Just a little scribble...

So I’m back in Nottingham! My Mum and brother have just left after spending a few days in my ‘student digs’ as she called it, enjoying the shops and sights of the city. Back alone again in my student house. Me, myself and I.  (OK, that’s a lie… another housemate is actually here too so I’m not crying into my pillow out of loneliness just yet…)

It’s been an emotional few days though, and I can’t really place why. The most obvious reasons spring to mind; leaving home again, not seeing family for over a month whilst facing a promising and exciting term of essays and exams…

But I suspect there’s more than that. I feel like a little scribble on here will clear things up a bit and as two things keep popping into my head lately I’m going to subject you to reading about them:

1) Writing
This is, as you all know, what I want to do with my life. This is also what I am (apparently) rather good at. However this is also rather hard to earn a living from and with time moving fast and more experience needed, I’m getting increasingly worried about how I’ll break into the writing scene and actually manage to make some money from it… I know people who, this time last year, spent their summer between second and final year at University undertaking numerous work experience placements and internships, making contacts and lining up that perfect job. I am currently awaiting a response from one place I have applied, trying to think of another article to write and frantically skimming through contact pages for every newspaper and magazine I can think of. My thoughts flit between journalism, review writing, and fictional writing; each equally as hard to break into!

Yet, all is not lost. A faint glimmer of hope appeared when I stumbled across a writing workshop in Nottingham in the next few weeks… I’m going to apply for said workshop and see where it takes me. It focuses on reviews like book, theatre and travel…which could be ideal and leads me onto the next occupying thought in my mind…

2) Kenya.

I don’t think I’ve written about this yet, which is actually quite surprising. If you ask any of my friends I’ll have mentioned Kenya to them at least 5 times. In the summer of 2010, I spent a month on expedition in Nanyuki in Kenya, helping out at an orphanage in Timau, meeting the Masai tribe, going on safari and climbing Mount Kenya. (Yes…I CLIMBED A MOUNTAIN!!!)

I came back with what felt like a brand new focus. Things that worried me before suddenly felt petty compared to the worries of the people I met. I stopped caring as much about material possessions and unwittingly caught the travelling bug, catching myself occasionally staring longingly at my huge rucksack and walking boots. Yet it was lovely to come back home, and when I first sank into our sofa with a nice cup of traditional English tea, it felt like perfection.

 To be honest, I felt like I came back refreshed with my eyes that little bit more open and clear, ready to take on anything (I mean, I climbed a mountain!!). I had a clear view on what really mattered to me; the people in Africa were inspirational in the way that, they might not have had much, but they still had an unbelievable spirit and an ability to laugh and smile so much that it became contagious! I’m proud to be able to say that I’m still in contact with the orphanage and frequently send letters and gifts over. They reply in emails, calling me ‘sister’ and hoping that I’ll return soon. One reply even said they’d love it if I came back and lived there! They might think twice if they had me there all the time… ! 

I also still talk to some of the guides that took care of us around Kenya, who asks how things are in England and also occasionally drops in a question as to when I’ll be back…

I know it’s a cliché, but Africa really gets under your skin.  At first, travelling from Nairobi into the country, we were a bit unsure, thinking we were facing a bleak and dusty landscape. But the wildlife, the scenery, the people….they all just get to you. We were practically in the middle of nowhere and looking back, that probably was what made it so appealing. At night, sitting around a campfire, we’d look up and see stars flecked in the night sky – so clear and only the sounds of the bush to disturb our thoughts.

 When people say they want to go travelling, of course all the big cities and sights spring to mind; New York, Rome, Paris… but there’s also a craving for a bit of adventure. A bit of wilderness. A bit of road that no one’s been down yet… But this road less travelled is somewhat costly.  When I went to Kenya it took a year and a half and one extra job to fundraise £3,500 for the trip… and that’s not including the equipment.

Yet I wouldn’t change a thing. I’m itching to go back and I’m envious of the girl who went there two years ago. Sometimes, amidst all the stresses of life and the to-ing and fro-ing between university and home, I feel like I’ve dimmed a little. You get used to moving between places and try to make the days count in each place, but sometimes it’s not quite enough and sometimes amongst all the humdrum of daily life, you forget what’s really important and who really counts to you. This, I think, is the bottom line of my emotional moments when my Mum left. I’m normally ok, ‘take it all in my stride’ as she says. But sometimes, it all just piles up and that little unexplored place inside your mind; that little bit of wilderness that beckons to you just needs a little visit. You need a little break.

And I need some chocolate…