Things in Nicaragua always take more time and more attention to get done. More details need to be taken care of, more people need to be reminded and more jokes need to be made… otherwise we go insane. What do we do when the police don’t show up to block off the road for the race? We throw people around on a number of intersections to stand in front of traffic for the running crowd and laugh about it later. A number of things like this went wrong, but, surprisingly, less than I figured!
We had somewhere between 100 and 150 runners and plenty of others watching. A young Nicaraguan man won the race with a time of a little over 18 minutes. The band played, prizes were handed out, names were hailed and fun was had by all.
As for Vida Joven, the jury’s still out on how much was raised, but it’s figured to be about $5,000 total. The hope is that this will become an annual run to help raise funds for struggling ministries in the area. Thank you all who gave!
In other news… this is our last full week of ministry. The end is coming quickly and I’m scrambling to try to help prepare the team for the impending difficulties ahead. The transition into American society can be deadly. Please pray for the team members as they prepare their hearts and minds for what lies ahead. The devil is crafty and will come at all of us with all he’s got. It’s at these times when the habits, relationships and overall mentality we’ve developed over a long period of time will prove themselves truly valuable. Still many of the participants haven’t caught on and, I’m afraid, may suffer for it.
Next Wednesday we will travel to Tamarindo beach in Costa Rica for four days of debrief. There’ll be plenty of time to relax, have fun and reflect. On the night of the 11th I fly out. The team will follow me on the 13th. We will meet for two more days of coping in Atlanta before everyone leaves for good.
It’s strange the things you miss when away from home for extended periods of time. I’ve got to say, I am really looking forward to some excellent cheese! I plan on making an amazing meal complete with a grand assortment and variety of meats, cheeses, breads and anything else I can think of.
