{"id":2304,"date":"2023-01-13T08:44:37","date_gmt":"2023-01-13T08:44:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana\/?p=2304"},"modified":"2024-09-24T00:30:56","modified_gmt":"2024-09-24T00:30:56","slug":"no-checklist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/2023\/01\/13\/no-checklist\/","title":{"rendered":"No Checklist"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

There is a rhythm, a pattern that I seem to rediscover each time we begin the journey to Africa. The blue \u201cPurchase\u201d button on the United Airlines website is the critical first step.\u00a0\u00a0Commitment.\u00a0\u00a0We will go. Ambiguous phrases such as \u201cwe are hoping\u201d and \u201cwe intend to\u201d or \u201cit might work out that we go to Africa\u201d are suddenly replaced with words that make an anxious tug every time we speak them aloud to family, friends, and colleagues: \u201cwe are going to Ghana on January 12th<\/sup>\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0From that mouse click until arrive in Africa, we are preparing \u2013 our hearts, our gear, our work. Commitment.\u00a0\u00a0Preparation.\u00a0\u00a0Ray and the team in Ghana prepare local choirs, Bible stories, the 4×4 truck, guest houses, and local pastors.\u00a0\u00a0From our side of the planet, Beth and I focus on logistics and technology, from the spare microphone<\/a> to the\u00a0azithromycin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A photo from Clement: “The bambati group of the Kudani\/Wonjuga Anufo communities having their choir rehearsals”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Ray traveling north to meet us in Tamale<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Our checklists<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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“The “Carry-on Packing Table” — essentials for the work, even if the 9 bags don’t arrive.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Joanna and Mike are traveling with us to Ghana. It is their first time to Africa, and they are very excited and eager!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Growing up in Galesburg Illinois, surrounded by farms, prairies, and a patchwork of hardwood forests, I often dreamed of worlds far away. Heinlein and Asimov took me to planets with clever robots and blasters. I joined Heyerdahl sailing the pacific on a raft of balsa.\u00a0\u00a0Wonderful stories, both imagined and true. Narratives that cracked open the possible.\u00a0\u00a0Yet for me, those stories focused me on the technical \u2013 the gear, the maps, the skills required.\u00a0\u00a0Read the appendix of \u201cThrough the Brazilian Wilderness<\/a>\u201d by Theodore Roosevelt if you want a meticulous, if not occasionally tedious, explanation of expedition outfitting, from the books and maps to the knives and clothes used by Roosevelt during his harrowing exploration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Africa has taught me that the most essential preparation for the work in Ghana is my heart.  Preparation has a list.  My heart? There is no checklist.  We have spreadsheets and timelines for gear and travel.  But is my heart ready? No. Adrenaline, anxiety, and nine checked bags keep me planning and preparing.  Thoughts about work at the Lab keep the nooks and crannies of my mind racing. My narrative is still physical — an unfolding story driven by Roosevelt-style provisioning and learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My heart. I\u2019m unprepared.\u00a0\u00a0Time for prayer and quiet.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There is a rhythm, a pattern that I seem to rediscover each time we begin the journey to Africa. The blue \u201cPurchase\u201d button on the United Airlines website is the critical first step.\u00a0\u00a0Commitment.\u00a0\u00a0We will go. Ambiguous phrases such as \u201cwe are hoping\u201d and \u201cwe intend to\u201d or \u201cit might work out that we go to … Continue reading No Checklist<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2304","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-2023-jan"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2304","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2304"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2304\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2441,"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2304\/revisions\/2441"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2304"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2304"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2304"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}