PSA: Long post ahead!
PSA 2: The blog is moving! If you want to keep up with my adventures in Germany, head over to theracecontinues.wordpress.com and subscribe for updates!
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“You can’t board.”
The United Airlines manager stood tall and wiry behind the plexiglass screen. His hair was greying at the temples, and he had large lips that were concentrated in a perpetual frown. He’d given only the briefest of glances at the packet of paperwork Kalli and I had prepared before dismissing us.
“There’s an exception,” Kalli said, lightening fast. “We have documentation from the school.”
The clerk paced back and forth behind his employees, never quite meeting our eyes. “Unless you can call Germany and verify that you’re allowed—”
“I have an email from the consulate on my phone,” Kalli said, with the rehearsed air of someone who is both stressed and tired of having to repeat herself. “We can go. Check my ticket if you want.”
“Last name?” said one of the clerks. She wore a neat pencil skirt, her hair coifed into the perfect bun.
“Walker.”
Now that my shock at the abrupt refusal passed, I was starting to get annoyed—at the employees, yes, but more so at Kalli. We already had boarding passes, but she’d insisted on going up to the counter to double check. I was carrying no less than 8 different papers proving I could enter, most of them in German. (That had caused some problems at the previous check in station in San Diego, since even though the paper stating I was entitled to a visumfreie Einreise—visa-free entry—was right on top, the clerk couldn’t read German and therefore had to call the LA German consulate before he would give me a ticket.)
Obviously, it was going to be hard enough getting into Germany without a visa in the middle of COVID; did Kalli have to borrow trouble?
“The consulate suggests you don’t go,” the manager said. “We’ll rebook your ticket free of charge and you come back once you have a visa—”
“We can’t do that,” Kalli said through her teeth. “We are essential employees and we cannot reschedule this flight. We have documentation from the—”
“There’s nothing I can do. It’s the law. We can’t let people get on this flight unless you have an official document from the government of Germany—”
“I have an email from the consulate saying I can enter!”
“An email?” the manager’s eyebrows raised over his square glasses. He still hadn’t looked Kalli in the eye. “Let’s see it.”
She was red faced, but refrained from saying she’d mentioned the email six times as she handed over her phone.
They studied it in silence for a moment. “Do you also have an email?” the manager said to me.
“No,” I said. Fear rose in my throat: fear that I would be dragged down with Kalli. We were borrowing trouble, and now I was going to get burned. “They called the consulate, though, before I got my ticket. You can look in my file.”
While another lady looked up my file I shot a quick text to my supporters, asking for prayer. A few feet away, Kalli was still trying to convince the manager that we were allowed to go. Now he was telling the clerk (not Kalli) that it wasn’t about the visa, even though it clearly was. “The only way she can go is if we put a note on her file,” he said grumpily. “If she gets there and she can’t get in, she’ll be fined $7,000 AND she’ll have to book her own flight back.”
“I’ll take it,” Kalli said.
“Make a note that the passenger agreed,” he said, his eyes meeting hers—briefly—before skidding past.
“You’re cleared,” said the clerk who’d been looking up my ticket, bringing my attention back.
I blinked. “So I’m good to board?”
She nodded.
I breathed a prayer of thanks for my United agent in San Diego, who had taken the time to call the consulate. Keith, if you’re reading this, I owe you big!
When we walked away from the counter, Kalli was shaking. She took a minute to compose herself while I waited with the stuff.
“For a second there, I thought we were goners,” she said when she came back.
“Me too,” I said, then grinned. “But we weren’t. God answers my prayers, and I prayed we would get through, so we did!”
She gave a weak laugh, which was better than her usual response of “thanks for the good thoughts” every other time I’d mentioned praying.
We boarded the plane with no further issues. The clerks stopped everyone with an American passport and asked where their final destination was. Most of them were transiting through Frankfurt on their way to Cairo. I realized that Kalli had been right to ask: if we hadn’t, we might have been arguing at the desk while the plane took off behind us.
