1. People from your past can come back and make a great difference in your life. When I posted about Getting Healthy and needing help with being accountable one of my best friends contacted me to help out. She and a few friends from high school email weekly and help each other with struggles and being accountable and they welcomed me into their group with open arms. I haven't talked to these friends for y.e.a.r.s. and I realize how much I missed having contact with them and how they are helping make a difference in one of the hardest areas I struggle with. Without their constant support I don't know if I could be as successful in getting healthy. So thank you ladies, I can't wait until we can have a mini reunion when I get back to the states!
2. How not to be obsessed with "cool". During my first month here I found that I was OBSESSED with trying to be cool and what did that even mean, etc. Now that I have made a true effort the last months to not be unconcerned with what others concept of cool is and how I fit into it, being cool doesn't really cross my mind. I don't look at others with envy wishing I was that cool. I now just put my best foot forward and stay tuned to what I like, want, and don't really worry about anyone else. I don't even say the word "cool" anymore, which is shocking because it was in almost every other sentence when I first arrived here.
3. I want to have my own little bookshop/music shop in the future. Dave and I have always talked about having a secondhand bookstore when we retire, but after working at the bookshop I want this more than ever. When I work I feel so content and happy, I could be there for hours doing little things with the books and talking with customers. It will be years before I have my own store, but during that time I will be doing LOTS of research and saving my moola! I think I want to call our little shop, SHOAVE'S. hee heeeee
4. Dave & I have come a long way during the last year. A year ago both Dave and I were going through our own personal hells. I can't speak for Dave (because that would just be rude and wrong of me) but for me, I was deeply depressed. I was having a hard time after my father-in-laws passing, it brought up a lot of things from my mothers passing 4 years earlier, I was emotionally drained due to going through my own things, helping Dave with his path of healing, and putting a brave face on at work day in and day out. This depression lasted for at least half a year, and when things were bad Dave and I would say to each other, "Don't You Wish You Could Go Surfing?", always thinking about how the escape to Australia would be. A year later, we have dealt with our little hells, we have grown as partners, and now we are loving life and all the little challenges and adventures it brings us. I'm SOOO proud of us for coming this far in our lives, together I know that we can take on the world.
5. Not to walk out the door not feeling good about how I look. I have made a vow to myself to never walk outside the front door not feeling good about how I look in. When I do this I find that I am more self conscious about everything and how people look at me. When I wear an outfit that I feel good in, I find that I have more self confidence, I don't worry about how I look all day, I smile to people more, and I feel like the world is mine. Why would I want to leave the house and not feel this way?
6. Mexicans - Not Just People born in Mexico. Dave told me this little bit of information that I thought was very interesting. People of the state New South Wales refer to residents of the state of Victoria as Mexicans. Why do they do this? Because Victoria is south of New South Wales and they relate the term Mexican to mean below the border/state line. Interesting, no?
7. If you could bottle up the joy of child has while playing on the beach, you may never be joyless again. Nothing beats watching kids running around playing in the waves, building sandcastle,hearing their little giggles, and seeing their huge smiles. NOTHING.
8. Some Aussies pronounce the letter 'H' differently. Dave and I learned this by watching, Beauty & The Geek, as known as "research" for Australian culture! So after hearing how some people pronounced the 'H' on tv, I did some of my own research (a.k.a. asking my co-workers). Some people pronounce 'H' as "hech", I was told it was because they went to a Catholic school...I'm not sure if it is true, but it's what my findings are!
9. Books hold keys of wisdom. A lot of the books I have been reading the last two months have me thinking about life, the future, and have inspired me. I believe that almost every book has a piece of wisdom in in, all we need to do is take the time to read it and see what it unlocks in our hearts, soul, and mind.
10. I am ready for change. I have been wanting to be ready for change, but change can't happen until you are truly ready for it. I am happy to share that I am FINALLY ready for change, I have my arms open to it and can't wait to grasp it. Everything has been working together for this moment and oooooohhhh am I ready for it!
That is 30 lessons so far since landing in Australia!
What lessons have you learned lately from living this crazy thing called life?
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