Makala Market & Goodbyes

February 5, 2015

Bernice and Girls

Today we went with Bernice to the Makala Market to buy fabric, or textiles as they call it here.  Now this was the craziest place I’ve ever been.  Bernice told us NO pictures, keep our bags or purses in front of us at all times and stay close because she would walk fast.  Bernice is the kindest person but also a business woman, very passionate about her charities and I get the feeling someone you just don’t mess with.

Have you ever walked down the street of NYC when the sidewalks are super crowded and you are constantly bumping people both ways?  Now picture this kind of busy street in literally a two foot width of space with shack type shopping booths lining both sides of this super narrow path, all within a giant maze with uneven rocky cement type floors.  If Bernice had not been with us, I promise you we would have been stuck inside this labyrinth and never been able to find our way out.  It was so insane!

Patti

I so wish I could have had a video camera rolling the whole time.  It was fascinating and unnerving and claustrophobic and so African all at the same time.  Mothers carrying babies on their backs with baskets on their heads, men with entire crates of eggs on their heads all weaving and bumping into us all as we moved and not once holding onto their loads on their heads.  The balance these people have with the goods they carry on top of their heads is unbelievable.  Preacher ladies YELLING through microphones, I mean YELLING to the point my ears hurt.  Raw fish and oysters, vegetables, nuts and anything else you would like to buy.  Toiletries, shoes, fabric, food, clothing, you name it.  In some ways it was like an ancient Walmart in a maze of dark faces, cement and dirt.  We would weave through these areas where one tiny booth would have a sink and a hair dryer and I’m guessing you would call this space a beauty salon and right next to it would be a man selling lobsters or some other shell fish.  Some spaces had a roof and they were very dark and on either side of this narrow aisle which we walked were women sewing with hand cranked sewing machines in what I would consider the dark. Very few of them had any extra lighting.  I often wondered why the hand cranking thing, but after having been here for almost three weeks now, this city has no power more than it has power so human power keeps you working.  Thankfully the temple compound has an enormous generator so we have had electricity most of the time.

Bernice took us to her favorite fabric places…those who would cut for us.  Most of the fabric you are required to buy the whole piece which is 6 yards…a little more than we each wanted since we want to make pieced quilts to remind us of this amazing country. So instead we were able to buy 2 or 3 yard cuts and get more variety in fabrics.  The first booth, however was right next to the crazy preacher woman yelling in the mic and we could hardly shop nor think.  Our goal…finish and get about anywhere we could go away from that noise.  After several fabric “shops” if you can call them that, we took a “tour” through the rest of the market and got a real flavor for the place.  Kitchen stores with baking pans and these cool wood rolling pins with designs carved into them for making cookies.  I couldn’t resist.  I bought three for my 30 cedis (less than $10). 

As we finally weaved our way out and went through the narrow opening that put us back on the street with all the street vendors, it almost seemed as if we’d moved up into more quality shops (and before Makala, I thought these were pretty small and sketchy).  Amanda summed it up perfectly when she said that we had just experienced a place like we will probably never go again.  You could not have gone there without a local guide.  Bernice navigated and directed perfectly.

Rose and helpers

Bernice then took us to lunch at the Noble House, a very good Chinese restaurant (yep...Chinese food in Africa?).  Stanley, one of the Nigerian’s had come with us and he had never eaten Chinese food before.  It was served like we do in the states more family style where you can try all the different dishes.  I think Stanley quite enjoyed himself and there was plenty of food to go around.  We let Bernice take the leftovers home for her family.

When we returned to the temple housing, the others left to walk to another shop close by and I changed into whites and went over to the temple to clean up and put away our tool box and things that needed to dry overnight before storing.  The artwork is hung, most of the furniture is back, the floral arrangements are out and it is almost complete.  They are still working on the Celestial Room and Baptistery areas. It is so beautiful to walk the finished rooms.  The sealing rooms are my favorite where we put up a wide 3 foot leaf design border at the ceiling which matches the carvings in the chairs and decorative paint details in the ceiling.  But honestly, every room is beautiful.  We plan to walk the temple Saturday morning before we leave one last time to see everything complete.

