Hey fam! I hope y’all are all doing amazing back home! 🙂 Today is officially the 6th day of my World Race, and launch and training camp in Georgia have been awesome so far! Although it’s been difficult to keep track of what time or day it is at any given moment, every second has been an adventure! It’s crazy to think that in just 6 more days my squad will be in Nicaragua!!!
Today has been a blessing because it’s Sabbath, so we get a chance to rest and process the insane amount of information that’s been thrown at us and all the emotions we’ve been feeling. It’s definitely much needed! I feel like I finally get a chance to breathe (and I also finally have a chance to blog lol). Also, we were given the chance to buy some coffee this morning, which I was REALLY excited about!!!
Imma try to recap training camp to the best of my ability so you guys can get a picture of what it’s been like so far:
Sleeping Situations-Today has been the only day where we haven’t had to either set up and/or tear down our tents- so let me explain. After we set up our tents when we got here, we had to be packed up by 7:00am the next day. We later found out that it was because we had our first scenario! Half of our checked bags had been “lost” on our “flight” so we all had to pair up and share tents that night. It was an experience for sure! It was also extremely humbling (even though I still ended up with all my bags). The next day we packed up again and got to sleep inside the building as practice for staying at a host’s home… all 40+ of us plus another squad. Lemme just say: I slept so well that night despite lack of space! And yesterday we set up our tents once more!
Showering- Bucket showers!!! I never feel more refreshed than when I get to take a bucket shower! And I’m not even joking. Yes, the water’s cold, especially first thing in the morning. But it’s so worth it. We basically just take a large bucket, fill it up with water from the hose, carry it into the stall, and scoop out the water with a measuring cup to rinse off. Y’all should try it lol!
Food!- Each day all of our meals are themed to correspond with a different area of the world, and we are also given cultural rules to follow during meal times. The first full day of training was Asia Day, and I can now say I struggle slightly less with chopsticks. But rice is still a challenge lol. Then we had Latin America Day, in which we had some delicious plantains and tacos! And yesterday was Eastern Europe Day, when we were supposed to only eat with our left hand, but I gave up because it was difficult to cut things and my squad won’t be going to any of those countries haha! And since today is “Travel Day” we didn’t have any plates for breakfast this morning.
My People- It’s been so beautiful getting to know the different people on my squad this week. And even though it’s a challenge because there’s so many of us, I love seeing more of who everyone is and matching personalities to faces and names! 🙂 YESTERDAY WE GOT OUR FIRST TEAMS!!! Even though our squad will be going to the same countries together (and will be in the same location for month 1), we split up into smaller teams to do ministry. My team is: Gabby, Jamie, Lan, Tiffiny, and Tee! We don’t have a team name yet, so stay tuned!
To be honest this week has been so mind blowing and eye opening that I can’t even put it into words. I know God is working in me so powerfully, and I couldn’t be more thankful. Thank you all for making this possible! Your prayers and support mean more than I can ever express! I love you all!
Until next time,
Catherine <3
