I'm not very good with change. Starting university was one of the hardest things I'd done in my life and freshers' week was not a good time for me. But after about the first six weeks of university I stopped counting the days until I could go home for Christmas and began four years of wonderful experiences that made me the person I am today. It was the people I shared my university experience with that made it what it was; despite that, Lancaster will never stop being a special place to me. It is a lovely, small, compact city in the most beautiful part of England, filled with a host of wonderful little places just waiting to be discovered. It rains a lot there, but I still love it in the rain which says a lot for the place!
Three hundred and twenty eight days ago (yes, I just sat and worked it out!) I left there and have been bouncing along since then – with no particular expectations; just waiting to see what would happen. I've been staying with my Godmother, fairly close to the river, and in the long tedious days of unemployment it provided welcome relief from the boredom.
Without really noticing it happening I've found myself settled here with two jobs – one that I love and one that I need. I have a choir to sing in, a small handful of friends to spend time with and within the next month I'll have a flat too. I have lost the two things that dominated my life in Lancaster – playing the clarinet and being an integrated member of a church. Although I still miss both of these something seems to have filled those holes – I just hope it's not apathy. I am mildly bothered by my current failure to settle properly in a church or to find somewhere to play and can't help thinking back to a conversation with someone in Lancaster from which the words “drifting away” stand out.
I'll just keep bobbing along and see what happens next...
Bouncing along is not a bad thing. Welcome to the world of posting your thoughts and documenting whatever you like by the way! So bouncing is natural. I am of the opinion that your life needs certain activities within it, but that these roles may not be filled by the same things in different places. For me I have to be active, but whether that is hiking, canoeing, or climbing, that doesn't matter. What matters more is that I am doing something and interacting with people. Just remember that you need time for you, not just for surviving, because feeding the brain and the emotions is just as important a part of surviving as having a house, food and money is. Enjoy the variety that a new place brings. And good luck being aware of what your body needs.
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