I have spent the first part of this week organizing a research project for the team. I am sending reminder e-mails, making spreadsheets, and generally using my meticulous side. Later in the week I will begin working with a client who is coming to Accra from another West African country. The clinical work is intense and brief. We will meet in 2-3 hour chunks, sometimes twice a day for 5-6 days. It is very different than the weekly 50 minutes sessions I am used to in the States. Because people must travel across several countries, therapy cannot take a typical form.
I am also working on preparing to co-facilitate a support group for teen mothers at a nearby refugee camp. This will be quite an adventure! I face the multiple challenges of establishing rapport as an outsider, navigating the dynamics of a different culture, and trying to connect with teenagers which can be internationally difficult. Despite the challenge, I am really excited about it and confident that it will be a rich learning experience. There are few situations more difficult than refugee life. These people have had to leave everything- homes, villages, family, businesses, school, even their country, in order to save their lives. They relocate in a foreign country where they may not speak the language, they have no ties, and must start over or at least wait out the conflict at home. They live as a community in a refugee camp which quickly becomes the size of a city. The one I will visit has over 40,000 inhabitants. Most of the camp is without running water or consistent electricity. Some people have been there as long as ten years. It is extremely difficult to reconstruct a country after a civil war or ethnic conflict. Africa’s poverty and instability make it an excruciatingly slow process. I hope that I can encourage or strengthen a few of the young women I will work with.
Days pass very quickly here. I cannot believe I’ve already been here for two weeks. Life goes slowly and normal tasks (like cooking) take much longer than at home. The day fills up fast with basic tasks. Some moments I want to slow it down so I can be sure I am really soaking in as much as possible. Other moments I am grateful that I do not have too much free mental time to dwell on being apart from Rob.
1 comment:
Hi Sherry, thank you for your willingness to do whatever you are able to do there. It is difficult as well as wonderful. Trust in God and he will do it. He is your strength and comfort for each moment, hour, day. Rob will be there in a few more weeks. You are loved. I'm going to "Summer Matters" Bible study tomorrow and we will pray for you.
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