Yes, you heard that right. My parents left their jobs and kids for one week to join me on the field in Granada, Nicaragua.
I remember back in Cambodia when they told us we could invite our family to come on the field; I immediately found WiFi and asked my parents if they wanted to come and they said yes. Then, I had to wait 5 months until I could actually see them.
The time went by so fast. In Africa, I didn’t talk to my family much. I was 4 hours from any WiFi and so I talked to them 2 times out of the whole 3 months. However, even though I had no idea how they were doing, God gave me so much peace.
As I was preparing for PVT, I never imagined how it would actually feel; then March 10 came around. The racers all sat down for lunch and then we saw a taxi pull up and parents get out. The racer ran to go meet their parent and all the attention was on her. I got so nervous to see my parents at this point. I haven’t seen them in 7 months besides on a screen and it just didn’t seem like it was actually happening until the parents started showing up.
After we finished lunch, a big bus drove up the driveway. I was looking on top of the bus to see if any of the luggage looked familiar. Then, people started piling out of the bus and all of a sudden I see my dad’s face. I run and hug him and shortly after, my mom joins us. It was such a weird moment because I have never experienced anything like this before. I was so used to having my parents at home all the time and never being away from them for more than a week. This just felt way weird, but so good.
I showed them their rooms and then we sat and talked on the porch, looking at the volcano, all afternoon. It was so fun to catch up on what was going on at home. We spent a lot of time in those chairs talking and it was always a good time.
Being in a family of 7 kids, I have gotten used to not being the center of attention. I didn’t mind not being the center because I was out doing stuff and working a lot of the time. This week, however, I was the center of attention, let me tell you. Being honest, it was a little tiring. I talked with my parents about this, but, it was kind of overwhelming having my parents there. I didn’t know what to talk about some days and it was just something I wasn’t used to. The World Race, for me, is my “normal” for now and having a piece of home was different. Do not get me wrong though, I enjoyed welcoming them into what I’ve been doing for 8 months and serving alongside them.
We got to prayer-walk together, feed kids, and build a chair. These are ministries I’d usually do with my team, but it was so cool to see God use my parents in this alongside me during the week. My parents got to walk around the neighborhood with me, a team, and some locals and pray for people, encourage people, and spend time loving people. We also went to a ministry in town that feeds children in the neighborhood. My parents got to experience serving these kids food, preparing the space for them, cleaning it up afterwards, and making connections with people. It was so cool to witness.
We had a lot of time to spend together and it was good. While they were here, we went on a boat tour of the islands of Granada, looked into a volcano, swam in a laguna, and walked around Granada.
Having my parents here also gave me a taste of home and has gotten me more excited to return home. However, for now, I am completely content in the place God has me in.
Much love, Gab.
