Having been back for a while now and I have had the opportunity to share stories with a variety of people. I always tell them the truth. Ghana is a wonderful country. The people are amazingly welcoming and friendly. Would I go back if I could? Definitely. I felt safer walking in the crowded Ghanaian street market then down the sidewalk in Richmond. But what I don't always share is that this beautiful, wonderful country has a shady secret. Hidden away in rooms in homes are children with disabilities, ignored, neglected, and minimally cared for by providing a roof, clothing and food these children suffer the emotional and cognitive side effects of this treatment. At the orphanage we met a child that was blind, but it was clear that being blind was not his biggest problems. He had some cognitive and emotional difficulties as well. The question I ask myself is if he was born with those issues or if the developed over years of neglect. He is in a safe place now, but how long can he stay there and where will he go when he is all grown up? But unlike a village child he was let live. A child in a remote village born with disabilities like his may have been left by the bank of a river for the river gods to care for. What will it take to change this culture?
More secrets... down a path by a river, in a back alley corner, in the neighbor’s garden and along a path in the forest, young children are sexually abused. This is a very taboo subject in Ghana but, ignoring it, pretending it doesn’t happen only means another child is hurt. We were all appalled by the accounts that were told to us of the sexual abuse of a six month old baby. Who could look at an innocent baby and even think of that? We were also told of an eight year old girl, now in an orphanage because she contracted HIV after being raped… eight? Really? This country where children still play in the streets, this country is not immune to problems that terrify American parents and that breaks my heart.
We all chose to go on this trip because we care about children, we have big hearts and want to help people in any way we can. As I sit in my nice home with my husband and pets I wonder “what can I really do to make any difference?”…and it brings tears to my eyes.
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