It’s been great to get back into things here in Australia, and I don’t just mean getting back into the blog.
I’ve been doing a lot more here than I had for a while. I’ve decided to take the time I was in Thailand as a transition time because as much as I enjoyed it, it really gave me a different feel of travel than Europe and now Australia are. In some ways, how I was traveling in Thailand reminded me of my time in Albania, I didn’t do much. That didn’t hold true for the entire time I was in Thailand of course – but definitely when talking about the last couple of weeks. It was a time needed to get out of my funk from Albania and figure out how long I should remain in one place before moving on, but at the end I didn’t enjoy it as much as I had been.
Now that I’m in Australia – I’ve been getting out more, talking to more people, enjoying my time exploring and doing more activities. Sure, part of that is due to being back in hostels again (it is more difficult to meet people when you’re just staying at a hotel/resort since people staying at those tend to keep to themselves). But either way I’m loving it.
“You don’t only live once. You only die once. If you’re smart, you live every single minute of every single day” – Fiona quoting Brenden in A Fated Bond by Auburn Tempest and Michael Anderle.
I’ve been thinking a bit about this quote from one of my favorite book series lately. It can be so easy to get caught up in the grind of everyday life that we forget to truly live life. That we forget that there is a reason that we work to make money and it doesn’t often have to do with the money itself but to be in a place of security so that we can do what we want in life.
I’ve been thinking about it because I’ve gotten to almost the 9 month mark of my international travels and have passed the year mark of not working (keep an eye out for a post coming soon about making my decision to leave my job). I have been living off my savings for the last year, and I know that unfortunately that can’t sustain me forever – I don’t have endless funds that allow me to do what I want forever and life costs money to do just about anything. With that, I know that I’ve gotten to the point where I really need to start to figure out what I want next.
And for me, that’s honestly to keep traveling, exploring, discovering. So now I have to figure out how to do that in a way that keeps me living the life I want and not falling into the work trap that I find so easy to do.
For now I’m looking into some freelance online work. But I know I could also see about doing seasonal or contract work – to work for a couple of months in a position to save money to then spend the rest of the year traveling from that money. I’ve met people who have done that and read about even more. I do have a hiccup with that in some cases because I’m over the age of the working holiday visas, but that doesn’t mean it’s not possible, just that it may take a bit more work to figure out upfront.
I don’t know what that balance will look like yet – but honestly, that’s okay. I love the life that I’ve been living. I love meeting new people and seeing new places, and trying new things. As much as I love being a librarian and do miss the work that I am passionate about, I am loving this life more (and who knows, maybe I’ll find a true way to merge the two with money involved). I am truly working to live every single minute of every single day.
“Give every opportunity a thought, and give the good ones a try” – H. Jae
I try every day to live based on this mentality. When people ask me if I would try x, y, or z – I give each of them serious thought before I make my decision. Sometimes the answer is “no not for me”, sometimes it’s “not at this time”, and other times it’s “Hell yes!”. I truly think it’s important to consider every opportunity and option rather than just cherry pick what you think is best, especially because so often those cherry picked things are influenced by what people around you (society or friends/family) think is best. I do not try everything that is placed in front of me. Sometimes due to money, sometimes due to interest – but I do consider it all.
So yeah – that’s what I’ve been thinking about lately and those two quotes are ones that I’m looking forward to continuing to guide me as I move forward.
