Disney World

On Christmas morning, we came down stairs and we saw a huge box wrapped in pretty snowflake paper. We were instructed to open it at the time by my mom, as she started her camera on new brand new iPad air. As soon as I looked inside, I new exactly what the various gifts meant. There were balloons, a book, a calendar, bubbles, shirts, balls, and more, but they all had one thing in common: Disney World! That’s right, we are going to the happiest place on Earth. I asked my mom and dad when we were going, and they said that one of the gifts would reveal. After looking a little, I looked at the pocket calendar, and the dates circled were in February. We are leaving to go on the 12-hour car trip to Florida on February 4, and we will stay until February 12, when we will then drive home. Since we have already been to Disney World five times, there is only two rides that I have not been on: Tower of Terror and Rock and Rollercoaster. My sister is really excited because if she goes on Rock and Rollercoaster, it will be her very first roller coaster with inversions. Neither my sister nor me have ever been on a drop ride before, so Tower of Terror will be our first. Last time we went, my sister wanted to go on Primeval Whirl, but she wasn’t tall enough. She also didn’t go on Expedition Everest. Now, she will go on both. My younger brother was a few months old last time, so for him, it will be like his very first trip. We have been watching tons of Disney movies to prepare the boys for the trip. We will stay in a hotel called the Shades of Green. It is reserved for families in the military. The only downside is that one of our favorite attractions, Splash Mountain, will be closed. It will be very nice to be walking six miles a day without having to do it in the sweltering heat, and the lines will be short. I have a feeling that this will be the best trip yet.

New Year

Happy New Year! I can't believe that it is 2014! So many cool things happened in 2013, and now we all have a whole new year of memories to make. I am afraid that, due to the busy month of December, I will not post the new chapter about Roxanne Till. Don't worry though; on February 1, I will post it. I hope everybody has a wonderful New Year!

Big Announcement

I have very good news, I just got my very first Facebook page! I have eight or so friends, and my profile picture is the same as my blog. Don't you worry though, I won't forget to post on my blog, and I will certainly not forget to post one chapter each month about Roxanne Till and her adventures in the witness protection program. (This chapter might be later than usual due to the busy Christmas season, but I will post it as soon as possible.) Well, that's my big announcement.

Hiding Chapter 2: A Friend, a Sleepover, a Betrayal

             I was so excited! Today is the first day of school. Brooke and I were going to be starting fifth grade along with our new friend, Katie. As we got on the bus, I could hardly contain my excitement. Brooke, Katie, and I started to sit down, we heard the bus driver say in a deep, gruff voice, “Hey kids, only two people are allowed in each seat.” I looked across from us and saw an open seat next to a cheerleader. I started to go over there to sit when the girl said, “Don’t even think think about it!” “You tell her Hillary!” said someone behind her. I looked around and saw someone sitting all by herself. I got up, headed in her direction, and sat down next to her. “Hi” I said. “I’m Roxanne” “I’m Rose.” She said quietly. As the bus started, I gave little yelp, causing the girl named Hillary and her friend to snicker. I put my head down. Even though I was still excited, somehow some of that excited seemed to be draining away.

            Once we got to class, I was very excited to learn that Brooke, Katie, and Rose were all in the same class as me, and not so excited to learn that Hillary and her friend were also in the same class as us. As each student said his or her names, I found out that Hilary’s friend was Lindsey. Our teacher was Mr. Butler. He turned out to be a great teacher; he was even funny. The class was so interesting, that time seemed to fly by. Before I new it, it was time for lunch. We grabbed our lunches and headed towered the cafeteria.

            While we (Brooke, Katie, Rose, and I) were eating at the same table, a girl from our class asked if she could eat with us. “Yeah, have a seat.” I said. “Well I’m not sure if there’s enough room.” Said Rose. We all looked at Rose, since there was, in fact, plenty of room for this girl and more. “Uh, I mean, sure you sit here.” Stuttered Rose. “Thanks! I’m Wendy by the way.” said Wendy, sitting down. Brooke, Katie and I quickly became friends with Wendy. Rose didn’t say anything else for the rest of lunch. The rest of the school day was normal, and we went home with lots of homework to do that evening.

