Before coming on the Race, just hearing the word “community” made me shudder. Living with constant people around? Sharing everything with those people? Having limited personal space? Making decisions with others in mind? Bleh, no thanks.
Little did I know that signing up for the Race is basically signing up to live in community on steroids Not only are we sharing space, food, belongings, feelings, and time but we are doing this while traveling the world in usually very tight quarters. Needless to say it’s been a stretching experience.
Here are some of the things I’ve gotten used to this year…
- Shopping and cooking with a budget of $5 a day and at least 5 other opinions to consider in what to eat that day. I’ve become a lot less picky about what I eat!
- The buddy system. For safety reasons AIM requires that we always travel in pairs as racers. Since we also have no vehicles this year, this means a lot of quality time with my squad mates walking to the store, internet, etc. And that the only alone time I get is usually in my tent.
- Waiting in line for the shower, for an empty laundry bucket, to wash my dinner dish, to use the only outlet, to cook my eggs, the list could go on and on…It’s helped to develop my patience, that’s for sure!
- Having a schedule for everything. A cooking schedule, team time schedule, shower schedule, ministry schedule, and cleaning schedule. It really does help to keep things running smoothly.
- Feedback. Something that I was deathly afraid of starting the race, but now it’s just part of everyday life and it’s actually something I look forward to. At the end of each day each team meets together and gives each other feedback. This can be either positive, qualities we see in each other that are like Christ, or constructive, areas we see in each other in which we could grow to look more like Christ.
I’m sure there are more “community-based” things that we do that I can’t even think of right now because honestly, they’ve become normal to me. I, the person who lived by myself for 2 years before the race, have become used to living with 40 other people. Just the other day, I was at the store shopping for shampoo. I was in the aisle by myself enjoying some valuable alone time (you have to get it when you can!). But I found myself literally weighing the pros and cons of each shampoo out loud to myself. There I was, the only one in the aisle, talking to myself like there was someone right beside me. Because I’m so used to there always being someone there!
I haven’t just gotten used to this life…I’ve grown to love it. I remember something Christina, my friend who is an alumni racer, told me before I launched. She said to not worry about homesickness because, believe it or not, my squad will become my family. I thought she was crazy then, but it turns out, she was right! Everyone on C-squad has not only become my friends, but they’ve become my family. This year we have lived together, laughed together, cried together, been vulnerable with each other, and just done life together. And come December, I will miss it. I will miss this crazy life and all of the wonderful people that I have come to know and love. Here’s to you C-squad! I love you guys!
