Cornhole

Have you every played Cornhole? Some of you may know it as "bean bag toss" or "Bags"? For those of you who don't know, it's a backyard kind of game where two teams of two take turns throwing been bags at a raised board that has a hole cut into it. Each round, both team has 4 bags to be thrown. Points are scored by landing bags on the board for 1 point, any bag that lands in the hole scores 3 points and is called a "Cornhole". The first team to score 21 points wins. According to Wikipedia it's origins are unknown although there have been several claims of how it originated. The games origin is none of my concern, but the game is. This game is fun and competitive and relies on a mixture of talent and luck.

My very first exposure to this game, dates back to just a few years ago and to be rather honest, I wasn't impressed. It didn't prove to be an exciting or fast paced game to which I'm more inclined. But as many of you may know...China is changing me! Here at Shepherd's Field, we LOVE playing Cornhole! Yes, I said it, We. In the six or so weeks that I have been living here, I have come to love and greatly enjoy playing this leisurely yet intense game. On so many nights, after the school kids have gone home for dinner, the clinic has seen all of the days patients, therapy sessions have ended, we (the foreign staff here at SFCV) find ourselves amerced in a fast-paced, high scoring, edge-of-your-seat exciting, cornhole tournament! The team match ups are random, yet so evenly matched, creating a loose yet highly competitive playing environment; and in addition to playing by the official rules, we put a little spin of our own on the game which increases the intensity and excitement! These nights spent throwing corn filled bags back and forth have filled my heart with joy and shown me how blessed I am to have such awesome people as my coworkers.

To start, I have to just say that I work with some of the coolest people on the whole planet! They all come from different places in the world, they have different personalities, different backgrounds, but we all share the same heart of love for these kids and hope for God's will to be done in this place. Every foreign staff member has selflessly left family and friends to answer God's call for this present time.  I'm so blessed to be apart of this awesome team! As individuals we're unique, but as a team we're lethal and, I'm a firm believer that God uses our individuality and our great ability to interlock as one unit to accomplish so much in this place, it's truly amazing. One of the things I love so greatly about Cornhole is, the fellowship and how it brings us all together at the end of a long day. It does not matter where we come from, or what kind of day each of us has had, or how stressed we are about this or that, we all have each other to lean on, share our burdens with and lift one another up in prayer. These connections and memories that we've made playing this simple backyard game, are the kind of memories that last for years! I think there's something very special about enjoying each others company and chatting about the events of the day, I love it and find it very therapeutic :)

As I'm sitting here writing, and taking in the final game in this evenings 20 game tournament, I'm just thanking and praising God for bringing me to this place in China and for blessing me with this awesome team!