A few months ago, my friend Joy Kwong asked me to make a film for her to enter into an international competition called “Fit City” through The Oxford Health Alliance.  Folks from over 40 countries submitted their essays, photos, and videos to address the question of “What makes a healthy urban environment?” and in the end, Joy and I were one of the 5 winners!  Consequently, we were flown over to Sydney, Australia to participate in THE SUMMIT, an international conference where people from all over the world dialogue about issues of chronic illnesses, nutrition, global public health policies, and possible solutions for these concerns. 

The only thing is though, since we entered the contest under Joy’s name, I’m not really allowed to attend the Summit conferences... only their social events.  Darn.  I guess I’ll just have to go explore Sydney and play. 

In the end, I got to go to one day’s session with these global health gurus, which was very nice.  I felt a little out of place, thinking, “Um… I’m just a kid who wants to make movies, and teaches children how to play in a rock band on the side.  Anna [my best friend who is getting her Masters in Public Health] should be here, not me.”  

Nevertheless, it’s been exciting meeting people from countries such as Australia, Serbia, UK, Japan, Singapore, Kenya, India, Netherlands, Tunisia, and more.   Sometimes it’s hard to fight the stereotype of the “dumb American,” because I’m not going to lie – most of these people know more about American history and politics than I do, whereas I don’t even know where some of their countries are located – but everyone is incredibly friendly and open because we all share the same cause of trying to promote a healthier world.  Of course, I haven’t told them that Joy and I went to eat at McDonald’s last night... 

As incredible as it’s been to be a part of this huge world venture, I’m not exactly complaining about being excused from sitting in business rooms all day.  So most of my time I’ve been spending by myself, reeking havoc in Sydney.  I’ve been running around everywhere, purposely trying to get lost, but always finding myself at another tourist site by default.  It’s also fun trying to speak with an Aussie accent, especially since there are so many Asians here! Joy and I also got to meet the Van Daals, who are family friends of our LA friend, Beth Winton.  What a lovely family...

Amidst all the exploration, I’ll have to admit – I was pretty bummed yesterday.  I lost my video camera.  What is a filmmaker without a camera??  …especially when the worth of the camera is almost 40% of all you have.  I felt really dumb, because it’s technically my fault: I left it on the plane.  BUT I realized it right after I stepped out of the airport, but couldn’t go back for security reasons, so I called them immediately.  Even with that, and calling every day since we have arrived, there has been no lead.  I’ve spent nearly a total of 3 hours on hold, only to be told that at this point, it probably won’t show up… that what most likely happened was that they threw it out with the blankets since it was wrapped in a T-shirt... except that my shirt and the blankets are totally different colors.  It still doesn’t completely make sense to me, so on once hand, I still wanted to fight.  But there comes a point in all tough situations where we must confront the decision between losing hope and letting go… and at this point I needed to let go.

I was pretty down and Joy had just left for the conference so I’d be alone all day… so I decided to run and take pictures.  Run to where, I had no idea.  After about 2 hours of running, I realized that my beloved mini tripod had fallen out of my camera bag… another loss.  The run wasn’t really helping my mood, plus I was tired, so I sat down to watch a soccer game… the red team made an awesome pass, the forward got ready to shoot, and it went over the goal… way over.  In fact, the field was on top of a parking structure actually, and so no one knew where the ball went.  As tired as I was, I decided to secretly try to find the ball for them – although I was sad about my own losses, maybe I could at least help some others from losing something too.  Yet after exerting all this energy in searching, I still could not find it. 

After losing a good number of things in these past few months – from time and energy, to hard drives, to projects, to money, to loved ones – it sometimes can be overwhelming.  However, as I sit here in this 5 star, world class hotel, I wonder once again, “What have I done to deserve this?”  I get an amazing view, mini bar, HD flat screen, 1 minute walk to the Royal Botanic Gardens, 7 minute walk to the Sydney Opera House, free breakfast on the rooftop… I could go on.  I realize that we hate losing because it is oftentimes equated with waste – the conclusion that what was spent can never be gained back.  But nothing great was ever done without losses.  “To lose is to gain…” 

And at least I haven’t lost my mind (completely).

Life is never perfect, but it’s really up to us whether or not we want to focus on the ups or downs.

Tomorrow is our last day at the hotel, and then off to the Blue Mountains and search for koalas.  In the meantime, please send me updates on your own lovely lives!  Cheers!

Dolce

(a)

Dear Friends and Family,

I have so much to share of the so many lessons I have learned from my travels. I hope you enjoy reading and looking at the pictures!

Twi Vocabulary Lesson:
M’adamfo: my friend.
Nyame adom: God’s grace

I have definitely been picking up more and more Twi throughout my month here – by the end, some of the locals were declaring that I was now Chinese-Ghanaian instead of Chinese-American.

