J. M. Johnson Consulting

Have you ever been to a place or space where you did not have to explain yourself? You might want to though you do not have to in order to be accepted. Have you ever been to a continent where you have never been where person after person said “welcome home sister” or “welcome home, brother?”

Have you ever been to a place where the arms where people who call that place home were so very open and welcoming? Have you ever been to a place where you were not made to feel like an other?

I have.

I am still processing the magnitude of this opportunity to visit Ghana. I am still processing the positive impact of those 14 days in the Motherland. A place where everybody knows your name without being told.

My Ghanaian born name is Akua.

There was definite sadness and anger when visiting the Cape Coast and Elmina slave dungeons, though there was mostly inexplicable joy while in Ghana.

Akwaaba is a welcoming expression used in Ghana that means “welcome” in the Twi language. We felt welcomed. We were welcomed.

Ghana. Home. A place. A people. I am forever changed.

Home.