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Published: December 30th 2007
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The Christmas Cocks
Our Christmas gifts Ruby and Frosty (who was tethered to my kitchen table). The atmosphere this Christmas season in Ghana is ... quite. You may remember last July Ghana changed its currency. It has been an amazingly smooth transition. For the past 6 months both currencies have been in circulation. January 1, 2008 the “old currency” will no longer be legal tender. With the rising cost of oil our fuel prices have been steadily on the rise the entire year. Since last summer our gas has been selling at $5 per gallon. In Ghana “what goes up, does not necessarily come down”. The high cost of fuel and transportation helped boost the inflation to 25-30%. Ouch! I believe this is much of the reason for this years “quiet Christmas”.
What does Christmas in Ghana look like? The Ghanaians follow the British tradition of celebrating “Boxing Day”. As I understand it, December 26th is the day the British share “boxes” (gifts) with their employees, house help etc. In our rural area of Ghana on the afternoon of the 26th children dress up in their new Christmas outfit and go door to door greeting members in each house "a-fish-a-pa" (Merry Christmas). In return each house will distribute candy, gum, money, etc. The adults generally prepare
Making Christmas Cookies
Kwabena, Praises little friend Kwame, Praise and Kirk a food dish and deliver portions as a gift to their friends and neighbors.
A live chicken is a special Christmas gift. Kirk and I returned to the village during the night to find a cock tied to the leg of my kitchen table. He was the second cock we received this year. You may also receive a crate of 36 eggs, a large loaf of bread or a bag of perfumed rice.
Personally, this was my first Christmas to sing holiday songs while mowing the lawn! Singing while shoveling snow yes, but mowing the lawn … hmmm? With this years birthday money Kirk decided to buy a lawn mower. Mowing in the African heat is quite different from mowing in the Michigan or North Dakota sun. As I really do enjoy mowing lawn, there I was mowing and singing away on Christmas day in (perspiration and) preparation for the next weeks many visitors. For the entire 13yrs that we’ve had an African lawn, it has been “mowed” with pure man power and a machete. Man power is the way most work is done here. Machines are hard to find and expensive for Ghanaians to maintain and operate.
In their Christmas Frills
village girls dressed in their new Christmas Frills come to greet "a-fish-a-pa" (Merry Christmas) Our lawn has always looked very nice when freshly cut … but now … wow … we just sit and take in the view. It’s beautiful!
School reopens January 15th so I still have two weeks left of vacation. We expect more visitors the end of this week. As a result of some Special Gifts, the following week (4days-3nights) will be spent at a nice hotel on the beach! Ahh …. Thank You and God Bless!
Forget making any New Year’s resolutions. Just go with the flow and do what you can! And have a Very Happy New Year!
Christine & Co
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Sandy
non-member comment
Merry Christmas!
Hi Kirk and Christine, Praise, Hannah, and all other friends there in your village in Ghana! I enjoyed your update and am glad you have had a blessed Christmas and hosting your guests. I was blessed to host Consuelo and Eric York last Sunday night as they have been in NC for a few months. I gave her your contact info, so you should hear from her. God bless you in 2008...you are a blessing!! Love, Sandy