Finished. After 11 months of traveling, I had finally returned home. I was on the back deck at Mom and Dad’s, enjoying a large salad with a grilled chicken breast cut up on top. I was sharing stories about all the crazy adventures I had experienced and people I had met. Hacker, Bri, Amy, Kare Kare and other college friends all met me for lunch or coffee and the conversations lasted for hours. I would randomly run into people who followed my journey and engage in cheerful exchanges. I stepped into Woodlands Church and was knocked over by all my kiddos that I hadn’t seen for a year. It was over, a whole year had passed since I saw most of these people. The Race was done.
And then I woke up. Nope, the Race was still going and I was staring at the crusty corner I had been sleeping in the past month. Not only was the corner crusty, the floor I was sleeping on was covered in cat hair. Not to worry, I had a mattress pad to sleep on…that was acting as insulation prior to me sleeping on it. Our “apartment” is really just a room and sun porch attached to a larger home. My sleeping pad was acting as a sound barrier in the doorframe attached to the rest of the house. Yes, I did pull it out of the doorframe and yes, I have been sleeping on it all month.
So there I was, lamenting that at age 25 I was sharing a 500 square foot “apartment” with 5 other people and 2 cats. My personal space consisted of the bed I slept on and the nightstand I stacked all my Earthly possessions on. That’s right, I can fit all my stuff- clothes, toiletries, study materials on a nightstand. Woe to me, woe to me. And to top it off, I signed up to live this way…
My "crusty" corner. The door opens to another unit and it's where I found my sleeping pad.
You might think I’m super spiritual and have it all “together,” whatever together means. But I don’t; I’m still human and battle my sense of entitlement.
As I walk back from the grocery store, I always pass under a bridge where the homeless people of Muizenberg hang out. They’re the friendliest people and nice to chat with. Talk about a smack in the face.
I’m complaining about the mattress pad I sleep on when these people don’t have a roof over their head. The week’s worth of clothes in my pack is more than they own. I eat 3 delicious meals a day. I have running water, a refrigerator and means to cook my food. Why am I complaining?
We're cooking for ourselves this month and this is a Family favorite- homemade Shake 'n Bake chicken with taters and lentils.
The Race has given me the opportunity to get down to what I deem the “bare essentials” only to realize I still live in abundance. We eat well on $3 a day for food. I have the option of what clothes I want to wear, what shoes to put on. We utilize all our space in the apartment and at the end of the day, we’re loving life; it is satisfying.
Why am I complaining? I have so much to be thankful for. Though our living quarters are “tight” this month, I think you’ll see that we’re still in good spirits about life-we're living in abundance! Enjoy!
The kitchen/front room/boys bedroom/meeting room. Yes, that is Steven awkwardly bending over.