Team USA

Tonight was the farewell dinner.  Rose invited everyone who worked on the temple to be there and most of the locals Ghanaians were able to come. The food was beautiful and it felt like the Thanksgiving meal.  The Nigerians leave tomorrow morning bright and early and we will be leaving Saturday.  The evening was filled with happiness and tons of pictures.  I think Vicky got all her tears out last night and I think mine all came the first week we were here. It’s strange to think that less than three weeks ago we embarked upon a journey that would take us to the unknown and stretch us physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually but one we would not trade for anything.  It seems like we’ve been here forever, but at the same time like we just arrived. However, we now will leave with many new friends forever.  I hope we can keep in touch and that we truly will be back in July 2016 for the next phase.  God be with you my dear African friends!

Alicyn

God is in the Details

Wednesday February 4, 2015

It’s just after 4pm today and I’ve spent the last hour and a half still at the temple after all my crew left.  The cleaning people were really ready to get us out of there.  We spent the morning touching up furniture, gold pots, teal pots, wood trim and anything else that needed a little refreshing.  Before I left to come, I had the thought to put in some Stain & Seal in little containers in case I needed any to touch up the wood trim after we finished painting.  That thought was well heeded as I have been able to mix many colors and mixtures to touch up things here.  I know the Lord really is in the details.

As I was talking with Marcia and Raelynn (the floral missionary ladies), they told me about a sweet experience they had this morning.  They arrived Sunday and they are re-doing all the floral arrangements and trees in the temple here.  Their work is amazing and it has been a privilege to get to know them.  Geoffrey, from Nigeria, watched as they arranged fern in the pot of a tree.  He asked them how they knew about this fern they were adding, which grows in Africa.  They did not know that it was an African fern.  Raelynn told me that the budget for this project was very tight so prior to shipping they were pulling whatever they could from the floral department and then a designer donated a bunch of his extra flowers and greenery, which was all brand new to the department, so they shipped it all.  This greenery was part of that.  We talked about how the Lord is so in the details of everything we do…that we are only His hands but that “God doesn’t do random” as one of Danika’s good friends always writes in her missionary letters home.  These women have seen so many miracles in the work they do and having the right flowers for each location.  It’s been a great experience to share with them the last couple of days.

Marcia had noticed several chips in the pots that they were re-doing and asked if I had any products I could mix to touch them up.  At first I thought, no…I don’t have anything in that color…and then the ideas came.  I had gold mica powder that was able to be mixed with some stain I had and water to get the 14K gold pots refreshed.  Then I remembered the temple president showing me a suitcase in one of their closets with stain sticks for their wood and had the thought that maybe there were other colors in there.  Sure enough, powdered colors that mixed with water and paint gave us the teal blue we needed for the other pots.

It was super peaceful for me this morning as we fixed a few more dings in the walls (actually Sunday fixed them for practice under my direction), fixed a few darker spots in the Celestial room walls that bothered us, and helped move furniture, scaffolding and pull up all our dark plastic floor coverings.  The temple was starting to come together as they cleaned carpets and put back the sconce light fixtures into our walls.

Some of the spots on the walls in the Celestial room that we needed to fix were of course, pretty high, so the men brought in an extension ladder and I climbed to fix them.  At one point I was about as high as you can go (as in I’m out of rungs to climb) and I’m smashed against the wall reaching as high as I can on my tippy toes.  Usually this position feels super scary and I’m very off-balanced but I almost felt as if I was secured and balanced today…hard to explain…but not really.  The corner needed fixing and it was the only option we had.  Stanley held my ladder, Vicky loaded and handed me product and three or four of the other Nigerians were all giving me directions to fix the corner.  In the end it was much better and I’m glad we were able to do it.  Vicky told me I was balancing super well.  I told her it really wasn’t me.

After everyone from my crew had left, I was just getting ready to leave and decided to go see the sealing room finished with the light fixtures, carpet cleaned and furniture put back in. Just as I walked in I noticed a little brown spot on the newly cleaned carpets and was afraid it was from some of the stain we had used earlier to touch up the wood legs on the chairs. Praying that all would work, I was able to remove the brown spot and it looks new again.  I noticed one of the crystal chains hanging loose on a wall sconce and noticed it was missing the last gold hook to connect it to the fixture. So, with one of the cleaning sisters and my sewing kit I brought for the sponge rollers, we were able to do a little sewing to put the crystal chain back together and attach it.  It took us a long time since many of the crystals had not been put back together in the correct order and it was like a beautiful crystal puzzle trying to figure out what had to move where to get the appropriate lengths, or at least something that didn’t look all wrong.  I think the sister I was working with was more excited about fixing the light than I was.

