Creepin' on the Mozambique'n's

I feel like I personally know most every single racer on Kip's team/squad.  If I'm not friends with them on facebook (they think I'm too weird to "friend" me), then I'm totally stalking their blog pages on the World Race site.  

HEY.

Don't judge.  These people are my Kip's "Family" for the next 7 months.  I think I should get to know some of them, even if it is through pathetic, stalkerish means. 

For example, I'm pretty sure I knew Kathryn Law had a weave before Kip did.  Kip was asleep in Mozambique (8 hours ahead) since she arises at the very butt-crack of dawn, she goes to bed early, and Kathryn had posted that she got a weave on FB before Kip saw it.  She hasn't posted a picture of her with weaves, but Kat Davis and Jessica Fishbach did and they look pretty Bo Derek-ish.... (they are probably too young to even know who that is)  Not too sure who the other foxy lady is with them  (yes, I don't stalk ALL of the kids on the race, just about 12 of them)  That takes A LOT of my time. 

I have to tell you.  There are not a ton of pictures and blogs coming out of  Mozambique.  What is coming out of there are things like....."Wrong Camp"...."Maggots"....."Mosquito bites that make you bleed" ... "Weaves"....."Rashes"......"Hungry".....  None of the things that you normally hear out of 23-28 year olds, especially at Christmas time.    I know it's hot there right now.  I know that it hasn't rained a good amount, except I know that after I posted a "PLEASE PRAY FOR RAIN in MOZAMBIQUE" on my facebook, in the next couple of day.... Boom, there it was.    You're welcome.  I have an inside line.

You can see it rained a pretty fair amount there.  Puddles on the ground and such.  All good.

Kip and her team are staying in a boy's orphanage ran by an American.  So they are fortunate that he has brought several amenities with him, (indoor plumbing a biggie) and they are really lucky.  About 15 minutes away, another team is having to use the bathroom in a maggoty hole in the ground, and are so hungry and dirty, they are not having the times of their lives this month.

This has been a month of change for the teams too, as several people got re-assigned to new teams.  Kip's team got a new guy that intrigues me.  His name is Tim, and he was first introduced to me in Kathryn's china video, because he was dressed in a green suit like the "Blue Man Group", and was filmed on the Great Wall of China in that rig.  I knew I was going to like him.   Then when I read some of his stuff, he is just a funny guy.   Check him out.

I thought this was somewhat funny, and gave me total hysterical claustrophobia of the highest magnitude, until I saw this picture in Kip's pics...

And I'm then intrigued and stumped by the idea of just a head being able to go on the World Race.  I'd think it would almost be a rule that you had to have a body to carry your backpack, but then it hit me, What would you need??   Shampoo?  a comb?   Pretty low maintenance, just being a head.   But then I scrolled through Kip's pics some more and thankfully there was this....

There was the rest of him.....Playing in some really muddy water with some enthusiastic kids.  Good times.

Dusty Dills posted this on his page and I was astounded by the size of this cactus.  Now you wouldn't want to be sleepwalking around this sucker, it could cause you some serious consequences...

I'm thinking the internet is sketchy in Mozambique, because these kids have been fabulous about writing on their walls, and writing blogs and this month, it's gone to almost being in China again.....absolutely nothing. 

Here's what I "mused" about all that...... it's really easy to be all in and chipperly chipperdo when things are great.... it takes great muster and courage to bully up to the bar and "Be a Light" when you have hard times and things aren't going your way.   Kip almost melted out of her skin in China.  So out of her element, so needing a shower, and food.  Her team rallied her and kept her focused.  She made it through a huge month of no English speaking people and very little food, no shower facilities, and cold temperatures. 

She did it.  And she came out changed.

Now this month, it's not so bad.  The conditions aren't ideal, but she's been through the fire, in China.  And she has a toilet.  Which is more than some of the other peeps in Mozambique can say. 

These racers are learning so many valuable lessons.  Lessons that we don't even think about in wealthy, entitled United States.   The only thing that matters......the ONLY thing that matters, is your walk with Christ.  Everything in the world can be taken from you in an instant, and if you don't have a root system that leads to the core of your being, of KNOWING and TRUSTING HIM, you will be lost.  These kids are a prime example of what a living, breathing God looks like.  They are sacrificing, walking examples of God's love.  And it humbles me, and makes me so proud. 

Who knew she liked cats?  Gives "Cat-napping" a whole new meaning.

Doing her "thang".  She's lucky this month, the boys have power tools and are building chairs and goat pens and huts and she is in her element.  Give her something to build and a sturdy boy to fetch and help, she's golden. 

These kids are learning all the important things in life..... loving one another, leaning not into their own understanding, but in all ways ACKNOWLEDGING Him, and being a light to so so many. 

I wrote about Eagles Wings orphanage in China on my blog a few back, and showed a bunch of Jessica's pictures while "Beautiful THings" played..... (remember?)  ANYWAY, in stalking (reading) her page today, the little blind boy WeiTao was adopted by an american couple, because of HER & Matt Bell's video!  How wonderful, how awesome, how Good is our God???  I'm going to share it here, and leave you with that thought..... these kids are leaving their mark, and people will be forever changed because of their love and sacrifice.....

Thank you World Racers...... Merry Merry Christmas.