Let the Planning Commence!

Listening to "Roots Before Branches" Glee Cast.


I am constantly thinking about my future. Not that I don't enjoy the moments. If anything, the instagrams above documenting my train ride (from the seaside of Aberystwyth to my countryside home) prove that. But I find myself at the perfect time to start seriously planning for the next step. I have two books going right now, one will be finished this summer and the other at the end of the year. I am planning to complete my PhD by next fall. I'm not rushing, it's just that after almost seven years of non-stop university, I am ready for the next stage of my life. I can't tell you how exciting that is!

I am going to keep my ideas hushed for a little while. What I will tell you is that I have a year and a half to get my plans together and they include San Francisco, hardwood floors, gorgeous window light, collaborations, and lots of forethought. Is that ambiguous enough? Good. :)

Hope you're weather is as beautiful as the South of England's is today. Sunny, blue skies and warm breezes. I feel like I'm in California already! I think it calls for some iced peppermint tea.

Contemplation After the End of Something and the Beginning of Everything

Listening to "Wandering Star" by Polica.

Life is quite interesting, isn't it? It's a labyrinth of changes and goals and loves and losses. A few weeks ago, before I went to Morocco, I was feeling very low, depressed really. I couldn't find the point to it all, my relationship, the purpose of my PhD, why I was in England when I 'so clearly' belonged back in California. And then I went to Morocco.

I saw two sides of that intoxicating country. The magic carpet rides, the perfume, the spices, the ancient fairytales of an ancient civilization. I was inspired to begin my work on one of my novels again. The other side was the despair, the desperation, the reality of what I had heard before my travel as a disparaging economy. Yet, people were happy. They went from shop to shop in the souks greeting each other with hugs and smiles, tea or fresh orange juice. The kids played football (soccer, as we Americans say) in little alleyways, shouting with intense enjoyment. How could I, who has so much, feel so low? It turned me right around and upside down. It was the kick in the derrière that I was desperately trying to find.

When I arrived back in the UK, I was refreshed. I saw this wonderful country in a different light. Traveling is the best way to cure indifference. People say it is the ultimate education. I've always believed in that with a full heart. This trip proved it.

Since being back, I have ended a rocky relationship that was holding me back for a few years now. Even though the past couple of days have been a bit hard for me, I feel invincible now, like I can achieve the dreams that have been circulating in my mind for a few years. More on that in another post. Listening to Johnny Nash's "I Can See Clearly Now" doesn't hurt either.

I'm grateful for this life I lead. I'm grateful for my family and friends. I'm grateful for the opportunities that have led my dreams to become a reality. I'm grateful for this blog and for you, my creative, kind, wonderful readers. Thank you. xx

To better days and brighter perspectives!

Treks {Blossoming Trails}

I have gone on every trail around Henley in a five-mile radius since I moved here nine months ago. My favorite trek is through birch woods laden with bluebells, meadows dotted with daisies and dandelions, and a brassicas field that has bloomed into tall stalks of sun-kissed, golden blossoms. Spring is by far the most beautiful season in England.