Michael's Shoe

When we finished, they were putting back most of the art work in the hall and it was beyond beautiful.  They have some very unique pieces that I’ve never seen before from African landscapes to beautiful black women kneeling in prayer.  I really wish I could take some photos. I’m very excited that we will get to see this project all put back together before we leave on Saturday.

Other memorable moments:

The other day walking back from lunch, Michael was walking funny and I asked him what was wrong.  He pointed to his shoe where the sole had come off from the front and it was flapping, as it was still connected at the heel making it hard to walk.  He did not know what to do since he didn’t have another pair of shoes for the temple.  I told him to come with me and I’d fix him up.  I few strips of duct tape later…he shoe worked like new.  J  Duct tape…such a grand invention.  One roll for here and one roll for Nigeria.

Ennuson gave each one of us a gift in a package today.  Every one of us got a necklace with matching earrings.  Tomorrow night Rose is preparing a farewell dinner for all of us.  We are all going to wear our jewelry for the event.  Ennuson also started passing around his journal so everyone could write a message to him in it.  We decided it was such a great idea that many of us have taken the notebooks we brought and passed them around.  It’s a little bit like yearbook day.  I’m going to wait to read my entries in my book til we get on the plane.  Poor Vicky has been in tears all day as she is not wanting to leave our dear new friends.  I just don’t want to think about it…too hard!

Oscar continues to bring me little gifts each day.  He’s such a sweet man.  Today it was a laminated quote from Gordon B. Hinckley which reads, “We Reach Toward the Unknown, But Faith Lights the Way.  If We Will Cultivate That Faith, We Shall Never Walk in Darkness.”

Martin asked Mark if he was going to take his “boots” home with him.  Mark wasn’t sure what he meant and he pointed to his shoes.  Mark asked if he wanted them and Martin replied they would be good for him for school.  Most of these workers have been working in socks, barefeet or temple slippers.  Mark took the shoes off his feet and gave them to Martin.  He has been giving most of his shirts and shoes away to the men.  I’m pretty sure Mark will go home with only his flip flops and the clothes on his back.

Suzie made Mark and Camron shirts.  The prints are pretty awesome!

I gave Rose (our cook) an envelope yesterday morning with a thank you card and some cash.  Last night I was a little late for dinner and Mark told me that Rose’s granddaughters were waiting for us all to eat so they could leave.  I think they were waiting for me since one immediately came up to me to tell me that Rose said “thank you so much” for the card.  Then she added, my grandma was jumping up and down for joy when she opened the card.  It’s amazing what so little can do to lift their spirits.

The last few morning devotionals we have been videotaping with our phones.  It will be so much sweeter than just still pictures since you can hear their lovely accents and feel their giant spirits.  Oscar carried his keyboard here the other day just so Michael could play it and we could sing all together with accompaniment.  Music really does invite the spirit.

I can plan on what is for every meal.  It makes eating simple.  Cracked Wheat, Oatmeal or some kind of white rice/mush for breakfast and if you’re brave, crazy meat sandwiches with some kind of fruit.  Lunch is always Epa with soup (for the locals definitely), hot spicy rice, cole slaw type salad, chicken or fish and bread (only since we requested it… most of us make sandwiches…thank goodness for shipping PB & Honey and packaged tuna and chicken).  Dinner is the same…plain rice, cole slaw salad, more local food that most of us skip due to the intense spices, chicken or fish, and maybe some fruit.  At least I would never have to be creative for dinner.  I’m looking forward to a wider American food option when we return.

Man Ironing

Kaby brought his weavings in larger sewn together pieces.  I bought a blanket/afghan.  It’s much cooler than just something I could have purchased at the local market because I know the man who made it…one I have worked closely by for the past couple of weeks.