Neither of us had anticipated getting on the flight to be so difficult, nor that it would also mean a $7,000 risk. Up until now, I’d been fairly confident that we would make it through. As we took our seats, however, I couldn’t help but wonder: if this was what it was like to get on a plane, what might happen when we got off?
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“Today I know that such memories are the key not to the past, but to the future. I know that the experiences of our lives, when we let God use them, become the mysterious and perfect preparation for the work He will give us to do.” ~Corrie Ten Boom, Hiding Place
In the last few days of transition from sunny San Diego to Bonn, Germany, I’ve found myself reflecting more and more on my time on the Race. Perhaps it’s because I’m finally out of limbo and moving forward to what God has for me next, or perhaps it’s because this will be the last official Race blog (but not my last blog ever! If you want to stay updated, head over to theracecontinues.wordpress.com to subscribe!). Maybe now that I’ve arrived safely in Germany, a part of me that was held in tension can finally release. Or perhaps it’s because Project Searchlight, a post-Race debrief, will take place sometime this week.
A year ago today, I was getting on a plane to launch. After this weekend, I’m officially no longer on the Race… if we become Racers again, it will be as alumni.
This blog may seem disjointed and strange, jumping back and forth between the past, present, and future. But as Corrie Ten Boom says, perhaps there is a reason the Lord has me reflecting on my time on the Race while I look forward to the future. Perhaps there are things He needs me to take from these memories.
So here’s to my time on the Race. Shortened, strange, and completely different from everyone else’s experience…
… but when has life with God ever been “normal”?
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Race Q&A:
Things You Didn’t Realize You Wanted to Know About Backpacking Around the World for 8 Months
What surprised you? What wasn’t like you expected?
It wasn’t nearly as much backpacking (actually, there wasn’t any). This was a relief since I was terrified of not being able to physically do the backpacking.
There were a lot less English-speakers in China and Georgia than I expected, and a lot more in other countries.
We often made friends with people who weren’t even from the country we were in. In fact, over the course of the race, our squad had meaningful interactions with 39 different nationalities from all 6 inhabited continents!
Most every country had a taxi app similar to Uber. India even had uber for motorcycles!
In most non-Western countries we visited, the word for tea was “Chai”.
Turkish coffee is not nearly as culturally significant as Turkish tea.
We met literally only one family of Americans for the entire Race… until we got to Azerbaijan. Then, suddenly, everyone we met was from America—and not just from America, but from California—not just California, but North County San Diego, specifically. I had a conversation about the superiority of Peterson’s donuts in Azerbaijan!
What was the most dangerous thing you did on the Race?
We would often hitchhike home. (This isn’t nearly as sketchy as it sounds, despite the following story!) In Georgia, we were were staying 1.5 km out of the city and needed to get back one night (we weren’t going to walk when it was 0 degrees and dark), so three of us girls hopped in the car with a couple of policemen who offered us a ride. A few minutes in, it was clear they were drunk. When they got to our place we stopped them, at which point they pulled out two gallon jugs of homemade beer and insisted that we stay. Needless to say, we didn’t!
Another time, members of our team accidentally broke into the Sultan’s palace grounds in Oman. You can read about that story in detail here.
Oh, and there was the time I almost slid off a 30 ft cliff, but I’ve already blogged about that.
What was the most interesting/longest travel you had?
The longest was probably the 43 hour bus ride across the north of Turkey, which was only supposed to take 24 hours.
The most interesting was definitely the bus coming from the Chinese/Nepali border down to Kathmandu. Imagine the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland, then make it a school bus that’s top heavy because all our bags are strapped up there. Then shrink the road to what we would consider to be a one-lane and put buses trying to pass each other. Then put sheer cliffs on either side, but no guard rails. Oh, and squish the seats so everyone has to sit sideways, and just for extra fun, put a few exposed nails in those seats so you can get jabbed by rusted metal every so often.
Then do that for 14 hours =D.
What was the hardest thing for you to handle?
