I have had the unfortunate experience of having been told that I am on vacation currently. Thankfully this has only happened once but it still cuts me to the core.
I can say, with absolute certainty that the World Race is the hardest thing I have ever experienced. Let me repeat that…. The World Race is the hardest thing I have ever experienced. Yes, it is harder than all 4 years of college. Yes, it is harder than my job back home. Yes, it is harder than trying to run 10 miles. Yes, it is hard.
I have heard from countless squadmates that they too have heard of people saying that this is “vacation”.
I’m going to share with you some things that have happened over the past 2 months and I’ll let you decide if this is vacation or not.
On a daily basis I see animals and people broken. And by broken I mean people that are spiritually broken and so much in need of a doctor or medical attention that I have to look away because I would start sobbing if I looked long enough. To me, that’s not vacation. Oh, and I can’t tell you how many starving dogs I have seen with missing paws.
I don’t do Vacation Bible School, English Club or healing on the streets while on vacation.
On vacation I don’t scrub cow poop off my feet when I come into the house.
I don’t paint and stain base boards or do manual labor on vacation.
On vacation I don’t have to worry about my drinking water and where it came from or what I eat and if it’s going to give me parasites, Hep A, B, or C or diarrhea the next day.
On vacation I don’t have to take pro-biotics or other forms of vitamins or get vaccinations that cost hundreds of dollars.
When I go on vacation I don’t lug a 50 pound pack plus a day pack with only essentials on my back across the globe.
On vacation I don’t have to wonder if it’s safe to walk around the block without a buddy.
And when I’m not doing all those things on a daily basis… at the end of every day I gather with my family who are 2 other women and 3 men to talk about moods, bowel movements, God, healings and long term visions.
I’m not writing this blog to complain. I love my life. This is the life I have dreamed of. I’m writing this to enlighten the people that may think this is vacation.
I sleep on floors, in air ports, on trains. I wear the same clothes more often than not. I never know what the day is going to hold. I have no clue where my finances are at or where the money will come from to stay on this road.
This is my calling. This is what I am meant for. This is where God has me. I’m only on month 2 in Eastern Europe and I know the living conditions will become increasingly more unique and diverse. But I am incredibly thankful that
I am NOT on vacation.
