Hello everyone!
Now that it’s November, maybe half of the squad has started thinking of Christmas coming up. My team has even picked our names out of a hat for secret santa already!
Honestly, I’ve never really been someone that starts listening to Christmas music right after Halloween. Usually I’d wait until December or sometimes I’d even wait until the week before Christmas.
However, being on the race during Christmas instead of being with my family is something that has gotten me into the Christmas spirit early.
My wonderful mother has always been someone that would put the Christmas tree up and keep it up all year if she could. December is basically her favorite time of the year. Christmas means Hallmark’s 25 Days of Christmas movies, Chick-Fil-A peppermint milkshakes, family time, Christmas music 24/7, matching pajamas, special Christmas bedsheets, and a total of five Christmas trees in our house. It’s her favorite time of the year and I really wish I could be there.
I received a very sweet text from my mum the other day about the CFA peppermint milkshake coming soon that almost brought me to tears. Mum, if you’re reading this, I wish I could have one with you too.
I’ve been listening to Christmas songs all month and cry just about every time I put it on. There’s one particular song by Drew Holcomb and The Neighbors called “Merry Christmas Tonight” and wow. If any racer parents are reading this and want to get all in your feels about us being gone for Christmas, listen to this song and have a good cry with me. I won’t give away the lyrics but I cry every time I hear it.
I so desperately wish I could even FaceTime my family on Christmas day but we’ll be in Ethiopia so the chances of that are slim. I wish I was able to make a blanket fort with my little sisters like we do every year on Christmas Eve while we watch the Google Santa tracker together. I wish I could put my Christmas sheets on my bed with my mum and put up my mini tree in my room with all my Harry Potter ornaments. I wish I could take a picture with my little sisters in our matching Christmas pajamas we get every year. It really hurts my heart that I won’t be in the photo this year. I won’t get to have peppermint hot chocolate with my family as we watch Elf for the billionth time.
I’m so thankful for the World Race and how I get to see God move across nations, and I’m thankful that this organization, as I’ve heard, makes Christmas a special day because it is so hard to be away from family. I’m thankful that I get to spend Christmas in Africa because I don’t know when I’ll ever do that again, and that I’m spending it with my Esther family. But I miss home.
My team made the Chick-Fil-A peppermint milkshake with me to help with my homesickness and we had a great time making them. I have a video about it up on YouTube! And we’ve talked about getting matching Christmas pajamas like most of us do back home. I’m so grateful that we get to make new traditions within our team.
That’s all for now!
See you soon!
-Chelsea
