“Community is what we are created for.” – Shane Claiborne
We were created to THRIVE in community…
and when it’s operating well I have seen people flourish.
Most days though, it’s easier to survive….
to make it through the day.
To put your head phones in and tune the world out.
To not put the effort in.
The beauty is, if you are willing to work through the tough spots, the awkward moments, the frustrations, the selfishness, on the otherside are rewards far more rewarding than words can describe.
We may have been made for it, but community living is not easy.
Oddly enough, I chose the Race primarily for the community. I prayed over P squad before we had all been pieced together, back when we were known only as “January 2013 Route 4.” In full disclosure, there have been times I have questioned whether these were the squadmates I was suppose to do this with.
Over the course of the last ten months I have been apart of four different teams and worked alongside ten other teams.
Nooma To Nations (months 1-3)
Team Lumos (months 4-6)
Team Tribute #ivolunteer (months 7-8)
Team Geronimo (months 9-11)
At this point I have almost worked with everyone on the squad. What I have learned is that people are messy.
Life is messy.
This is the first community of people I haven’t had a say in who I do life with…
(inadvertently when I signed up for the Race I suppose I chose them)
My wise sister reminded me when I was having a rough month with my team that I should be asking myself what I could learn from the individuals instead of fixating on the mess part.
Jesus often said things that seemed to contradict our everyday thinking… when it comes to community if you want to thrive you have to do things that do not come naturally to you.
Preference someone else, respond in love when you’ve been talked to in a cutting tone, stay up to listen to someone when all you want to do is sleep, take the tire “seat” in the chapa to provide someone else with the real seat, take a walk with your stir crazy teammate when all you want to do is read a book…
…basically learn to be selfless and love genuinely.
I will assure you, this is A DAILY CHOICE.
Ten months in I am starting to see the rewards of those daily choices. It was a rough start though.
Whoever said sharing is caring did not have to share their pack of gum with 45 people. I mastered a trick early on to conceal my gum. I’d reach in my backpack, grab a piece, hold it in my hand, nonchalantly cough or yawn bringing my hand up to my mouth and throw the piece in.
I had to protect my stash.
If I brought the container out, the vultures would descend upon it. Next thing I know my whole pack is gone in 60 seconds.
Yes, shamefully I admit I did this and didn’t stop until my cover was blown months later. I eventually realized it was just gum. The Race will most definitely show you how selfish you can be.
I knew I had made progress in month nine when I was gifted a bag of Lucky Charms (shout out to the Kell Family). My first thought was to save it for when the squad got together. I wanted everyone to have a taste of the marshmallow deliciousness.
That’s some breakthrough people.
There will be moments of all out investigations to see who drank your juice, ate your banana, or took too much of their portioned peanut butter. (If you’re going to do this thing make a mental note that food is serious business.) In a prank gone wrong I (accidentally) punched a teammate because I was so upset and amped up on adrenaline. You’ll create richter scales for who should be able to use the scatty next. I once did the awkward Nick moonwalk out of a situation where teammates were harshly (and loudly) speaking to each other in the middle of a grocery store. People will make pointed passive aggressive statements in front of the group leaving everyone feeling uneasy and unsure of what to say. Your feelings will inevitably be hurt.
The truth is there are some ugly moments in community. Like I said people are messy.
Sometimes (read: most days) you’ll look discheveled. Your teammates won’t judge you or even think twice about going out in public with you…
because most likely they’ll look like this…
The cool thing, and redeeming quality about this intense kind of community is that for as many bad moments there are twice as many good ones.
There is always someone to help you set up your tent or to watch a tv show with.
Milestones and holidays are celebrated with Race flair because these are your people now.
You can count on certain men to help lift your pack so you can get it on without having to whip it around your body pulling every muscle known to man. Thoughtful notes will be hidden in places only to be found at what turns out to be the perfect time. You will quickly learn the dietary likes of your teammates and know who will automatically preach if given two minutes notice.
You will fall in love with the same kids.
And bear witness to God’s redemption stories. (Mukelo’s story)
They will dream with you…
And be packed in a bus for hours with you…
And are the ones who woke up with a school of Nepali children sitting in the same room as you…
We’ve spent hours picking lice out of each other’s heads. We’re basically experts.
The cockroach killers spring into action when one is spotted so they don’t touch the highly allergic girl (me) and I scare the stray dogs away from the teammate who is terrified of them.
It’s a song and dance that is learned in time and done with ease now.
You will find yourself helping to complete an all out assault on the huge spider because a teammate won’t be able to sleep until you find and kill him.
They are the only ones who know what it was like to get fingerprinted in another country first thing in the morning because deportation has been threatened.
They’ve seen the atrocities of this world with you and are now walking down the road of trying to reconcile those things…
And best of all they will pray with you and over you at a moment’s notice.
Being in this community has been one of the toughest things I have done. There have been moments when I wanted to quit; go back to “my people.” But at the end of the day I know there are 45 individuals who have walked the same strange path I have, a road very few understand. They have been there to pray the big things along side me, to cheer me on while I climbed five hours into the mountains of Nepal or tried to finish all the food on my plate a host gave me, they’ve cried with me, said the words I needed to hear most even if they are hard to swallow, and extended grace on the bad days.
We’re still learning how to communicate well with each other on an individual basis. We’re learning to work through the messy parts to reap the benefits of a functional loving relationship. We’re getting there.
It’s a process.
They’re a process.
I’m a process.
Community may be hard but it IS what we were made for.
At the end of the day I wouldn’t trade my squad for the world.
At least not today 😉