            After about a week of school, Brooke and I received an invitation from Rose to a slumber party at her house. I was very excited to go, but Brooke seemed hesitant. When I asked her why, she said she didn’t trust Rose. “What! Why not?” I asked, shocked that Brooke didn’t trust Rose. “Well, on the first day of school, she seemed hesitant to let Wendy sit with us at lunch, and yesterday, I saw her talking to Lindsey, and when I asked her if she went to church she said yes, but she wouldn’t tell me which church she goes to.” Brooke answered. “Well,” I started. “Maybe she only wanted people she knew sitting at the table with us on the first day of school, and Rose told me that she was thinking of joining the cheerleading squad, and so she was probably asking Lindsey how to join, and well,” I stopped because I couldn’t explain why Rose wouldn’t tell Brooke which church she went to. “I trust her because there’s no reason not to trust her.” I said. “Well I don’t think I want to go to the slumber party. I even prayed and asked God, and I still feel uneasy about Rose.” “Well, okay then, I guess I’m going without you.” I said. I went to my room and tried to fall asleep, but I couldn’t. I thought about asking God, but I didn’t because I just couldn’t believe that Rose would do anything to hurt me. I just couldn’t believe it.

            The next day, I told Rose that I was coming to her slumber party. When Rose asked me why Brooke couldn’t come, I told her that she didn’t want to jump into things too soon after moving here. Honestly, I thought that was why she didn’t want to come as well. I didn’t see much of Brooke at school, and we didn’t talk much that evening. I didn’t want there to be tension between Brooke and I. Well, after the sleepover, things will probably go back to normal. At least, I hope they will.

            The next evening, Mrs. Till dropped me off at Rose’s house. She told me that I could call her if I wanted to come home. I told her I would, and then she left. I walked in, and Rose was there to greet me. I said hello to Katie and Wendy, and then we sat down to eat pizza. I asked Rose where her parents were, and she told me that they were out of town. I was shocked! I wanted to call Mrs. Till, but I noticed that neither Katie nor Wendy seemed to be bothered by the fact that Rose’s parents weren’t home. I had never been to a slumber party before, so perhaps this was normal. I decided to wait and see how it played out. That was my first mistake.

            After dinner, we all watched a movie. Once the movie was over, Rose took out a “Clue” game, and we played. I felt a little uncomfortable about a murder mystery, but I played anyway. We weren’t surprised when Katie won. She was good at that kind of stuff. So far, everything was going okay.

            Soon we were ready to sleep, unfortunately, Rose had other ideas. We all sat in a circle, and Rose told us that we were going to become closer together by telling each other our deepest, darkest secrets. As I started thinking about it, I came up with an idea: I could tell everybody about how I was in the Witness Protection Program. I mean, I knew that I could trust everybody. It went from Katie to Wendy to Rose, and then it was my turn. I was going to blurt out my deepest, darkest secret, when I stopped. I haven’t known Rose and the other girl for very long. Could I really trust them with my life? Brooke did say that she didn’t trust Rose at all. I thought she was too quick to judge, but, was I too quick to trust? I decided to start small: I told them that I was an orphan, that the Tills had just adopted me. After that, we all went to our sleeping bags and we talked all night.

            The next day, Brooke and I walked into the cafeteria, and sat down to eat. I thought that something strange was going on. When people passed me, they gave me sympathetic looks. “Uh oh.” Said Brooke. I followed Brooke’s gaze until it fell on Hillary. She was coming this way. She walked over to our table and turned to me. “How’s it going; little orphan Annie!” I was mortified. How did Hillary know that I was an orphan? Obviously everybody else knew as well, which explained the looks that people have been giving me. Suddenly, Katie came over in tears. “Everybody knows! Everyone knows what I did to my cat in the second grade!” she cried. “They even know that your family had to get a new washing machine after that?” asked Wendy, walking over. “Yes!” cried Katie “Well,” began Wendy, “good thing nobody knows my secret or I’d die of embarrassment! Why I’d…” “Hey Wendy, how’s that foot fungus?” said Lindsey. Wendy screamed and ran out of the cafeteria. With my face still burning, I began to think: how could our secrets get out? Nobody knew except Wendy, Katie, me and… ROSE!

            I walked over to where Rose was standing, which was by Hillary and Lindsey. Rose must’ve seen me coming, because she whispered something to Hillary, and Hillary looked in my direction and snickered. “Hey Roxanne!” said Rose, obviously trying not to laugh. “Or should I say, little orphan Annie!” she laughed. I was appalled. “Rose, you said the secrets were to let us become closer together!” “Well,” said Rose, “Would you have told me your secrets if I had said, ‘I need something embarrassing to say about you in order to join the cheerleading squad and to be friends with Hillary, Lindsey, and the other girls?’” With that, they walked away. I just couldn’t believe it. Rose had set up the slumber party just to get secrets from us to gain the favor of the cheerleading squad. With a heavy heart, I headed back to class.

