Once Upon a Time...

While driving to EP Sokode Bagble, we heard a woman on the radio stating, “Life is like a book; each day is a new page waiting to be written.” We continued the tradition of story telling of two cultures today beginning with the amazing story of how the drum came to the Wasauking Nation- through the vision of a child. We heard the stories behind many of the Ghana drumming songs. In Ghana, many stories are told through music, and even a talking drum. We read Fly, Eagle, Fly – A Ghanaian Fable- to the P1 kids at EP Primary Ho-Bankoe, all eyes glued to the colorful pages. Afterwards, a couple of kids came up us told us some of their stories.

We completed the final chapter, for this trip, with our EP Leaders. We shared the award winning DVD of Playing for Change last week, as part of our discussion on change making. We were going to cut it after a few songs, as the sound was not great. (We could use a donation of some excellent speakers that plug into a mac and can be heard in large classrooms!) The children quickly responded that they wanted to hear more, and we happily granted their wishes. Many of them could be heard singing familiar lyrics to One Love- one love, one heart. We took a vote as to which song we should share at the closing ceremony with the entire school. The candidates were Stand By Me, One Love, and War/No More Trouble. It then was another vote between One Love and “No More Trouble”, as they said. No More Trouble was the clear winner. This is a new song to them, but while listening, at the end, you could hear many of them…. No more trouble, no more trouble. Rocky Duwani from Ghana is in this video, so that may have tipped the vote!

Children Inspiring Hope is a beautiful story of connection, compassion and community. Each day a rich chorus sings to what is possible when their voices are heard, they are able to unite with new friends across the globe, and envision a peaceful and sustainable future for us all. Our time is drawing near and end for this chapter in Ghana, and we will soon be reconnecting with classrooms in the US next week.

We invite you to be a part of this story.