I Am Grateful

I AM GRATEFUL My name is Ajoba Kofi Ashante. Ajoba is the “day name” given to me, meaning that I was born on a Monday. Kofi is an ancestral name given to me in honor of my grandfather. He was named after coffee, which is commonly grown in our village. Ashante means grateful, which I surely am.

I was taught to be grateful from a young age for all that I have been given. I am grateful for my little brother and three sisters. Together, we gather water for our family and for a neighbor once a day. We carry big yellow water jugs to the watering hole. There is a little yellow

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watering jug for my littlest brother, Kojo.

He was born on a Monday too.

It’s quite a long walk back to the village—it takes us about 30 minutes each way and I can balance the jug on my head without using any hands.

Thankfully, my oldest sister carries our two largest water jugs on the back of a bicycle.

To pass the time better, we sing as we walk. Right now, we are all happy and smiling.

The watering hole we visit was a mighty river just two months ago during monsoon season. Now, the monsoon rains have stopped. The water will soon dry up until all that is left is a puddle.

Today, the water was too shallow to dip our jugs into. I use my mother’s water ladle to help us fill the jugs.

During the monsoons, the water was healthy to drink, but each week, the water becomes worse. In the past, the brown, muddy water made us sick.

Think, Pair, Share!

Luckily, we now have a water filter to make our water safe to drink. Our filter has layers of gravel and fine sand. When water seeps through the sand, harmful parasites don’t make it through. More families in Ghana are getting filters just like ours. I am grateful.

What challenges does Ajoba’s family face in getting water?

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