Hello from Indonesia. I have been here for a week and a half now and I’m proud to say that I am completely over jet lag and can sleep all the way through the night (YAY!). While Indonesia has been amazing and I can’t wait to give you a blog that talks a lot about that; this blog is not about Indonesia.
It’s actually a much more serious topic and something that has been heavy on my heart lately. I hope it touches and encourages you this week. My squad and I had a layover in the States between our travels from Panama to Indonesia. As much anticipated for, right when we landed in Houston for our first leg, my friend and teammate, Codi and I practically ran to Chick-fil-a and ate ask much fried chicken, waffle fries, Chick-fil-a sauce, and milkshakes as we could before boarding another plane to LA. In LA, it was planned to have around a 24-hour layover which we had all ideally packed tight with things to do because…. well… we only get access to American goods for so long. My plan was to workout in the hotel gym (A real treadmill!), go to Target, Old Navy, and REI, eat at In-and-Out burger, stop by a post office to send stuff home, and possibly even stop by the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Ultimately have a calm and productive day However, almost none of those things happened…
I woke up early and worked out. While at breakfast, a woman ran through the room and screamed that there was an active shooter right outside. I looked outside and saw chaos then looked around and saw people running and grabbing their children. I immediately grabbed my laptop and sprinted toward the elevator. Before the door could close, we saw a flood of people who were panicked saying that the gunman was coming into the hotel. This is when it hit me. I might not make it to my room. I might see someone die. I might die today.
Spoiler Alert: If you couldn’t tell I didn’t die.
The elevator door closed, I made it to my room (with a couple random women who were seeking safety), and dead bolted the door. I informed the rest of my team what happened downstairs and we remained calm. Within minutes there were 100s of police officers, the SWAT team, helicopters, and other police force around the hotel area. We watched as the police squad raced across the street to capture the gunman. This is the moment we knew we were completely safe. He was not in the hotel and he was not on a killing spree.
What I want to talk about is fear. I thought it was pretty ironic that through the three months traveling in Latin America (where I was always reminded about how dangerous and careful I needed to be), the most dangerous thing that has happened on the race thus far occurred in America. In a place that I call home. Somewhere where it is “safe”. What I want to talk about is your comfort zones and fear.
A lot of times we let the unknown be a reason we don’t do things – whether that’s taking a leap of faith, moving, starting a new job, ultimately going out of our comfort zone. We find stability and we cling to it because we “know” everything that it entails. We believe that nothing bad will happen in that place. We often believe that the outside is always bad, or at least not as good as where we currently are. It’s not worth the risk. Because what if something bad happens?
What I want to encourage you with is that you might be wrong about being scared being out of your comfort zone. I would almost go as far as saying that you are wrong. Taking a leap of faith is something that, yes is hard, but stepping out of your comfort zone is the best thing that you might ever do! You are at the same amount of risk being in your “safe place” than being in the “scary place”. I was warned countless times about the drug and gang violence in Honduras, the political unrest in Nicaragua, the prostitution in Costa Rica. But Hey! Guess what? Nothing happened that was even close to harmful in any of those countries. Yes, we witnessed protests. Yes, we saw men with guns. Yes, we witnessed drug deals. Yes, we rode in the back of a truck everywhere we went. But in all of these situations I never felt unsafe. I actually felt extremely safe. However, in the place where I was supposed to be the safest; I felt the most scared in my whole life. In the place where people told me to stay instead of go on the Race because it would be safer and wouldn’t cause as much anxiety about me. Weird how it works, huh?
I think that it is a testament to God. God wanted to use this experience to encourage people to take the leap. To do something that seems scary because, hey! something scary might happen right in front of you in your safe place. Go out and do what you’ve always wanted to do even if it is scary. Don’t let fear stand in your way. You are so much bigger than fear if you have a little bit of faith on your side.
You are strong, because God is Stronger.
You are brave, because God is Braver.
You are able, because God is Almighty.
So with this, go out and do what you’ve always wanted to do but haven’t because you’ve been scared. I believe in you. God is with you, and I know that you believe in yourself!
Catch ya next week.
Elisabeth
