What's right is wrong, and left is right

This isn't a physically stuck in Africa.  This is a mentally stuck there, I think very similar to last year, only last year I could hold my breath and hope that I did a good enough job that CCA would be able, in good conscience, to invite me back for a second year.   this year is the end of my two year commitment so now there's a real possibility that I may never set my feet on Ghanaian soil again in my lifetime and that is cause for reflection.  We have arrived in London for the debrief.  The Ghana CCA and Irish coaches have had a wonderful day, thanks to Louise for dragging us around London for 12 full hours of unbelievable sites.  We toured Westminster Abbey.  I can check "See Phantom of the Opera at the place it began" off my bucket list.  We did The Tube.  We walked in the rain together.  Nancy used the umbrella to protect my Phantom program from getting wet inside its protective plastic bag.  We are now nicely fitted in our hotel rooms, with hot water and what seems to be unlimited power.  I got to message Sandy tonight with no interruption of wifi.  I should be delighted.

OK Louise, which way?

I'm not.  I wish I was, and perhaps it is the jet lag, perhaps it's just the emotional toll of a couple of weeks involved (but not in) someone else's shoes.  Whatever this is I'm not delighted to be "back".  Yet.  Remember, for those of you who have been reading the blog, the story of "don't tell a single story"?  Well, I want to tell you the other side of that story of Africa, of Ghana, that you don't hear every day.  And maybe you will understand why I may not be as delighted to be out of Africa as you would hope that I would be.

There is the welcoming spirit of (everyone I have met) Ghanains.  "You are most welcome," is a phrase we heard over and over again every day.  I woke up in Ghana yesterday.  I heard people welcome me, in a village, in a store, in a market, they are the most welcoming people I have ever met.  Now, please, please please, do not take this as an affront to London residents (because I truly believe that this would happen if I were displaced into Toronto, or into Los Angeles, or into Saskatoon....) but I haven't gotten that welcoming feeling here.  Today as we strolled towards the underground (Tube) station we ran across our fellow CCA coaches from Uganda and Malawi who were making their way to the hotel.  It was a reunion.  On the street.  There were a lot of us.  We were hugging, we were chatting....

#CCAcoaches meet again!

And we were in somebody's way.  The lady with the umbrella bumped up against me, and as I was about to say "I'm sorry" in my Canadian-raised way she looked at me as she passed and said "You have no right to block the sidewalk!" and kept walking.  Again,  it could very well be jet lag, but I wanted to be back in Ghana at that moment, because I know I am very welcome, even if I am in a crowd blocking the street.  It happened again on the Tube escalator, I apparently was on the wrong side and was blocking those that wanted to run up the people mover.  It wasn't enough that there was nobody to my right and enough room for a fairly large person with a suitcase to get by me on that side, I was told to move (after which Liam mentioned to me that "they won't think twice about running you over," and I wished I was back in Ghana.  

Although I'm going through a little culture shock (again) I have to mention the biggest learning (or path to learning) that I have about the similarities in the two cultures.  Even though, in Ghana, they drive from the left side of the car, which for me is right, and the Londoners drive on the wrong side of the car which is right, and we are always taught to look left and right before crossing the street, the right side is the same as the left side driver when it comes to pedestrians in an unmarked/jaywalking area.  The pedestrian is wrong.  Period.  Liam tried to teach me that last year.  I'm still not getting it.  Liam tried to exhibit it on our way to the hotel from the airport, just the right being right and the left being wrong, or the back seat driver position in the front seat....

Look, no hands!

I have to chalk it up to jet lag.  I had a wonderful day with wonderful people, in a wonderful city that has a rich history and beautiful sites....but I'm missing Ghana already.  Tomorrow morning is our debrief, maybe that will put everything into perspective for me.  For tonight I'm just thinking that the right is wrong, and the left is right, I'm not too sure which way to look crossing the street unless I'm staring at Liam or Louise's back and just blindly following...and I've had a beautiful journey so far.