A Story.
        Last year I met the cutest girl named Sandra who came over to our house in Kumasi nearly every day because her mother wasn’t around. I hadn’t seen her this year at all, however, so I went across the street and asked if any of the kids knew a small girl named Sandra. Grabbing my hands in eagerness, they started running and pointing down the street. With every step we took, more children would join us in this mission to find Sandra. After turning the corner, the girl holding my arm shouted something in Twi to a lady at a local stand. “Ah, Sandra!” the lady exclaimed and jumped from her stand, completely leaving her business as she took me to a house nearby. “Sandra! Sandra!!!” she kept yelling, the parade ever increasing. She looked around the side of the house, and nodded at me with a smile of accomplishment. I stayed on my side of the corneras I fixed my eyes at a 5-yr-old’s height, waiting in anticipation so that I could give Sandra a big hug as soon as she appeared.

I’ll just say that the girl who appeared had well gone through puberty already – she was definitely not 5! I had to raise my eyes to match the level of this big kid, who gave me a goofy smile with more confusion than excitement. “Your friend, Sandra!” the lady declared. I spun around and shook my head with my mouth gaping open, not quite knowing what to say. “Sandra,” I repeated, holding out my arm indicating a height of asmall girl. The woman laughed, “Oh…Sandra!” She then ran around the house and called over another woman, who turned out to be the real Sandra’s mother. I eventually found her, and she’s just as cute as ever.

The escapade was pretty comical to me, but even beyond the hilarity, I found it really touching that all the neighbors went through all the effort to join me in my search, even though they didn’t know me. I mean, the lady left her work to help me! This level of community is really something that I am continually inspired by, and is definitely something that we Americans can learn from.

The Chevy Aveo Livin’ Large Winnings

I am happy to announce that the $12,500 from the car I donated will pay for 25% of the new school bus! The current “bus” is more like a van that has to shuttle over a hundred kids a day, going back and forth at least 5 times each morning and afternoon, breaking down nearly everyday. Having a new bus will also all the school to grow in more self-sustainability because then they would be able to reach families with moderate incomes who can actually pay school fees. In turn, this would also help raise teachers’ salaries, which are currently not enough for them to even pay off their own living expenses.
            They don’t know where the rest of the money is going to be provided, but their faith continues to last despite their circumstances.

Amazing Grace Preparatory School Progresses

It’s been great seeing the school develop even after one year. The kids are all growing up! Here is a picture of Amos, Susannah, and their mother Agnes who are now being sponsored by Jaclyn Pazos. They look so much happier now that they are being sponsored…

(a)                                     (b)

Fig 2. Amos’ family in a) 2006 and b) 2007.

There will be more reflections about the school in my next update.

I mentioned in my last email that Ophelia Mensah, the girl I had been sponsoring, was separated from her sisters. Thus, I found that my trip this year was less centered on the school, but rather around uncovering the story of the Mensah family and why Ophelia had been separated.

Meet theMensah’s…

Fig 3.Ladies of the Mensah family: Vivian, Grandma, Patricia, and Juliet.

However, there is one important person missing in these photos… Ophelia.

With a father who has always refused tohelp them, a mother who died of sickness less than 2 years ago, and grandparents who have too many other children and grandchildren to attend to, Ophelia, Juliet, and Vivian had only each other to hold onto. When the mother died though, Ophelia at age 13 was separated from her sisters because no one could accommodate all of them, Vivian got pregnant at 18 years, and Juliet at 16 could neither attend school anymore nor start vocational training because they didn’t have the money. That was when I met them last year.

Now, Ophelia has been taken to another town a little over an hour bus ride away by an elder of a church who took pity on her…except that he also lives in a separate town. I doubt that he is even aware that Ophelia desperately poured out toJuliet that the woman who she now lives with and her son both beat her. I’m not exactly what she means by “beat”, but I don’t like a bit of it. She has already tried to run away, and Juliet told me through tears of concern that Ophelia wanted to take her own life. She hates her new school and says she wants to come back to Amazing Grace. To make matters worse, Ophelia had also been raped in the 3^rd grade.

Meanwhile, in her home villageKodiekrom-Deduoko, Juliet, Vivian, and baby Patricia live with theirgrandparents and a bunch of other cousins, aunts, and parentlesschildren. Sadly, this is not unusual from other Ghanaian villagers. I had given Juliet money to begin vocational training at the end ofmy trip in 2006, so now she is hoping to be a hairdresser. “I willopen a shop soon, Vivian will start sewing as a seamstress, and wewill try to bring Ophelia back.” This selfless attitude is allcoming from a 17 year old – she’s the same age as my youngestbrother!

After my first visit to Juliet’s home, I found myself going back again and again, sometimes of my own accord and sometimes upon her request. “Please, will you come to greet my grandmother?” Juliet would ask. There is something so pure in that.

