It is the best thing in my life
People often comment on my relationship:
“You two are so good together”;
“You look so happy”;
“You have a special connection”;
“Your relationship looks so beautiful and amazing.”
People we know only a little, and close friends and family.
Our relationship looks amazing because it is amazing. When other people talk about their relationship being hard work, or a chore, or something that is a struggle, I cannot agree with them.
My relationship is anything but a chore or hard work. It is easy. It’s like a wonderful, peaceful, and relaxing holiday full of beauty and wonder.
It is the best thing in my life. …
We live on the road now
When this year started I had no idea this is where I would be. Living in Cape Town, South Africa. We planned a very different sort of life this year. And we got different. Just not the different we wanted.
We planned to move overseas. A move we had planned for over a year. And then everything happened this year and so our plans changed.
- Instead of travelling the world and immersing ourselves in a different culture, we immersed ourselves in our own unique South African culture.
- Instead of taking a flight overseas, we took a car full of all our things to travel around South Africa. …
Everyone can do something
Yes, it’s overwhelming. Thinking about climate change and everything it means for our future.
If you are young, like me, at 28 the future looks terrifying. And the facts are not so good.
So instead of feeling overwhelmed and helpless, there are a few simple things you can do to help the rapid rate of climate change. I am no expert but these are things I have garnered from reading a lot and watching David Attenborough’s latest documentary, A Life on our Planet (which is something everyone should watch).
1. Download Ecosia and make it your primary browser on your computer and cellphone
And so is a lot of pop culture
The movies and films, popular today, rarely depict healthy, loving and fulfilling relationships.
The relationships we see on TV and in movies are full of DRAMA.
No one wants to watch a movie about two people that fall in love and make it work, do they? People want to watch drama, heartache, and pain. We want to see people get together and fall in love, and we want to see the pain that it takes to get there.
There are countless romantic movies where the two leads lie, manipulate, and coerce each other into falling in love. All in the name of love and destiny. …
You don’t have to make money from everything
I love to play the piano. I don’t get paid to play and neither do I ever hope to get paid. I want to improve but that is not the main goal of my playing.
My main goal is: pleasure. Who knows maybe one day someone will pay me?
What happened to hobbies?
Why do we have to turn everything into a side hustle or project to make money. Not everything we do needs to about making money.
The definition of a hobby, my definition, is:
An activity that brings one great pleasure for which the primary purpose is not commercial but enjoyment.
And writing is my hobby at the moment. It brings me great pleasure to put words to paper and write down how I am feeling or the thoughts occupying my mind. …
A short story
“A long-distance open relationship”, Maria could not believe she was saying these words and understood the shock in Hannah’s eyes.
“What is that even??!”, Hannah was laughing now.
“We are in a long-distance relationship and we are free to be with other people.”
“You mean sleep with other people.”
“Well, yes that too.”
“Is that what you want?”
“Yes, I am ok with it. I mean I love him and he loves me. We have to live in different cities for now and that’s ok. I don’t mind if this is what he wants.”
“Ok, as long as you are comfortable and ok with it. It could be fun. You can cheat on him and you don’t have to feel bad about it.” …
Adult friendships are difficult
Have you heard that joke? The one about Jesus, his miracle was not that he rose from the dead but that:
he maintained 12 close friendships in his thirties.
Or something like that.
I recently had an epiphany. I have a friend who is hard to contact. I complained about the said friend in therapy, recently (during the pandemic & Lockdown). My friend is bad at communicating on Whatsapp. She takes at least a week to respond to a message. She does not always return phone calls. She makes plans and cancels at the last minute often.
I have known her for years. …
We are all a product of our past
There are many forces in my life I am grateful for. I am grateful for my family and the upbringing I had which molded me into the person I am today. Many factors have influenced the person I am today and there are probably many more I am not aware of.
There are three that stick out, three I am eternally grateful for:
1. Ballet
I started dancing at the age of 6 years. Ballet taught me rigid discipline, focus, and perseverance.
I starting attending ballet classes three times a week from the tender age of 6. Some days I dragged myself to class, and it was the last thing I wanted to do, and other days it was easy and wonderful. …
Healthy body acceptance is not easy
Lockdown changed me and what I consider ‘healthy’. At the beginning of Lockdown, my brain was too full of other things to make space for obsessive healthy thinking. It takes a lot of space in your brain to constantly think about “healthy” all the time:
“Should I eat this, is this ok to eat at this time, and will this have too many calories?”
I used to have these thoughts all the time.
Going into Lockdown at the end of March, and all the stresses and anxiety this epidemic, left little space in my brain to focus obsessively on food and exercise. …
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