Meet Emma. A young, ambitious woman with many goals and aspirations. All of which did not coincide well with her cancer diagnosis of Acute Myeloid Leukemia, AML, less than two years ago. Emma was living in Virginia, working, and pursuing a Masters degree in library science. Her world turned completely upside down following her diagnosis, and she was forced to move, give up her job, and hardest of all, give up her dreams of attaining her degree. However, through these hurtles, Emma has managed to maintain her incredible strength, and admirable attitude. She attributes how well she’s done to her perseverance, courage, and family. We decided to give Emma and her caretaker, her mother, an experience where they could truly relax, not worry, and be one with nature. The following post was written by Emma herself, about her experiences during her Life Adventure to Amelia Island and Little St. Simon’s Island.
We were sent on an amazing, relaxing, life adventure where we were able to escape from our sometimes overwhelming realities, and receive star treatment in beautiful surroundings. It was nice to pack our bags for a trip to somewhere other than the hospital. Our adventure began with staying overnight at the Ritz-Carlton on Amelia Island. We were greeted wonderfully by the staff, who upgraded us to a large suite with a beautiful ocean view, and gave us access to special guest lounge services. An employee from the guest lounge delivered a flower arrangement, with my favorite flowers — irises—to our room and gave us a tour of the lounge, where we got VIP treatment and felt like celebrities. We explored the hotel, eating gelato from the café and walking along the beach, before dinner.
When we returned to our suite, there was a room service cart with sweet treats, sparkling cider, and two large canvas tote bags as gifts. We put the tote bags to good use with whatever other goodies we picked up on our trip. We had a once in a lifetime dinner experience at the Ritz-Carlton’s Salt restaurant. It was the fanciest dinner either of us had ever had. We received excellent service with free champagne and gourmet salt samples with our amazing meals.
After dinner we were surprised with a private bonfire in the dunes on the beach. We were given cozy blankets and giant binoculars to stargaze with, and enjoyed hot cocoa and s’mores. Before we retreated to our room we made a special request to the staff. Friends of ours who had stayed at the Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island recommended that we try the flourless chocolate cake. Although the cake was not on the current menu, the staff made one especially for me and wrote “Welcome Emma” on it. It was a wonderful gesture and a very tasty cake.
Our last morning at the Ritz-Carlton was spent looking in the gift shops while we awaited our spa appointment. We got a tour of the Ritz-Carlton spa and each enjoyed a very relaxing facial, including an extra complimentary treatment of our choice. After, we were each given gift bags with recommended products and many free samples of lotions and face masks.
Later that day we enjoyed a pretty ride to St. Simons Island to catch the ferry to Little St. Simons Island. When we arrived to The Lodge on Little St. Simons Island, we got an orientation and history of the island at the main cabin, and received complimentary Nalgene water bottles. Being on Little St. Simons Island felt like being in another world. It was a very rustic, secluded setting with no TV or radio and very limited Wi-Fi access. We stayed in the nicest house, called “Helen House.” The house was decorated with all antique furniture and had a beautiful old courtyard and view of the water. Delicious breakfasts, lunches, and dinners were all included with our stay and served family style, with all the guests sitting at one table. All the vegetables used in our meals were grown right from a garden on the island.
The staff of naturalists at The Lodge offered different activities to guests including hiking, biking, birding, fishing, and boating. We spent our time exploring the island and taking in the gorgeous scenery of the woods and marshes, and appreciating this little piece of paradise away from our realities. We hiked Backbone Trail with a naturalist guide and learned more about the plant and animal life on the island, and also got to see a bald eagle in its nest.
The next day my mom and I hiked two miles, while everyone else drove, to a beautiful, vast beach where we collected seashells. We saw lots of armadillo and birds. We walked along every path in which the deer had been sighted by either the staff or other guests, but we seemed to just keep missing them. By the end of our trip, we began to wonder if everyone else was just messing with us, and if these deer really even existed on the island. We decided it was just another reason to return to the island someday, to see those elusive deer.
We left Little St. Simons Island with misty eyes and heavy hearts, vowing that we’d go back someday and bring the rest of our family with us. We stopped on St. Simons Island on our way home to visit the St. Simons Island lighthouse, and we climbed to the top. We finished the trip with a great lunch at the original Barbara Jean’s restaurant.
It was an incredible experience we were given to be able to step out of our daily lives and completely let go of our stresses for a few days. After everything we’ve been through together since November of 2013, we were able to finally take a break and not think about doctor’s appointments, or missing work, or finances, or cancer. We let go of everything and just enjoyed ourselves.
