Ghana Temple

I took these photos while we were staying at the patron building on the temple grounds. It was nice to walk outside every morning and see the temple right next to your building.
The grounds are beautiful with palms and flowers. It is really the most impressive site in Accra. It is located on the main road through Accra, so many people pass by it every day.
I love all the flowers here. I was trying to convince Elder Max that some of our weeds from home were growing here with flowers on them. They probably aren't the same thing, but everything here grows so easily.

Odds and Ends

There is life ahead after all for Elder Reynolds in Ghana. He found this fishing pole at a members house. Now he is looking forward to going with this man to the river to catch a BIG fish.

I enjoy watching the roosters around here. They have such personality. Max likes to look at their feathers for tying flies.
This church member was drying her cocoa beans. They had fermented for the seven days and now she was letting them dry. They smelled terrible.
This little girl had seen me taking photos at the school. She wanted to be in a photo too.
These three children followed us for several hours as we went to see people. Their dad had walked along with us, so they joined the group. They were so interested in our white skin. They kept trying to touch our arms and legs.

Cute little chicks.
Typical of the places where we meet members and teach.
Another rooster
These snails are all over our yard. We learned that several members of the church raise them, so Max has started catching them and transporting them to a new home. The people here like to eat them. I don't think we'll try that.

Some older photos

We were out in the bush by Osiem when we met this member of the church. She wanted me to see her cocoa trees. The fruit was getting ripe.
Her son also wanted to have his photo taken. It really isn't dark, just back in the trees.
This is her yard. The place is swept clean every day. It is surrounded by what we would call jungle and is such a beautiful place.
This man is named Onward. He is a teacher and a member of the church. He has been so helpful to us in finding members homes and helping us with the language barriers. He is a great friend.

In the city we have regular gas stations, but outside the cities you find gas stations like these. In the background you can see one of the big trees I like so much. They are so straight and tall. Note the guys sleeping under the truck.
This little butterfly is for Kaylia. I think she would love seeing the animals here.
This little guy hopped off the grass and onto the driveway. He looked exactly like a blade of grass.....and he could really HOP.

I thought Joshua would enjoy this photo. All the vehicles have signs like this on them. The little shops are also named after something religious. Some are very nice and some are a bit humorous.
This guy held still long enough for me to get his photo taken. I'm glad he is too big to find his way into my house.
Here is another sign on the back of a truck. We are also for the Lord.

First Week in November

Last monday Sister Boateng came to teach me how to cook some of the local foods. We first went to the market, which was an adventure in itself. She was so nice to spend about four hours in my hot kitchen. I mostly just watched and she did all the work. We made "red rice", fried chicken and fried plantain. It was all very good and we are happy to be able to make it for the elders when they come to eat.
She often cooks for funerals, which often means cooking for 1000 people. She also cooks the food we eat at zone conferences, so she is a professional.
Expect me to make some of it for you when I get home, but it probably won't taste like hers.

This is a tiny frog we found in our room the other night. He was clinging to the wall at first, but when I got my camera, he jumped to the floor. You can see why I worry about stepping on them. They look like the floor.
This young man is Jackson Adjei. He was leaving the next week for a mission to Nigeria. He has been helpful to us in finding the people in the branch. He also earned some money by cutting down the growth in our backyard. He will make a great missionary.

These are the nuts someone gave us. They grown in a green prickley looking pod on a tree. Who knows what they are? They taste like a pine nut or a potato

School at Maase

This week when we went to see the people at Maase, the children at the school were so happy to see us. They followed us to the edge of the schoolyard. When I came back up the path, I took some photos. They would scream and jump up and down when they would see the photo. They aren't grandchildren, but they help with being without ours. Their faces say it all.
In Ghana, Mary's lamb doesn't follow her to school. It is more likely a goat.

Odds and Ends

This is the view from our front porch. Often the mountains are in the clouds in the morning. We saw these guys moving a billboard through the crowded streets of Accra. I can now see it was tied down, but at the time it looked like they were just holding it there. I was waiting for it to take off like a kite.
On our way home from Accra this week, we got into a very bad storm. There were trees down in the road and water running down through these little mud-hut villages.
The other day I started looking at our food. It is truly international. The juice on the left is from South Africa, the Snickers from Ireland, the grapefruit juice from Bulgaria, the water from Ghana, the lemon juice from England, the jam from the Netherlands, the milk and butter from France, the ketchup from Egypt, the other juice from Austria, the honey from United Arab Emerites and the curry sauce from Singapore. And that is just the beginning.

This has been a good week for us. We have been able to get out and visit people and start doing what we came to do. I didn't get all the photos I wanted on here, but they will wait until next time. This is a photo of a "bowl tree". I took it one day when we were out in Tafo. The LDS District President told me they dry the fruit and then cut them and use them for bowls. I thought it was very interesting. The next week when we came back, the tree was cut down and the lumber stacked next to the road. I was very sad.

I wanted the Clinton girls to know I did take the little things they put in our bags the night before we left. They make me happy, along with the photos of all the other grandchildren.

Elder Max insisted on taking this photo. It is not as bad as it seems. I only have one plug in the kitchen and was using it for something else. I needed to get my bread mixed, so I used the dining room floor. I knew it was clean because I had mopped it with bleach that very morning. At least this photo proves I really do make my own bread.

These are the friendly neighborhood goats that always seem to be in the road when we are going to our house. There are some interesting ones that are white on the front half and black on the back. I'll have to try to take a photo of some of those.
I always smile when I go past this sign. I'm sure it gives aspiring artists some hope. I didn't realize I was in the photo until later, but it makes for an interesting shot. There are creative signs everywhere. It is never boring to drive somewhere.
If you notice closely, this woman has eggs on top of her stack. Elder Max says it doesn't really count because she is holding on, but I think she is doing a great job.
This is our back yard as it was a few weeks ago. We have gone out and cleaned up a lot of the trash. (Buried it.) The whole back is covered by about two feet of green now. We need to hire someone to come cut it back again. Elder Ross, from Samoa, wants us to plant grass and put in a volleyball net. I think he has the spot all planned out.


This is looking out our back porch. The house being built back behind our fence will show you the kind of construction that is done here. Everything is made out of cement block with no reinforcement. Then it is plastered to look nice. Many people run out of money and just live in the block house with no windows, doors and such. This one seems to be a work in progress, so we will see if it gets finished while we are here.

This was a rainstorm we got into coming back from church on Sunday. The wipers were going as fast as they could and we still couldn't see anything.
You can see the storm clouds ahead and the beautiful scenery we have as we drive along.
This lady had gone for water. Since it started to rain just after we passed her, I'm sure her pail got even more full. The things people carry here are just amazing. They must have very strong necks and shoulders.
This young lady is taking firewood back to her home. Most people cook outdoors and burn the wood for fuel.
This is the town of Suhum where we went to church on Sunday. It is fairly large and organized. The branch seems strong and the people were very happy to see us. We will be coming here about once a month, so we hope to get to know the church members even better.