10 Things I’m Looking Forward to about My Trip to Zimbabwe

In just two days I leave on a 10-day trip to Zimbabwe with World Vision’s 30 Hour Famine and a grip of youth workers. As you can imagine I’m a wild mix of preparation, wrapping up projects, enjoying the final day of the kids Christmas break, and a variety of lists. (Yes. This post was on my list.)

Here are 10 things I’m looking forward to about the Zimbabwe Trip

1. Seeing the impact of tens of thousands of teenagers. It’s crazy to think that the stuff I’m about to see is happening because ordinary teenagers fasted for 30 hours to raise awareness and money for global development. To bear witness to that is something I’m carrying with me as it’s a great honor. 
2. Meeting people impacted by the development work of World Vision. I can’t wait to hear and tell some of these stories. I’m a bit giddy about that. To hear God stories fills my soul.
3. Meeting the Zimbabwe field staff. In the lead-up to our trip our team was told how excited the staff is to meet us. Trust me, that’s mutual. When you serve often voiceless people in the name of Jesus you are a hero in my book.  
4. Playing with and meeting kids. There’s something so simple and awesome about playing with kids. And my soccer ball & bubbles are typically great ways to get that kid party started.
5. Having a blast with the team. I’m traveling with folks from the Famine team as well as a group of youth workers from around the States. We’ll be a party on wheels and chaos will never be far off.
6. Overcoming some fears. 25 hours of travel each way makes me nervous because I think I’ll go mad. Going somewhere I know zero about has me on edge. Not knowing much about our day-to-day itinerary or where we’re sleeping makes me anxious. All of that’s in my head and I’m looking forward to laughing at myself as I see there was nothing to worry about.
7. Trying new things. I’m expecting to get exposed to some things I didn’t even know existed. Like food. And language. And… I don’t even know what!
8. I want to see some wildlife. In no way is this a vacation or a safari or anything like that. (Our schedule is loaded with visiting sites!) But I’m really hoping to see more than birds and squirrels.
9. Using new gear. Over the past year I’ve done some serious upgrades to my equipment. I’m looking forward to taking some photography and video to capture some moments and things I will likely never see again.
10. I must hammock. Why not embrace some whimsy? I got an Emo hammock for Christmas and I’m dying to use it. With 60+ hours of travel in 10 days I’m going to need to unwind. Hammock me. 

Come With Me!

I’ll be posting when I can on my trip. So follow along here on the blog. Expect to read stories and see photos. (I suspect I won’t be able to upload video until I get back.) Of course, I’ll be posting periodically on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

Photo by James Whatley via Flickr (Creative Commons)