So the World Race is ending in nine days, today is my last day of “normal ministry” whatever that means. I am about to head home, a place that I have missed throughout the year that holds the people most dear to my heart, who are all burning with questions. Because I have no idea what re-entry will look like for me or how I will feel about answering a million and five open-ended question in a large group of people. I don’t even know if that situation will even happen but because I do want to see as many friends and family as I possibly can, to share my stories, triumphs, heartaches, and laughs, and to hear all of yours I’ve created this list of questions to help you get an idea of what this year has been like and also to give all of you the open invitation to go on a coffee date. Whether that means going to Dunkin Donuts, Starbucks, Tim Horton’s, meeting at my parent’s house, my new apartment, or where you live I want to see all of you and just spend time with you.
So Here we go:
What was your favorite month of the Race?
My favorite month would have to be Ethiopia. We were there in November. We lived on a compound about 3 hours outside the capital of the country and it was one of the most beautiful places I have seen this year. We were in the mountains so the weather was perfect, the sky almost always clear, wind constantly blowing, and miles of plains as far as the eye could see with more mountains off in the distance. Something I learned this year is that I really love those wide open spaces with a few clumps of trees sprinkled around. I can’t tell you why but that kind of view, I love it.
Besides the weather and the view the people we worked with were great. Our Canadian host, Ralph and his wife, Glenda were absolutely spectacular. They took such great care of us and were such loving people, completely on fire and passionate about the work the Lord had called them to do. The medical team we worked with was a lot of fun. I learned that I could actually enjoy working in a hospital setting someday, after years of telling my mother I never would. The Born family were a crazy example of what it looks like to be a family serving God wholeheartedly. I am forever grateful I got to know them.
And then our ministry was so different each week, but I loved every second of it. I learned that I like being a human rototiller, painting and staining brick houses, washing dishes, and running errands for doctors and nurses. I tried lots of new things this month and Thanksgiving day was, actually is one of my absolute favorite days from the race.
What was your least favorite?
My least favorite was probably Thailand. It was ridiculously hot that month and we didn’t have that many fans. We slept on the floor and sweated constantly. My family was going through some stuff that month and it was hard to be away from that, and I just din’t really connect with the ministry that we were doing. Despite all of this the Lord taught me quite a bit and I grew closer to him because of it.
Who is the one person you met this year that you won’t forget?
Steven stole my heart the first day I saw him, literally the first day of ministry, the first official day of the World Race. He was crying, which I later learned he does quite often, and to try and distract from whatever was causing him distress I held his hand and spun him in circles. After that whenever I went around the CVI compound and would search for him. I will never, ever forget my little dinosaur.
Did you eat any weird foods?
The weirdest food I ate the I actually came to love by the end of the month and had a craving for just the other day was cassava. It is a staple food in Uganda and is a root vegetable that has the color of a turnip, consistency of sweet potato, and flavor of nothing. It was served to us every morning with breakfast along with tea and instant coffee. If you ate boiled cassava plain it was pretty gross but add in a little raw sugar and homemade Ugandan peanut butter made from g-nuts and sesame seeds and it was actually pretty delicious. (cue all of my squad mates thinking I’m the weirdest person ever)
What is the coolest touristy thing you did?
That hands down would have to be rafting the Nile at the end of our month in Uganda. It was the end of our first month and so we all wanted to do something awesome. Looking back I still can’t believe I actually did it. It was absolutely crazy, scary, and amazing. I now have an idea of how baby Moses felt all those years ago.
If you could go back to any country again where wold you go?
I would want to go back to CVI in Uganda. That ministry is doing such cool things and the first time around although I was present I was so overwhelmed with culture shock and trying figure out what the heck I had gotten myself into that I would love to go back and invest more time in that amazing place.
Okay now for some country specific questions, because let’s be honest it’s really hard to remember everything that has happened between last September and now so these will help focus all of that information:
Uganda:
Ask me about the work the ChildVoice International is doing
Ask me about the LRA and Joseph Kony’s family
Ask me about the cool story behind the land CVI is built on
Ask me about Madame Cecelia
Ask me about Megan and Petek
Ask me about being a child care provider to almost 30 kids
Ask me about Eric, Samuel, Winnie and their moms
Rwanda:
Ask me about Pastor Innocent
Ask me about my birthday
Ask me about Bourbon Coffee
Ask me about conquering my fear of riding on a motorcycle
Ask me about learning a song in Kinyarwandan
Ask me about Mugisha Prince and Mucho
Ethiopia:
Ask me about HOPEthiopia
Ask me about Ralph and Glenda
Ask me about the ER doctors and nurses
Ask me about star tripping
Ask me about delicious Ethiopian coffee and staying up late
Ask me about Thanksgiving
Ask me about not having wifi at all for the first time of the Race
Ask me about house visits, the diabetic woman, Melesa and Abiti, and Gadisa and Jordan
Ask me about the Born family
India:
Ask me about culture shock
Ask me about buying a new wardrobe
Ask me about Noel and Joel
Ask me about John Paul and Mane (pronounced money)
Ask me about village ministry
Ask me about house arrest
Ask me about Christmas
Nepal:
Ask me about squad .5
Ask me about new teams
Ask me about living in an IDP camp
Ask me about hiking in the Himalayas and crossing a river 12 times
Ask me about 17 hour car rides and motion sickness
Cambodia:
Ask me about living in the city and the village
Ask me about cooking for myself
Ask me about teaching a kindergarten English class
Ask me about Pahli and Jasmine
Ask me about Jack, Samedy, and baby Daria
Ask me about Everson, Juliann, and baby Sarah
Ask me about living at a school
Ask me about iced coffee and muffins
Ask me about Ricky and Davin
Ask me about playing soccer on the weekends
Thailand:
Ask me about a new all girls team
Ask me about street pad thai and mango stick rice
Ask me about being incredibly uncomfortable
Ask me about Minh and Pinh
Ask me about the crazy messy storage closet and sleeping in a classroom
Ask me about Big C and walking around the largest street market in the world
Ask me about the hard things the Lord taught me
Ask me about debrief
Malaysia:
Ask me about the Kumar family
Ask me about having my own room
Ask me about movie nights
Ask me about Family Mamuk and our kind waiter Ari Feen
Ask me about water balloon fights
Ask me about forgetting how to conjugate verbs in English
Ask me about my prophesy
Ask me about Hebrews 11
Guatemala:
Ask me about Juan and Evelyn
Ask me about Mother’s Day
Ask me about Kenny and the coffee shop
Ask me about teaching English
Ask me about Stephanie
Ask me about my week in El Salvador
Honduras:
Ask me about another all girls team
Ask me about my teammates getting sick
Ask me about house arrest
Ask me about living 20 minutes from the murder capital of the world
Ask me about applying for jobs back home and what the Lord kept reminding me
Ask me about living with a dog, ducks, and some kittens
Ask me about our mosquito farm
Ask me about Pedro and Manuelito
Nicaragua:
Ask me about Tara and Alex
Ask me about their daughter Molly
Ask me about all the feelings from coming off the field
Ask me about Jeyson, Jefferson, Jassir, Frank, and Juan
Ask me about Anyelo, Vilma, Reyna, and Cristobal
Ask me about being an english teacher again
The point is ask me. Ask me anything and everything your little hearts desire as long as you give me free reign to do the same. Life has continued on for you at home and I want to know all that has happened. Tell me about the engagements, weddings, break-ups, births, deaths, new jobs, new houses, new apartments, new schools, and everything in-between. I want to know. So how about you and me sit down sometime and just spend some time talking and catching up. Let’s have a coffee date!
