The bucket shower

It has been exactly one month since I first set arrived in West Africa, Ghana to be precise. writing that now makes me realize how strange and unfamiliar time feels here. I feel like I have been away from home for an eternity, completely cut off from my old life and at the same time like I just left. I have had that sensation before, but it feels more extreme here, probably a byproduct of being in such an unfamiliar environment. I would like to apologize for waiting until now to account for my experiences in this foreign land. I guess I am partially apologizing to myself and then to all of my friends and family who would love to know what life in Ghana is all about. Actually I have no idea what life in Ghana is all about, but I can tell you what I have seen, heard, and felt so far.

It's probably better to start with the present and then slowly fill in the gaps as we go along. So lets see... Sunday, August 23, 2009 was a great day, not overly exciting, in fact it was quite similar to any other day back in California. The only exception being that everything I did took place here in Ghana not in California which gives even the most ordinary events a unique twist. Lets take for example the act of washing your body; a common occurrence that usually takes place without much thought or effort...that is to say if we are in the California context. Here in Ghana something so mundane is actually quite different. First of all my dorm building has not had running water since last Monday making the showering process a bit more involved. Instead of simply turning on a knob I (and everyone else) had to walk down four flights of stairs to the reserve tank outside, fill up my three gallon bucket and carry back upstairs to the bathroom. Then using a makeshift device constructed by cutting a water bottle in half I proceeded to shower via bucket and water bottle scooper. Don't take this account as a complaint because its not, bucket showers come with the territory and there is nothing wrong that. In fact its yet another great exercise in patience. I realized today that coming to Ghana is like stepping back a few years and in some cases many more than that to a time when everything wasn't available instantly and the most basic luxuries were not guaranteed. I have heard time and time again that I am part of the "now" generation, a generation of impatient twenty something year-olds that expect everything at the touch of a button. In my opinion instant gratification is a dangerous addiction that breeds a false sense of the world. Therefore, my lesson for today would go something like this: its o.k. if you have to fetch water for a bathe at least you have water to fetch.

Until we meet again.