I snapped this picture the other night after being at the office all day.  This lady has a regular SHOE STORE on her head.  It is incredible how much they can carry usually with a baby on their backs!  

Every transfer I create a page for the bulletin board with the pictures and names of the missionaries that will be departing the new transfer and another one for the missionaries that will arrive.  So this is above my desk now in the office.  Every time I look at it it takes me by surprise that we will be leaving in such a short time.  Trying to savor all the wonderful things about Ghana and serving here in the GKM.  The time has just flown by really.  I will admit that some days/weeks dragged but looking back I really cannot believe we are where we are now!  Crazy.....

I have written before about how the funerals here are a BIG deal.  I have posted pictures of the giant billboards that are posted about the funerals and the clothes that they wear and such.  Before Elder Garrison and I came to the mission, we watched some YOU TUBE videos about Ghana and it mentioned that sometimes they have "speciality caskets" for their dead.  Well last week, the seniors from West Africa that have a combined blog posted some pictures of some "speciality caskets".  

There is a tradition in the Ga and Fanti tribes of Ghana that the deceased person will continue the profession they had on earth in the afterlife, just a slight variation of what we believe to be true:

" ...for that same spirit which doth possess your bodies at the time that ye g go out of this life, that same spirit will have power to possess your body i in that eternal world." Alma 34:34

To make sure that the person that died won't forget their life here, their family may commission a wood carver to build a casket that will represent where they came from and what they left behind in this life.  Below are some of the amazing caskets that they posted pictures of.  

An alligator casket

A Bible casket

A bird casket

A casket that looks like a massive home.

Fish casket

Money ccasket

Fire engine ccasket

  

A green guava.  It kind of tasted like an green apple to us.  It is supposed to have medicinal qualities

We like mangos much better but  it is nice to have choices!

We thought we might get out of Ghana without an accident but it didn't happen.  Elder Garrison was making a u-turn and a car came up on him speeding pretty good.  Elder Garrison pulled over to the side of the road and so did the other car.....so this is our truck now?  Thankfully nobody was hurt and there is a very talented Bishop here in Kumasi that can do body work.  The traffic here in Kumasi is pretty free-wheeling....not many signs or signals or road markings.  It is amazing to me that there are not more accidents than there are.  

This is Hannah.  She is the cook and the housekeeper for the mission office, so we see her almost every day.  It was her birthday on Tuesday.  She can sure cook and clean and is just a very warm wonderful person on top of that.  She has four children and a husband that fills in when Hannah's other kitchen help cannot come.  We love Hannah so much!

This is Elder Njirafaya and Elder Anderson (our office elders).  This week and next week are zone conferences and it is their job to get anything that is needed for the missionaries to the zone conferences for distribution.  I was teasing them about their messy office....literally there is STUFF everywhere!  But to give them credit, they know where everything goes and once it gets out of there they are pretty tidy.  This week they had the added task of setting up 80 phones for the mission....so they have been very busy!  

What is a post from Ghana without an obligatory picture from a tro-tro?" GOD'S TIME IS THE BEST". 

These are the wonderful sisters in the Adansi Asokwa Branch .  We attended there today and as it happened I was "chosen" to lead the discussion in Relief Society.  We had a great exchange discussing the talk by Kevin W. Pearson called " Are You Still Willing?"  I love hearing the insights that these ladies have and experiencing church with them.  

Reminds me of a talk that I studied this past week by David Bednar (That We Might not Shrink, Church Educational Systems Devotional. Arlington, Texas March 3 2013) 

He quoted Elder Neal A. Maxwell saying, “The issue for us is trusting God enough to trust also His timing. If we can truly believe He has our welfare at heart, may we not let His plans unfold as He thinks best?” We must trust in God’s purposes and timing and learn the lessons we were meant to learn.

 I think it is hard for us to trust in the Lord's timing. We have become a society where we have instant gratification.  It does take great faith to be patient and wait. I do believe though that it is always worth the wait....it is during those times that if we lean on the Lord, our testimonies are strengthened.  

Another two weeks have flown by.  This coming week we will attend our last zone conference.  It is surreal writing that.  We have been so blessed while we have been serving here and have gained way more than we have ever sacrificed.  Thank you all for your support and prayers.  Stay strong and steadfast.

Love,

The Garrisons