I’m coming home soon. In 24 days, I’ll be on American soil. I’ve learned a lot. I’ve been to a lot of countries. I have stories to tell. Long story short, please don’t ask “how was the Race” or “how was your experience” when you see me. It’s the equivalent of me asking you how the year of 2017 was for you. It’s impossible to summarize a year’s worth of experiences into a couple of polite, conversational sentences.
But I understand that you care and want to know more. And I want to share! So I’ve developed a list of questions that will help both you and I talk about this past year on the Race. Some serious, some fun, but all relevant to a year on the field.
GENERAL
What did you learn about being a follower?
What did you learn about being a leader?
What lessons did you learn as a treasurer?
What were some of your favourite moments with Kerux, Bamboo, and Ivy (my three teams)?
What places and moments broke your heart?
What places and moments made you come alive?
Who are your closest friends you made on the Race and why?
What were some of your best living conditions? Your worst?
Which ministries were most challenging for you? Which most fit your passions?
Where could you see yourself living long term?
How many countries did you end up going to?
ASIA
What was the weirdest thing you saw being carried on a motorbike?
What was public transportation like?
What is traditional (Thai, Vietnamese, Indian) food like?
How was using our right hand for everything, as a left handed person?
What’s one of the funniest bad translations you saw?
Ask me about a ministry that intrigues you! We preached in remote and persecuted Indian villages, did prayer ministry and worked in dance clubs (where women are trafficked) in Nepal, worked in a coffee shop in Vietnam, taught in a university in Cambodia, and taught English to children in Thailand.
What did you see in nature that amazed you?
Ask me about my off day when we motorbiked the Hai Van Pass!
What was it like living on an apartment floor with 15 men and women and one bathroom and one couch?
How do you survive a 24 hour bus ride in Vietnam?
Ask me about the major cities we visited in each country (Hyderabad, Kathmandu, Ho Chi Minh, Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, Bangkok)
Ask me to describe the cheapest meal I could buy in each country.
What new foods did you try?
What did the Lord teach you about dreaming in Vietnam?
Ask me about our overnight layover in Malaysia.
How was life on a coed team?
EUROPE
What did you do during your layover in Rome?
What was your experience like as a team leader?
What’s it like to switch from a coed team to an all-female team?
What familiar foods were you excited to have again in Europe?
What surprised you about the Balkans region?
What route changes did you have?
Ask me about a ministry that intrigues you! We worked with the Roma (gypsy) community in Albania, worked with refugees from all over the Middle East in Greece, and did outreach in Kosovo.
Ask me about our first “vacation” on the Race – Montenegro.
Ask me what it was like to come home to America for a few days and then go back on the field!
How were your layovers in Amsterdam and Zagreb?
What unique foods did you try?
Which friendships were the hardest to say goodbye to?
Ask me to tell you a bit about the history of Kosovo and Serbia.
AFRICA
What did you do during your layover in Qatar?
How did Africa surprise you?
What did you do while you were at Victoria Falls?
Ask me about a ministry that interests you! We worked at leadership camps in Zimbabwe, served at care points for children in Swaziland, and did manual labor in South Africa.
How was your trip to Cape Town?
How was celebrating your birthday in Swaziland?
Ask about stargazing with my people in Zimbabwe.
Ask me about seeing new constellations in the Southern Hemisphere!
Which people were hardest to say goodbye to from each month in Africa?
How did Zimbabwe, Swaziland, and South Africa differ from each other?
What were some of the weirdest bugs you saw?
What wild animals did you see?
Ask questions! Ask away! And please, let me ask you! Life in America might seem routine and mundane, but I sincerely miss the routine. I want to know what you last purchased at Target, your favourite new restaurant, and what’s the best sermon you’ve heard lately. I want to hear all about you too, friends!
