(the title is a song, mom)
Not many people know this, but my birthday is a pretty big deal to me. Not because I love attention, because I really don’t…but because it’s always a day spent with my family and friends, reliving all my years. It’s tradition in my house to have ice cream for breakfast, hang out and have a birthday meal, and at some point in the day watch our birth videos (not graphic, don’t panic). I’ll go out with friends or do something fun like watch a movie or play games or just veg out with each other. My people make me homemade cards and cookie cake every year, and it’s amazing. It’s a day where I’m surrounded by all the people who know me well and love me well.
Obviously, this birthday looked a little different. I was having a crisis the week prior because I felt like I was going to be depressed and lonely, even though it was going to be travel day where I’d be crammed in a bus with 40 other people. I told my teammate Kylie that I didn’t feel well known and well loved at the moment because no one knew the little things like that I love homemade cards and that my friends bake me cookie cake every year (ily M and I). The Lord quickly showed me that I was WRONG in thinking that I’d be left behind in the wake of travel day, so here’s a little glimpse into the first 24 hours of my 23rd year…
12am: I woke up to Jake spilling peach tea all over the floor under us. I took the empty bottle and was readjusting in my seat only to find out that it was not, in fact, empty. So yeah, I dumped the rest of the tea all over my pillow, my shirt, and my lap.
12:30am: I used the bathroom on the back of the bus while we were driving down curvy roads. It was bad. So bad. But Kylie gave me my first happy birthday from the aisle of the bus where she was sleeping. Gucci.
2:35am: I woke up to the sound of cantina music blasting over the radio, and also to Jon Baker and Jake commiserating about how cold the bus was. I can confirm, it was icy.
5am: I woke up because we were stopped on the road, for what you ask? Our driver needed a lil snacky snack.
8am: I was OUT. I had taken melatonin and Dramamine and it didn’t kick in for houuuurrs. But Colby took a cute lil picture of me in my alien sleeping mask and honestly I was living my best life (picture below).
8:30am: I opened cards from home! Mom, dad, Ben, and Jacob all wrote me cards and it was just what my heart needed.
9am: We made it to the border of Colombia and Ecuador. Nico bought me a cake in a bag (pictured below). Jon and Lee got scolded by the security officer. We had to switch buses. I felt super sick and dizzy because ya girl hadn’t had enough water.
12:50pm: We had just switched buses and everyone was groggy and hungry, ready to get to Ecuador…and to lunch.
2:30pm: We stopped for lunch and I got a burger, some coffee, and some fruit from the grocery store.
4:30pm: We stopped at a gas station for a fill-up and a quick bathroom break, and I realized that my burger messed. me. UP.
4:50pm: I got to braid Lee’s hair and honestly it looked killer.
7pm: I realized that I was about to leave the rest of the squad for a whole month so I went to sit on Nikki’s lap and cried a single tear.
8:05pm: My team and I stacked our bags up outside the bus station and formed a human barrier so no one would steal our stuff, it rained on us, and I had to pay 15 cents to have diarrhea at a bus station with NO TOILET SEATS mind you.
10:15pm: Our host picked us up from the bus station. 3 people from our team rode in a little car, the other 4 of us rode in a truck. All of our luggage was in the truck bed along with our hosts mother-in-law (LOL). We drove for about 15 minutes then had to pull over and cover her and the bags with a plastic tarp (I’m ded).
11pm: I snored myself awake in the passenger seat of our ride. He didn’t speak a lick of English and he BELLY laughed when I said “no hablo espanol.”
12am: We arrived at our apartment and got fed rice and chicken, then passssseedddd out.
All in all, I wouldn’t have spent my birthday any other way. Praise the Lord for giving us just what we need, just when we need it (minus the diarrhea).
23 is going to be my best year yet.
Cake in a bag. Rock on.
Living my best life. Obviously so was Jake.
