Dreamings & Wanderings

Hello lovelies, Sorry I haven't written in a while! I might explain that later but today I have a fun Story Time blog post for you! If you have no idea where I am in life at the moment - here's a quick update to get you up to speed! At the end of last year I moved from Brisbane to Mackay for a job opportunity and as the year comes to a close, I've been figuring out what I want to do and where I want to be. So a few weeks ago I was sitting on a park bench on a hill overlooking the ocean, having a chat with God and praying about what I should do next year. Whether I should stay in Mackay, find a new job, move back to Brisbane, etc. Then all of a sudden,  Out of nowhere,  About 10 bush turkeys sprinted past me for no apparent reason... It was so out of the blue and I had no idea why they suddenly felt the urge to race over the hill. For this reason I can only conclude this event as being a sign from God :D So I talked to God again and asked, "So does this m...

Hello lovelies, Recently I watched a video by Dodie Clark where she spoke about oversharing, particularly about her mental health and it really got me thinking. One of the points she addressed was sharing her thoughts and feelings with her audience when she was in her darkest hours - and that while this may feel good to get off your chest and think you're helping others, this can actually be a really damaging coping mechanism and negatively affect the people you share that with. I know that I am a very honest and open person. I quite easily share the positives and the negatives in my life and I like building connections with people by being vulnerable and having deeper conversations. I also like to be creative with writing blogs, songs, poetry and through art, and these are often inspired by the more difficult periods in my life. If you've read a few of my blog posts or know me in real life, you probably know that I struggle with anxiety from time to time. While I try to be ca...

Hello lovelies!  So a lot has happened since my last life update! Sorry I've been slack and haven't written in so long.  If you'd like the short version, I've made bullet points for you - how convenient and thoughtful of me! Otherwise if you'd like to be in for the long-haul, boy have I got a treat for you!  The Month that was March My 22nd birthday! Parents visited for a weekend Survived Cyclone Debbie Cue Taylor Swift music - "I'm feeling' 22!" Although it was hard having a birthday away from family, I was so blessed by the wonderful friends I've made in Mackay. We ate fish and chips at a hidden away lookout on a cliff looking out over the ocean. I just wanted something relaxed but also not to be alone on my birthday and boy did they deliver! Perfect night :)  The weekend after my birthday my parents came to visit! We did a ridiculous amount of driving and went to Airlie, Cedar Creek Falls, Cape Hillsborough, Pinnacle, an...

Caution: Spoilers ahead (obviously) Hello lovelies! There's been a lot of talk recently about Netflix's new show 13 Reasons Why. Some say that it's too confronting and that it glorifies suicide and others say that it's great for teenagers to learn from and is an invitation to discuss the issues it raises.  If you've been living under a rock (or maybe don't have Netflix - in that case, who are you and how do you live?), 13 Reasons Why follows the story of Hannah Baker, a teenage girl who commits suicide and leaves behind a series of tapes to specific people, explaining the various events and reasons that led her to that decision.  I think one aspect that it did romanticise was the idea of "getting revenge" on the people she included in the tapes. I was annoyed by the damage that Hannah had caused to the people she left behind. To me, it seemed a bit hypocritical of her to hurt the people that hurt her and potentially impacted them in the sa...

Hello lovelies! I've now been living in Mackay for almost two months now and wanted to write a life update! I've been determined to try to get out and about in town, meet people and generally keep myself fairly busy. I've joined a choir, the feeding roster at the Riding for the Disabled, found a church, and met a lot of people. I've fallen into a few habits as well which I thought I should share. Polaroid taken at my local beach My sister and her husband bought me a polaroid camera and a 365 book to capture moments from each day to remember this new adventure. I'm still figuring out how to perfect all of my photos but it's been fun. If I miss a day I try to write a diary entry of what I got up to or take two photos for a day to make up for it.  There's a frangipani tree outside my unit, so I've been picking flowers for my coffee table so I at least have some form of plant-life in unit (I'm not known for having a green thumb - much to the d...

Hello lovelies!  What a clever title you say? Why thank you. I hope you appreciated the reference ;)  I wanted to write another life update since my move to Mackay!  Firstly, the drive from Brisbane to Mackay is freaking long - about 11 hours to be more specific. 11 hours of boring highway with very few towns to break up the "boringness". Luckily I also had Mum in my car so we took turns driving and took a few stops at petrol stations and Maccas (McDonalds for you non-Australians) for refreshments.  I flew back home for the Christmas period which was lovely. I spent lots of time with family and welcomed 2017 with friends with sparklers, glow sticks, stargazing and unintentionally staying awake until 3am. On a more serious note though, the week was also quite stressful.  I've had so many changes come into my life very suddenly and I was struggling to deal with them. On one day I had a really nice day with Mum, driving around the countryside. That...

