The mosquito net draped down around us as we shared the treasures of our day with each other. Her treasure came from Acts, a little chunk of goodness tucked right at the end of the book. She is full of goodness, a refreshing blend of kindness and honesty. My treasure was found in the experiences of the day, the moment I got the opportunity to speak my mind and change it to. We poured over each other’s treasures. As we talked, the shine of our words and experiences rubbed off on one another and we closed the evening a little bit more refined and full of love than before. People say the Race will change your life and it’s true. My life has been changed this past year for sure. There are dirty fingerprints on the window panes of my soul that I never want cleaned off. My spiritual living room has been full of the welcomed and unwelcomed, the expected and unexpected. Holy Spirit has been busy in the kitchen, nourishing my soul with some bittersweet dishes. Stories, languages and faces weave in and out of my consciousness. For now, the presence is not remarkable, but upon return to America, to my culture and people, my mind, heart and soul are going to be yelling at me that things are different. Contrast will cause this past year to brighten. Yes, I’ve changed and I won’t know the extent of that change until 41 days from now. The race changes your life. You drop a lot on your way out the door. I know I did, but I didn’t expect to pick anything up, didn’t expect to be given the opportunity to share my year with a new friend. My friend, the treasure sharer, loves God with such honesty and speaks His truth simply. The way she reads and perceives the Word of God is constantly inviting me to a place of examining my heart and burying the scriptures in my soul. She will speak the truth to me even when it hurts because she cares more about me as a person than about pandering to my emotions. She is patient, disciplined and she is my friend. When I leave the Race, I might leave empty handed, but I won’t leave empty hearted. Between morning walks to ministry and tearful conversations about those bittersweet meals the Holy Spirit was whipping up, Kelsey and has been my friend. I thought that after getting to make such sweet, Jesus centered friendships in college that I wasn’t going to get to have the chance for more. I mean, God had already blessed me so abundantly in the realm of friendship. Surely I had reached my quota! I didn’t deserve or expect it, but God is such a God of abundance and His Kingdom is full of powerful friendships. I am honored to get to run the race of life with such a woman of God as Kelsey. Here are some pics!
Kelsey and I Cheesin it in Ethiopia. We were on our way to a hot springs/swimming hole (check out the matching braids!)
Wearing our traditional Rwandan dresses to a wedding! It was so fun to dress up:)
