Tick Tock…
About a week ago, M Squad left the accommodations of our month eight debrief in Jinja, Uganda. Its comforts included but were not limited to the joys of wonderful company, our own beds, hot showers, cheap chapatti and American snack foods graciously donated by our own Rozy McCormick . Yes, it was a great time of relaxing, recharging, 5K running (my first and perhaps not last race), and white water rafting down the Nile River. Admittedly, getting swallowed alive by category five rapids and being swished around like a rag doll in a washing machine’s spin cycle was one of the best parts of the whole experience for me, heh.
For all you folks who have no idea what a debrief normally looks like, it’s essentially the squad getting together, relaxing for about four or five days at some preplanned location (go Legitics), having fun around whatever town we’re located in; discussing where we are spiritually, emotionally, physically; hearing important information on events to come, and as always, having worship and fellowship squad wide. It’s quite the reality check to know that this was our second to last debrief before leaving Race life, our squad and this chapter altogether.
Exiting the Race was one of the things we talked about during session one night. Hope, Race alumni and squad coordinator, forewarned us about some of the difficulties of re-entry to the States.
The fleeting overblown fantasies of returning home to familiar streets, college life and paying job potential are drastically overshadowed by the authenticity of the community I’ve been doing life with these past eight months. I mean, don’t get me wrong here, but this conglomeration of vagabonds has become family to me and yet now we have a departure date that brings our time together into greater focus. Every second counts. Every minute of every day of every moment spent working, with God or the team cannot be repeated or relived or consumed differently or twice over. This fact serves to keep us in check when we feel like checking out, it propels us to love deeply when we want to rationalize our relationships in proportion to our one month confinement and it helps us make the most of each day.
We’ve got about ninety days left of the Race before returning to the rest of our lives. May we commune even more intentionally then how we’re striving to now.
God bless, y’all.
Photo Credit: Kirsten Disa Hughes
Photo Credit: Daniel Auzenne
Photo Credit: Kirsten Disa Hughes
Photo Credit: Kirsten Disa Hughes
