A lot has happened in the last month: I went and saw the Taj Mahal, my parents flew out to India, and I flew to Thailand. Our squad had debrief here in Thailand; our coaches and our squad mentor came out to Thailand to encourage us. Over the past week I have realized what a weird crazy life I am living. My team was debriefing our last month in India when I casual said, “on our train ride back from the Taj Mahal, we…”. I said it as casually as you would say, “on our drive back home from McDonalds, we…”. My life on the world race has been full of so many crazy adventures and so many God changing moments. It’s weird to think that traveling around the world preaching in a remote India village on one night and then seeing the Taj Mahal a couple days later (after a 24+ train though). What a crazy life I am living where talking about things just sounds so normal.
I got a small glimpse into how UN-normal these things actually are when my parents meet me in India. When they flew out I have been living in third-world countries for the past eight months, my parents had not. I had gotten used to seeing men peeing on the side of the road, trash piles burning here and there, doing mental math to convert currency, asking locals for help, not understanding the language, bartering for the best price, not drinking the tap water, asking for the restaurant bill. . . the list goes on. I didn’t realize it but these things were normal, they are no longer strange to me but rather just a part of life.
Anyway is was so exciting to see my parents for the first time in 8 months. We had so many great memories from just a short week. We rode in a tuk-tuk. Ate with our hands. Ordered way too much food. We saw a couple dozen glorified tombs with domes. We saw an ancient fort. We played cards. We hung out with kids at a park. We ate at McDonalds (very different menu). We had good conversations about our lives over the past 8 months and about the future. We exchanged presents; mine were souvenirs, theirs was food. We worshiped together, had communion together, and washed each other’s feet. We laughed and maybe cried. Overall it was a good week.
Mom and Dad I pray that God gave you clarity over your future during the week and that you enjoyed India and playing with the kids. I will miss over the next three months, but can’t wait to see you at home. Love You.
