The First Week
I can’t believe that Thursday and Friday of last week I was packing a U-Haul and moving out of Toronto. My friend and I packed my entire one bedroom apartment in that truck in four hours. We crushed it. Going through all my shit I was like, ugh what a waste. I had plans for this, that, and the other thing. It’s amazing what you can acquire in two years. I literally moved into that apartment with nothing and now two years later I am moving out with an entire one bedroom. I didn’t bother trying to sell anything online because I only had two weeks to get my life sorted before this big adventure and I wasn’t about to spend it haggling with people on facebook.
After my friend and I packed my shit up I said thank you, next! I blasted some Ariana Grande and drove two hours away to throw all my stuff in my parents basement. Sorry mom and dad! I backed that U-Haul up into their driveway all by myself and sent the photo to everyone…look at me being an independant woman! Luckily my parents are snowbirds so they weren’t home to witness all the shit I was bringing in.
The next day three friends drove up from Toronto and helped me unload the heaviest stuff. As a reward for all that hard work we went on a mini adventure over the border to Buffalo. The plan was to go to a restaurant that Anthony Bourdain went to but that didn’t pan out. Instead we went downtown to the artsy area and ordered wings from a local pub, seemed like the thing to do in Buffalo. Then we went to Target and Trader Joe’s; two places we don’t have in Canada. During the last five minutes before Target was closing it was like a supermarket sweep of power shopping and I ended up buying the perfect purse for traveling. They rushed us out of there by turning off the lights, they had places to be, it was a Friday night after all. We drove back to Toronto that night, what a day! I slept at my friend’s place for the next two nights before my Sunday flight to Turks and Caicos.
And that was this time last week(!) I was in the sky flying to this island of paradise. I have flown the same route over these same turquoise waters many times. The last time I was here was in 2020 and I was trying to escape this place in the middle of a lockdown. I was at a very a low point in my life and I didn’t know if I would ever come back here, but I am glad I did. This last week reminded me why I loved this place so much; the ocean, the food, the people, and the sunsets. All of it is worth the slight anxiety of revisiting old wounds.
That is a big reason why I came back…to finish writing the book I started here in 2020. I have healed so much since then. My personal growth is immeasurable and I feel different. I don’t have any remorse or anger, mostly indifference. Like, it is what it is. I spent this last week going over the first few chapters of my book and it is easier to connect the dots now that I have had some space since I first started writing it. I really love how this book is turning out and I can wait for you to read it.
I spent this week reconnecting and remembering. I am starting my big adventure here in Turks and Caicos because it feels right. It’s been the one place I always come back to. I love it here. It’s my home away from home and I am trying to find my next home so I might as well go to my second home to remember why I called it home in the first place. Ya feel me?
I wrote in my last blog that right now I need a place to live that has to be close to a body of water, accessibility to all things by walking or biking, and affordability. This place may be close to a body of water yet it is not bikeable or affordable, it’s just really pretty! This is a millionaires paradise and I don’t ‘just wanna get by’. I wanna thrive. One day I will live in a villa beside the ocean, just not right now. Similar to Dubai, Turks and Caicos gives me that feeling of abundance and possibility. It inspires me to strive for more and it shows me what is possible. I love that for me.
I can’t believe all the things I’ve done on this island since I have been here; I went to a beach party to celebrate my friend’s birthday. I spent an entire day tattooing the friend that I am staying with. I went to a games night with delicious Indian food and crushed the game ‘meatballs’. I spent one full day chilling on a patio with some homies on mushrooms during rainstorm. I ate from my favourite Thai place. I went to the other side of the island to Omar’s and had traditional island food. I went on a sunset boat cruise. I jumped in a canal and swam around. I saw my turtle friends aka my spirit animal. I did a work out class at 7am outside that kicked my ass. And I’ve taken one too many time lapse videos of the beautiful sunsets.
This has been a great week to say the least! Like I said, the slight anxiety I was having about coming back here was a toxic feeling to hold on to. I would have missed out on all the goodness this place has to offer if I remained in that anxious state. It feels so good to know that I have moved on. This was just the beginning! I am so excited to see how the next week unfolds…
