According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary Raw:
- not cooked
- a. being in or nearly in the natural state: not processed or purified. b. unprepared or imperfectly prepared for use
(Raw 2017)
You guys are probably laughing, rolling your eyes with a smile, and wondering where this is going…..
Well, I went into training camp with zero expectations or reservations. My squad was called F, the color green, and we choose as a team to be tacky tourists in green Hawaiian Shirts. But other than that, I didn’t know much. Joining this squad only a few weeks before training camp I defiantly didn’t know my squad mates and they didn’t know my goony self.
So naturally, I walked in wearing my tacky clothes and wore some green paint because that’s what you do in Atlanta Georgia while waiting at the airport for a shuttle.
Got a little lost with these lovely ladies, so we got a few extra laughs in.
Back to the meat of what I want to lay out here… Being Raw… Not the uncooked definition but looking at not processed or purified. As a body, lets use myself as an example, there are many functions and components to how we think, work, act, and communicate with other bodies. In general I think it is safe to say that bodies want to be accepted in some form or another. And being RAW, so the imperfectly prepared you, is not the ideal version most people pull out of their pockets when meeting people for the first time. Or probably the second time….
Being Raw/Vulnerable is hard. But embracing it is a true joy and blessing. At training camp, I was not the “Christa” many people know me to be. I was cut open, walking around with exposed wounds for people to see. (Thank goodness we didn’t have access to many mirrors). I started to get a little frustrated with myself, because being raw was hard and honestly not much fun at the beginning. BUT IT FELT SO GOOD to be accepted in a community that knows my wounds up front and accepted me in open arms.
As Humans we are all “unprepared or imperfectly prepared for use”(Raw 2017) ; so that’s why we have COMMUNITY! Community allows us to be imperfectly prepared because someone else can pick up your weakness. No one has life all figured out, so I encourage you to FREEZE!… Find a mirror!… and Look at the RAW you, take a step back…. embrace it and accept yourself with exposed wounds…. Next be Raw with your community! It will open the possibility for deep connections and understanding.
In this coming year my squad family and team family will see my goofy side that is the more familiar “Christa” for most people, myself included. But if you have the opportunity to be RAW, get real and cut in! Because it’s the RAW Deal! Embrace being unprepared and accepting of your call.
Now for some laughs….
- The males left us for a “man hike” so us girls got to do extra bur-pees, squats, and pushups for them to cross into Cambodia/or Thailand (I can’t remember) (You are most welcome guys ;))
- Long Hair is fun to wash with a hose! 😉 (Recommendation, wash hair, stick it in a stocking cap because GA is as cold as MN in October apparently, then bucket shower your body later) (Also picture yourself on a roller-coaster, its definitely okay to scream!)
- 4 tarps is all you really need for 32 people in the woods to sleep comfortably 😛
- Family/community can be made with complete strangers
- Three people can sleep in a two person backpacking tent, we were snug as slugs
Citations: Raw. (n.d.). Retrieved November 03, 2017. from Raw. (n.d.). Retrieved November 3, 2017. from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/raw
