Call me Elinam

Today was my last day in Ghana and I went to the village of Torgorme, a small village near one of Ghana’s two dams. We went through some savannah-esque areas with baboons and sacred rock structures until we passed the dam to reach the village. When we pulled in, we were greeted by hundreds of smiling children’s faces (about 450) and waving hands. Getting off was hard because they swarmed us and made a pathway where they just tried to touch our hands as we made our way to the community center. It was kind of like being a movie star, with the people reaching from the back row just to touch you, and several clinging to your hands. It was very cute. One little girl, probably around 2 years old, got ahold of my pinky and wasn’t about to let go. I was the last one and had to shake hands with all the Chiefs (they were in a row on side of the rectangle with the women on the next side) so I just guided her along while I shook their hands. It was pretty funny and I think I entertained them. When we sat down, I placed her in my lap and within 5 minutes she had passed out. It was pretty cute while it lasted as her mom (maybe older sister?) came by 15 minutes later and just took her. While this was happening, there was a group prayer and a performance from the children to show their dance. The moves were much simpler than the ones I’ve seen the past few days but you could tell they were really putting their hearts into their performance. Then the naming ceremony began. They made it clear that they welcomed us into their community, which meant that they would love for us to come back and that we could be buried there if we ever wanted to be. It felt very forward to me but a Ghanaian student who sailed with us from Morocco informed us that Ghanaians are very welcoming and mean it fully. So I guess this wasn’t out of place for them but I certainly couldn’t see this happening in the States. Anyway, it was still very cool to go through the ceremony. They called us up in groups of five and then started by telling us our names. The first one is based on which day of the week you are born on and your gender. They told me I was born on a Thursday, but I know I was born on a Sunday so I guess that wasn’t the right name. Either way, I don’t really remember that one and they didn’t give us a written copy of it so I can’t tell you what it should have been. My official African name is Elinam, meaning “God is for you”. I think that’s a pretty sweet name and really like the meaning so I was very pleased with it. I think most of them were religious but I only found out some of the other names (their sound system was hard to understand). One girl got “Savior” which intimidated her and someone else got “The Savior has come”. After they told us our name and the meaning, they tied a hand-made beaded bracelet on our hand (I think it means that you’ve been blessed but I’m really not sure) and a mini pot that they made with our real name and African name on it. It was really quite generous of them to gift us like that, but they will certainly make wonderful mementos.

After we finished, we danced with the children and then went to see more of the village. I couldn’t even leave the dance before I had two children on one hand and another on the other hand. So I was escorted to the village to see how they make the pots and their kitchens, but I was in the back of the group again so I couldn’t see too well. It was ok because I ended up trying to talk to the children and found out some of their names. As only the older ones understand English (English is the official language of Ghana but they learn their traditional languages first and then English) and some of the little ones were too young to talk, I only found out three names: Believe, Patience, and Pray For. I find it very cool how openly religious many Ghanaians are, even though there is no official national religion (64% Christian, then next largest group is Muslim). It’s quite funny to go by stores called “God’s groceries” or see “God willing” on taxis or the best one “Thank God Metal Works” for a metalwork store.

After the village, we stopped at some hidden resort where we ate lunch. Then we went back to the ship. All in all, it was an awesome day and I very much like Ghana. The Ghanaian people are very friendly, for the most part, and despite their poverty, they are making improvements. As one of the guides pointed out, “just look at the cars people are driving, they’re middle class cars so people are starting to enter that part of society.”  Ghana is proud to be Africa’s leader for independence (the first African nation to gain independence) and center for hope (it’s one Africa’s model democracies) so they have much optimism for the future. That is very reassuring to see that they have made progress in certain areas and are full speed ahead. I hope they can continue to keep up the good work!