I must tell you about one of the best things I've been a part of so far. Last Thursday (June 4) was the LOREAL 100th Anniversary in West Africa. As a part of their celebration, they donated a training Salon to our school. We arrived at school around 9:30 and were promptly seated in the dining hall to wait for the presentation. We waited for a while (as we usually do-- Ghana standard time), and watched all of the students cram on to benches until the guests arrived. The students performed their cultural dances (which I think I mentioned last week), the Headmistress and the Chairperson gave addresses, and the students cheered and applauded. LOREAL gave everyone a t-shirt, lunch, and a few of the teachers hair service. They also gave all of the students a "goodie bag" with some lotion, deodorant, and a few pieces of candy. Everybody was thrilled! There was so much energy and excitement in the air-- I loved being a part of it.
This weekend was Lyndsey's birthday, so Nycole, Catharine and I planned some festivities. (We celebrated Friday, Saturday, AND Sunday in true Bowthorpe fashion!) We made a cake. Nycole actually did most of the work-- one of the cooks at school helped her with the batter. We will never take handmixers for granted again. Try beating eggs with a wooden spoon... She brought the batter home and we had to figure out how to light our gas oven, which was also an adventure. We did manage to light it (without blowing anything up) and we had to guess on how hot and how long to bake it. I helped with the frosting. Again, I will never take my electric mixer for granted ever again... try beating butter, evaporated milk, and sugar together with a fork... it's no easy task! The cake was pineapple flavored, so we cut fresh pineapple to go on top. In the end, it was a 2 layer masterpiece! We baked a cake from scratch (literally) in AFRICA! Wahoo! I was also in charge of the decorations, so I bought some tape and made a colorful paper chain and a "happy birthday" sign. Ghanaian tape is not sticky at all, so it fell down within a few minutes. Still, it was the thought that counts! We filmed some of the students signing the "happy birthday" song, and they signed a card for her. We went to Kofordua on Saturday and purchased all of the fixings for guacamole, which LaraLeigh made on Sunday for us to enjoy with plantain chips when we got home from church. I hope she had a happy day(s). It was a fun weekend for me, anyhow!
I hope this finds everyone well and enjoying your gardens, barbeques, sun/rain, and the first rites of summer. I love you and think about you constantly!
All the best,
Brynn
All the best,
Brynn
4 comments:
that's so sweet how you celebrated her birthday at such great effort! It makes the world a better place.
I can't wait to see all the pictures! And hear the stories firsthand! Miss you.
You're always so caring Brynn. You're a good friend.
Also, I heard the "I'll by you rogain" song today. Miss you.
Brynn! I am so excited for you and proud of you! What a great experience! What are you doing when you get back? Do you have a job? Miss you!
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