Life in Nepal this month was entirely unexpected. Every day was something new. We didn’t have a set schedule like we did in India. In India, we had print-outs of each team and each day and who was doing what and it was fairly simple. This month it was different. Not only from the lack of structured scheduling, but also because it was just our team. We had officially split from our squad. Just us. No hiding.
When we arrived to the orphanage earlier this month, two of my teammates were sick. Chris and Danielle were showing signs of a cold- coughing, fever, aches. Our team leader Holden had to be absent from ministry as well to handle their health issues. So for a while, it was me and 3 other teammates doing the construction work of 7. We shoveled dirt and gravel, making a driveway. We carried a very large pile of bricks up 8 flights of stairs. We carried heavy sacks of cow dung (it stained our shirts). We planted potatoes, and no we didn’t just simply place them in the ground. We hoed the fertilized dirt. We hand placed cow dung along our lines and placed potato seeds on top. All in the blazing heat. This went on for a good number of days. After a while, we learned that Danielle didn’t have a common cold, but Typhoid Fever. She was flown to a hospital in Kathmandu.
Later, we packed our big packs and headed to the opening of the mountain we were about to hike. It was a 6 mile incline hike, about 4 hours. Bodies were cramping, everyone was sweating more than they had in years, my legs had turned to jell-o and aches began to form. By the time we reached the host campsite we immediately dropped our bags and let out sighs of joy. I will never forget the views on that mountain as I pushed my body to the limit, lungs burning for oxygen. Such a bittersweet feeling. I’d also like to add that we beat the boys by a good 10 minutes. At one point Ruben, our host, stopped and said, “Strong girls on this team.” and kept walking. The girls and I all smiled at each other. Big happy sweaty smiles.
On the mountain, we did more construction. Carrying pails of water up the mountain, mixing cement, planting bricks and starting to form an extension on the village school up there. The ladies and I on my team got to teach one morning, and spending time with those kids was something I’ll carry with me forever. They were so smart, so eager, so precious. We spent nights around the bonfire with Suren and Lama, two young Nepali men that we did ministry alongside with. Making friends with people of different cultures is such a gift. The Lord gives good gifts. It’s hard to see that sometimes, but when you do see it, the fruit is good.
The best memory for this month was when the girls and I learned there was no running water on the mountain. Ruben, our host, informed us we had to bathe in the river with our clothes on. I can’t even begin the tell you the fun we had. The water was freezing and the current was strong, so we all agreed on 3 that we would go underwater together. We counted down, went under water, and when we came up, we struggled to get back up because the current kept sweeping us away. The screams and the laughter light my spirit on fire. When we were all cleaned and changed into dry clothes, we made our way back up to our tents. I remember just feeling so much appreciation for these girls, for their spirit. I terribly missed Danielle at this point, too, thinking of how much she would have laughed with us.
When we returned to the orphanage, Holden informed our team that 4 of us would be staying behind doing ministry and he and I would be making our way to Kathmandu to visit and care for Danielle until the rest of our team arrived the following Monday. I took time to sit back and reflect on the weeks spent at the orphanage and on the mountain, and took a look in the mirror after a very long, cold but refreshing shower. I hadn’t looked in a mirror in a while. My hair is a little longer. I stand a little taller. I stare directly at myself instead of the usual avoidance of my face. I feel stronger, braver, and changing. It’s hard to explain. It’s almost as if I had shed some skin and some new skin is beginning to take its place. I felt the Holy Spirit that night, even as I crawled into my sleeping bag and drifted off to sleep. The Lord used these past few weeks to push my flesh forward, because he knew the growth that would happen in my spirit. He needed to push me, for my wellbeing and for the work of His kingdom. When you accomplish something that seems impossible but is asked of you by the Lord, your spirit gains some muscles.
Who knows, I probably got some real physical muscles, too.