Interpersonal relationships. The Race has an in-depth screening process, but you can’t tell the deeper facets of someone’s personality until you’re living with them. Everyone is in a different place spiritually, emotionally, intellectually; and everyone came on the Race for different reasons.
Getting used to leadership was also hard. I had been an adult in an adult world for 5 years, so going back to “student” was difficult. It helped once I realized the Race is a discipleship program as well as a mission trip. While the expectation was always to share the gospel, I was also being discipled, and that meant the leaders were going to treat me like a student, no matter how much I felt otherwise.
They say teachers are the worst students; I guess it’s true.
It was also harder than I expected to transition each month. The first few days were always overwhelming as you suddenly realized you no longer knew how to be polite, and would have to relearn all the words for thank you, hello, you’re welcome, and please (if they even had a word for please).
Did you really eat with your hands the whole time?
Yes, we did! In China I learned how to use chopsticks, but Nepal, India, Ethiopia, and Oman were all by hand. It got so that by the time we got silverware again in Turkey I had forgotten how to use it.
I know that overseas spiritual things are a much bigger deal. Did you see any possessions or deliverances while on the Race?
Not like you’re thinking, but we did see people delivered of oppressions (I was one of them.)
Beyond that, there is a very different spiritual climate in each country, especially countries in the 10/40. I was super sensitive to it, even if I didn’t always realize what was happening. Here are three quick stories that will illustrate what I mean:
In Norbulingka, the Summer Palace of the Dalai Lama in Tibet, I started to feel this kind of tugging anxiety, like I just wanted to run the opposite direction. I remember thinking, I have to get out of here, now. All the while, I was telling myself to stop being such a baby and that it was important for us to be here because we were bringing light into a very dark place. Still, I stopped going inside the temples, and finally had to leave the palace altogether because I was about to throw up. (I found out later that the temple had been used for ritual sacrifice.)
Next to our house in India there was a small temple to Hanuman, the monkey god. It had a small bell that people would ring whenever they went to worship. The first time we heard it, my legs immediately went weak and I almost stumbled. I had to tell myself firmly that my legs were just fine in order to keep walking.
Before we arrived in Oman our squad mentor, Stephanie, had texted us to be ready for questioning at the border. She’d been stopped and questioned extensively. On our way over, I fell asleep on the plane. There was turbulence, and I woke up slightly to this image in my mind of the storm we were flying through. I could see lightening flashing and demons swooping through the clouds. Most of all, down below I could see a demon hanging on to the top spire of the Grand Mosque in Muscat. He was watching those around, sweeping his gaze left to right like the eye in Mordor.
This is the spiritual atmosphere of this place, the Lord said.
Hide us from its sight, I prayed, half delirious, then promptly fell back asleep.
When we got to border control all 18 of us walked straight through without any questions. Incredible! I knew God had answered my prayer.
What was the weirdest thing you ate?
Probably brain in Oman. It tasted kind of like a well-seasoned mix of very finely scrambled eggs and ground beef. It was really good! Definitely ordered it twice.
What kinds of worship did you experience?
Actually, nothing that was too much different from what we do at home… except that we didn’t have a band so we were usually putting together a playlist from Spotify and blasting it on someone’s speakers.
There was also this one time that I volunteered to lead worship in Turkish and Farsi, despite speaking neither of those languages. In the Persian service especially I was working with people who had never led worship before and therefore didn’t now how to tell a musician what to do. Than God for youtube, and for gifting me with enough musical knowledge to be able to play by ear, or that would have been a disaster, since Persian music uses completely different scales than Western.
The best moment was in Turkey, when we sang Beautiful Name in Farsi, Turkish, and English. I got chills and had to keep myself from tearing up so I could keep playing guitar.
Would you do the Race again?
I would 100% go back as an alumni team leader or squad leader. Would I do it again as a student? That’s honestly a hard question. It was harder than I expected to be under an authority who (I felt) saw me more as young adult in need of guidance than a fully capable professional. Still, it was an excellent year, and if I’d known what I know now back in August, I definitely still would have gone. Hands down.
What do you wish you knew at the beginning that you know now?
