Tuesday, October 15, 2013

The farthest away I've ever been...

"If I take one more step, it'll be the farthest away from home I've ever been."

"Come on, Sam, remember what Bilbo used to say: 'it's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to'."


Starting on October 31st, I am going to be going on a journey father away from my home here in Washington than I have ever been before. I will be experiencing things I've never experienced before, and traveling roads I've never seen before.

(And in case you're wondering, I'm sharing this blog post early to ensure that all my friends and family sees it before I leave, so questions can be answered before I have no internet access.)

Some of you might know that I, last year, saved up money and sold things until I had earned almost enough money to pay for the Celtic Thunder Cruise. I'm taking my mom and brother, and we'll be gone from October 31st to about November 7th.

And now, only two weeks away from the trip... my excitement has turned into fear.

I've never left home to go anywhere further than California before; and that was way back - ten years ago. And we drove there; I have never once been on an actual passenger plane (I've been in a small, four-passenger plane once, but that didn't count 'cause I was piloting it... long story), or even really been in an airport before.

I've never been on a ship before - and yet, I do know I have a phobia of deep water (but hopefully that's just when I'm swimming).

And what scares me most of all, is that I've never been away from my dear friends for longer than two days. Back when I was six, needless to say, I didn't have any friends to begin with, so there wasn't anyone for me to miss or worry about.

But, the way I'm trying to see it... it's an adventure. And I've always wanted an adventure.

Besides, God will keep me and my friends safe. *smiles* I will be praying for each and every one of you every night.

Now, onto some announcements/general information.

1. I will be attempting to write day-by-day blog posts while I'm gone, styling them like journal entries (but without all of the pages of Teddy crying about how much she misses her friends and family, so don't worry, you won't have to slog through pages of my ridiculous emotions, *grins cheekily*), for those of you who want to know how the trip goes and exactly what I did - I know a few people who have already told me they want to know absolutely everything about the trip.

2. I will also attempt to film a few short videos using my digital camera in vlog-style, for those of you who don't want to read through a bunch of rambling and would... rather listen to me ramble out loud. *laughs*

3. Yes, I will be taking as many pictures and short videos as possible - and I might take Irish dancing classes on the ship. If I do, rest assured, I will try my hardest to convince my mom or brother or any new friends I make to film me dancing at least once. For all of you certain siblings who begged me to do so. ;)

4. If you see me online at all during those times, please do not message me. I will be getting online every so often during the trip, but it costs a LOT, and I'm only going to be online to do college homework and assignments. I might post short trip updates on G+ (maybe upload a few pictures early if I can), but I most likely won't be able to chat. If by some far reach I can, I'll message you myself. :)
I think that's about it for now.

I'm going to miss all of you so, so much. But I'm not going to be able to talk to you for a week, and there's no getting around it.

So, I have an announcement and plea I want to make known to you. It is going to be in a different color and bolded, because it's the most important part of this post, and I want it to stand out.

While I'm gone, I want you all to take care of each other. Okay? I think of myself as having three alter egos - they have various personality traits, and there are three: the wolf, the lioness, and the dragon. All of them have one thing in common though - they want to protect the people they love, and take care of them.


And that's who I am. I want to protect and take care of all of you, no matter how old or young, and the fact that I won't be able to know how you guys are doing for a week is enough to torture me mentally and emotionally.

So, since I can't take care of you guys... please take care of yourselves. Go to sleep on time, make sure you eat enough, don't tire yourselves out by working too hard, stay safe and don't do anything reckless.


Take care of each other too. I love all of you, but I know for a fact there are a few of you who won't take care of themselves properly while I'm away. So take care of one another; remind them to do/not to do the things I mentioned above. Be there for them, give them a shoulder to cry on, let them vent out their feelings to you. Just don't let it make you so you're not taking care of yourself.


So yes. PLEASE take care of yourselves and of each other while I'm gone. It'll only be for a week, and then I can get back to running around trying to mother all of you myself. *smiles a bit* Yes, even my older siblings. I love you guys too much to NOT mother you and protect you.


So yes. That's all I really wanted to say. I'm going to be putting up a G+ post a few days before I leave, and I'm going to also post something on Holy Worlds, check out of NaNo, perhaps email a few people, and post a brief farewell on Twitter. So everyone should end up seeing this. :)

God bless!

~ Theodora Ashcraft

4 comments:

  1. *smiles and hugs tightly* Roger that, little sis. :) I'll be praying as well. I know the fear oh so well, but I've learned that the adventures are worth having. You're brave, Teddysis, and you are going to have a great time, I know it. Love you bunches. <3

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  2. *big, big huggeths* Have fun on this adventure, little sister Renna! I look forward to seeing your pictures and hearing about it from you when you return. Say "hi" to Celtic Thunder for me, will you? *grins* And you must take good care of yourself too, all right? Love you and see you soon! :)

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  3. *Grins and huggles* Yes ma'am, Renna-sis! I shall try to be good, and encourage others to be good as well while you're away. ^^_^^ I can't wait for you to return to tell us all about your trip and show us pictures and such! *Will be praying for you* Safe travels, sis!

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  4. Wow, I never even knew you managed to save the money. That is so wonderful. I hope you have a great time, and don't fear the plane or the ship. I've been on both, and really it's not so bad at all. And you know I have a fear of everything...lol. I hope to talk to you before you leave. Love you, Girl. <3

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