Please meet Laura Consford and her family...
Is there such a thing as a "typical" day on the mission field? It seems
there is always something unexpected that comes up, but we just learn to go with
the flow.
We are the Consford family, currently serving in Ghana, West Africa. Joe
and I first arrived in Africa in 2004. At that time, we did not have any
children. We now have three children, Gilbert (7), Danny (5), and Bonnie (4).
Each addition to the family has brought a little more excitement. There never
seems to be a dull moment around our house. Our children say some of the
funniest things. I do not know where they come up with some of their great
ideas.
Here in Takoradi, Ghana, we have the unusual opportunity of being able to
put our children in a Christian school. Another Baptist missionary started a
school several years ago. They use the A Beka DVDs and have a teacher and a
monitor in each class. Last year was the first year that our children attended
there. They were a little overwhelmed at first since they were the only white
children in a school of 250 students. They have just started their second year.
They were all excited for school to start again. The school is only four miles
from our house, but it sometimes takes almost an hour to get there due to
traffic and road conditions.
When school is in session, a "typical" day begins at 5:30 for me. I get
up, make breakfast, and get lunches packed to send to school. After I get Joe
and the kids out the door for school by 6:45, I have time for my devotions and
computer time. Then, I get started on my chores for the day - dishes, laundry,
cleaning, baking, etc. Filtering water is also a daily occurrence. We have
well water and rain water as our main water sources. So, the water has to be
filtered before using it for cooking or drinking. At one point, we all got sick
from the water. Since that time, we have stepped up our filtering system. Our
water goes through a chlorination process and then four different filters before
we drink it, and it takes constant care to keep the water moving along to the
next step.
When the children are out of school, they are still up early, usually
around 6:00. I still have all of the same basic things to do. They are old
enough now that they can help out around the house. They clear the table, wash
the dishes, sweep the floor, etc.
As is the case on many mission fields, there are not many "quick fix" type
things available. So, meal preparation takes a little longer sometimes - making
your own tortillas, soups, pizza dough, etc.
When the children get home from school, they usually swim or play outside
for a while to get some of their energy out. They do not play much during
school. They also like to help me make supper.
After supper, we like to play a game as a family. I grew up playing board
games, and I still enjoy playing games. The main thing we are working on right
now is not getting upset when we lose; it seems that someone always ends up in
tears.
We have had "load shedding" recently. The idea is for the power to be off
in different areas at different times, but the power in our area seems to be the
first one to go off. We live up on a hill. Sometimes at night, the power is
off in our area, but we can see lights all around us. We do have a generator,
which is a necessity to keep food from spoiling and to keep the fans turning.
It is a little frustrating at times because we never know when we will have
"load shedding" or how long the power will be off. We do have a gas stove; at
least the food keeps cooking when the power goes off. The other night, the
power went off during supper. Bonnie said, "I guess we are having a candle
breakfast." We sometimes get behind on the laundry because the generator will
not run the washing machine. If the power is on, the washing machine is in
constant use. That is better than doing it by hand. I know that I have it much
easier than missionaries did years ago or than modern-day missionaries who are
in very remote places.
Joe stays busy with sermon preparation, visiting, and transporting the
children to and from school during the week. On Saturday mornings, he goes
visiting. We also have Bible Clubs on Saturday mornings in different
neighborhoods.
On Sunday mornings, I work with the children seven years old and under. I
usually have around twenty-five in my class. Most of the children who have not
been to school yet do not speak English. I usually have a Fante-speaking helper
in my class. On Sunday nights and Wednesday nights, I play my clarinet as
accompaniment during the services.
I usually go into town with Joe one day during the week to go grocery
shopping. We have a couple small stores that carry refrigerated items. There
is also a large market area that has a variety of items - fruits, vegetables,
fabric, etc. We also buy some things in bulk at the market - flour, sugar,
powdered milk. After we get our shopping done, we usually eat lunch somewhere
before heading home. We do not have any fast food restaurants in our town, but
there are some good places to eat; it just takes a while before the food comes.
My next goal is to learn Fante, the tribal language in our area. We have
had difficulty finding a teacher. My husband studied Fante for six months when
we were in Ghana a few years ago. (We started out in Ivory Coast but had to
leave several times due to civil war.) So, he knows a lot more than I do. We
learned French before going to Ivory Coast, but I have never studied a tribal
language before.
Thank you for the opportunity to share our daily happenings here in West
Africa. We have a blog which started out as a daily e-mail to family and
friends to let them know what happens each day. You are welcome to follow along
at http://consfords.blogspot.com/.
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Thank you, Laura, for giving us a peak into your life. Did you enjoy reading this? We would love to hear about a "typical" day in your life. Please email us at baptistmissionarywomen @ hotmail . com (no spaces).
