Beautiful Ghana

As Cori and I wait for that slowly approaching period of departure (attempt #3), I continue to read about the magic and beauty that is Ghana. Or more accurately, the Ghanaian people. As Dan Lawton points out in the Christian Science Monitor, while the Ghanaians lack the material wealth of the US, they may be richer in another sense:

In the United States, I sometimes go a day or two without greeting anyone. It's easy to mix in with the masses – to drift to work or school in a bubble – simply nodding your way through the day. Nowadays, I handle most of my communication via e-mail and text message. In fact, sometimes I think my digital relationships are eclipsing those in the real world. I recently lived in a subdivided house for a year without speaking to my neighbors. We simply exchanged stoic nods as we passed.

In Ghana, I have danced, eaten, and spoken with more strangers in six weeks than I would have in America in six years. And this paradox – that despite its material wealth and technological might America is so standoffish and lonely – has been burning a hole in my head.