Back at Site (8/31)

So I've been back at site a little over a week now. I'm sitting in a new tree which is taller, shadier, and farther from my house. I kind of just set off exploring and found it. It's a great tree. It's got a ton of branches, of all different sizes, and the fact that they're growing in all different directions provides for constant hand and/or feet support. I forgot how much fun it is to climb trees, and why as a kid that is the event. You cont climb to do anything up there, it's just fun to climb up high and sit.

Forrest Gump: "[Jenny] taught me how to climb. And I taught her how to dangle..."

Right now I'm sitting about 15-20 feet up in a outstretched limb which forks well. One strong branch goes right and another continues up. A third smooth, new, thinner branch curves left then also rises. The right serves as a seat, the 2 growing up as great back supports. My seat has a small sprout growing from it as well; about one inch thick throughout its length of split-offs, and one of it's deviations makes a great place to lazily lean my head against. The tree across from me has a collection of birds in it chattering, and behind me I hear another singing a totally different tune.

The past few days have passed slowly, spending most of them in town. Mr. Bubu is the Social Studies teacher at my school, and the only other teacher who lives here full-time. Everyone else goes to Tamale during the weekends, or to their original home towns during these longer recesses. Mr. Bubu has been kind enough to let me tag along with him and his wife these days at their phone credit stand in town. A 2 minute walk from the main town junction, it's a great place for me to work on my Dagbani and educate people that:

Mpa Musulemi. Debo tu ni nlo nuele.
(I'm not a Muslim. There is no need for me to fast.)

I've told myself I'd like to learn one new word or phrase per day, and so far it's going pretty well. Some days I'll make a solid connection on previously learned things and I'll accept that as my lesson. So long as it's active progress every day.

It's funny how things change and how easily you adapt. I've gotten quite used to my simple life routine of 3 meals and waking and sleeping by the sun. Fidaus and Osman were cleaning my place the other day and a bunch of chicks ran into my center courtyard. Scared and separated from their mother they ran in circles, chirping desperately. It was funny and cute, but in no way remarkable or unusual.

The other day the power was out and I was reading a book with the booklight Brenda sent me. It was a Saturday, raining outside, pitch black aside from my light, and bugs were falling on me to get to the light. I had just eaten some OK food (still trying to perfect my Ghanaian cuisine) and Alex, from my training group, sent me a text:

"Hey, who's hosting SNL tonight?"

The fact that I laughed so hard, and found it so funny says alot about how much has changed.