There is something about being on a team with men that just changes the atmosphere. The other day was my new team’s first adventure day. The men said, “Let’s rent scooters and just go.” So we did. There are 6 of us so we needed 3 drivers. Of course the two men were up for it, but one girl had to as well. I drove a scooter for like 5 minutes in Nepal, which was 3 months ago, but never for an extended period of time and never in heavy traffic. So needless to say I was horrified!! I slowly started to get anxiety and almost hit panic attack mode when my two brothers started speaking peace and encouragement over me. They boosted my belief in myself and off we went. Kenzie jumped on the back of my scooter putting her life in my hands. I can’t say how humbling it was for her to trust me after watching me practice turning in a parking lot. We start on our 45-minute venture to the other side of the island and find ourselves looking at a very narrow broken cement path up a mountain.
We all look at each other and say ‘let’s go!’ On one side is a wall of foliage and rock and the other is a steep down hill mess of plants.
I was going so slow because I was horrified which only made it harder to keep balance. Kenize was directing me from the back and somehow we made it! We stop at the top, climb a rock, and look out at the ocean view. Feeling of accomplishment? I think so!! We hiked down a plant-covered path until our feet hit water, we climbed over rocks, laughed, and enjoyed each other’s company. On the hike back up the mountain the skies opened up and a downpour like no other cooled us off from the Malaysian heat.
Fast forward to the ride home… If I said I was not a master scooter rider at this point I would be lying to you! We came back into the city just in time for the evening commute home for all of Pinang. Literally picture stopped traffic and our train of 3 scooters weaving in and out trying not to hit the parked cars. We rode straight through the middle, off to the side, pretty much wherever our bikes would fit.
After probably one of the best days on the race for me thus far I can say that the thing that made it amazing was my team. The entire day all I heard was encouragement from them. Telling me how great I was doing, laughing at the fact that I was encouraging riding in the middle of traffic because it was more fun. I saw a different side of the team name we chose, Empowered. We chose the name because God empowers us to go after the hard things. He empowers us to do His work. He empowers us to dig deeper. This group Empowered me today to push myself, they Empowered me to face my fears, and they Empowered me to keep going with words of encouragement. I have only spent a short time with this new group of people and I can already tell that life will never be dull. Nothing is better than feeling the wind in your hair, shaking from adrenaline, and spending time with a group of people chosen for you by God! I love my new team, I love the love we have for each other, and I love that we are Empowered by each other and God.
