Elle & Sunny stayin' warm. Yes, Aunt Linda, that is Elle's baby towel. She sleeps with it, plays with it & refuses to let the boys touch it.
It's been raining every day. The only Ghanaian I've ever heard complain about the rain is a friend who lives in a low lying area & the rains bring a pond of water up to her front door. "Ah," she says, "The rain, it is too much." In rainy season many exceptions are made as people endure the rain. If a school child is caught in the rain or must wash a very muddy uniform there is no chance it will dry by morning. So they are allowed to wear street clothes the next day. If children are not in school we are often told it is because of the rain. I would have to ask a headmaster how acceptable that excuse is!
Last year our co-workers has made an appointment with a man to do some work at their house. When he didn't arrive at the specified time, there was no phone calls or frustration. It was raining. The man came two days later. The work was done. Americans, adjust yourself to that kind of flexibility!
We see all sorts of improvised rain gear. From banana frond umbrellas while waiting for transportation to plastic bag rain hats. No one wants a wet weave. ;) Jon snapped a picture out the window, showing the latest fashion in rain gear.
Average rainfall 83 inches, 8 inches of it being in June here in the coastal plains. (wikipedia) Air quality improves (less garbage/refuse smell), plants grow immensely & mosquitoes spread the malaria parasite.
3 foot deep concrete gutters here in our neighborhood & large canal type water channels are present in Accra to carry the rainwater. But in our part of town, trash, & eroded dirt almost fill our gutters. Water runoff is not part of the building code (smile) so the dirt roads carry pockmarks & craters.
Rainy season especially the months of June & July are marked by dreary days punctuated by downpours that fill the rain barrels & soak the laundry in seeming seconds. Some days play the game of alternating sun & rain. Sometimes I play along: wash out, wash in, wash out. Musty smelling indoor dried laundry compels me to chase the sunshine.
So when this week ended with 3 sunny days in a row, I did a happy two-step the whole way to the wash line.
Max scrubbing muddy shoes quickly while the sun is shining. He is a great help to me!
Rainy season Sundays are especially challenging. The cool rain keeps the windows up most of the way & fogs up the windshield. Our defrost? The multifunctional hankie. It serves to wave in worship, cover a women's head in church, wipe up & dust off.
A jolting 1.5 hr drive to Adawukwao left Rory with his chin in a plastic bag & Max trying to keep his eyes on the horizon. He is not convinced (Mom, I gave you due credit. Max, Grandma always told me do that &, for goodness sakes, put the book down!).
A misty rain kept us cool during the service & made enough mud that Elle & Rory got back in the truck to leave streaked with dirt. Rory's hands were even cold to touch. But we did get to see Pas. Frank's new baby son, Kingsley. Very cute.
Were we local church members we would have lifted a stack of plastic chairs or tossed that infamous hankie over our head to dash home. And I would have pulled out the heels & for Jon, the white dress pants. And return home with them spotless. It's an amazing thing! Let's remember we are guests & for now are leaving the heels & white pants at home. :)
We are enjoying the cooler temperatures, hearing the children say they are cold & doing our share of watching it storm from the front porch. Tomatoes are growing, a flowering vine (whose name & seed packet have long been discarded) has overcome it's bug infestation & is climbing & flowering. The bougainvillea is over the wire (!) at several places.
State of the union is rainy. Spirit of the union is cheerful (37 more days!!).
A Sunday afternoon storm watch. With blankets & books. After, of course, Max & Elle indulged in some puddle splashing & a dip in the rain barrel.
No comments:
Post a Comment