Happy Tuesday, everyone!
My apologies for the radio silence over the past few months, but I have found myself (somewhat uncharacteristically) rather busy.
I’ve recently moved into a new apartment and have been exploring all the fun that this entails – especially in regards to things such as paperwork, ordering and building furniture, and sleeping on the floor for weeks (yay). I have also yet to get broadband – who knew that took so long to get up and running? Certainly not I. And when both your study and certain streams of income are internet-based, it is a major pain in the ass.
Whenever anyone starts any new ventures, there is always some period of adjustment when it comes to trying to connect to a new environment and begin to feel comfortable in what becomes one’s new life, and I have definitely been experiencing the whole spectrum of emotions which comes along with this terrain. Moving is something that is both exciting and stressful: it brings the brilliance of freedom in one’s own space and a whole range of new possibilities to explore; but it also brings with it a lot of things to sort out and organize, which can lead to a lack of social interaction while trying to deal with the bureaucratic.
Something this has led to, for me, is a creeping sensation of isolation – one that just sits and lingers in the back of my mind while I’m busy, and then appears at night to remind me that the reality in which I currently find myself is sitting alone at my desk (which is not only built but even has a chair!) or lying on the floor, seemingly waiting for something to happen. Or drinking copious amounts of wine, which really needs to stop…
I am aware, however, that the solution to this feeling of loneliness lies in connecting to the community around me. One thing that I love the most about where I am living, is that I am now back to being near the Quaker Meeting House that I attended when I first discovered Quakerism, and that in itself provides some degree of comfort. So, as part of setting up my new routine, I will now be back to attending Meeting on a regular basis, and trying to get myself as involved as possible by getting out there and living!
*edited repost from original website