Fig 4. Juliet Mensah: age 17.

We wouldn’t really talk all that much, but still find every small excuse to hang out with each other. She would come to tell me Ophelia’s phone number, and then proceed to hang out with me the rest of the day. By hanging out, I mean she’d carry my things for me, or start helping the other missionaries to carry heavy sand, or clean up after I eat… anything to be helpful to me or my friends. Even when I try to carry my own bag, she tells me, “Dolce, I will take it. You rest.” In return, I would entertain her as much as possible – teach her origami, show her card tricks, sing for her, attempt to speak in Twi, or play hooky as often as I could to sneak out to visit her family. A lot of the time we just sat in each other’s company, which was fine with us.

One time she didn’t come to the school to visit even though she had promised, so I ran to her house to see what was up because I wanted to speak with her about something. I saw her lying outside on a bench. She was inflicted with malaria. Malaria! It’s worse than the flu. But when she saw me, she dizzily got up to welcome me. It was obvious she was in no condition to do anything though. Yet she still escorted me to the street and would have kept going with me to the school, except that I wouldn’t let her. “Ko da! Go sleep!” I shooed at her. To think she would get up to serve me, even with malaria... I need to learn from her.

One day when we were talking about Ophelia, I got this crazy idea… What if I could somehow see her? I started concocting all these plans to take some crowded trotro to her town – I would skip the group outing to the lake, I’d pay for Juliet to come with me, and maybe Ophelia’s best friend, Gifty (it was $8 round trip per person!). I’ll do whatever it takes to see her! I realized at this point that I only had one weekend left to do such a thing! I shared my idea with my Ghanaian hosts. “It is very unlikely that you will get to meet,” they said apologetically. But somehow in my heart, I knew I was going to see her.

It took a great deal of effort, which included making phone calls to families who didn’t speak English and venturing out alone into the village. What ended up happening was that Ophelia was sent to come to me with the elder that had taken her away in the beginning. I would pay for their trip, and then she could come and spend a day with her friends and sisters. So despite everything, I did see Ophelia after all! They took her straight to the school when she arrived. When she saw me, she smiled shyly, hiding her face with a peek every now and then. She’s the same Ophelia. Oh, goodness, and then she began crying. I actually only had about an hour with her sadly…but at least I got to see her! I really, really wanted to spend more time with her, but I was happy that she could at least be with those who cared about her most. They had not seen each other or talked for 8 months!

I gave her a birthday present, and then I proceeded to present bracelets to all of the sisters. They were identical bracelets, and I had a matching one. “This represents that you are sisters,” I said. “No matter where you are, you are still connected. And I have the same one, because I am your sister too. We are all connected.” With that, I said goodbye to the Mensah sisters.

Every time I think about these girls, my heart breaks. I want to help them so much. But the more I wanted to help, the more helpless I felt.

Fig 5. Vivian and her baby at home.

There are so many layers of boundaries. There were language boundaries, cultural boundaries, and physical boundaries.  It isn’t only a risk that my efforts will go to waste; it is a risk that my efforts will cause harm. For instance, if I send money, how will I really know that it will go to them and not in the hands of anyone else? Who should I trust? Who am I, to even say that I know whatis best for them?

But even with the sense of helplessness, I am humbled and brought down to reality. God is the only one who has control, the only one who knows what they need. So the only thing I can really do is pray on their behalf and obey the ways He calls me to help, even if it seems risky. I think He has already proved that He is the one who chose the Mensah family and simply wants me to play a part in helping them.

Even though I was less emotionally involved with the school during the last few weeks, the name of the school still captures a big theme of the trip: Amazing Grace.

In Ghana, everyone I meet is always thanking God with so much fervor, that I can’t help but see constantly all the blessings of life, even though I technically had less there than I do in America. Paradoxically, in America, it’s harder for me to remember all the blessings that God has given me. What have I done to deserve all these blessings? Nothing. It’s funny. This question – What have I done to deserve this – is typically only posed when bad things happen to us, but I think it should be asked just as much in regards to all the good things as well. It is by grace. Nyame adom.

Last Words
        There are so many other meaningful stories to share from this trip alone. I feel as though I should write a book… In the meantime, I will have my last update in a few weeks on how I have adjusted to the United States from my travels and information about the Amazing Grace Preparatory School documentary that I will be working on. It’s impossible to capture everything – in an update, in a film, in a picture… the experience of life is indescribable… and it’s ours for the taking.

Love,
Dolce

Picture Time!

Ophelia

(a)                                                 (b)

(c)

Fig. 6a) Reuniting sisters Juliet and Ophelia b) Ophelia and her bestfriend, Gifty c) I’m an aunty!

