1. I have never been more uncomfortable in my life.
Training camp made me uncomfortable in every sense of the word. I was put into a group of people I barely knew, who quickly became really close friends. I was stretched and challenged in ways I’ve never been before, spiritually, mentally, and physically. And it was wonderful and painful and awesome all at the same time.
- I never got to sleep.
There wasn’t one night that I got more than three consecutive hours of sleep. The first two nights we were in our tents, and then we slept in a large tent with 13 girls in it. The next night our whole squad had to sleep together under one tarp outside, and the night after that we all had to sleep on a school bus. We finished the week off in our own tents with thunderstorms. And it made my squad so much closer and broke down barriers so we could open up to each other.
- I never ate a full meal.
At training camp, each day was a different kind of food from one of the continents we go to. We had to share a platter with 8 people at one table, so the portion sizes were tiny. The food wasn’t what I was expecting, and it makes me very interested to see what the food will be like when we’re actually on the Race. And it made me realize that I don’t need as much food as we eat in America, and helped me to serve my squadmates and put others before myself.
- We had to get up at 7am every morning for exercise, and all our gear had to be packed up before then.
I’m not a morning person, so waking up every day at 6am to pack up my gear, tent, sleeping pad, etc so I can go exercise did not create a happy atmosphere for me. And it taught me that it’s not all about me, and that my attitude affects other peoples’ attitudes. Just because I don’t feel like being happy doesn’t give me an excuse to be rude or crabby.
- Training camp broke down every area of my relationship with God.
Before training camp, I would say I had a good relationship with God. We talked every day, I listened to Him, and once I got to training camp, those assumptions were shattered. I was able to process all the ways I need to work on my relationship with God, people, and how much more I still have to do. And I realized that if I don’t take it upon myself to strengthen our relationship, that it will never grow or become intimate.
- It made me realize I live an excessive lifestyle.
At training camp, I showered a total of twice in seven days, wore five different shirts, and wore two pairs of shorts. All week. I ate three meals with maybe one snack each day. And that’s all I needed. Sure, it wasn’t comfortable, but who needs to be comfortable all the time, anyways?
- It made me realize that I have a lot of superficial relationships.
In just seven days, I was more vulnerable and open with my squad than most of my friends and family back home. It made me sad, but also showed me all the areas I need to work on to have real relationships before I leave for the Race. It’s all about intentionality. And I’m excited to see where that intentionality will take those relationships.
Wait, none of these are bad things, you say? You’re right. I loved training camp. But when I was talking to a squadmate about this, she said, “gosh, if I had known what this week would have been like, I probably would have assumed I would hate it.” That stuck with me. When I go home and tell people that training camp broke me, it made me uncomfortable, I barely slept, my whole body is physically and emotionally drained, they would say, boy, you must have hated that! But it was the complete opposite. I love my squad, my team, and every single painful second of training camp. If this week is anything like the real World Race, it’s going to be the most incredible and challenging year of my life.
God bless,
Jenna
Thank you again to all my supporters who have donated, financially or prayerfully. Training camp couldn’t have been possible without you. If you’d like to donate still (I haven’t made my second deadline yet!) please click on the “support me” tab on the left hand side of the page. I’ll be posting more pictures and specific blogs in a few weeks after I get back Camp Kesem.
