taken in ways that are known to all, acknowledged by most, cared about by some and helped by little. But the "tiny", and when i say tiny i mean the majority of people, shall prevail and those who have been in need most shall find their stomaches full, brains filled and sores treated.
Not enough time left to double check theses to make sure they make sense, well they came randomly so how much sense can they make, right? Anyways have to go. PEACE AND LOVE
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Monday, November 12, 2007
Village life Pt.1
Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must....undergo the fatigue of supporting it.
-Thomas Paine
So here we go this will defiantly take a few posts. We had a "goodbye" dinner with Jackson, Sister B., Eric, Sala and Happy. It was really nice and they bought us a beer each. But when i say beer i mean a 2/6(for those that don't know they're the 750ml). Let me tell you, I've never had a nun get my tipsy before. Since we haven't had booze for a while it may have gotten to us. So we all got dropped off at our villages. When i came to the village i was greeted by my "mother" Ataa and her the father "old man" who is blind. O and about 30 kids. We all had formal greetings and then sat down while Jackson, Erica and Sister B. talked. As i was sitting there Jackson very non nonchalantly informed me that i would be teaching at the school. Excuse me. Teaching. School. Kids. The. At. They then left and the kids sang for me which put a big smile on my face. This was followed by almost no conversation and me trying to figure our what exactly was going on with this teaching business. When i asked about it she just said"you don't think it's a good idea". I said " O no i do" and we went back to them talking but not to me. She abruptly left and left me with a huge amount of children. Children. I'm defiantly not the most "playey" with children but i adapted. I sat down and they surrounded me. I just did stupid silly things and it made them laugh. Its way easier to entertain kids here. Back at home its usually like,"What, your not an electronic device, I have no use for you."I was then told after about an 1 hour of sitting around with kids, that it was time for my bath.
Bathing here is way different and i love it. You get one bucket of water for your bath and its more that enough, I usually have left over water. When you compare this to that fact that at home one min of showering equals one bucket-it means we waste a lot(thank you Pamela and Colleen for that fact i just stole). You take your bath in a cement block out in the open, its in a square shape and at there's a little hole where the water drains out. I use the case that holds my soap to scoop the water. I love bathing here, especially when its night and the stars are out. The day is sweet too cause there's a huge mango tree in my compound(house are) that comes partly over the bathing area. So after bathing we ate dinner and i tried to talk but it never went anywhere so i decided to go to sleep after dinner. I thought it would be nice to get some alone head space but i was informed i would be sharing the bed with another guy my age. Excellent. My bed is just an extremely springy(not the nice bounce kind but the metal poky kind) mattress barley off the floor. It was very hot in the room all the more because the roof was metal sheets but sleep came none the less.
In the morning the no conversation continued and i headed to school. The school consisted of K's Class 1,2,3 (2 and 3 were a shared class). The school system all together works like this K-Class6 then JSS1-4 then SSS1-3. But in this village you would have to go out of it to attend the other classes. I was met by a barrage of children who were suppose to be sweeping. They all stopped their sweeping and came over to see me. Once the class 1 teacher came over he introduced himself to me and told all the kids to go to assembly. Then the K teacher/head mistress introduced herself. I was to be teaching in the class 2/3 room and had yet to met the teacher. As I was waiting in the class room I could hear some yelling and screaming. Slowly more and more kids started crying and as i went to poke my head our to see what was going on the class 2/3 teacher came in. I later found out from Ataa what had happened when i went home for lunch. Laughing she said"Did you see all the children getting beat, they didn't do there sweeping." O, great because of me the kids got beat, super. And the beating didn't stop or for that matter the lack of education or the lack of proper teaching. Over the next 4 days that i went to school my ability to stay sane and happy slowly deteriorated but I'm good at pretending and hiding how i really feel so no one was the wiser. But i don't think if i did so any inkling of change they would have asked if i was alright. So the beating/canning, lets begin. Actually at this point extremely tired and i need a nap. But don't worry things have changed some what, you'll understand more once I update next which will be within the week. Now I'm at a much happier place than before. O and drinking coconuts is awesomely delicious. All right I'm tired, till next time. PEACE(don't beat your kids, you'll get wrinkles?)
