Overview
This blueprint will help you run What we carry, a family challenge in solidarity with people who have been displaced not by choice.
Four families take part. Each is a team of four, with the same rules and the same conditions. Together they tackle a tough, muddy assault course while carrying a symbolic representative of everything they own, and a baby doll they must protect from start to finish.
What the challenge is
Each team is a mahram family group. That means close relatives who can travel together in trust and safety. The team is made up of:
- an adult son
- his wife
- his mother
- his mother-in-law
The wife cares for the baby doll. The mother pulls a heavy cabin-style suitcase. The mother-in-law carries a backpack. The son looks after all three women. Everyone takes on every obstacle, whatever it takes.
The challenge at a glance
Here are the key facts. The rest of the blueprint fills in the detail.
| Topic | In brief |
|---|---|
| Who | Four teams of four: son, wife, mother and mother-in-law |
| When | One day, any time between April and late September |
| Where | A hired countryside assault course, with natural and man-made obstacles |
| Getting there | Teams travel together by minibus. Spectators make their own way |
| What is carried | A heavy suitcase, a backpack and a realistic baby doll |
| What is worn | The women wear their favourite full-length abaya and hijab. The son wears normal everyday clothes. |
| The ground | Mud, wading and obstacles. |
| Training | Not encouraged. Being unprepared is part of the point |
The spirit of it
The four teams start together and race each other. In a small way, it is like strangers thrown together in flight. But the real test is inside each team: cooperation, coordination and looking after one another.
The baby doll comes first. After that, each other.
It will be hard, and it is meant to be. Families take part willingly, and accept a few hours of discomfort to stand alongside people who had no choice.
A word on humility
This challenge is a gesture, not a re-creation. Your team will be muddy, tired and cold for a day. You will have a minibus home, dry clothes and people cheering you on.
People who are displaced have none of that certainty. They carry their burdens for months or years. Hold that thought throughout, and let it keep you gentle with each other and honest in what you say about the day.
The challenge
The challenge itself has four parts, and each has its own section:
- The call: the nomination, the invitation and the fundraising
- The gathering: arriving, meeting the other teams and receiving what you carry
- The course: the obstacles, together
- The finish: arrival, warmth and reflection