As I stop and think, all I can say is that I’m thankful for this chaotic beautiful mess that I’m standing in. Let’s get real with this blog. Somewhere in between in studying the anatomy of a backpack and organizing fundraisers I think I forgot to make time to mentally prepare for the World Race. As much as I would like to say I have it all together, there’s something about showering out of a literal pocket and baby wiping your feet each night to crawl onto your bed that could really get to a girl. Living in community with 7 people day in and day out for three hundred some days could make an introvert panic. Instagram pictures make everything looked filtered and fluffy, but the World Race is like any great work of progress, wonderfully hard. But the discomfort and stress of the World Race is better than a thousand peaceful days, and that is where my hope will rest.
I’ve always been quite the patriotic minded girl. There’s not a rustic red white and blue décor I can pass over without a pain in my heart. I miss my grand country in all its glorious freedom and sanitation and I’ve gained a swift and gracious heart for the place in which I was born and all the grandiosity He has blessed us with. But this trip is less about Lauren taking over the world and more about God taking over Lauren. I am on a journey with my work, my heart and my entire being. I travel with a backpack full of outrageous blessing and eyes full of wander and curiosity. I am on a quest for the eyes of God and beauty in the world amidst the chaos. I am a traveler, a World Racer, a child of God and a soul awakened by leaving.
This isn’t a year of my life. It’s life in a year.
In case you were wondering..
What were you living arrangements like?
For the first 10 days we tented in the Lajas mountains of the Dominican Republic with Ruben and Vicki Dominguez of H.O.P.E. DR. They are an amazing family with a heart of gold. Their rotating gates of paradise on this beautiful Dominican hill are open to any and all who want to learn how to spread the light in the darkest parts of this nation. We did days of manual labor, lugging wood and rickety buckets of concrete and dirt up the mountainside to build bathrooms for the teams their family is hosting day in and day out year round. We then moved into the city of Santiago and traveled by public bus each day to Cien Fuegos to teach English and spread love upon love on the children of one of the poorest regions of the country. Their hearts are so blatantly committed to a Christ centered change for the DR and it’s written in the way they preach, speak and worship. They opened their little haven to us with open arms, and our teams really couldn’t be more grateful. You can find more information about their ministry here.
http://www.hope4drnow.org/#!dr-team/cfa7
What’s the culture like? How is it different from ours?
We are in the Carribean!
Capital: Santo Domingo
Climate: BLOODY HOT
Religions: Roman Catholic 95%
Government: Representative Democracy
The Dominican culture is this lively, vibrant and louder than your average Sunday night on the street. Ear plugs and fans are a racer’s best friend for those garage pool party nights and sweating behind the knee caps. Imagine Caribbean heat, shouts of Domino games and people and animals flooding the streets and porches day and night. Hospitality here is of the utmost importance and when the guest of a Dominican, well, you may as well be a prince or princess. They will serve you the best they have, asking nothing in return. It’s beautiful and alive and passionate.
What was your biggest challenge this month?
The biggest struggles here are the cultural break down between men and women. Men are often extremely outwardly disrespectful and it’s hard for us to deal with. Also, there’s a huge outbreak of Chickungunya disease spread through mosquitos, and we only have about 637 bug bites despite the massive amounts of Skin So Soft I’ve been lathering on daily. Also, I’ve gained 6 pounds, and it’s pure muscle. (says the empty cereal bowl beside my sleeping pad.) So there’s that.
What did you learn about yourself this month?
That God is calling my team and myself to be more bold. Week 3 and we are on our bumpy bus ride home from our ministry site when a THIRTEEN year old boy stands up and begins speaking fervently about Christ’s love, preaches a small sermon and invites people to accept Jesus as their Lord and Saviour. The bus driver slides his hand in the air and shouts “I want to be saved!” The bus driver, ya’ll. Realest of the real on reality checks.
What do we need?
Prayers upon prayers for our team. TONS of our squad has been severely sick with Chickengunya, intestinal infections, internal parasites, appendicitis, severe exhaustion, etc. Please pray that God brings healing to our squad and abounding protection before we enter strong spiritual warfare in Haiti.
“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.” – Mark Twain, The Innocents Abroad
