In with the old, out with the new…so they say. Oh, excuse the slip…kwete’d up. :P Reverse that bit…haha. So anyway, here is my toast to the coming New Year: I’d like to take a moment to reflect on the behemoth of events that unfolded this year, to give some perspective on how excellent it is ending. January started out more than shaky. I’m positive it was only the purrs and cuddly love of my cat, Nefertiti that kept me sane. (So maybe I’m really not? :P) February brought me a huge change, moving up country to the Rhino sanctuary, to live in a little slice of paradise. While the place is fantastic, it was quite the lifestyle change, and it took me some time to adjust to the seeming loneliness. However, I quickly took the bush life and was able to find an endless source of entertainment in all the animals and plants around me. My bush walks have easily become the highlight of every day and I relish in the beauty and calm of nature. I can say that this break from city life has truly afforded me the ability to do some serious soul searching, and learn so much about myself I was too distracted to pay attention to before. What a blessing it has been!!! With the move came many other things. It put a large divide in my relationship, but ultimately this turned out to be one of the best things for me. It showed me that I do not need a relationship to validate me as a person, that true love can cross the widest distances and still burn bright, and that it is never a good idea to base your entire existence on the company of another person. It made me a much stronger woman, and for that I am most grateful. Lessons on love are never easy, but if we can turn them into motivation to improve on our faults, phoenixes of the strongest nature are born. March and April were more than tough. I really battled armies of self-created demons, and many times I was sure the end was near. Work was stressing me, no family or friends around, and my kitty was still living in Kampala. At times I thought I had somehow time-warped back into the bitterest days of my childhood. The deepest sadness overcame me, and just to get out of bed became a struggle that seemed not worth fighting. Wounded and burdened, I shriveled into a beast not myself. The Dark Days were fierce. My redeemer was hours of watching The Office. Thank gawd for Michael Scott. I owe him big time. Then along came May, full of 20 new faces from Canada! The ASB Ryerson University team came at the absolute perfect time, right when I felt the world was collapsing around my ankles. Their enthusiasm, unique characters and friendship were the glue that mended my shards back together. If it were not for their assurances and insightful conversations, not to mention the whacky adventures we shared, I don’t know how I would have made it through the month. P and I decided on separation during this time, and I have to thank Patricia Nabaweesi, Emily Preston, Caitlin Russell Christina T, Savannah Clarkah, Ray Kao and Alvina Siddiqui for being pillars, counseling me through the roughest patches, and gently reminding me that I am somehow a badass. It was painful to part ways with these bright souls, and I know it sounds cheesy being it was only one month, but I really grew so close to these folks. I really hope that we will all meet up again before we leave this beautiful planet for other dimensions. May closed with a bang, and we were on to June. Enter Chelsea Starkweather. Ohhhhhh banange, what a gal! If ever there were a chick I could say overstood my madness, it would be this little lady. Whether it be chanting Om Nama Shivaya in the back of a lorry hurtling down the highway, seated on plush couches, smoking one to the ancestors, or witnessing U-F-freakin-O’s in the Nakitoma night skies, or participating in ancient spiritual rituals at the roaring source of the Nile, this chick surely contains a spark of my soul within hers. She’s got to be the least ‘Murican American I’ve met, and has contributed to my spiritual and feminine growth more than she probably ever desired to. Fartastic, for sure.
Posted on: Wed, 31 Dec 2014 12:02:46 +0000
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