Karen and I are debriefing our World Race team in Romania this week. Here is a post by one of them, Ruth Wilson, kind of debriefing herself. She’s got a great sense of humor.
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I have learned a bunch of deep things on the race already… but instead of
blowing you up with those… I’m gonna let you in on some more shallow funny things I have learned…  I am absolutely addicted to chai tea.
Our contacts blow us up with it twice
a day… but somehow…just somehow that is not enough
for us girls. Street
venders? yes please. In India we got it for 3 rupees.. here in Nepal it is
more like 10 rupees.. equivalent to about 6 cents our
currency. That beats
starbucks anyday! It is absolutely not necessary to shower every single day.
I have been set
free from that corrupt idea! Every five days to a week? sounds like perfection. We have embraced the idea of a baby wipe bath. It is BRILLIANT. We love hats.
Ruth is apparently not an easy name for people to say
around the world…
who would have thought. I introduce myself and they scrunch their noses and say drrrrroooo..? no. its Ruth. So in India I introduced myself and the contact changed it to Ruthema. Cool they can say that very easily. It was then changed to Ruthemaka… aka in Telugu is sister. I introduce myself as Ruthema in
Nepal… Sister in Nepali is deedee… so go figure it immediately gets changed
to Ruthemadeedee… Ill take it. Sleeping is very important on the world race.
Here in Friday basically the whole town fasts. Its so awesome that they
are so devoted but yet again ALL NIGHT in the room over they are belting out
songs alllll night. We love those nights.
I have learne
 d what all a bucket can accomplish. A bucket washes your
clothes. A bucket is your shower.
A bucket is equivalent to a “flush” in a squatty potty.
A bucket washes your dishes.
A bucket is a chair.
A bucket is a ladder. A bucket
puts out fire. A bucket carries groceries. It carries rocks.
A bucket can
soak your feet after a long day. A bucket feeds the animals.
A bucket is no longer just a bucket in my eyes.
It is
a way of life. What gets me is that sometimes the same bucket does all of these tasks… Driving is even more psychotic than Houston traffic! In America if you honk it us usually in a hateful way and typically
get a harsh remark. Turns out in India and Nepal the horn is basically saying “HERE I COME AND I’M NOT SLOWING DOWN” There is no hesitation in driving. I have seen 2 dogs killed. I have seen someone slammed off their motorcycle because they apparently didn’t move quick enough. Not funny but the driving is quite funny. On that note, in India the auto (a mix of a taxi and a golf cart) fits 5 people comfortably. Three in the back and 1 in the front with the driver. No no, we had 19 people in one at one point.   Electricity is never promised.
 We have become fans of candle light dinners.
Personal space is a negative.
There is no such thing. If
 someone isinterested in whats going they just walk up and look. Even as I type this blog there is a creeper watching. hellooo there. Another example, chilling in the market waiting for our ride there was a crowd drawn within 5 minutes.. just wondering what was up. Our motto is to take up every opportunity so we starting bringing the word of Jesus what upp! Personal space is also a no go when it comes to living spaces…  Meat is most likely going to be a no go when I return home… I have seen
some disgusting things already. In India the boys were craving some beef. We went to the market with our contact and we ended up taking us back into the alley to this secret room. SKETCHY. We walked in and I busted out laughing immediately. There was a man with a tarp on the ground chopping a freshly dead cow with an ax! WHAT. I looked around there were people with hoods on looking down holding little bags… like they were ashamed of their addiction to beef! HAHA oh India how I miss you. At that point I convinced myself I will just be done with beef but chicken is still okay… until three days ago. We were innocently waiting for a bus and I heard a screaming chicken. We peered into a room and there was a man with a huge pot of water with a skinless chicken STILL ALIVE being dunked into it! I will take tofu thank you <3  Living in community….
I will say is that living in
legit community is the scariest, hardest, most out of control, beautiful thing I have ever been through in my life and I would not have it any other way.
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Comments (6)
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I read the voice of, and see, a dear loved one here. Beautiful, wonderful work folks. The Lord’s blessings and safe travels to all.
Jonnie
If there was a like button I would press it.
Life s truly not about comfort or personal space but making known our sweet Jesus to the nations.
Thanks for going.
Thanks for sharing.
Great blog! Praying for a great debrief and all of you!
Enjoy Romania! One of my favorite places!
Ruth, did you know you can milk a goat and catch the milk into that bucket? I believe you milk from behind the goat.
Ruth, I love that your name has been retranslated and woven into “sister”. Rock on.
Ruthamadeedee, exhausted from work, I came home and read this. I had spent my day with some privileged older folks. They told me about the things they were crossing off their “bucket list”. Then I read your “bucket list”. Quite the contrast. Needs versus wants. When you have a life changing experience, communicating that to friends and family is tough. But you did it. Bucket lists…from different sides of the globe!