Hello lovelies! It has been so long since I've had a chance to write... Please excuse my absence - I've been in crazy study mode for my final semester of university and I'm very proud to be finished my occupational therapy uni degree!  This week I was offered a full-time position with a private company in Mackay.  I start orientation on the 19th of December and will fly home for Christmas before officially starting as an OT after the Christmas break. It's all happened quite quickly so it's still a bit overwhelming but I'm also excited to start my own journey. The position involves working in residential facilities and in communities (such as home visits) which is what I want to do, so I'm very grateful for the opportunity. I am sad to be leaving Brisbane and everyone that I love here. It's been stressful just trying to find a property to rent, let alone moving (very far away) for the first time. I know I will face many challenges over the next ...

Hello lovelies! Following on from my previous post, I'm going to be vulnerable, take a risk, and put myself out there.  I enjoy being creative and one aspect of that is writing, whether it be stories, poems, or songs. I've always been nervous about sharing them with anyone but I'm going to be brave and let you read my thoughts I wrote about in a simple poem. Please keep in mind that I wrote this quite a while ago and I did just want some parts to rhyme, so don't take it all to heart!  Sorry if you ever read this Drummer Boy. I wish you all the very best.  For Drummer Boy I miss sharing glances between the stage and back I miss sitting and watching your band unpack  I miss hearing your songs for the very first time I miss helping you find the right words to rhyme I miss eating doughnuts and ice-cream with you I miss taking in our favourite view I miss late night phone calls from far off places I miss your "I'm finally home" embraces I m...

Hello lovelies!  I've recently been thinking about how artists can be so vulnerable to share art about personal things. Take Taylor Swift for instance (classic example) - she's written countless songs about boys of her past and some people even know exactly who she's singing about. I want to be brave enough to share some of the creative things that have been inspired by my past experiences, but I can't help but think how vulnerable I'd have to be to share those with the world. Not to mention, making any person mentioned feel incredibly awkward.  These thoughts have all come about because I wish I could share a poem I've written because I am quite fond of it, but it's also quite personal. I'm quite hesitant to share it with others because although some words are there just because they rhyme, most of it is heartfelt and true.  Look, I understand that T Swift is a millionaire and needs to write songs to stay that way, but even smaller artists create ...

Hello lovelies! Sometimes I use this blog as a journal of sorts. Of course I don't write everything here (as journaling is quite a personal thing and I don't know who will read this blog), but I wanted to write a post about the importance of journaling. I don't journal every day but I have found it to be very helpful in certain situations I've experienced. I've always been known to be a 'reflective learner'. Thus, I learn most from reflecting on a situation or experience after it has occurred. For this reason I think, journaling has often helped me find my way in life and the decisions I make.  I've used journaling as a tool to get my thoughts out and have something tangible to look back on. It's quite satisfying. It has helped me navigate relationships, bring things into perspective, and helped making any big decisions. I think that writing (or typing) your thoughts and feelings down helps you reorganise your brain a little bit, making your th...

Hello lovelies! I'm entering my final week of my holidays before starting my final uni placement! Since I've been on holidays for a while, I've had a lot of spare time...which has lead to a lot of internet time... So I thought I'd share with you some of my favourite websites at the moment. Hopefully, from this list you can find a new favourite place on the internet :) Before we get into the more obscure and lesser-known websites, let's start with a more popular one you've probably already heard of: Pinterest ( https://www.pinterest.com ) . Pinterest has been my go-to "procrastination/boredom/needing inspiration" website recently. I've also been planning my 21st birthday party and this website has really come in handy! I really like that it picks up on the pins you've been saving and caters towards your interests (so you can easily find more beautiful things you love!) I have way too many boards on my profile, but my profile is like my littl...

Hello lovelies! Looking back over the past year, I have learnt a lot about trusting God (or rather, God taught me a lot about trusting him). I've always grown up hearing phrases like "trust God" or "have faith" but I don't think I ever really grasped that concept until 2015. I was thrown into the deep end a few times last year and really needed to lean on God to get through. Before starting my first uni placement, I was really concerned about finances if I was sent to a rural location. It turned out that I was sent on a rural placement but fortunately my parents contributed towards my finances and I had free accommodation. During this placement however, I kind of lost my way. I was lonely and felt like I was not on the right career path. This caused me to begin questioning a lot of aspects of my life. I actually wrote a blog post at that time if you'd like to read about that in more detail -  Too Many Thoughts . I needed to trust God that he'd ...

Hello lovelies, This morning I found myself reminiscing my high school years and flicking through some lovely letters I collected over that time. I found two letters from my English teacher in grade 10. She gave letters to everyone in the class on our first day and on our last day as we left 10G for the last time. I remember at the time thinking it was kind of weird and not really getting it, but looking back, it means so much more to me and I remember those classes with fondness.  The first letter she gave me as she welcomed me into the room simply says, "Welcome to year 10 English", along with this quote from Nelson Mandela: Let Your Light Shine "Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? Your playing small doesn't serve the world. T...