A Year Of Post-grad Wilderness...

It's been a year now, since I put down my pen after completing my under-graduate degree in Arts, majoring in Literature. I am indulging in some self reflective assessment of this past 12 months, since I had vaguely thrown out to the universe some suggestions as to how this year might be best lived. I'm not sure I have really done it justice, however, and I have a sense of regret about some aspects of it. Yes, I have had plenty of opportunities to reconnect with family in meaningful ways, and this has been largely fruitful. But how I have spent my days at home, and how I have conducted my relationships back in my home town of Geelong, demonstrate that I have been lazy and disorganised at the best of times. The other times I have been either disabled to an extent by various illnesses and injuries, or have suffered bouts of depression, or, often, suffered both at the same time. 

I thought this year was going to be about gardening, cleaning, sorting, and taking charge of my home environment and about reconnecting with friends that I left along the roadside as I scrambled the last year of my degree together. I have failed to do any of it. I thought I might have written copious blogs or expressed myself creatively through painting or craft, and I haven't done those things either. I've picked up, and discarded again, ukelele and my guitar playing. Typically, when I'm at home, I am lost and unmotivated. The dust is settling even more thickly on all my course materials and writings from my degree, sitting in the bookshelf.

 

However.... read on below...

• I have made some great NEW friendships
• I have travelled across 5 states of Australia, driven in all, flown to Qld twice, and NZ once. So far.
• I have had fun, frivolous adventures with my newer friends.
• Less adventures and times with my established friends, but a couple of nice reunions.
• I have spent precious time with each of my siblings, their offspring, and both my parents.
• I sold a car to a friend and bought a beautiful new one.
• I planted out, weeded, trimmed a garden all by myself.
• Have jumped on board a few spontaneous opportunities to meet up with friends in different places, just for fun. They have usually worked out.
• I've had had some great musical adventures, from seeing some amazing acts at Broadbeach Blues Festival, to a jam session with Tim O'Connor - songwriter from Frente, to listening to Irish music in a pub, to seeing Jeff Lang, Tim Neal and Alistair Turell AND Eddi Reader locally, to having my own brother playing blues guitar constantly during our travels, (and he is VERY VERY good). 
• I've learned to decorate cup-cakes.
• I joined a singing group, and so far have sung in five public performances!
• I've had a tooth extracted and a post put into the gum in preparation for an implant- and while I'm on the subject of such fabulous physical interventions, I have also
• had a colonoscopy, (reporting all is as it should be),
•  and facial surgery to remove a skin cancer.

I've decided NOT to do a Master's Degree and instead will complete a Grad Dip Ed next year, in order to teach. Kind of my original plan, which I deviated from a few times. That decision making process was pretty heavy going, and pretty much took all year. Now I have a few short months to prepare myself for the next intense stage of my education.

All in all, it doesn't look SO bad when I look at the list today.
Yesterday I was beating myself up about what a lazy, self-centred person I am.
I miss a few of my special local friends. I know they have given up on me.
I'm sorry you probably think I have dropped you. I actually haven't.
Pick up the phone. Please.