Sydney, my love, I am returning home.

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It's been a funny old year period of time since this virus entered our lives. Just one year before all the craziness began I moved from my place of birth in Sydney (Australia) and relocated 900 km north in Brisbane to be with my partner, Brad.

Thankfully we'd had 3 months of getting to know each other via phone and video calls and more flights back and forth between cities than I think I've ever done in any other short period of my life. Then we had just under 1 year together, settling into our new life together before the world got turned upside down.

We were very lucky; we were impacted far, far less in our country than people in so many other countries (thank God for some geographic isolation, lots of living space and warm weather with sunshine!). But Brad and I were also a lot less impacted here in Brisbane than in other parts of the country. There were no extended lockdowns for us like there were for my friends, clients and family in Sydney and Melbourne.

And our fortune continues because Brad was needed and allowed to work the whole way through this pandemic, and I already worked from home. So for the most part, it was business as usual.

But... I have seen my family, most of whom are in Sydney, far less in the last (almost) 3 years than any other three year period of my life.

I was fortunate enough to be around for much of the first 2 1/2 years of my niece's life. I was lucky enough to kiss my sister and hug my mum regularly. I got to see and talk to my brother far more than I do now.

It's now been almost 12 months since I returned to Sydney. During that time my brother and his wife moved interstate, so now it's slightly more complicated and involved to see them. But I shall, soon enough.

But before we get there, before we meet my brand new squishy gorgeous nephew who was born just weeks ago, I shall return to my place of birth, that city I love so very much.

The land lives in my bones. I was born of its very being. I breathed its air when I first learned what breathing way. And while I've been on so many adventures to far away lands over the last 40 years, I have always returned home.

They say that "home is where the heart is" and while my love lies firmly with my darling man, I have come to realise that my heart is big enough to love many people and many places and many spaces. And I think, even if I live out all the rest of my days in other places, a part of me will always call Sydney home.

facebook_1644271609587_6896574989180940699.jpg Photo of the Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge, two icons that this city is well known for. This photo was taken by me, God knows when, but it appears it was a stormy, moody day. And knowing me, I was probably running around the harbour 😊

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Beautiful written@consciouscat 😊
I see you do have a “home”

I never had that so far, I think I lived to short in most places. Moved to much. Maybe I’m just a traveler. A wanderer…

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Maybe you are a traveler, a wanderer @littlebee4 🤩

Yes, I did have roots 🌳 I simply flew away from home regularly, but for so long, always, eventually, returned home.

But the number of different homes I had in Sydney and it's surrounding areas were numerous! For my very first home I was only in for 5 months before we moved! 😀

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I understand @consciouscat 😊
I had a few houses (rentals) I rented for a year. But things were so wrong I (we ) had to move out after 1, 2 or even just 6 months. Like a roof collapsing, no water available after I moved in, relocations with work, change of work etc etc. just when you unpacked all boxes… nope, you had to pack them all up again. 📦📦📦 lol

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Oh gosh! 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♂️ Well that sounds super annoying! 🙄😌😫

Are you happy with the place you have now in Spain @littlebee4? 🏘️🏠🏚️

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Yep it was. 🤦🏻‍♀️
Let’s say it will do for now… we will move probably twice this year 😉 another work relocation in the next months if all goes well 🤞🏻

Have a great weekend @consciouscat ☀️

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That's awesome news! My partner is (hopefully) getting back to Melbourne in April... and hopefully we'll both get there in December. I haven't been back to Australia since 2017... it's been a while.

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I'm looking forward to it. I'm hoping I can stay calm and well as we travel. 🤞

And that is a long time, Adam! Fingers crossed things are far more settled by December. May they get easier and gentler for everyone as the year goes on. 😀

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I believe that home as you rightly say is where our heart is. But it is so comforting to feel affection for the place where you were born and raised. It's a feeling of belonging that is so nice to have. Have a safe trip back home :)

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(Edited)

