Being Madame Fiona...

A year after my first post on this blog, I thought I would give a little reflection on the past twelve incredible months.

As I was leaving Ghana, I swore to myself that I wouldn’t just slip back into the person I used to be. I wanted to remember everything I had ever learned in my time away, but unfortunately life isn’t like that. It’s all too easy to once again become complacent about showers and microwaves and cheese, and I’m sure that Ghanaian Fiona would be horrified to see me now. However, here are a few lessons that have stood the test of time.

1. Home is where the heart is

And there is a little part of my heart in a small jungle town in the middle of nowhere in the middle of Ghana. Before I went away I could never imagine feeling at home outside of Glasgow, but now I know that if you have good friends and a loving family, your home can be anywhere you choose.

2. Laughter is the best medicine

Shockingly, sometimes living in Achiase wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows and cute little monkeys; sometimes it was cockroach-y and monsoon-y and I-keep-getting-attacked-by-a-demonspawn-chicken-y. But I also met some of the greatest people on this planet, and with their help I spent five months laughing so hard my insides hurt, until the horrible stuff just became hilarious future dinner party conversation.

3. The big picture

Not a day goes by when I don’t think about my Ghanaian family, the kids at VAGIS, and all the wonderful people I met this year. Everything I do - studying for university, going to work, fundraising for supportghana.org - I do so that I can get back out there into that big, beautiful world and do something more.

And finally, a few words that will hopefully give some comfort to returning volunteers in the future:

When I first came back from Ghana, I was really and truly depressed. It felt like I had lost my home. My family. My friends. My job. My children. My country. My sense of identity. I felt like nobody understood, and try as hard as they might, my friends and family seemed to always say the wrong things. They just didn’t…get it. It was honestly the toughest thing I have ever had to do.

And I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.