When I first seriously planned to go on the Race, I was drawn to the January routes. They began at the start of the new year and ended right as the holiday season began in America. Spending the year away, but not having to miss the major family get togethers, pumpkin pie, and the twinkling lights sounded ideal.
Eventually though, the Lord reminded me that this journey was not one I could just pencil into my schedule. Even though I’d already decided to give up a lot of things this year, picking and choosing my sacrifices was not what He had in mind.
Once that humbing conviction hit, I knew that if I was to do this Race completely for the Lord, I needed to accept that He might ask more of me than I had originally thought. He might just ask me to give up my holiday season and trust that whatever He planned for that time would be as great an experience as one spent with family and friends back home.
After some prayer and a lot of surrendering, I felt a ton of peace that Jesus would do just that; even if I had no idea how Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years would look around the world, I knew it would be a season I’d always remember.
***
Thanksgiving in Vietnam
Generally when you plan to spend the holidays overseas, you assume it will look much different than home. On the Race, you and your team (who have by now become your second family), probably plan to celebrate by finding the local grocery store and ransacking it for typical American items (a.k.a. oreos, peanut butter and Pringles), and then have a “feast” while you all huddle around one computer, watching Christmas movies from someone’s external hard drive.
However, sometimes the Lord decides to bless you with an amazing American family for the month of November, who invite you to their Thanksgiving festivities. Our team was blessed to spend our Turkey Day with the Brewers, our contacts for the month, who welcomed us into their home to share not only a delicious, American-style meal, but also to enjoy the things we are most thankful for: friends and family.
Being welcomed into an wonderful family for the holidays would have been enough, but a few other events made the day even more special. One of our team’s favorite parts of that day took place early that morning, around 7am. Some of our girls traditionally run a “Turkey Trot” race with their families on the morning of Thanksgiving Day. We decided to have our own version: Teleo’s First Annual Turkey Trot! We didn’t give prizes, but it was so awesome to start the day with exercise, fresh air, and our team cheering each other across the finish line.
The day was made complete when we were able to help serve Thanksgiving dinner at a local restaurant. Bread of Life is a western establishment that caters to those who desire a little piece of America. It is run by Christians who partner with the international fellowship we worked with. The majority of the staff that Bread of Life employs, are members of the local deaf community. During the month we spent many mealtimes there, forming new friendships with some of the staff and enjoying the delicious food. It was a great to be able to end our Thanksgiving Day serving the community we got to love on all month long.
Christmas in Uganda
December was our first month in Africa. On our very first night at our Ugandan host’s home, we were told Christmas there was going to be a great event! At least five days before, the whole family would be very busy with preparations, and we would need to help with the decorating. We had no idea what this all meant, but we were interested to experience Christmas, African-style. And truthfully, we were blessed in ways we couldn’t have predicted.
It started off with Christmas morning service at our church, where we got to celebrate Jesus and I even got to preach about his birth! That afternoon, we were able to bless our host family with an assortment of small gifts, as a thank-you for all they had done for us that month. We even decided to have a mini Secret Santa within our team and opened our gifts that day; I was never so grateful to receive a bag of chocolate, mixed nuts and a jar of peanut butter!
Later that night some of our team and our host family planned a surprise for us. They worked all evening, preparing a special Christmas event. At the right time, we were blindfolded and led into the church and told not to peek. When we were allowed to open our eyes, I was overwhelmed by their gift to us. They had decorated the church with streamers, balloons, candles, and even the Christmas tree we had watched them cut down earlier that week. They had prepared some songs, a short portrayal of the Christmas story, and even a visit from Santa! We ate as much popcorn as we could and got to take pictures with Old Saint Nick (a.k.a. our host pastor/”Ugandan father”). The love and thoughtfulness I saw that day was immeasurable. And at the end of the day, I can’t say whether the receiving or the giving made me happier.
An African New Year
Not sure what you did on the eve of the New Year, but I’m glad I can say mine wasn’t like any I’ve experienced before. We’d heard from our pastor about the plans of a “bar-ba-choo” for that evening, but we were still surprised when we were each handed huge chunks of meat on an actual stick to roast over an open coal fire. And even though there was no NYC ball dropping on the t.v. In the background, we still counted down until the (probable) last moment of 2014. Someone brought out caramel candies as we danced and said “Happy New Year!” to everyone. At some point, someone decided to bring the party down the road, so we celebrated with even more neighbors and kids at the end of the street. Some may have thought we were crazy, while we joyfully danced and sang together, but I know it will be a moment I won’t soon forget.
The holiday season is always my favorite time of year. There’s just something in the air that’s exciting. It’s not just the anticipation of Christmas morning, and It’s not the dozens of Christmas cookies and pie that make the time sweet. I think it’s the fact that you get the excuse to get together with a bunch of people you love and just enjoy one another’s company. It’s a time to stop and remember what’s really important to you, and to celebrate another year well done.
And that’s exactly what we did.