Coming home ... it's a phrase that brings a deep-seated sigh to the whole body doesn't it? Do you know that it never mattered how much my life was becoming entrenched and established in the UK, my heart always yearned for Africa...and home. Home was where my parents were, it was where the people who knew me best were, the people that I grew up with and with whom I had a shared history and a lifetime of memories... the ones I could pick up with after years as if we'd seen each other the day before... and the minute I got off the plane in Durban in the middle of Summer (just before Christmas!) and the wave of humid Durban heat would hit me, I would throw my head and arms back and shut my eyes and breathe it all in! Home. But the next bit of home was always when we got about 5kms from my parents' house...and we would enter the Krantzkloof Gorge and wind our way from the lower picnic site area to the top, with views to die for across the gorge and out in the distance to Durban and the ocean... when we drove through that area...then I truly always felt home, and a deep sense of relaxation would wash over me...and always the audible sigh. The music would be on at full tilt...think June Afternoon by Roxette❣️ windows down, sun in our faces ...Now... my Mom has passed (almost 3 years), my Dad moved here last year and lives about 2 hours away from me with my sister, and I have no immediate plans to return home for a while. Home has taken on a new meaning during the post-Mom/covid intense era ... now it is a focus on my small family and a realisation that although my heart will always yearn and be tugged towards South Africa and its spectacular beauty, my life is being carved out nearly 10,000 km away. I have a lot here to be grateful for and I have my writing community too now. I do have some wonderful friends in the UK and this country has some amazing scenery too, from coastlines to mountains to gorges. I just need to go seek more of them out now that my children are old enough to cope with the trekking ❣️ So that wasn't so much a commentary on your post...sorry I kinda lost myself there.... but that's what great posts do...they trigger memories, associations and create connections 💗I hope you have a wonderful time going home Caroline and get to spend some quality time with your loved ones !LUV

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So that wasn't so much a commentary on your post...sorry I kinda lost myself there....

but you did share an awesome personal story that I loved reading, so that was an unexpected gift. Thank you 🤗 I don't know if you'd told me at some point that you used to live in SA. I feel like you might have because I was surprised when you mentioned the UK in another comment elsewhere today. But somehow "Sam of South Africa" makes more sense to my soul than "Sam in the UK" does. I have no idea why. Maybe my soul just knows these things 😃 I hope you get a chance to "go home" to your other home at some point soon enough. I can understand how much you must miss it. 🤗

but that's what great posts do...they trigger memories, associations and create connections

Agreed, and thank you. Yeah, I think anytime we can write or speak emotively in our storytelling we take people with us and it triggers, as you said, all the things. 🧚‍♀️

this country has some amazing scenery too, from coastlines to mountains to gorges. I just need to go seek more of them out now that my children are old enough to cope with the trekking ❣️

I have heard from so many people how epic the UK is for outdoor adventures. I've not been yet but Brad went as a young man and backpacked extensively, visiting family and exploring. We're both keen to get over there as soon as we feel like we've created the time and space (and cash) to do it easily (or easily enough might be more accurate!). ⛰️🌄🚵

💗I hope you have a wonderful time going home Caroline and get to spend some quality time with your loved ones

Thank you, hun! I hope so too 🙏

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I think for now it will be a while before I head back to South Africa again ... I have many things I want and need to do here and in other places abroad too before that happens, but it will always have a special place in my heart. If you have ever lived in Africa... then you know how whilst the body can leave, the heart never will. I guess Sydney and Australia feel the same way for you ❣️ Yeah I am a Southern Hemisphere girl at heart, but I am blessed that the North has given me a peaceful home, some wonderful friends, and great life opportunities... so I am grateful 🙏🙏🙏

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I get you. I feel that way about Bali. I lived there for 15 months and long so much to go back. But there are also so many places to go and such much I can do here, I get you.

And I have not lived in Africa, as of yet, I haven't even visited. But my heart has wanted to go to Africa for... a very long time. In good time, all in good time. And it seems more likely than ever as I get to know more and more people living in Africa through Hive. 💗

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Aye, and some of us are geographically dispersed too. I have been getting to know quite a few people in South Africa, Nigeria, and Ghana too. Mixed in with so many other countries from around the world, Hive opens my eyes every day to the beauty of humanity's diverse cultures, religions, and lifestyles. It truly feeds my soul to be present for some time in this space every day !LUV

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Oooooh, Ghana! I'd like to meet someone from Ghana. I said to Brad the other day that I feel like I've only met white South Africans and black Nigerians and while I'm so grateful for these connections I'm aware that they feel like only two cultural perspectives I get to learn from. And I was wondering whether anyone from other cultural backgrounds from those countries and other countries were on here. So, you've confirmed: Ghana. I'll keep my eyes open. Oh... and I guess it's possible that I have met others, but people don't always (understandably) list their location.

