To Starting: Everything Good Was Once But A Whisper

I’ve been resistant to the actual act of journaling for a while now. My brain constantly says “you should be” and I truly want to. But the act of finding my physical journal has always been a barrier. Then between the waffling of the “how” I end up not doing it.

So this is it, I’m drawing a line and starting. We’re supposed to start and figure out the how later.

And as someone who finds the actual pen to paper process slow (that’s probably something to dig in to ha) it’s always been a deterrent. So here I am, cracking open my proverbial digital journal so I can capture the memories, the questions and the process of life.

I sit here, staring out the window into the vastness that is Norway. I’ve been to very few places that I stare out the window so much.

Well that’s a lie, I’ve stared out of a lot of windows over the past 2 years since moving to Europe.  There’s something so magical about rising, pouring a cup of coffee and staring out the window at landscapes, buildings, seas that inspire and awe me daily. It makes you realize how wild it is that we exist on this Earth.

So, put “staring out of windows” officially on my hobby list.

Nick and I are on our fourth week in Norway. It’s going faster than I thought it would and slower at the same time.

At the beginning of the summer if you asked me which country I was most excited for I would have shouted “Norway!” at you instantly!

We’ve traipsed through Spain (more on that lovely country to come), Switzerland, Austria, Germany, Denmark and now Norway. 

It’s been an interesting experience spending so long in a country where there’s truly not much to do besides the outside. 

In a country of only 5 million people there are long drives in between stays and tiny towns.

The people though – well the people have been lovely.

It’s so funny that as we travel we examine what stereotypes are true, which are true on the surface but if you dig deeper there’s always so much more depth and nuance to every community.

We spent about a half hour talking to two women who were painting a community shed together yesterday. 

When people see Nick and I (plus the dogs) they always ask “are you on holiday?” and we look at eachother and reply, “Well, sort of?”

Then we dig into the fact that we drove from Lisbon and are on month 4 of a road trip and at this point it’s been about 50 hours of drive time. We run our business and explore at the same time..so not really holiday but a blend of life and work.

We tell them we are staying in Norway for about 7 weeks and they instantly light up. They pulled out their iphones to show us all of the local hikes and restaurants we must visit. They tell us we must visit the Lofoten Islands (it’s on my bucket list) but I share that it’s an extra 25 hours of drive time one way and maybe a flight would be better in the future.

Everyone is so proud of where they are from.

It’s a lesson that we only need to inquire a bit more, share a bit of our own stories with people and see how the conversation unfolds.

Most people are good and want to share the things that light them up.

Until next time.

Things that brought me joy this week:

• Learning that Rømmegrøt is in fact not a breakfast but instead a dessert/dinner item. I still don’t think I’ll try it….
• Finding a Mexican food truck that truly had salsas and flavors I haven’t tasted since living in the states. Who would have thought Voss, Norway would be the place?
• Seeing lakes that look like glass and you can’t tell what’s up or down in the reflection (obviously my brain knows but wow!)