GHANA – Story of poverty and generosity
‘I eat only when I sell. When I do not sell, I am hungry.’ It is like the part of the story about poverty. But this is not only a story. This is a reality. I am standing in the capital city of Ghana and I am talking with one of the poorest and at the same time the most generous stranger I have ever met. I did some research before traveling to Accra and found out that the country is one of the fastest-growing economies in Africa. However, its success does not affect everyone. I did not expect I would experience it firsthand.
It is one of those days when I have a strong urge to explore. Is it safe to go by taxi here? Is it safe to go out for someone like me whose skin tone will blind others?
The poverty of this place first hits me when I am on my way in a taxi. I can see people, from babies to the elderly, walking with various goods around the cars in the traffic jams, offering food, shoes even stationary. Coming closer to the center standing next to the road emerged. The most interesting are women with paper boxes, huge bowls full of bananas, bottles of soft drinks on the ice, and socks, all placed on their heads. There are no pavements, the roads are not the best either and the heat is almost unbearable. This is their everyday life which most of us cannot even imagine.
I enter the local market and the art center with no expectations. Small shops are built one next to another from the wooden, cardboard, or iron boards, and dry palm leaves, a few of them with the brick walls. It is all placed outside on the dirt in the big area with a fence around it, right on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean.
I stop in the shop at the very front. There are masks carved from wood looking like the traditional art of the African tribes, stools and small tables with pictures of elephants and giraffes, jewelry made from different materials, wooden cutlery, bowls, and many other objects, all very simple and pretty. I realize there is the owner of the shop watching my excitement over all this beauty. He has dark brown skin and a wide smile showing almost unnatural white teeth. I buy the handmade crafted mask. The dark part of the wood is smooth as silk; the light one is the opposite – rough contrast.
I start walking through the narrow aisles between the shops. I want to bring some piece of this country to my family. It is December; therefore I am looking for authentic Christmas presents. I buy three small bowls, which look like they were crafted from a similar type of wood as the mask. I imagine them at home in Slovakia on the table in the kitchen, full of candies or peanuts. I sense the sights of all other merchandisers when I am giving the money to the seller. There is a big competition among the shops, they are selling similar products. The place is very empty; I meet only two other tourists walking around.
I am trying not to stick out when I travel to a country, which traditions and culture I am not familiar with. I do not bring my bigger camera and I take pictures with my phone so as not to disturb locals. I am exploring everything around me, I smell the scent of the wicker from the shop, where they create beautiful small handbags, I can hear their laughter and children’s whining. People are shouting at me, madam! madam! they are trying to pull me to their shops, they can see me as the source of their bread and butter. I smile and apologize, I would love to buy more souvenirs or a pretty colorful dress, but I have neither enough cash nor space in my luggage. They are not aggressive or arrogant, they only want to sell.
On my way back, I pass the shop where I bought the mask. I stop by and try to start a conversation with the seller. He remembers me. He is smiling and saying that I will bring him luck because I am his first customer of the day. It is already afternoon so I ask him, how it is possible he did not have any customers before me.
‘Tourists are not coming here anymore. They are not interested in traditional products. They take pictures, and have a walk around but do not buy anything. You are my luck today. If I have one customer, more will come.’
He is excited that he sold me the mask. Even though, it was not expensive at all.
‘Where are you from?’ he asks me.
‘I am from Slovakia.’ He looks at me wondering where my country is situated and I explain it to him.
‘Yes, Europe, Italy, France. Holiday?’
‘No business trip. I am a flight attendant.’
His eyes shine even more now.
‘You see the world. All the world. How beautiful. I would like to travel as well.’
‘Have you ever been abroad?’ I ask him, although I know the answer already.
‘No never. I do not have money for a flight ticket. I do not even have a bank account. I cannot open it because I do not earn enough money to put them in the bank. I spend most of the money I earn on food. It happens that some days I do not have any money at all. If I o not sell anything, I have nothing to eat.’
I want to give him the rest of my money, but I am afraid I would offend him. People are trying to keep their pride in general, even if they are poor. I decide to buy something else in his shop so he can have a proper supper tonight.
‘I will buy these three bracelets.’
I take the rest of the cash from the wallet and realize that I have money only for two of them. With a bit of disappointment, I put one of the bracelets back. The man looks into my eyes and I explain to him that I do not have enough money.
‘Why do you need three? Are they presents?’
‘Yes. For my mum, godmother, and grandma.’
‘Here. Take them all.’ He takes the bracelet and gives it to me.
‘But I have money only for two of them.’
‘It is my present for them. They will make them happy.’
He does not have enough money to have a meal every day. But he wants to give presents to total strangers.
I have told my family the story about the bracelets when we were opening Christmas presents. It was one of the most emotional Christmases we ever experienced.
Poverty in the world is almost invisible to many people. But we do not have to go to Africa to help. We can tip the taxi driver, the waitress who makes our lunch break a bit brighter with her pleasant service, or the hairdresser thanks to we feel like a new person.
Since the encounter with the seller from Ghana, I appreciate small things in my life a little bit more. This experience helped me to realize that people can be kind to each other and be generous even if their life is far from perfect. All of this thanks to one of the kindest people I have ever met. The happy man on the African coast met the girl telling him stories about the world.
