It’s month one, day 20-something on the race, and we’ve already caught ourselves (and the people around us) saying some pretty absurd things. Here are some quotes and some interesting situations we’ve been dealing with.
“The water stopped.”
As a born and raised middle class American, I’m used to having water whenever I want it. Clean, fresh water that can be used for anything. Here, in India, we have water sometimes, but it’s usually water that we can’t drink. When we have power at the house, there’s a makeshift faucet that sprays water, but most of the time, we have to go across the field to get water from the spring. We set ourselves up in an assembly line today and passed buckets, 22-gallon jugs, and metal jars to the stream and back. We were about half-way through when Garrett announced that the water stopped. It just stopped flowing, so we had to stop getting water. What we had gathered so far was what we would have to use for the next few days to shower, do our laundry, wash our dishes, clean, and cook. Maybe we’ll be able to get more water tomorrow.
“Power comes and goes.”
Like I mentioned above, power is something that is not consistent around here. The first day that we arrived to our ministry location, Rebekah announced to us that the power comes and goes. We all kind of gave each other looks like, um, what does that mean. Soon enough, we understood. Every day, for at least 3 to 5 hours, we lose power. The fans stop, the water stops, and we can’t charge any of our electronics. We are blessed to have power at all; it’s been a process getting used to not always having it right at our fingertips. I don’t think one of us has had a computer not die.
“I really don’t care if I pee on my foot.”
Squatty potties are great. Especially the ones that have a door to give you some privacy. Especially the ones that don’t have women squatting right next to you. We have been lucky enough to have a squatty potty in the closed bathroom. Nevertheless, we still have to squat. I’ve peed on my foot more times than I can count, and now I just count it as an extra shower when I pee on my foot. There’s worse things that have and will come into contact with our feet.
“Is the water coming today?”
While this is similar to the first quote, the water I was speaking of above is for everything but drinking. We have to send someone to get drinking water every day. As a team, we go through two 22-gallon water jugs per day. We need to walk about a mile to get them filled, and then walk back with them. Sometimes the host will help and that’s when we have to ask if we will be getting water. Water has been a big struggle that I never knew I took for granted.
“Oh, it’s just a fly.”
Bugs really bothered all of us at the beginning of the race. Yes, they still bug us (haha), but we’re getting used to them. If I look down at my legs to see what’s crawling on them and it’s a fly, I have a reaction now of, oh ok. As long as it’s not a mosquito or a bug that can bite me, it’s all good. Our bug tolerance has risen exponentially.
“Just take a tablet.”
It seems like the answer to everything here is, “just take a tablet.” I went with two girls to the hospital for different reasons and they were given the same prescription and told to take tablets. I was sick yesterday and had to rest, and Pastor asked me if I wanted a tablet. The tablets are almost always aspirin 25, and the people here are convinced that they are the next savior. Refusing a tablet is like refusing food, it’s completely unacceptable.
“It’s noon! How have I not brushed my teeth yet?”
We’re usually not super busy in the morning, so when we catch ourselves saying this and not really caring, it’s a little disconcerting. Basic things that we learned when we were little seem to go out the window and not be such a big priority. We have usually made it a priority to brush, and we’ve even flossed as a group a few times. Be proud.
More quotes to follow…
(A big thanks to my teammates for helping to compile this list. Check out their blogs and help support them!)
Garretthammonds.theworldrace.org
Josipresley.theworldrace.org
Brodycontarino.theworldrace.org
Jessmartensen.theworldrace.org
Ashleybreitnauer.theworldrace.org
Kaitlynwolff.theworldrace.org
