My brother graduated high school today. I wasn’t there.
I also missed his 18th birthday, a pretty big year in my culture.
I’m missing all my siblings’ birthdays this year.
I’m missing a few weddings.
A close friend is graduating with her doctorate.
I’ve missed the birth of a couple of my friends’ children.
My aunt is having her first boy.
I couldn’t make my little cousin’s first ballet recital.
When I left for the race, I knew life back home wasn’t going to pause for me.
And it makes me sad sometimes. To think I have been and will continue to be absent from these moments due to the race. But at the same time, I’m happy that something can make me feel this sad.
It’s the good kind of sad. I have people in my life I want to be there for. I have people in my life that I miss.
It’s the type of sad attached with hope. Yes I’m not there, but the good things happening are happening. And I am overjoyed for them, even when I’m sad I’m not with them.
When I left for the race, I had to entrust the Lord with everything I was leaving behind.
My comfort is that in my absence, God remains present.
And to be honest, He’s much better company than me.
We are currently serving the indigenous people of Panama in the outskirts of the San Felix District. The reservation is located in the mountains, where a person can walk three days before finding the closest church. We’ve been helping with construction on some church buildings in the surrounding areas. This includes handling power tools to cut metal, painting roofs, and building benches. We’ve enjoyed washing windows, mopping floors, and clearing gutters.
We also have the privilege of WR Exposure volunteers with us. They get to spend a month on the race as part of our teams and live life with us. They do what we do, go where we go, live like we live. It gives them a taste of the race and hopefully clarity if the World Race is for them.