-Thomas Paine
So here we go this will defiantly take a few posts. We had a "goodbye" dinner with Jackson, Sister B., Eric, Sala and Happy. It was really nice and they bought us a beer each. But when i say beer i mean a 2/6(for those that don't know they're the 750ml). Let me tell you, I've never had a nun get my tipsy before. Since we haven't had booze for a while it may have gotten to us. So we all got dropped off at our villages. When i came to the village i was greeted by my "mother" Ataa and her the father "old man" who is blind. O and about 30 kids. We all had formal greetings and then sat down while Jackson, Erica and Sister B. talked. As i was sitting there Jackson very non nonchalantly informed me that i would be teaching at the school. Excuse me. Teaching. School. Kids. The. At. They then left and the kids sang for me which put a big smile on my face. This was followed by almost no conversation and me trying to figure our what exactly was going on with this teaching business. When i asked about it she just said"you don't think it's a good idea". I said " O no i do" and we went back to them talking but not to me. She abruptly left and left me with a huge amount of children. Children. I'm defiantly not the most "playey" with children but i adapted. I sat down and they surrounded me. I just did stupid silly things and it made them laugh. Its way easier to entertain kids here. Back at home its usually like,"What, your not an electronic device, I have no use for you."I was then told after about an 1 hour of sitting around with kids, that it was time for my bath.
Bathing here is way different and i love it. You get one bucket of water for your bath and its more that enough, I usually have left over water. When you compare this to that fact that at home one min of showering equals one bucket-it means we waste a lot(thank you Pamela and Colleen for that fact i just stole). You take your bath in a cement block out in the open, its in a square shape and at there's a little hole where the water drains out. I use the case that holds my soap to scoop the water. I love bathing here, especially when its night and the stars are out. The day is sweet too cause there's a huge mango tree in my compound(house are) that comes partly over the bathing area. So after bathing we ate dinner and i tried to talk but it never went anywhere so i decided to go to sleep after dinner. I thought it would be nice to get some alone head space but i was informed i would be sharing the bed with another guy my age. Excellent. My bed is just an extremely springy(not the nice bounce kind but the metal poky kind) mattress barley off the floor. It was very hot in the room all the more because the roof was metal sheets but sleep came none the less.
In the morning the no conversation continued and i headed to school. The school consisted of K's Class 1,2,3 (2 and 3 were a shared class). The school system all together works like this K-Class6 then JSS1-4 then SSS1-3. But in this village you would have to go out of it to attend the other classes. I was met by a barrage of children who were suppose to be sweeping. They all stopped their sweeping and came over to see me. Once the class 1 teacher came over he introduced himself to me and told all the kids to go to assembly. Then the K teacher/head mistress introduced herself. I was to be teaching in the class 2/3 room and had yet to met the teacher. As I was waiting in the class room I could hear some yelling and screaming. Slowly more and more kids started crying and as i went to poke my head our to see what was going on the class 2/3 teacher came in. I later found out from Ataa what had happened when i went home for lunch. Laughing she said"Did you see all the children getting beat, they didn't do there sweeping." O, great because of me the kids got beat, super. And the beating didn't stop or for that matter the lack of education or the lack of proper teaching. Over the next 4 days that i went to school my ability to stay sane and happy slowly deteriorated but I'm good at pretending and hiding how i really feel so no one was the wiser. But i don't think if i did so any inkling of change they would have asked if i was alright. So the beating/canning, lets begin. Actually at this point extremely tired and i need a nap. But don't worry things have changed some what, you'll understand more once I update next which will be within the week. Now I'm at a much happier place than before. O and drinking coconuts is awesomely delicious. All right I'm tired, till next time. PEACE(don't beat your kids, you'll get wrinkles?)
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