During the early morning, it rained. The sky is still gray, and the air is damp. It will be warm, maybe even 60°, but light rain is predicted. 

My insurance company has assessed my car. They are giving me enough money for a good used car. I am going to rent a car this week as it is covered by my insurance. I am happy and relieved.

I was in Ghana for the first Earth Day. It passed me by, but I was living in a country where nothing went to waste. When my sandals fell apart, when the sole detached, I took them to the market for new soles. The man who fixed them attached pieces of a tire to the bottom of the sandals. They lasted the rest of my time there. Beer bottles held groundnut oil or palm nut oil and were sold in the market. You could always get a refill. The compounds were central with round, clay houses made with traditional materials, made with clay, sand and water. The roofs were thatched with grass or straw. I remember a roundabout with tires in a circle. Chicken heads and feet made for a great broth. Rice was sold in cones made from newspapers, made from my New York Times. Cans had multiple uses. The Ghanaians made much from little.

When I was growing up, my life felt idyllic. Everything was amazing. We had the swamp, the field and a copse of trees. We had wild blueberry bushes. Not far away was a pond where we fished. The junk man with his horse and wagon periodically rode by my house calling for newspapers and cans and just everyday junk.. The knife sharpener man rode his bike around looking for business. The garbage can was set in the ground. I remember opening the top by stepping on the pedal so I could watch the maggots. We had only had one car as did most families. It was enough. We never gave thought to the future. 

This entry was posted on April 22, 2025 at 12:45 pm and is filed under Musings. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments. Both comments and pings are currently closed.