ONE YEAR LATER
When I was a little girl my mother used to read me fairy tales. I remember these stories of heroic princesses (who despite the odds) found happily-ever-after. Â It was always the idea of love that captivated me as a child, but as I grew up I soon realized that it wasnât love that made the princess happy, it was the journey. In fact, my favorite fairy tale had nothing to do with a prince. For just as Alice fell down the rabbit hole, I too have been on the most curious and wonderful adventure.
There is a place, like no place on earth.
A land full of wonder, mystery, and danger.
Some say, to survive it, you need to be as mad as a hatter,
Which luckily, I am.-Alice in WonderlandÂ
I have been living in Oz for 370 days now. Can you believe it? I remember packing my belongings nearly one year ago as I left the comfort of home behind for a world of uncertainty. I remember that final hug from my mother as I boarded a plane bound for HawaiiâandâI even remember the fear in my eyes as I once again said my goodbyes and traveled to Australia. One year. I have not hugged my mother in one year. I have not spent a single holiday with my family in one year. I wasnât there when my best friend gave birth to her first child. I wasnât there to celebrate my nephewâs 13th birthday. And I wasnât there when my sister announced that she was expecting baby number three. In fact, I havenât stepped foot on American soil for one whole year.
So what have I been doing? WellâŠthereâs a lot to catch you up on. As with any adventure, you will always experience the highs and the lows. The first three months were the hardest. I was homesick nearly every day and didnât know how to cope with the emotions I was feeling. It was exciting being in a new place but in my heart I knew something was missing. That missing piece (as I would soon find out) was Toby, an 8-week old Vizsla/Border Collie. The moment Toby arrived, I felt a sense of comfort and relief which helped me let go of all the fear and loneliness I once held. I guess you could say my life in Australia hit a turning point. Soon after Toby I landed a full-time job as an analyst. I began to make new friends, and I finally felt settled in life. *I even became a local at the coffee shop down the street.
I suppose we all have to hit that âturning pointâ before life changes and you canât give up before it happens. It would have been easy to just go home, back to everything I knew. But as Alice once said, âher world was a mess, so she lost herself in a wonderland of madness.â I wasnât in madness but wonderland, most definitely. In October I traveled to Sydney and it was everything I had ever dreamed of. It was beautiful, sunny, and full of sights that any tourist would be elated to see. We landed on a Thursday afternoon and made it to our Darling Harbor hotel right in time for dinner. In customary fashion, I was exhausted and wanted an evening in while my rather jubilant boyfriend proclaimed that we couldnât waste our first night in Sydney. As I got ready for the night out, I couldnât believe how far I had come in the last eight months. Every tear and struggle was worth it because I was exactly where I was meant to be. We wandered towards downtown Sydney and eventually made it to our destination: O-Bar, a rotating restaurant on the 47th floor. While the views simply took my breath away, it was Jacob who stole my heart. Inside five handcrafted Babushka dolls were handwritten notes of our global love story. In the last, he asked me to be his bride.
My Aussie was finally my forever and he couldnât have chosen a more perfect place. We celebrated the night away and then the next two days. From Sydney we traveled to Fiji where we spent a week in paradise bliss. Every morning we woke up to sunshine and blue water as we meandered down the beach for coffee; stopping nearly every 5-feet to say âBulaâ which in Fijian means âHello.â The air was crisp and I was in heaven. Fiji was the ultimate relaxation and heading back to reality proved difficult. WellâŠreality for another two weeks. Two weeks later we ventured to Hamilton Island, perhaps the most beautiful place on earth. As Jacob finished his triathlon, I was mesmerized by the various blues the sky and water had blended together. Hamilton Island was the place I had always dreamed of and the serenity it brought my life was the pinnacle of this year-long journey.
So here we are, one year later. I eat Vegemite every single day and without hesitation sit on the left-hand side of the car. Iâve touched a koala as it ate eucalyptus and even climbed the Sydney Harbor Bridge (worth every penny). Iâve traveled around Australia-from the Great Ocean Road to Queensland. Iâve been parasailing in Fiji and began a post-graduate degree in security. I got a puppy, a fiancĂ©, and the most amazing family and friends. I celebrated holidays I didnât even know existed while learning how to play cricket and footy. I could have let my fear and sadness consume me those first three months but then I would have missed out on the journey. So here is my final advice for you.
Stop telling yourself no and start saying yes. You can always have more money and there will always be bills to pay. I know, you canât travel without money right? Wrong. I sold all my belongings and came to Australia with only savings and no guarantee of a job. Sure, it was hard. But money should never hold you back from what you want and dream of. Next, there will always be Grandmaâs birthday or Stacyâs graduation. Stop with the family commitments. Your family will love you no matter where in the world you are. As long as they know you are thinking about them, your relationship will stay the same. Lastly, life is too shortâŠso please, please see the world. It is the most magical, colorful, and exuberant place. Try new food, learn new cultures and never stop exploring-even if itâs just for one year, one month, one week, one minute.
Alice: How long is forever? White Rabbit: Sometimes, just one second.
As for me, I will keep doing the same and updating you on the journey as I go. Whatâs next? A wedding in Maui, a honeymoon in the Maldives, and tons of surprises in between.
Xoxo, Kaitlynn