Ashley Harrell

It seems stupid to keep harping the point, but I am still almost struggling to deal with the fact I’ll be living on a ship in mere days.  Will I get seasick?  Will I become a pirate?  What if a flying fish attacks me?  These are important questions to ask oneself before embarking on a seven month voyage.

Voyage.  Wow, I feel like Christopher Columbus, except less genocidal and less likely to have my own holiday.  Speaking of holidays, today is actually my 10,000th day of life!  Thanks to Kyle for alerting me of that fact.  Who knew that there was something special about being 27.397 years old?  I’m looking around my apartment right now and soaking in the last bits of the joy of living alone in an expansive New York apartment.  (Editor’s note: this is not sarcasm.  There are actual benefits to living outside of Manhattan.)  Soon I shall be sharing a cabin at sea with one of my best friends.  That will be an experience.  I haven’t shared a bedroom since the days of good ol’ Santa Barbara.

I’m anxious to know what life at sea will be like.  From what I hear of our sister ship, the Silver Cloud, life is exciting and the guests on the ship are greatly appreciating what the artists are offering.  With any luck, we can replicate their success of the Silver Wind (and on board the Silver Shadow and Silver Whisper)!  We received the schedule of shows for our first voyage, and… wow.  We basically board the Wind after flying overnight from JFK to Greece, immediately meet the HR representative, begin safety training and drills, then hit up our first rehearsal!  Does anybody have a Xanax that I could take for my flight?  I am not kidding.  I am notorious for not being able to sleep on long flights, and the anxiety surrounding the mere idea of being sleep-deprived on my first day at sea is already leading to insomnia here in NYC.  I keep directing my focus to the fact that everything will work out.  I am performing with five talented artists, am on a world-class vessel, and will be visiting the exotic far-reaches of the world I never imagined I would see.  I was given this opportunity for a reason, and I’m not going to allow one day of exhaustion to get in the way of my elated anticipation of what’s to come.

Everyone is given challenges in life.  As stupid as it seems, this might be mine.  To be away from friends and loved ones will be hard for me.  I am the kind of person that talks to my parents, brothers, best friends… daily.  It’s time for me to find myself, find my inner artist, develop a greater sense of what creativity I have to offer to the world.  So that when I eventually return to New York City next June, there will be no stopping me.  Move out of the way, Christopher Columbus.