That you’re on the Race for a specific reason, and that reason is to contribute to the team with whatever talents and/or abilities you have to give.
It’s okay to feel like someone isn’t in the same spiritual place as you, and make decisions based on that, so long as you do so in a true attitude of humility.
It’s okay to say no to leadership!
Expectations of leaders really ruined some people’s experience and resulted in them living frustrated. Remember, leaders are people, so they’re going to make mistakes. Also, you’re a leader, whether you have a title or not. So act like it, and lead in quiet ways if you can’t lead in overt ones!
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Weiter
(further)
Kalli and I were in different rows on the plane. I saw her once, halfway through, while doing rounds to keep my back from cramping.
“I’ve been trying to keep myself busy to avoid the anxiety,” she confessed. “But every time I stop it all comes flooding back.”
“We’ll be okay,” I said. “All our papers are for Germany.”
She attempted a smile. “Five more hours.”
About that amount of time later, we were deplaning in Frankfurt. It was a long walk to border control, which gave Kalli and I time to chat.
“I almost turned around and yelled ‘Last chance to pray!’ over everyone’s heads,” she told me. “But I thought it might not be appropriate.”
I laughed. “I haven’t stopped praying. But it will work, you just wait. God answers my prayers.”
There was no one in line for border control and we went right up to the agents. They looked through our paperwork and asked if we had a letter from the Bundespolizei, the German federal police. We didn’t.
Kalli was getting a little nervous. There was, after all, a $7000 fine hanging over her head. (And possibly over mine as well—the attendant in SFO hadn’t exactly been clear on that point.) “There’s an exception,” she began.
The German official smiled, then calmly explained that if we’d had a letter from the Bundespolizei, it would have been no problem, but because we didn’t, he just needed to verify with his supervisor. Kalli nodded as he turned to his colleague and continued the conversation in German.
“Can you understand what they’re saying?” she whispered.
“Mostly,” I said. “It sounds good.” In reality, it was neither here nor there, which in this case was good. I also knew Christine, our HR director, had called the Bundespolizei numerous times to verify which documents we needed to enter.
The supervisor arrived, took our papers into the back room, and five minutes later, we were through. I don’t think I’ve ever been so elated by the sound of a stamp—we had made it to Germany!
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10 Hilarious Winter-Family Quotes
“I can go down to the garden and drown gophers whenever I want, but I don’t always get to drown them with my son.” ~Tim 4.26.20
“I’m a state-level robotics champion. That’s a high-performing athlete. I NEED MORE CARBS.” ~Caleb 4.28.20
“Has anyone seen the head of a horse? I need it, if you have.” ~Jenny 5.3.20
“The ‘K’ in thin is silent.” ~Lydia 5.20.20
“Think of all the names that start with Jude…” ~Sarah
“Juderonomy!” ~Lydia 5.30.20
“The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, mangoes….” ~TJ 5.31.20
“What changed? Like, physically?” ~Caleb
“I don’t know physics!” ~Mathis 6.1.20
“My pizzaglobin is low.” ~Caleb 6.2.20
“Mommy! The sprinklers sprayed the cats for no reason!” ~Lydia 7.14.20
“None of us are botonamists.” ~Caleb
“I don’t think anyone is a botonamist.” ~Sarah 7.22.20
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Ankunft
(Arrival)
In a way, coming to Germany felt a lot like arriving in the next country on the Race, except totally different since I actually speak this language, which means I can understand street signs and buy things at the store without resorting to sign language. In fact, only about 1/20 people actually realize I’m not German.
Climbing into the taxi on Sunday, June 26, I had a number of worries, namely:
- Exchanging money (I had American dollars, and all the exchange places were closed.)
- Getting wifi/phone plan
- Finding a place to buy a bike so I could get around
- Make sure electricity and gas were turned on in my apartment.
- Getting food (stores are closed on Sundays)
The second we arrived in Bonn the first prayer was answered. Sabine, the school’s director of operations, loaned me 50 euros. I was a little astounded but promised to pay her back as soon as possible. When we arrived at my apartment I set my stuff down, then decided to go out and find some food. I also needed wifi so I could turn on the gas and electricity.
