Welcome Home: You want pictures? I got pictures

We've been back in the states now for just about two weeks, just enough time to catch our breath and return to some version of normalcy. (**Phew** wipes sweat off brow, what's next)

So do you want to see some pictures?

No? Well ok, if you say so.

Just kidding, of course you want to see pictures.

This little guy, I can't decide if he wants to share his cookie, or if he's mad that Katrina asked. 

This is Linda. I know we're not supposed to have favorites, but if I did, she'd be it. She was so smart, and so willing to learn. She was also really good at keeping the little ones out of the way while we were working. She was like Brandy's shadow. Her grandmother was one of the cooks at the home, and she was living with her. So technically she's not a resident of the home, but she does live there. In my mind she's a symbol of the potential in Ghana. Given the right environment, she would excel to no end. 

I hadn't met Mumuni before this trip, but I felt like I already knew him, having heard so much about him. When we arrived the first day, he ran across the campus to meet us, and I recognized him immediately. (For whatever reason, he always wears blue) Whenever we needed something, or someone, Mumuni was the man to ask.

This is the kitchen. Excuse me, this is the old kitchen. The women prepared the vegetables on the ground either on the porch or just outside the door to this little room. Linda's grandmother showed us the heat rash and blisters she had on her chest and back from working in this small poorly ventilated shack day in and out. By creating the new kitchen for them, we provided a more sanitary environment in which to prepare the food that the children eat. 

This was the fireman. He trained the women on how to use the system. Which was really cool because he was able to do it in their native language. This was call and response in action. As he was explaining the women kept up a kind of rhythmic "mmm" sound. He showed them everything from how to turn on the system, turn it off, and even how to use the fire extinguisher. 

I couldn't have timed this better if I had tried. Cesar and Nicole were so surprised that our coolers for the grease trap and distribution box came with extras. Bonus!

Prit really got in there and worked amazingly hard. Like superman hard. (I wonder if he has a secret super hero identity). Whether it was filling in the infiltration pit, or sawing really wet wood by hand, he gave it 150% despite the heat.

Heather was the keeper of the tools. She was also really good at making me stop and consider before I charged ahead. I couldn't imagine a better person to go to Ghana with.

Brandy worked hard too, and she never turned her nose up at any task we gave her, whether it was painting, or just herding children with Linda. I'm mostly giving mad props to Brandy because she was totally willing to play in the mud with me. "We had the history of civilization under our fingernails."

Did I mention we got to meat the chief of the village where the Children's Home is in Tamale? We totally did, and he was rocking the aviator shades.

We got to meet his horse too. While everyone else was looking at the camera, I was like look! a horse!

Amber and Sam helped Nicole with the infiltration pit, while Linda mugged for the camera. Cocoa bags are so versatile. Sam was like everywhere doing something or another. Digging, cleaning, smiling, etc. Amber helped Lyssa wrangle children while they surveyed their health. Wrangling toddlers is tougher than most people give credit to. 

Cody spent a lot of time working on his pre-assessment for next year. But that didn't stop him from helping us too. He and Sean mastered the clog over at another part of the compound as well. 

Natalie helped by marking the lines we had to cut to perforate the pipe network. At one point she helped shovel concrete into a form. 

Lyssa spent a lot of time documenting the health and well being of the children so that we can use it for a baseline next year. It took a lot of patience to try and document all those babies. Like truckloads of patience. It doesn't sound like much, but it was a really important part of making our project meet EWB-USA guidelines for monitoring the project success. 

Everyone pitched in to make the project a success, but none of it would have been possible without our professors and mentors. They guided us, kept us safe, and tried to maintain their sanity. (Which they did admirably well). 

Marcia learned some new skills. (Outside of dealing with crazy/irreverent engineering students).

"Looks like you boys got yourself a pump"  Seriously, Dr. Eason knows enough general information about everything to be just good enough to make anything happen. It's like magic. It is NOT like the t-shirt on Think Geek, "Stand Back, I'm going to try science"

Sean had no qualms about digging right in to fix that clog. Sean's hair on the other hand waved loftily in the breeze and remained above it all. Sean's pants instantly regretted the splattering of black nastiness that spewed all over once the pipe was punctured.

I wonder who told a joke that had Katrina and me laughing so hard. Oh wait, it was likely Dr. Eason. 

Despite all the hard work and the heat, this trip was fun. Not just fun, but FUN. I miss seeing everyone at breakfast, hanging out throughout the day, riding the bus with Alex, and then reliving it all again at dinner. I especially miss the one-liners and pop culture references, and the Sears catalog menswear pose. (I've got my towel). But in all seriousness,  the work we did at the Children's Home was immensely satisfying. It was an experience I'm not likely to have again any time soon.

Maria