Goodbye from Owen
Monday, June 8, 2009 at 11:16AM Hey, It's Owen. I just had one of the funnest (most depressing) parties of my life: The good-bye party with friends before our trip to Europe. I invited 5 of my closest friends. They all came, and they all got to sleep over. It was an RPG (more specifically Dungeons & Dragons) party. We all did RPG for 3 hours straight. Last night one of my friends (I won't say names) kinda kept us up. We got quiet at 1:30 am. I'm not sure when we fell asleep. My mom hired one of my most favorite babysitters to be the dungeon master. He and I are also going to go buy comics on Tuesday for me to take with me on the plane. It's going to be the last time I get to hang out with him before I leave.
All my friends have just left, and it's really depressing. I think writing about it is helping though. I'm really glad that my friends got to come and say goodbye, (it would mean a lot less virtually) (I'm putting a lot of thing in parenthesis, aren't I).
I think I'm going to like it in Europe, but I'm also going to miss my friends. I'm just glad some of my friends have Skype (and online telephone system where you get audio and video).
I'm looking forward to going to San Francisco, so I can cross the Golden Gate Bridge one more time before I go (that was on my list of things to do), but I'm also dreading it, because that means we're one enormous step closer to leaving.
I think the thing I looking forward to least is the plane trip. I'll have about 16 hours to think about how I won't see my friends for a year.
I'm looking forward to Europe, and all in all I'm glad I got to have this party. Without being able to say goodbye to all my closest friends, I don't think I'd get by.
Reader Comments (5)
Owen Redpath, you may very well be one of the most articulate kids I've ever encountered. I'm glad you got to have that party, too, and that your parents let you have it Your Way.
Leaving friends is hard. I do it a lot. (Though admittedly never yet for a year. I also have a similar fondness for parenthesis!) What I hope for you is that though you have to be away from your friends for a long time, you quickly find a creative way to turn missing them into a part of your adventure. I don't know, like maybe you know your friend Ben (I'm taking my own creative liberties and naming your friends; work with me,) really, really loves drums. So you make a goal of shooting photos of everybody you see with drums on your trip, and writing stories about that day in a journal, so you'll have something special for Ben when you return. And so on and so forth, doing a little something special for every one of those friends! (Or maybe I could just mind my own business and let you have this adventure your way; that'd be cool too!)
Good luck getting through the sad parts and starting the new kind of party. Can't wait to hear all about it!
OH MY GOSH!!! this is Owen, and i actually do have a friend named Ben and he actually loves/plays drums!!! :o anyway thank you for the comment I'm glad you like it :) ......................................................... MORE FACES :D :( :-) :-( :-D ;) Ok I'm done now.
Owen,
I'm going to talk to Jim (the "Dad" person - the one who funds everything that goes on around here) about Skype. We don't have it, but we will look into the possibilities...
I know my son had a blast at your party, but I will let him tell you about it himself. He also wants me to look into that computer thing you were doing Monday morning, so that's one more thing on our list.
We know one other homeschooling family who is on a "journey" like the one you are about to undertake. For the past couple of years they have been homeschooling their two boys on a boat while they sail down the coast of Mexico! How's that for a journey! They told us about sea creatures that glow in the dark, finding whale bones on the beach, all kinds of adventures.
Breathe deeply (that's just for yourself) and take lots of pictures (that's for all of us left behind!).
Aloha,
Nicole Thibadeaux
(commonly known as Cody & Matthew's Mom)
Hi Owen,
I know your parents and I met you when you were little but you probably don't remember me.
When my son and I lived in Glendale, he loved to get together and play D&D for hours like you and your friends. My son is all grown up now, but when he was your age, we moved to Mexico. He didn't want to move but now, he says that it was the best thing that happened in his whole growing up and it made him who he is today. It was so good that he wants his own kids to have that experience when they get to be about your age.
I had to move to Turkey when I was a kid. The plane ride isn't so bad. Once your plane takes off you stop thinking about what you left behind and begin thinking about what is ahead. Bring some soft wax ear plugs which will help you sleep.
Where you're going is a real life adventure! It's going to be a lot of fun to go exploring. That's the best part of traveling and especiallly going to Europe. My sister and I got to travel a lot and the first thing we did when arriving in a new place was explore it. Be sure to write your adventures on the blog. It's really fun that you have this blog to write.
I'm headed to Europe, too, about twenty days after you. I'm only going for five weeks, though. What I'm looking forward to most of all is seeing Florence, Italy and Alhambra, Spain. Florence is full of winding streets, ornate builtings and lots of art. Also they have great gelato, I hear. Alhambra, Spain is a crumbling ruin of a palace with carved walls and ceilings, gardens, tiled floors everywhere, plus it's huge. It sounds like a place out of a D&D game and I've wanted to see it ever since I was 17. Lots of the places you go will make your imagination soar, more than you can imagine now.
You're going to have a lot of fun and you will also see your friends again. Cat
Owen, clearly this is a sign that you should consider doing something like that for your friends. Heh... Starting with Ben, of course. :)
Either way, how cool to read that you really do have such a friend with such an interest. And yes, I really DO like your posts. And can't wait to read more... A week now, huh? Wow!