After 9 years, 7 months, and almost three handfuls of days; two different companies, two sides of the channel, and 28 countries visited, I’m leaving my second home of Birmingham to return back to my first.
I can also say that I probably have not consistently lived in Edmonton since 2002, which boosts those stats to 17 years minus 1 month and a total of 47 countries slept in during that period. When did I get so old to be able to say “I did that almost 20 years ago!” 😱Especially when it still feels like I embarked on my travel journey only yesterday. Oh wait, I seem to have forgotten the three years I went to University year circa 2006 - 2009. Well, "10 years ago" is certainly better.
I have been away almost as long as I have lived in my hometown, yet I’m inclined to still call Edmonton my home town. The concept of home to those who are nomadic is fascinating. I wrote about it several years ago, thinking that home is where your stuff is, and/ or, it is where your special someone resides, meaning that wherever you are in the world, you are “home” when you’re with those you love. I’ve been contemplating if I feel the need to revise that definition or not, especially with my stuff literally being shipped for an indefinite amount of time across the Atlantic. Even with the reunification of said stuff, I’ll likely be residing with family for a further indefinite amount of time, all surmounting to the feeling of constant nomadship for the foreseeable future. At least being in the proximity of my family, thus those who love me, allows me to feel at home in one sense of my definition.
Nomadic in address and in life’s upcoming path, this is likely to be the first time in my life that I can’t say I know how I’m going to get to where I want to go. I have some pipe dreams I want to activate and a few concrete dates in the calendar, although I probably cannot reliably tell you what is on the agenda tomorrow. I will however, be releasing info on my adventure plans for you to follow and join as they arise.
Axiom alert: For years and years I’ve lived the belief that details equal success, and that has served me to get me where I am today, yet having been shook to the core with the loss of Robin, I’m trying on the idea that doors will open so long as I remain so. Perhaps life is screaming at me to enjoy the journey and to get comfortable with being uncomfortable. I wonder if my basic need for certainty will override this program at some point in time?
Admitting to, by writing this (the uncertainty around my day to day and learning to be open to the journey) reminds me of my core ethics, which I have permanently etched on my being: to live a life of reason, full of purpose and self esteem. I guess that’s me looking for certainty already as a coping mechanism. I definitely have purpose in my life with my upcoming goals, and I’m full of the confidence that will be needed to execute them. It’s the reminder to be objective in the times I feel overwhelmed that I’m grasping as I write; as well, to use my senses and take in what is around me to be grateful and feed my sense purpose.
In the meantime as I make my second attempt at a Kr-exit, I’d like to reflect and share a few things that I think makes England such a great and “interesting” (in the true, not “English” sense of the word) place to live.
- It’s green! Not grey. Many lament about the dull sky, lacking in sunshine, however, without the moisture, the abundance of deep green, hedge-lined fields would not be so. You only need to drive a small way from the city to appreciate the vista of rolling hills; the vista that I regularly gaze out on to when sitting on one of the very many trains over the years. Any time I venture away, this green scene puts a smile on my face. Perhaps next time you’re feeling as grey as the sky, I’d invite you to shift your gaze a little and take a moment to appreciate the life you can actually see around you.
- The English. Here I mean the English who have been here for many, many generations. Those who on the surface live their unassuming daily lives, they get on with it, they don’t tend to rock the boat. But when given good reason (or excuse), do things with more gusto than the average alien passerby might expect. They go big! They are the Mums who have their bottle each of rosé on the dance floor when they have their annual night off a year; they are the Lads and Dads who swap their daily uniforms to don facepaint and fancy dress to support their teams; they are all the Folk who, when you give them a cause, will go to bat without question to support others, in charity, in community, in nation. I suppose what I love about the English is the element of a surprise factor leading to the extrapolated notion and reminder that one shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.
- The People. Here I mean my people. My friends, colleagues, and special acquaintances I have met along the way. Some of you are English, others are people like me who have ventured to this island for some reasons of their own. People who have had and still have dreams and see the UK as a land of possibility. My friends, colleagues, and acquaintances who appreciate this land in which they live and use what it has to offer to move forward in life. Thank you my friends for enriching my life in ways that have helped to form who I am and the life I will create. Some of you I’ve know for almost 10 years, some less, and some who I will continue to value and connect with over the next 10 years because you have a special place in my life.
With that I say “ta ra” (for now) to this green gem of a land. I’m not sure when I will be back, but I have a feeling that I will return, and in closing I’d like to leave you with a quote of what purpose means to me:
“purpose serves to integrate all the other concerns of a man’s life. It establishes the hierarchy, the relative importance, of his values, it saves him from pointless inner conflicts, it permits him to enjoy life on a wide scale and to carry that enjoyment into any area open to his mind; whereas a man without a purpose is lost in chaos.” Ayn Rand