TheSchool

(a)

(b)

(c)

Fig. 7a) Before and after pictures of construction work that the Ghana Missions Team accomplished, b) A model and the actual school c) The school kitchen, which feeds 340+ kids

Fun Pics

Fig 8. I think I can almost blend in now.

          

Wow.  It's almost been a month since I posted anything!!!

****This entry is dedicated to my dear great-grandmother who just passed away in Taiwan at the age of 102.  I may not ever live as long, but I strive to live as full.****

First of all,
In commemoration of our mother country's day of freedom, some friends and I felt that our patriotic devotion could only be demonstrated by going to McDonald's. 

AHHHHHH!!!!! I can't believe that I have only 2 full days left in Paris!!!!  I apologize for not updating until now, but I realize that I stop writing about my days when the days are the fullest.  Ironic, isn't it?  Ok, I'll try to capture what happened in this last month...

Group Trip to San Malo and Mont Saint-Michel
I really liked the group trips that the school organized for us.  It really helped me to get to know some of my classmates better.  From living in a roomy hotel in a medieval town where ramparts still exist, to eating delicious giant crêpes; from making 11,40 € by playing my the Filipino Mandolin thing on the street corner, to playing soccer on the beach till sundown... this was by far one of the best class excursions we went on.

Randomness from the following week
Trip to the French Riviera: Nice, Monaco, and Cannes
This weekend trip began with a rough start.  The day before leaving, something unfortunate happened to me in Paris, so I was really glad to get away from the busy city.  The French Riviera was incredibly laid back and relaxing, in sharp contrast to the fast-paced life of Paris. My roommate Loni and I took a train there, and I felt like Harry Potter. It was my first time riding a high speed train!  We arrived at our hostel, which was actually really nice and clean, and there we met up with two of our other classmates, Kim and Ashley, and we hit up town.  Small perks about each of the cities we visited:
- In Monaco, we saw the Monte Carlo Casino where we probably saw 11 Ferraris in a row.
- In Cannes, we spent the day at the beach and I got a sunburn from laying on the beach too long.  It must be a fashionable thing there for women to be topless. 
- In Nice, we happened to be there during the time of an inaugural opening of a public square in Nice, so we took part of a whole day celebration and found ourselves at a concert of this awesome singer, Hélène Segara.  She reminds me Celine Dion and Evanecense. 


Anna Grigoryan-Wang Flies Halfway Across the World to Visit Me:
The most meaningful time of this entire trip was definitely during the two weeks when Anna was here.  Not only did she bring a refreshing sense of energy, but she brought me nice clothes to wear too. 

Our time together consisted of having a picnic in front of the Eiffel Tower in the middle of a thunderstorm, watching our favorite dancer bust a move at the discotheque as he danced by himself in front of the mirror, eating baguettes and tuna nearly everyday, shopping because Europe basically went on sale starting the last week of June, talking into the wee hours of the morning about topics spanning from R. Kelly's Trapped in the Closet to misconceptions of religion, and lots more.

What I appreciate most about Anna is that she is honest with me.  If something bothers her, she lets me know, but more than that, she tries to understand why it bothers her.  Plus, she's just hilarious.  Our humor seems to feed off of each other.  And even though she plays it off sometimes, she is a very caring person.  She definitely arrived at the right time, and was there for me when I needed it.  Thanks, Anna for flying to Paris to hold my pinky. 


Interlaken, Switzerland
Even though San Malo was pretty sweet, Interlaken was definitely the best weekend trip overall.  Loni and I randomly chose this town because it looked close to the Swiss Alps on the map.  Little did we know that Interlaken is a hub of young travellers who want to spend their time there doing extreme sports.  Bringing Anna and our friend Mark with us, we stayed at a really awesome hostel called Balmer's - this place was more American than America!
  Some of the things we did included hiking in the Alps, whizzing through the hills of Switzerland on rented mountain bikes, whizzing on scooters around the winding roads to climb a glacier, and.... PARAGLIDING!!! When you're done reading the entry, you can check out the video to see some of these adventures! 



Closing Time...Transition to Ghana

It's really hard to believe that I've been here for  7 weeks.  I think I'm still in denial that I'm leaving - I still have so much work to get done in the next day in terms of assignments, plus I want to do a couple more things while here in Paris, yet I feel like I should be preparing myself for going to Ghana.  I've also had a cough for a week and half now, and I really don't want to go to Africa as a disease-carrying vessel.  Everything's happening so quickly and...

Oh my gosh!  Today was the last day of classes... FOREVER.  Guys -- I have officially graduated!!! AHHHH!!!! 

Ok, obviously I need time to think about all the things that are/have been going around me...   I am just hoping for space to do that at some point... In the meantime, thank you to everyone for your emails, and especially the letters!  And even though I will probably only have access to internet twice during my stay in Ghana, please keep sending the emails because it makes me happy to read about your lives! I have a new address in Ghana... 

Enjoy the video!