India Temple

Well, I’m sure there are countless other moments I would like to record but I can’t think of them right now. I talked to Camron earlier and it sounds as if he’s having the adventure of a lifetime in India.  He said he didn’t even know where to begin about his day…that he got some unbelievable film footage and was in places that probably very few white men have ever ventured as he returned to Taj’s boyhood home before he was kidnapped.  They basically traced the exact route that Taj took when he was trying to find his family about 20 years ago. Camron  said he has seen things he would never have seen if he had just come as a tourist.  He also talked about all the people connected with Taj’s story that they randomly ran into today…people Taj hasn’t seen in years.  Camron said, “It is very apparent that God is very involved in this project.”

Alicyn

Birthday Wishes

Monday, February 2, 2015

It’s pretty incredible as I walk the halls of the temple to realize we started this massive project only two weeks ago today.  At that time I felt so overwhelmed at training so many and having the job turn out ok with so many hands on the walls.

Today I walked the halls and rooms as we worked on the “mends” that are inherent in any job this size, and was just in awe at the beautiful work that is truly a miracle.  To take so many brand new people and bring them together and have the final outcome we have, is beyond my comprehension.  So many of them have expressed their great faith to me and the way they know that they were able to do this project was that God was with them.  I know this is true!  With God NOTHING is impossible…even working with 14-17 Africans each day who speak a very different language (even though you might call it English), all from very different backgrounds, all with very different skill levels and have them all be a part of the project and feel successful.  I am grateful beyond words for this incredible opportunity!


We are almost finished.  We should finish the walls by noon tomorrow.  Then we have a giant mess to clean up.  I spent most of the day teaching wall mending to Alex and Kaby, two Ghana men who will be responsible for taking care of the walls here.  They are both painters by trade when they have work so mending was a little easier for them than some of the others would have been.  I know they will do an excellent job in caring for these walls that they now have labored over with so much of their own sweat.  The Nigerian crew finished the baptistery area and I will work on mends with them tomorrow.  They are feeling confident and very excited to go back to Aba, Nigeria to do these finishes in their own temple.  So confident, in fact, that they about gave me a heart attack today.

After finishing the rooms in the baptistery area, which I let them do by themselves, I was pointing out a few lines that needed some fixing and then taught them how to fix them.  So, I left figuring they would un-tape and be done.  When I returned a little while later, I found they had been over zealous in deciding that their walls weren’t good enough and they had started “mending” areas all throughout the walls!  No…no…no…no…no!  One concept I’ve had a hard time getting to sink in is that of “less is more”.  They “over-do” everything and this was totally the wrong choice!  I think this time it might have sunk in since it now took a very long time to fix the walls back to a good condition.  I explained that most of the time they should finish and walk away…that their walls are good enough and they will be the only ones who see the problems…or just fix little things.  Anyways, eventually it all turned out well…but I wanted to cry for a minute there as I pictured the real possibility of painting out that wall and starting over again.  The only good news is it was a relatively small wall in the whole scheme of things.  J

Oscar and the Cooks

We looked at the possible option of moving up our trip home (we fly out Saturday night) but unfortunately the only possibility was Tuesday night and that is just a couple days too soon.  So we will finish up, help do some cleaning in the temple, organize our tools and product to send to three different locations and of course, do some more shopping.  Bernice is taking us to the Makala Market on Thursday so we can buy fabric.  We all want to make a quilt from the beautiful fabrics here to remind us of this beautiful place forever!  The only good thing about not leaving until Saturday is that we will get to see the temple all put back together, clean and beautiful.  Most of the time we leave these jobs looking like a construction zone and never get to see our finished project.  This will be a very rewarding last walk through later this week.

Oscar had brought a cake today since it was Amanda’s birthday Saturday and today was Alex’s birthday.  So we had a party after lunch complete with singing and “faux champagne” with a toast.  Oscar has so little money and yet he is always spending it on others.  When I gave him his card today with the cash in it, I told him it was for him to open at home and it was for his family and no one else.  I sincerely hope he will use it for their many needs.  He is a giant of a man.

With the time difference in our locations now, Camron and I did not have a chance to talk but we texted a bit and he sent the following email from India.  I’m so glad he has this opportunity. (He is 5 ½ hours ahead of us…how do you explain that extra half hour?  I think I mentioned that before but it’s still a mystery to me.)

