Mother's Day

Once again it is time to honour our Mothers for all that they have done and probably in some cases are still doing. My Mother passed away on Easter Sunday this year and was buried a little under 4 weeks ago.
It was a very painful experience....though my Mother at 72 years of age lived to be much older than her Mother,who passed away at 44, (Mum was about to turn 18 then) it was as if something had been ripped out of my heart. I am in my early forties and very grateful that my Mum could see me grow up, start work, have a child and then eventually start my own business, but like they say one is never really prepared for it.

I am thankful that she survived this long just to see how we all turned out etc. and it was so good to come home and start to tell her about my day and all that happened. Mum was always sharp, she would never meet my clients but as soon as I started telling her about something they did that wasn't genuine, she would warn me to watch out for them and truly she was always right!

One is never quite sure whether one does enough to let one's Mother know how grateful they are but I reckon my Mother knew that I was grateful. I wish now that I had told her everyday but then again I am sure I would have probably ended up writing a book. She taught me about patience and how to watch and listen before making one's move:just like the Leo she was and me the impatient Arian. :-)

For me it was as if she lived her life like she was playing chess, only making poignant moves that resulted in a win that would make your head spin fast.

To end my piece I would like to say that I loved my Mum very, very much and here is a text from a Hallmark card my son gave to me last Christmas which definitely sums up my Mum. It made me all teary-eyed...

2 parts patience

1 part strength

A dash of laughter

Wisdom and tenderness to taste

Combine all ingredients and mix well

Serve with warmth and grace


I love you Mummy, Rest in Perfect Peace!

October

WOW cannot believe it's October already! September just whizzed past. Now it's time for Oktoberfest, Halloween and Breast cancer awareness programmes.Yes it might seem strange to some of you but we do celebrate Oktoberfest and Halloween in Ghana mainly because we have a large expatriate community. Lots of Germans, lots of Americans and Brits you name it, we have them here. You could say that Accra was a melting pot of different nationalities.
Oktoberfest is just another excuse to drink more beer and eat lots of wurst but hey in Accra we do do quite a lot of that already. Beer drinking is a favourite pastime of the locals and one just gets to do a bit more of it this time of year.

Halloween on the other hand is not popular. It is mainly the children in the international schools who tend to celebrate it by wearing scary masks to school, or having fancy dress parties where the person with the most horrific of costumes, wins a prize. (I should know as I did attend an international school myself many decades ago). Generally in Ghana, Halloween is seen to be a time associated with evil and is frowned upon by the charasmatic and pentecostal churches. We all know that it is a bit of fun but no, to others it is taken much more seriously than that.

Breast Cancer awareness on the other hand is becoming more popular and there have been lots of workshops and seminars over the last couple of years. Health and prevention of disease generally this month seems to be the hot topic of the Ministry of Health and there have been a number of health clinics and walks to promote good health and better diets among the populace.

Here's to October.. the month of healthy choices!

Here comes August

Got my first comment and I am really excited. Keep it coming y'all. Cannot believe today is 1st August. The year is far gone and we now have four months left to the end.

August is one of those months that I like as it's the last month to really enjoy the summer holiday or as we call it here in Ghana, the long vacation. For me it has always been a month full of birthdays and truly I need to start buying greeting cards for the August gang. It is also a month that I hope to clinch a few more deals... wish me luck and let's have those contributions/comments.

My Best Friend

My best friend KK passed away Friday 20 July. The world stood still for 5 minutes... I was stunned and devastated! I was literally immobile for 5 minutes.. I froze like an artist had captured me in a painting. We knew his time was drawing near as he was hardly responding to the treatment he was undergoing but when the phone call came, it still came as a shock. For a few minutes, I had flashbacks of when we first met till the last time we spoke when he was about to leave for his next treatment at Kings College hospital in London.

It is amazing how I remember each conversation, what I said or he said... everything is literally in my 'database'. There were a group of us, actually 8 (and sometimes 9) in all who used to hang out in the old neighbourhood during our teenage years but within the group of nine, there was another inner circle, the trio as I fondly called us. Over the years, the trio kept in contact with one another but after '91 it was just KK and I who knew where I was and I where he was etc. The other member of our trio, Keli just got lost; well we knew where he was living, but the communication had dwindled.

We were all building up our careers at the time so it was understandable. One would get the occasional update on how the other member Keli was doing and we were so proud of his achievements. So the trio became a duo and that was how it was until a week and a half ago, when I googled Keli (for fun), and was able to obtain an email address.

Gosh talk about catching up, and all we could IM and email about was KK, how we didn't want to lose him, how we were praying he would recover, the old days when we used to go strolling around the neighbourhood and talk at length about some topic or the other... I told Keli about some of the funny things KK and I used to talk about from the old days and he was amazed that we still remembered some of those crazy things... sweet memories of our childhood and teenage years. Found some old pictures the other day of when my son was being christened and KK had proudly accepted my request of being God Father. He looked so handsome, almost regal in his suit. Funnily enough, it was the first time I or any of the 'gang' had seen him wear a suit and did he look good. I remember we teased him the entire time as we all knew him for his casual attire. He and my son were such good pals and now he too has lost a good friend.

It has been great getting in touch with Keli because we have been supporting each other during this difficult time. We have lost our best friend but as a result of his passing, he has brought us back together.

Rest in peace KK... we will always love you. Till we meet again!

Keeping it Real

Hi everyone!
This is an important time for us in Ghana as the political parties are gearing up for the 2008 elections. It is evident that there is a new breeze blowing over the political divide and new players are definitely going to emerge, some whom have declared their stance for the presidential race and others yet to surface.

Interestingly because I live in Ghana, I have been hearing and reading about potential candidates but a couple of days on the internet, I stumbled upon 2 websites that have shown evidence of serious work being done over the internet for this new presidential aspirant. For me it is reminiscent of how the two US Democrat presidential aspirants are using the internet to raise funds etc. Ironically, not much has been heard about this candidate's aspirations at home though there have been a few whispers here and there. Oh and I remember an angry regional chairman who called in to a radio breakfast show and was livid that this same candidate was wearing the colours of 2 parties but had a secret agenda of starting his own party.

Well I wish him and all the other aspirants luck. As usual, let me hear your views on this one...

Africa as One!

Hi,

I guess you all heard about the just ended AU summit (African Union). There were 2 factions, those who wanted an immediate grouping as one and those who wanted a gradual move towards a united Africa. I have my reservations about doing this hurriedly so I am going for the gradual approach... after all the African Peer Review mechanism was set up not too long ago so we still have a lot of work to do in our individual countries.

Would like to throw this out to you... what are your views about a united Africa and how should we progress.. Would particularly love to hear from those of you out there in the diaspora (gosh I hate that word)..

Looking forward to hearing from you soon.

M.

Turning 40

Hello all,

I know this is going to be a challenge for some of you but I would like to know what is has been like for you out there turning 40. Don't mind if you are in your mid forties or you just turned 40 today, just share with us what is was like, what you have achieved so far, and what you hope to achieve, experience etc. before hitting 50!

Do tell us any changes re: health, work, family... do not leave anything out!

Hope to hear from you out there soon..

M.