Calmness in the Storm

22/2/11                10:42 pm

(I wrote this last night during a blackout so bear with me)

As I sit here in absolute pitch blackness, I realize that one of the things that I will miss the most about Ghana once I leave is the thunderstorms. There are literally nothing in this world like them. The wet season is kicking into full gear again and it got off to a great start with the nicest rain storm in the 7 months that I have been here. That’s not to say that it was gentle at all. Around 8 pm we started with some light rainfall right before the thunder rolled in and the torrential downpour began. We hadn’t had electricity all day anywhere on campus and now that the storm started we knew that it was only a matter of time before we lost it again despite getting it back around 6. Usually when these storms come around they last a few hours, if that, and the rain stays pretty constant, but this time was different. The thunder and lightning were relentless and the wind was howling like no other. It wasn’t long before water was flooding the hallways and leaking into my room but i didn’t mind because this really is my favorite part of the wet season. I just ignored all the screaming and yelling coming from the all the oboronis (internationals) running around in our courtyard, closed my eyes and listened to the rumbling that practically shook our hostel.  Around 10:30 pm our generator finally gave out and we lost power so now the only thing that was visible was the lightning ripping through sky. This brings me to now. I’m sitting here on my doorstop, looking up at the sky and admiring something so beautiful. I watch the lightning streak through the sky every few minutes, crackling and giving us little glimpses of light. Despite all this commotion, I’ve never felt as calm in these past months as I do right now. It’s for moments like these that I came here to Ghana. I love that I can walk out my room in still darkness and look up at the sky and see this. This is what makes it worth it.

(The video seems like nothing but keep watching and you'll see how lightning looks in a blackout)