EpicJourney's Blog: Planning

I am both excited and scared. I'm calm about some things and nervous about others. The journey itself I'm not scared of, it's the fact that I've never homeschooled my children, so this is the unknown for me.

So much has happened since our first excited posts when our idea was first birthed. It was so exciting and yes, reality did step in and a few things have shifted, but the dream is alive and well and has translated into REALITY.

I've given notice where I live, I've given notice to the children's school (the required 3 month notice period), and it's all happening from beginning July.... when we're setting off.

Some of the changes:.

Inge is no longer joining us with her daughter Ellen, and they will both be missed as they are our precious friends and were very instrumental in the forming of the idea.
The vehicle we're using is a motorhome (smaller than the american RV).
It sleeps 3 people comfortably.
It has a kitchen, (small one) with gas oven and hob as well as a nicely sized fridge / freezer, a shower room with toilet and basin with hot and cold water heated with gas;
Some packing space, a DVD (and CD) player and small TV screen, and is basically everything we need on four wheels, to make this journey a possibility.
We may take a trailer to store additional toys like bicycles and J-boards and skateboard and surfboards and maybe even a scooter. Along with all that we need to take our gear, for camping, for schooling, for crafting, for eating etc. etc. (The list is long).

In order to have a trailer, I would need to have a tow-bar (hitch) installed, which is next on the list.

To sum up, the children are still excited and everyone we talk to and meet, are very encouraging and we've had so much positive feedback. Our database for our newsletter is growning daily and people really want to be kept in the know of where we are. I will have a livelink on the newsletter pointing to this blog.

For me it's a choiceless choice. It's a journey my children and I are going to do together, and we've done some practicing using our mobile motorhome, all of which has been a learning curve, and getting to know our vehicle.

The planning continues, and I am enjoying the process. The journey has already started, long before we've even left.

5 weeks to go.

I was sent a list of interview questions for my profile to be added to Spice4Life and this question jumped off the page. Before I knew it, I wrote this "poem" and would love to share it -

Of one thing I am sure....

Of one thing I am sure
My still inner Teacher, my godly Divine,
seeks cherished treasures and wisdoms hidden,
while journeys cross with ancient paths;

Uncertainty is the deafening rhythm
of friendship with the unknown
Like the deep intuitive passion
of lovers’ dance embrace;

Quiet is this storm which rages
around a fire horse from birth to beyond
Being light and warmth to blessed man who dares to drink
from the beauty of such gregarious spirit soul;

Born to fly and soar and edify creation
Birthed by Nature’s urgent call
Raised to be silent, I beat out loud my heart’s enduring drum.
Of one thing I am sure. I am sure. I am.

Lisa – 28 May 2009

This morning I was supposed to climb Table Mountain.

When the alarm woke me @ 6pm it was POURING with rain. I snoozed the alarm for 20 minutes and finally faced the now much colder bathwater..... mmmmhhmmm..... wish I'd got in when it was still hot. Wonder if we're still climbing, there's been no cancellation sms or emails.

I sent an sms @ 6:45 to enquire and yes, when I was halfway to Cape Town I got the cancellation SMS. Driving along I made a few stops and enquiries into aspects of our roadtrip, almost ONE month from now!!!

What I got out of it all, is how tempting it is to cancel on events, meetings, parties, PEOPLE, dates and so on, which is what I wanted to do laying snug under my feather down duvet. Then when I went through the motions of getting ready and leaving, I was committed to go do the WILD thing and climb that MOUNTAIN. And when the cancelled message came through I was RELIEVED because it was really cold and wet, but I was THANKFUL for being able to use the time differently. After all, I had an open block of morning to do whatever I wanted to. And from there I got to create a day that 's included writing and reading and being inspired by other brave heart women.

So being committed and having integrity to my WORD is vital and has my life WORK. Then when there's a change in PLAN beyond my control, it's WOOOPIE, let's go play, which is what being a child is all about. Such FREEDOM and GRATITUDE in the moment.

I will be talking about the mountain climb some more, another time, because it will have been postponed for another date, and I have LOADS to share about THAT.

HAVAGREATDAY GORGEOUS WOMAN!!!

Dealing with a to-do list can be both frightening and exhilerating.....!!!!! Learning to delegate is one of life's most gracious lessons. So here goes:

I am a request for support in the following areas:

1 - I will be putting out my own Newsletter to my friends, family and interested followers of our journey. To enable online friends to request the Newsletter, I need to copy and paste the code at the end of each blog entry, there needs to be an opt-in for their name and email address. How would I do it in this particular scenario of posting a new blog entry and having it appear at the bottom of the entry each time? Anyone able to assist me with this?

2 - When I see advertisements on the internet for building a free website within minutes..... what's the catch??? I do need a website, and am loathe to have a webmaster control it. I want to do it myself - ha-ha, does that sound familiar?

3 - I am looking for sponsorship. Not in terms of money, but in terms of "things" which will not cost a company much, but will assist me practically and would give them exposure through my website and weekly Newsletters. Does anyone have resources such as templates of letters which I can utilise to approach my local companies for sponsorship? A friend of mine happened across the path of a French couple with three children travelling through South Africa at the moment in a huge bus, with sponsorship advertising all over the outside of their bus. I realise it should be a win-win for both parties, myself and the sponsors.... I just don't know how to go about it. I'm not looking for a bus, I have a motorhome which is better suited to go into smaller roads, campsites and under trees. (A small RV in American terms.) My fundraiser has let me down, and keeps making promises over a period of months now, and I am choosing to ask for support advice here in the braveheartwomen's network.

Any feedback will be most valuable and appreciated.
Love and honour
Lisa