            I walked into the house and went upstairs to my room. I closed my door and sat on my bed. After a while, there was a knock at my door. “Come in.” I said. Brooke walked in, and I groaned. “Okay, go head and say it.” I said. “Say what?” asked Brooke. “Say ‘I told you so.’ You were right after all, Rose wasn’t trustworthy, and I paid the price. Go ahead and say it, I deserve it.” “I’m not going to say that! I came in to see if you’re okay.” I was surprised. If this situation were in reverse, I’m sure I wouldn’t act like that. In tears, I told Brooke the whole story: no adults, the clue game, the secrets, how I almost told them about the WPP, and some of the questionable jokes that Rose told us during the sleepover. Brooke told me that she was proud of me for not being too quick to trust Rose with the WPP secret. Then, Brooke prayed with me: for comfort for our friends, and me for Hilary, Lindsey, and Rose, and thanking God that His hand was in the whole situation. As Brooke said goodnight, I finally felt the comfort of having a sister. I felt, loved.

           

Cool Human Video

I found this really awesome human video on you tube. I hope you find it as inspiring as I did.

  

if video does not work, go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yt79_mC8ReI

A really Fun Day

Yesterday, my Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle Bob, Auntie Erin, Auntie Shelly, Nathan, Vivian, and my family all went for a nature walk. We went on a fitness trail and there was a bunch of kids exercise equipment. We had a lot of fun trying to complete all of the tasks. After that, we all went to a park and hung out. My sister and I balanced on the wooden outline of the park. I also had fun pushing Vivian on the swing. Then we drove to a movie theater and saw the Frozen movie. Even though the drive was a little long, we passed the time by singing Christmas songs. This was one of the most fun days that I have ever had.

Hiding Chapter 1: A Kidnapping, a Choice, an Adventure

I will post one chapter per month of a story I wrote about a girl who is trying to find God's purpose for her life while hiding from all kinds of enemies. Presenting... Hiding: Chapter 1

These are the chronicles of me (Eliza Cox) I have been in foster care since I was six years old. The only people who have ever cared for me are gone, including my best friend Annika who led me to the Lord when I was eight. After she got cancer, I turned to Jesus for help as I did when she lost the battle. He showed me that he has a plan for me and that I just have to be patient. I live in Lynnwood WA with my foster parents. I sometimes feel like I am a burden to them. Now I am ten, and I feel that the only one who loves me is God, but that’s more than enough for me.

Last week, I was walking home from my last day of school and I decided to take a shortcut. I walked around the corner and entered the alley. I skidded to a stop.  There were two people whispering to each other. I hid behind a dumpster and strained to listen. “Here are the papers you asked for. Where is the money?” said one of the men. The other man looked around and handed the money to the man with the papers. I was so stunned at what she had just seen, that I accidentally bumped a can which in turn fell off the dumpster and hit the floor with a loud thud. I jumped up and ran as fast as I could. I didn’t even look back to see if they were following me, because I knew they were. I ran and ran until I reached home I ran up to my room and shut the door. I hid under the window until I knew that I was safe.

Today, my foster family and I are going to Martha Lake. It’s a hot day in the month of June and It will feel good to go swimming. My foster sister has a beautiful red swimsuit with yellow stars on it. I have a lime green swimsuit that I saved up to buy for an occasion like this. We got into the car, and soon we were at Martha Lake. There was a dock at the end of the swim zone that one could jump off of into the water. After a while, I swam to shore to eat a small snack. While I was eating Mrs. Hoover cleared her throat. “Eliza, we are moving soon to Texas with my sister, and we’ve decided that Texas would be too far for us to take you.” “So, does that mean that you’re not going to be my foster parents anymore?” I asked, though I already knew the answer. “Yes Eliza, you are leaving tomorrow.” Said Mrs. Hoover. I was a little hurt that they didn’t want to take me with them, but I knew that this was part of God’s plan, so I didn’t press the issue. Instead, I told Mrs. Hooper I understood, and then went back in the water to swim. I swam to the dock and climbed up the ladder. By now, I was the only one on the dock, since it was almost six o’clock. I jumped into the lake and down I went. Suddenly, I was pulled down deeper. I was really scared. I thought that I was going to drown. Then I was pushed into a submarine!   