Alicyn
______________

Hi,

How was your Monday? I tried calling but it’s early enough that I’m sure you’re still over at the temple. I hope you were able to get a lot done today. So we drove all day from Chennai to Coimbatore. It was pretty cool to see that much of the country in the first day. I reminds me a lot of driving in Ghana, except the people walking around are Indian instead of black (but the driving is just as crazy). It’s very third world with tons of people. I’ve already eaten Indian food with my fingers from a banana leaf (twice), and I walked up a hill barefoot (because everyone was doing it—sort of a requirement). It was a bit unnerving, since, well, it’s India and I wear shoes in the shower, but what do you do? I took pictures, but they are still on the camera and I’m too tired to transfer. I will soon.

We also saw the Father-in-law’s home and so that was great, in that I can adjust my pages to have the descriptions be accurate. So an adventure filled first day and starting again in the morning. We’ll see the orphanage first thing tomorrow. Taj has everything all planned out, so that’s good. The hotels are super luxury, resort type hotels, and I have a room to myself with a king bed (how do you say, wish you were here in Tamil?). I’m not certain if our times will ever hook up to call, since I’ll have to be at the hotel to get internet, and you will be at the temple, where you can’t get internet, but we’ll see. Well, I’m beat and going to bed. Let me know how your day went. Say hi to everyone. I did get to chat with Danika, since she was on just a short while ago. I’ll forward our chat.

Love

Camron

MTC Sunday

Sunday, February 1, 2015 – MTC Sunday

Wow is all I can say!  Today we went to church at the MTC here in Ghana.  There are only about 40 missionaries there right now (because the temple is closed) when normally they have closer to 100.  Mark & Kim’s son, Parker who served in the West Indies…his old mission president is now the president of the MTC here, so they invited us over to church at the MTC.  What a huge spirit there!  It was unbelievable and a unique experience.  Among all these dark faces is one white elder and one white sister, both of whom were from Utah so we took some photos after the meeting and sent text messages home to their families.  They have both only been out less than two weeks.  Both are learning French…one going to Madagascar and one going to Togo.

Oscar's Family

First off, we were just going to go with our group (7 of us), but last night at dinner Vicky invited the Nigerians to come and then Joseph showed up and Oscar showed up with four of his children, so we needed 4 taxis plus the missionary couple’s car to get us all there.  Getting a taxi here is an adventure and if you are white and need a taxi, they want to charge you twice as much as if you are a local, so since we were all out on the street, it became a problem.  It took us 20 minutes to get 4 taxis who would agree on the price to take us there.  Then, none of the first three taxis really knew where we were going and since none of us riders knew either, it took a while to find.  I was praying that we could get there before the meeting started.  I think they waited for us and started at 9:05am since we were late.

The opening song was “Let Us All Press On” .  It was sung loudly in two languages (French & English) and with many dialects and accents all at the same time.  The spirit spoke loudly and strongly in that room and I could feel the gigantic love Heavenly Father has for each of his children and especially for these young people who have been set apart as full time missionaries for the Lord.

The presiding brother started off the fast and testimony meeting saying that whatever the Lord has done for you whether good or bad we should be grateful.  He said that every misfortune is a blessing and since we may not recognize which are blessings, we should be grateful for everything the Lord sends our way.

Our sweet Joy, from Nigeria bore her testimony and said, “Where there is the spirit, there is liberty.”  How true is that?

As the elders and sisters bore their testimonies, some would say, “I know with all my heart that this church is true.”  And you could feel their giant hearts bearing testimony in a way I’ve never experienced before.  They would all start out saying, “good morning sisters and elders” and the audience would respond, “Good-morning!”

At one point in the meeting Sister Robinson stood up and said she didn’t like to take their time but she had been witnessing a miracle as they were asked to bear their testimonies in the language they had come to learn, which for most of them was English and after only a week of working on it, they were doing remarkably well.  The gift of tongues is real!

One Elder from the Ivory Coast said, “I say that Jesus Christ is our Savior…I say that President Monson is called of God…I testify in the name of Jesus Christ.”  For each thing he testified of, he would start with “I say…” and it was so simple and yet so powerful.

I could see as each stood at the pulpit that they were thinking very carefully of how to say the words.  They would speak slowly and specifically and simply, and yet the spirit was carried to every member of the congregation.

Other words spoken:

“I know that the Book of Mormon changed my life.”

Sister, “I testify that the church is here.”

Oscar's Youngest Child

“I want to tell you what I know.  I know with all my heart this is the right place.  I know with all my heart the missionary work is true.”

