I came to Ghana earlier than the rest of my group so naturally I was afraid entering a new country as a young woman but I felt so called by God to journey across the ocean that the fear I had quickly subsided and I forged ahead.  Akwaaba means welcome.  As the last 10 minutes or so of my flight passed by I was able to look out of my window and as I peered through the clouds that blanketed the atmosphere I could see dirt roads and an assortment of colorful houses both big and small.  Tears began to pour from my eyes as I looked at the landscape because I felt like I had made it home, finally.  I am an African American woman and my ancestors were likely trafficked through on of the slave castles on Ghana’s Cape Coast. During our "free day" we had the opportunity to visit one of the castles called Elmina Castle which housed roughly 600 enslaved people at a time. 

It was hard to hear about the deplorable and inhumane treatment that the slaves endured as they were stolen from their homes.  This experience further reinforced my first thought, that I’d made the trek home! How beautiful it was not to come shackled and chained to three other women but instead of free and bound only by the love of Christ. The word Akwaaba meant so much to me because “my country”/”my home” welcomed me with open arms. And what a beautiful transition to City of Refuge Children’s Village where everything is first Christ centered and second family based.  I arrived home to my family at CORM.