I walked 10 meters (30 ft) and found myself facing an open courtyard with a sushi place, ice cream shop, Italian restaurant, bank, grocery store, drug store, bicycle shop, bus stop, and a bakery/cafe with wifi.
One block further was the equivalent of Grand Avenue in Escondido, except a lot more restaurants. (So far I’ve tried the Gesindehaus (traditional German), the Tibetan stand, a burger joint, and the gelato shop). By an hour later I had managed to turn on the gas and electricity in my apartment, and the next morning I walked into the bicycle shop and—in German—bought a brand new 7-speed cruiser that was discounted 200 Euros!
When I got a tour of the school on Thursday everyone kept asking if I was okay. Most were astounded to realize I already had a bicycle. The secondary principal (my boss) drove me to pick up some packages yesterday and told me what it was like to work as a principal in China. Everyone who comes to pick me up tells me I live in the best area in the city.
These issues had all been in the back of my head leading up to the move, but God had a plan. I had questioned the location of the apartment and wondered whether I would have everything I needed, but he knew. He’s even providing financially beyond what I expected!How amazing is our God?
As it turns out, pretty dang amazing.
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I’ll leave you (as promised in this blog post) with the list of things I learned from the Race. The Lord bless and keep you, may he make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you, may he turn his face toward you and give you peace.
20 Things I Learned from The World Race/COVID Quarantine
- The spiritual world is more real than people think. And it affects way more than Americans give it credit for.
- The measure of your strength as a leader isn’t in how well you lead those you like, but in how well you listen to those you don’t.
- Stories are MUCH more powerful than theological arguments.
- Virtual interactions can never take the place of in-person ones.
- I don’t need to be connected to everyone, just a few good people.
- The first few days in a new country are always overwhelming, but people everywhere need the same things, and you can usually find free wifi in the lobbies of hotels.
- Unhealthy patterns are contagious, especially for those not guarded against them.
- Posting a cry for help on social media is the same as saying “someone call 911” during an emergency. If you don’t address someone specific, nothing will happen.
- If you want to learn a language, find a child. They don’t care what you look like or where you’re from, and they’re fluent in body language, guessing games, and smiles.
- Humility is the most valuable (and most difficult) trait anyone can cultivate.
- We’re not called to stand against darkness as much as we’re called to bring the light. Rather than attack the darkness, instead bring the light by worshipping.
- We don’t need nearly as much as we think.
- You only become trapped in your circumstances when you allow them to define you. Even if someone treats you like a child, you still have a choice to act like an adult.
- People establish their opinion of you by how you handle difficult situations, much more than by how much good you do. A reputation of charity & kindness is only as valuable as your integrity.
- Comfort—like money—is a double-edged sword. Fear of losing it is what keeps the rich from being generous.
- Having fun is just as important as working through issues; it reminds us that our “enemy” is human.
- Not sharing the little things will keep your boundaries from being pushed, but will also prevent you from getting close to others.
- Don’t judge a person by their government; governments are not people.
- We need both logic & spirituality in order to be healthy. Valuing one at the expense of the other isn’t godly. Extremes are opportunities for growth: in practice, perspective, or both.
- Trust is hard, but incredibly valuable. Something risky in the world’s eyes feels like life and peace to those whose trust is in the Lord.
For the last time (on this site at least)
Love from Germany,
Sarah
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*We met people from the following countries while on the Race (by continent): Asia: China, Tibet, Hong Kong, Bangladesh, Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Russia, Azerbaijan, Middle East: Oman, Yemen, Iran, Africa: Morocco, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Egypt, Somalia, Ethiopia, Djibouti, East Swatini, Maritius, Namibia, Uganda, Rwanda, Dem. Rep of Congo, Europe: Turkey, Bulgaria, Germany, Georgia, Czech Republic, England, N. America: Mexico, America, S. America: Argentina, Australia: Australia
