As I stood in line at the county health department, I surveyed the menu of vaccinations available. I felt like I was ordering at a fast-food restaurant as I walked up to the counter.
“Yes, I’d like Hep A please, with a side of Yellow Fever. Oh, and what the heck, throw in some Typhoid, too. Yes, the kind they inject right into your blood stream sounds great. Thanks.”
“Alright, miss, that will be $300.”
Then on went the sterile gloves. The smell and the snap of the latex on the nurses hand signaled that it was time. Needles, magnified by my vivid imagination, grew to a gargantuan size. As I went to my happy place, the poke of the first vaccine brought something into clear focus.
“Oh my gosh! I’m going into the third world! In 7 months!”
It’s one of those obvious facts that hides in plain sight so you don’t ever really see it until something brings it to your attention (in this case, a poke in the arm by Nurse Ratchet).
That came out of NOWHERE!
I think that, for the first time, I realized the enormity of what I am going to be doing. And also the responsibility I have to do my utmost to prepare to be effective in doing good for the people I meet around the world.
And a flood of minor panic washed over me (or it could have just been the Hep A). I felt a little bit like Harry Potter when he was first told about all the power he had.
I can’t be a missionary. I watch the Walking Dead.
Then, somewhere between Hep A and Yellow Fever, I got some immediate peace. I realized that I wasn’t called to go into the world as this put-together hero or this ultra-holy-super-Christian-who-knows-all-the-songs. I was called to go into the world as Rachael. Just Rachael. Messy, goofy, no-filter, call-it-like-I-see-it, not into Christian pop culture, all-together-human in every way Rachael.
And I thought to myself…
My inner Bill Murray believes in me.
There’s a lot that goes in to preparing to leave for 11 months. Not all of it is as fun as getting injected with various diseases, but it will all end in good done for those who desperately are in need of it.
I am so super blessed to already have met 28% of my fundraising goal! On top of that, kind friends and family have supplied me with some of my gear already. Thank you so much to those of you who have supported me so far. It wouldn’t happen without you.
You totally just high-fived your screen, didn’t you?
Please be praying for the next seven months before I launch into the world. For finances, for peace, and for me to be present in what God would have me work on and strengthen before I leave home.
If anyone would like to contribute financially to this mission with a monthly or a one-time tax-deductible donation, you can click the “Support Me” tab on the top right section of this blog. If you’d like to keep updated on where I’m at in the world, subscibe to this blog! You can do so by entering your e-mail address on the left side of the page (where it says “Subscribe for Blog Updates”).
Thanks again to all of you, near and far, who are with me on this journey!
