Always expect the unexpected.
I’m not entirely sure where the phrase comes from and when I think about it, I keep going back to the Monty Python sketch and that makes me think of my brother; we used to watch Monty Python together from when I was really quite young and probably far too young to understand the humour, but he liked it and he’s my big brother so I liked it too.
So, that is the week that was. I don’t think anybody quite anticipated the start to the week that we had. Despite the fact that I have fairly much suspended belief generally, even so I’m not entirely sure I expected to return to school for part of a day, then have another day at home because of a typhoon and then start the week again on Wednesday. But hey, if the last … (I’ve kind of lost track of how long is really) period of time has shown as anything, it really is to expect the unexpected. I’m just trying to roll with it. And, for those of you who have known me a while, that’s really not very me! (Well, not the ‘old’ me anyway.)
It occurred to me that, when you spend time with yourself and really reflect, you realise certain things about yourself. I’m not talking about necessarily being on your own, this is about the time you are actively alone. You not only realise just how strong you are and what you are capable of, but you also realise what you need to flourish. You can be among others and feel alone, or you can be among others and feed off their energy in exactly the same way you can be with yourself and anything in between. What is crucial is that you take the time to know what makes you tick. Enforced time alone makes you do that and sometimes we realise that we fill up our time with whatever it may be to avoid being with ourselves or even avoid others because we don’t believe people want to spend time with us or they just feel sorry for us. That’s the unhealthy bit.
Having connections is important, whoever those connections are with. It is those connections which keep us going and protect us from being too damaged by the challenging times. Relationships require effort. All relationships, no matter how apparently inconsequential they are (as I write that I wonder whether that is actually possible). Even the most casual of acquaintances have an impact on us and our lives. I used to feel a whole plethora of emotions when thinking of the people I have met, people I considered friends at the time, and now I rarely hear from them. I am now much more philosophical; people come and go in our lives for different amounts of time and they all serve a purpose. However long they are with us, they leave a trace; there is always an impact on something. It may not be immediately noticeable, but it is always there.
So, what I’ve been thinking about today is really how important it is not just to keep connections with others but keep that connection with yourself, staying true to what you believe or what you value. I really do think that when you are able to do this, decisions are just so much more straightforward. When you have good quality connections, being open to new experiences is uplifting because there are always people there if it all goes wrong and there to celebrate with when it doesn’t!
Music today was Collide by John Michael Montgomery and I Swear. The All 4 One version made me think of the year I went to the Radio 1 Roadshow in Torquay and I heard it being played for the first time. I won’t say which year, but it was the year Bitty Maclean guest starred!
I’m writing this in the DiDi on my way to work. It’s lovely and quiet at the moment because it’s early. I love seeing Shanghai as it is waking up and stretching its arms, having a good yawn as it greets a new day. I like this time of day because it feels like it is just me and the city.
Happy Friday everybody.
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