11 Struggles & Strategies from a Germaphobe on the Race
- At some point a drunk homeless man with dirt incrusted all over his body will want to shake your hand and talk very close to your face.
Resist the temptation to walk away and pretend you didn’t see him or you don’t understand what he’s saying. Remember that Jesus died for your sins when you were filthy and incrusted with sin and never ignored you in your worse state. So shake that man’s hand and if you’re in Latin America, throw in a kiss on the cheek for good measure.
Tip: Baby wipes and hand sanitizer are great to have in your bag for after. EVANGELIZE AND SANITIZE!
- There will be a time when a teammate, with their 5 day old clothes and solid black dirty feet, will sit on the first bed you’ve had in months. You will cringe and start to feel possessive over the only thing you have control of from the filth and sweat you live in all day.
Breathe and let them sit. You might miss out on a poignant word from the Lord that you need to hear in that moment or a word of encouragement that will be just what you needed. Don’t allow yourself to sacrifice Holy Spirit ordained moments over a struggle for control.
Tip: Just keep the top sheet as a barrier for the clean bottom sheets and use your sleeping bag liner to wrap up in.
- Showering is not always a daily activity!
Embrace that life. You will learn in those moments the difference between necessity and desire.You are already gross and will be that way until the water tank fills back up in 3 days so use it as an excuse to spend that extra time playing soccer with the neighborhood kids or get your team to do a group Zumba video. You all stink equally as bad and when you do get a shower, you’ll forget all about how bad it was; well, at least until the next time you run out of water.
Tip: Have emergency baby wipes and baby powder and you can last for at least a week without losing your humanity.
- Your Nalgene is the team’s Nalgene.
This phenomenon starts at training camp, so get ready to pass that bottle around. However, it’s not limited to just water. There will times during this journey when you will be asked to share all sorts of things from clothes to deodorant to maybe even a toothbrush. But, it’s almost impossible to get through this journey alone and what you will sow you will reap. Love those around you. Sharing really is caring.
Tip: Take your vitamins. Sickness is the one thing you shouldn’t share with your teammates. Oh and clean your Nalgene as often as possible….those things get nasty.
- Identifiable meat and sanitary cooking preparations are not universal.
This one is hard. You will want to throw a fit at times and refuse to eat the lamb head soup with the hair still attached. But keep in mind that when your host is serving you it is their way of serving the Lord. You don’t want be the one who refuses a blessing because it’s not the presentation you had in mind.
Tip: Make nice with your teammates with iron stomachs so you can do the whole switcheroo when no one is looking and also learn to say, “It’s so delicious, but I’m full,” in all the countries you will be in. Also, just pretend that everything is chicken.
- Oh the bathrooms…..
For a germaphobe, the bathrooms will be a daily struggle. You will find yourself considering not drinking for days and wanting to buy adult diapers just to avoid the fly infested hole in the ground with smells that are indescribable. Dehydration is no joke so avoid that route. Also, diapers are expensive and you are on a racers budget so that’s not going to work either.
Tip: My only advice is be like Nike and “Just Do It!”
- There will be lots of ground sitting.
There will be a day when your teammate want to do worship in the park and the only place to sit is the mildew stained and slightly damp ground with trash surrounding your seat. Sit, close your eyes, and stretch your hands out to the God who created the universe. He is worthy of all your praise, even when it means risking your kinda new clean clothes you picked up from the free pile at debrief.
Tip: Carry some napkins so you can put down as barrier if it is real bad or use your rain jacket those things are multi-purpose.
- Tents, floors, old mattresses, hammocks, bus seats all make for interesting beds
You will sleep in a lot of different places on the race and for a germaphobe this can be scary. You will wonder exactly what is crawling on you at night and you will ponder how many people have slept on this oddly smelling hostel mattress before you, but don’t dwell on these thoughts. Take a moment to thank God you have somewhere to rest your sweet eyes and get some sleep. You need energy to walk up that mountain to visit with the Pastor who needs prayer, or to shovel the dirt to make a playground for kids living in the city dump. You are going to need to be rested for that 4 hour long church service where you will dance for hours to a foreign language and experience true freedom in worship. SLEEP WHEN YOU CAN!
Tip: Just keep the lights low and don’t look too closely to anything remotely questionable. You don’t want to see.
- Clean clothes=does it pass the smell test?
You are going to wear several day old clothes a lot on the race. As much as I struggled with this all year, it’s not worth getting worked up over. The race will teach you a lot about how little you actually need and the sooner you grasp that things are not that important you will be free to invest in those around you. So spray your 3 day old shirt with some Febreeze (aka World Race Perfume) and tackle your day.
Tip: Hand washing as you go is important so you don’t have to repeat wear necessities.
10. You may find yourself in a situation where a single mom invites into her modest and “lived in” home and there is a chicken bone stuck in her couch and her snotty nosed kids are crawling on your head.
Be present. You won’t ever get this opportunity again to tell her to trust in the Lord with all her heart. Don’t think about if the tea she is serving you was made with purified water or if the kid washed his hands before he shoved a piece of his cookie into your mouth. Love the moment. You came on the race for moments like this very one.
11. You may have a moral dilemma when that beautiful little orphan runs and jump in your arms and you see the lice crawling throughout their hair and the ring worm covering their excited face.
You are going to want to keep them at arm’s length and find an excuse to play non-contact games. Stop and think about precious that child is to our Heavenly father. Realize, that game of peek-a-boo and tickles might be the best representation of God’s love they ever see. So pick that baby up, spin them around, give them the best hug you can muster, and remember that Christ’s love is unconditional. He loves us lice and all.
Tip: Lice can be easily treated with mayonnaise and vinegar.
To all my fellow germaphobe racers out there, whether you are on the race now, preparing to launch, or maybe just considering if you can give up your germaphobic ways for a year, I hope this blog encouraged you that you can preserver. It won’t be easy. You will have moments that require grace from your team and you will have to ask for forgiveness for rejecting opportunities to love of people, but you can do it. You will adapt to the race lifestyle and will find ways to accommodate. Its only 11 months and I promise it will be worth every extra baby wipe!