As I gasped for air, I looked around. Three people looked at me. Finally, one of the men spoke. “Hello Eliza, I am Mr. James Miller. You’re probably wondering what you are doing here.” “I am a little curious, yeah!” I said. “Well, last week, if you remember, you witnessed a transaction between two men in the alley. One of the men gave military secrets to the other man who was from another country. These two men were at the beach today searching for you. Since we knew this, we had to bring you to safety.” I thought about what this stranger had just told me. I thought that, if he was being truthful, that I had just had a very close call. “Thank you.” I finally said. The second man went on to say that I was being taken to the other side of the lake where I would need to make a decision. “What decision?” I asked. The third man told me that I was eligible to become a member of the Witness Protection Program. If I accepted, I would be moved to a helicopter and taken to the east coast and be given a new identity. “What if I don’t accept?” I asked.  The second man spoke “Then we will bring you back and you will never see us again.”  I didn’t know what to say. I knew all about the WPP, and I knew it was serious business. “What about my foster parents?” I finally asked. “The men who were after you will assume that you drowned. Your foster parents will not be in any danger as long as they know nothing about any of this.” Answered the first man. “So, everyone who ever knew me will think that I’m dead?” I confirmed. “Yes, for now at least.” Answered the third man. I felt like God was tugging at my heart. Maybe this is part of His plan for me. “What if I change my mind later?” I asked. “You can change your mind at any time and we would take you back here.” Said the second man. I decided to give it a try and to allow God to show me the right path. Then, the men introduced themselves. The first man was George Lindon, the second was Freddie Wilck, and finally, the third was Randy Pocker. I was then put into the helicopter and we flew off to the east coast.

It was a really long ride, and I don’t remember most of it. We went over safety regulations and chose my new name: Roxanne Lace Till. We went to Yorktown Virginia and I was left in the care of another family in the WPP. I had a new mom and dad (Mr. and Mrs. Till) and they have a ten- year-old daughter named Brooke. Of coarse, that’s not their real names, but we’re not allowed to tell anyone our old names or why we are in the WPP. Brooke is really nice, and I have a feeling we are going to be great friends. There is also an eleven year-old girl named Katie who lives down the street. We can’t tell her about our situation, but we can still be friends. My new family is also followers of Christ so we will go to church together. We will attend the York Assembly of God.  That night, I went to bed a new person; literally

The next morning, I got up and went downstairs. After eating, Brooke and I went to Katie’s house to hang out. We had lots of fun playing video games, painting our nails, and talking ourselves silly. When I got home, I realized that this day was the first one I can remember that had contained no sadness or fear.

The following summer was filled with days like that. We went on camping trips, to the movies, the mall, water parks, sailing, to the beach, and much more. With the season coming to an end, my family and I decided to take one more trip. We voted on where to go, and decided on going to Texas. There are a lot of cool things to see in Texas, and I think it would be really fun. So we got the car packed and drove to the airport. After a while we were on an airplane and on our way to Texas.

We got to our hotel the next day. It was a very beautiful hotel with a lavish pool and spa. After dinner we swam in the pool and went to bed. “I’m so excited! Were going to six flags tomorrow!” said Brooke, happily. “I know!” I replied. “I can’t wait!” I didn’t think I would ever fall asleep, but somehow, I did.

The next morning, we went to six flags. We had lots of fun riding rides and hanging out. I look around at everything around me. Suddenly, I gasped. Standing about seven yards away from us was my foster family! They were ordering something from a snack stand, and would turn around any second. I pushed Brooke and her parents into the bushes. “What’s wrong?” asked Brooke, surprised. I told her about my foster parents, and she told her parents. We all became very quiet, hoping we wouldn’t be discovered. “Excuse me, but what, may I ask, are you doing.” We looked up and there was a street sweeper looking at us with annoyance. “Uh, just exploring these nice bushes.” The man looked at us with confusion. I could tell that he thought we were crazy. “Well, there are rides and snacks that I think you would find much more interesting then the bushes.” We got the point. We exited the bushes and were relieved to find that my foster family was no longer in sight. We left the park and got ready to leave. We didn’t want any more close calls.

Back home, we got ready to start the school year. I went to bed that night excited for the school year that would start tomorrow. These are the chronicles of me, Roxanne Till.