So it’s been one of the craziest weeks on the World Race yet. Last
Saturday, every team said their final farewells to contacts and
ministry locations and headed to Jinja, Uganda for our squad
rendezvous.
As I began setting up my tent on the bank of a cliff
overlooking the Nile a hundred feet below – and basked in the perfect
weather of late afternoon with the sun soon about to set over the water
– I had one of those moments. One of those moments when you just have
no other choice but to look around and say, “This is my life” and “God
is awesome.” By dinner, the World Race mini-refugee camp was complete,
as all 50 tents had sprung up in a relatively tight space. Before bed,
we made it back to the bar/restaurant with all the other thrill-seeking
Mzungus of the Western world to watch the video of that day’s rafting
trip. And what we saw blew us away.
While we somewhat knew that we
were white-water rafting the Nile the next day, I think more than a few
people asked what they had gotten themselves into as we watched some of
the most powerful rapids in the world toss people to and fro without
mercy. I was filled with excitement. Perhaps I had a little anxiety as
well. But little did I know then, that by the time morning came I would
consider these dangerous rapids a refuge compared to the killer ants
that attacked all night long.
So here’s the timeline:
- 12:26 am
– Crawl into my tent a little later than I had originally planned after
catching up with squad mates I hadn’t seen in three weeks, and read a
chapter of The Brethren.
- 12:53 am – Close the book (I’ll finish
tomorrow). Turn off the headlamp and settle in for a good night’s rest
before a big day ahead, treasuring the personal space of my tent, which
is so rare on the Race.
- 3:18 am – Wake up. Not uncommon when
sleeping on the ground in a tent and I think nothing of it as I slap an
ant off my arm and roll back over.
- 3:23 am – Still trying to get
back to sleep. A couple more ants have crawled on my arm, and did I
really just feel a bite on the top of my scalp through my hair?
-
3:26 am – Ok, this is getting annoying. I’m turning on my headlamp so I
can find these stupid ants and get rid of them. Light clicks on and my
mouth drops in literal horror as I instantly realize I will be getting
no more sleep in this tent tonight. What I thought to be a few pesky
ants was in fact an army of hundreds – perhaps a thousand – with dozens
already mysteriously inside the completely zipped and sealed shelter
and the rest climbing on the outside, chewing their way in. I would
find several small chewed holes in the morning.
- 3:27 am –
Frantically find my clothes and scurry out as fast as I can, knowing
I’ll be attacked and bitten plenty on the way out. I run up to the
bathroom area, which is always lit and continue smacking them off me as
I strip completely down to just underwear and shake everything else out.
-
3:48 am – Stand reclothed and still in the bathroom area, overlooking
all the tents. I laugh at my luck as I assume 49 others are still
sleeping peacefully and begin to seriously ponder what to do. Worst
case scenario, I can just hang out for four more hours and hit the Nile
on very little sleep. Or I could try to crash another guy’s tent and
squeeze in. I could always just curl up on this wooden bench I’m on now
and hope for the best.
- 3:49 am – Is that Aaron crawling out of
his tent (which is right beside mine)? And here he comes running up to
the light, barely stopping to say a word as he goes straight for the
showers and washes down from head to toe – the latest victim.
We spent the next half hour figuring out what to do; making mad dashes
back down to the battlefield to get sleeping bags and pillows –
preceded each time of course by pep talks and prayer; and finally
remembering the couches in the bar where we eventually settled in on
the deck to the soft hum of the river below. All in all it was an
interesting night. And though I’ve spent a great deal of time
explaining this adventure, it by no means took anything way from the
rafting. The great Nile met and exceeded all expectations with my
favorite point in the day being when our group successfully tackled one
of the biggest Class 5 rapids without flipping, though completely soaked afteward. Then we made it back to camp with just enough daylight left to watch about 10 of our Racers bungee jump over the river – some actually dipping into it. But as we headed back to Nairobi for debrief with the rapids still fresh on our minds, we had no idea that the truly tumultuous challenges of the week were still to come….