Hive opens my eyes every day to the beauty of humanity's diverse cultures, religions, and lifestyles. It truly feeds my soul to be present for some time in this space every day

I truly think this is one of the things I love the most about being on Hive, and definitely something I wasn't expecting 🙏😍😀

Thanks for the !LUV lovely 😚

BTW, before I go, how are you feeling today? 😊

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Feeling a lot better thank you ... still tired ... but better ❤️ You should follow @leifasaur. He has a fascinating and very personal blog that covers his and his wife's (Dzigbordi) lives in Ghana and his travels around the world. Highly recommended. They are a lovely couple to follow.

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Thank you! I shall look at his profile today ❤️💛🧡

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Oh my goodness, I could recommend so many different people to follow across the Philippines, the UK, Pakistan, Germany, Canada, Ukraine, USA, well all over really ... hehe. Do you want blogs or short story content? or both... I could jot down a few here...

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Oh, I love you. 😚 (Have I said that yet in this 24 hour period? 😄)

I confess: I have been collecting people 😂 from across the globe 🌏 partly because I !LUV seeing photos from around the world 📸 but also because I get to learn from so many different perspectives! 👫👬👭

So I now have Hive friends in the Philippines ✔️ the UK ✅ the USA ☑️ and Canada (I think!!). Hmmm, Pakistan (just recently, yes ✔️), but I'm not sure about Germany or the Ukraine?

Definitely a bunch of other awesome countries (many, in fact), but always happy to add more countries to the mix. But I'll only follow people if I think they're awesome. No point in "collecting" a country if I think the person is boring or an asshole 😂

So, what am I looking for?

I more of a creator than a consumer TBH. I struggle to read a lot of other people's content, partly because I have crazy high standards and partly because I have so much to say of my own I'd rather express than consume.

But, I appreciate really good quality (shorter-ish) content on:

⭐ psychology
🌟 (plant based) nutrition
✴️ (easy to understand) Hive and crypto stuff
✳️ travel!
⭐ adventures in the outdoors (hiking, climbing, running, etc)
🌟 (wise, grounded) philosophy
✴️ + anything else you've seen me enthusiastically comment on 🤩

That's heaps for now! Don't work too hard on this hey? 🤨 But your ideas and suggestions welcome 😍

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(Edited)

for crypto/Hive: taskmaster4450, readthisplease, penderis, onealfa, shubhwaj (latter also good for travel)
for good healthy living: riverflows (I see you already joined her communities: natural medicine and plant power (vegan))
philosophers with some psychology too (and good writers): if you can get into a good conversation in the comments...all the better ...: litguru, erh.germany, scholaris, calumam, jin-out, khoola

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@consciouscat

They say that "home is where the heart is" and while my love lies firmly with my darling man, I have come to realise that my heart is big enough to love many people and many places and many spaces.

Love this... Yes... someone always has it worse. But when we are the one's living it... sure makes it tough, aye? Beautiful and heartfelt #thoughtfuldailypost my friend. Thank you so much, for using my TAG.

k75bsZMwYNu2L3iBMXq5y7xeiy1isFJsZxnMZSXuXEsxe4ee1cUkGyPyfEF6xffwkdtNDL1ETjujF9B1sDnYsu8s6KduFqoBrAShnoEyrgmL6TXU8yEuajDJa7axTpZonEaGdTm7n96gDa3JWa56r29Nxa5GRGRdg.pngWes...

!LUV !hivebits

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Thank you @wesphilibin 🙏

And I was in the habit for a while there to include your tag, but somehow in my steep learning curve with all-things-Hive I forgot. My intuition whispered to me yesterday to include this (tag) so I will endeavour to remember more often (since you seem to approve of the way I'm using it).

Please do tell me if there's a recent post somewhere with guidelines about when to use and when not to. I tend to try to be thoughtful in my writing all the time, but some of my posts are just vaguely interesting whereas others are deliberately and deeply thoughtful.

Thanks for the !LUV and may we both get some !hivebits ;)

BTW, did you see that it's LUV's 1 year birthday?

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