Overboard

The Letter

I'd like to think that I'm an extraordinary person when in reality, all I am is a middle-class dairy farmer's child. 

I do the same things everyday:

Milk the cows,

Bring our products to the town's market,

Barter with other sellers and buyers,

Attend religious classes for two hours,

Cook food for the next day,

Rinse, wash, and repeat.

It's not much but it keeps me occupied. I don't really have much pressure from people around me, there's really nothing left for you to do when you have a bunch of siblings who are successful and support the family already. Even though Ma and Pa didn't need any help running the farm, I still enjoyed doing my daily tasks. 

When I went to bed, I always dreamed I was living a different life. It's not like I craved change, it was just really fun to imagine myself in different scenarios. One night I would be saving a princess and the next I was the princess who needed saving. I would ramble on and on about these silly fantasies to whoever listened and I'm sure when that letter came, everyone got excited. The letter meant that I would actually be living my fantasies instead of talking someone's ear off about it.

The day the letter came was strange. Business was unusually high that day and the air was nice and crisp. 

I remember opening it and reading the contents. It felt like I had just stumbled into one of my dreams.

Dear Esteemed Llath,

You have been chosen as one of Ebon's participants in the first grand voyage to the Next Realm. Departure of the ship will be held at the Capital on the Summer Solstice.

Please respond if you are able to participate in a timely matter.

Sincerely, 

The High Council of the Realm of Ebon

'A ship to the Next Realm? Impossible!' I had thought. Still, something inside me wished to leave the cozy little village I had called home all my life.

I remember that evening, telling my parents. They weren't concerned. After all, if I was gone, it would be one less mouth to feed. I immediately got their approval and started packing. Spring had barely blossomed but I was eager to leave. 

The week before the Summer Solstice I remember clearly. The town had given me their finest horse, Runo was her name, in order to get me to the Capital swiftly. I had never ventured out of the village. I saw so many new sights, sometimes so overwhelming I wanted to turn back. But I never did. It was like they had placed a magnet in the letter, pulling me closer and closer towards the ship. Finally, on the day of the Summer Solstice, I saw it. The ship was magnificent, even better than what is described in story tales. There were hundreds of other commoners with their luggage, eager to board this fantastical ship, ready to leave their ordinary lives behind.

I never regretted stepping onto the ship but sometimes I wish I would.