Hurry up and wait! You might be thinking what an odd name for a blog or what is that supposed to mean? Let me tell you! Hurry up and wait is the story of my life! They warned us of this phrase at training camp and launch and it's remained true and evident! For example:
Sunday, February 17, 2013
Hurry up and wake up be outside your house at 5:30 am!
5:30am – 6am – we wait outside the house- ready to go for our 6 bus ride to a village to share a Jesus film!
6:00am – okay! okay! Hurry up walk, walk, walk to the bus stop!
6:20am – Wait on the bus
6:40am – Hurry up! Quick quick! Walk thirty minutes to our transportation
7:15am – Wait and wait for bus
8:00am – Pile in jeeps, lets go! Lets go! 44 people in 3 jeeps! Get in! Get in! Pile bags on top and strap them down!
8:15am – Wait! Crammed into this 10 seater vehicle! This time 'wait' meant off roading in and up the mountains! Surprise! Lack of communication and a language barrier means we ride up, up and away! Trekking through the river, switchbacks, steep cliffs, switchbacks, up, up, up and more switchbacks- higher and higher reaching for the clouds!
9:30am – Everybody out of the cars! Eat some chow mien and hard boiled eggs for breakfast! Buy snacks for the rest of the day! HORN!! HONK!!! BEEP!! BEEP!! Hurry up! Lets get going!!
10:10am – VROOOM!!! VROOOOOOM!!!! VROOM! SNAP! CRACKLE! POP! Our axle broke! Bummer! Let's wait, shall we?Sitting under a old hut playing games, singing songs, reading the Bible or journaling! Some people explored while others slept.
Wait…waiting… Waited is what we did…
1:00pm – Its fixed! Good as new! Pile in! Pile in! Hurry! Hurry!
On the road again!
2:11pm – Splatter, splatter mud everywhere! Under the car, on the car and in the car. The roads were like mud pits and mud puddles as a result of the rain from the day before! GLOP! We were stuck! Everybody out! Wait on the side of the mountain while we rev the engine and try to slosh our way out!
2:33pm – Climb in folks! Let's press onwards up to our destination! Hurry up!
As you can see our 6 hour journey was easily surpassing the estimated time of travel!
Switchbacks, steep cliffs, switchbacks, up, up, up and more switchbacks- higher and higher reaching for the clouds! Cruising along on our merry way, bumps and all! Head bobbles the whole way!
Dear Spine,
I apologize for the pain, grinding, bumping and jumping I am putting you through! It's out of my control!
Sincerely,
Kaleena
3:30pm – Lunch?!? Chow mien! Lets wait while they cook some up for everyone!
4:45pm – Back in the 'NepalyJerky' we go! Yes! We named our car!
5:39pm – Jump out! Quick! Licketty-Split! We are stuck again! Our bald tires are stuck?!? No way!!
6:00pm – The sun is setting! It too seems to be in a hurry!
6:53pm – Our venture continues with more hurrying on up and more waiting!
8:21pm – Our car was in 1st place, with the second car on our bumper, therefore we stopped and waited for 45 minutes for the third car to catch up after their radiator died! A wonderful little lady made us tea… What a relaxing way to wait!
9:02pm – The home stretch! Lets hurry and make it there!!!
10:08pm – Wait! We are here! A village on the top of a mountain! Bright stars illuminating the sky! A half moon that shines bright for all to see! All the hurrying and all the waiting has paid off! We have arrived safe and sound! Thousands of switchbacks, pot holes, break downs, and getting stuck incidents later! I don't know how many times my butt came off the seat or I hit my head on the ceiling or how many coconut crackers I ate but it didn't matter anymore because we were home! Our home for 4 days! It was all worth it!
Though it may have sounded like I was complaining. I wasn't at all! I loved every minute of our long journey! The views as we traveled up continued to make me smile! Although we were literally as snug as a bug in a rug it was so worth it and a memory I will remember forever!:)
When I walked out of the barn, the following morning, after a nights sleep on the hay, I saw goats grazing, women washing laundry, houses on the mountainside, blue sky and a bright rising sunshine! The mountain peaks in the distance were capped with snow, little did I know that I was meeting the Himalayan Mountains! What a beautiful surprise! A remarkable view from every angle! Nepal you never cease to amaze me! God you NEVER cease to AMAZE ME! Your beauty is so evident and alive here in Nepal! Thank you for your imagination!
Hugs from chilly (Praise The Lord) Nepal,
Kale