“I believe in the gift of tongues.  It is not easy to speak English.  But I know that this work is the work of God.  We walk the power of God, but it is not the walk that makes the difference but the gift of Holy Spirit.”

“I am very happy to be called a missionary of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  I know with all my heart…if we have a desire to serve God, that is where we are going.  As we have desire, Heavenly Father will strengthen us.”

I was writing as fast as possible to capture their exact words and only wish I could capture their giant hearts and spirits as well.  The missionaries were from Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Como, Cordova, and many other places I could not understand all united as one to be ready to go into their assigned missions to serve.

Other testimonies, “God knows every one of us.  He knows what we need to serve Him.  I know he bless us and give us gift of tongues to serve everywhere and preach his mission.”

A Cayman sister who is a recent convert said, “The Lord told me I cannot send you to do something and not provide a way for you to do it.”  This comment hit me like a ton of bricks as I applied it to this gigantic wall project we have been doing here in Ghana the past two weeks.  We were called to serve and train and through miracles and lots of prayer, we were sent the right people at the right time to accomplish His purposes.  I know this is true.  The Lord will always provide a way if we will let Him show us the way.  I have seen his grace and tender mercies and know that as one elder said, “I will serve not by my might or my strength but by His.”

One Elder from Nigeria said that he wasn’t there when God appeared to Joseph Smith or helped him translate the Book of Mormon, but he said, “I’ve come to know for myself that these things are true.  As we put this great work on our shoulders…he will bless us…He will reward us abundantly…”  He then challenged us to experiment upon the words of Moroni and see for ourselves if the Lord will not also bless us.  “He gives me commandments not to punish me but to help me grow.”

“Every challenge is for my benefit.  Showing patience tells Heavenly Father that He knows what is best for us.”

One Elder said, “I will not leave it (his testimony) or I won’t have it with me, but instead I share it with you.”  I liked the words share instead of “I leave this testimony with you…” that we so often hear.  He is right, if I “leave it” then it will be gone from me.  Excellent analysis!

One sister said, “Whoever has been called He finds worthy and He has qualified…He will not allow us to go through any struggles that we can’t overcome…remove any doubt from your heart.  I know the Book of Mormon is true.  I have studied it!”  I believe that is the key.  Remove the doubt and study the gospel and then when we have put forth the effort, the Lord will manifest the truth of all things.

Sisters' from the MTC

One brother said he was sad in the beginning that he wasn’t born into the church, but then said, “I am happy now that I was not born in the church but I searched and joined the true church.  Indeed I was lost and now I have found the truth…the truth is nowhere else but here in this church.”  I don’t believe it could have been said any better.  He has been a member only 4 years.

They finished the meeting singing all the verses of “How Great Thou Art” even though the testimony meeting had gone until 10:30am.  No one seemed anxious for the meeting to end.  No one wanted the spirit that permeated that room to change.  The closing song was another testimony for the day.  I did very little singing and more wiping of tears from my eyes.

Alicyn and MTC Sisters

After the meeting and talking with the American sister and elder and sending their pictures home to their families, we went with Sister Robinson to their apartment upstairs and she told us more about the people here in Ghana.  She said that they are very industrious.  They all work with their hands and are not idle like some they saw in the West Indies.  The beads they make are done from recycled glass, crushed into powder, with dye added and then hand painted before being baked in the handmade kilns.  She also told us where to buy fabrics here.  WE hope to have time on Thursday to go to the Makala Market.  The Batik prints here are gorgeous and we hope to buy enough varieties to make quilts for each one of us as a remembrance of our time here in Ghana.

When we returned from church, we met the floral missionaries.  These are two sisters who are called to travel all over the world doing the floral arrangements for the temples.  It is an unpaid job and they travel one to two weeks per month.  I’m thinking our travel schedule right now is not so bad.

We are hoping to finish all the walls we’re working on in two more days.  They temple president would love us to be out of his way by Wednesday so they will have three days to clean (I guess the cleaning people don’t work on Saturdays here).  I think we can make it and then just need to organize and finish up for a day or two, help with some cleaning and then have one more day to shop before heading home.  These past two weeks have flown by.  It will be strange to go home to winter since we’ve just spent all of our time hot and sweaty here.

Alicyn