could be anything

struggling to keep track of where I am and trying to count the good things as they come and go. I’m with Isaiah in Canberra at the moment, as he brings together a project he’s been working on for months. whilst he conquers this mountain, Josh finishes his first term as a classroom teacher. I couldn’t be prouder of them both.

Pia is in Australia. an accidental friend from a cheap hostel in Milan. the warmest hugs and a feeling as though no time had passed between laughing together. she’s exploring the country and promises to visit Tasmania with me later on. 

Paris’s cat, ‘little guy’. a beautiful baby who reminds me of Tiggy. he’s been looking after Zi and I this week. 

my little guys.

little guy and Paris.

Maggie Simpson - sacrificial lamb of Mr Burns: a post-electric play. Isaiah and his friends have created something very special. I’m humbled to witness it.

little guy sleeping and little guy perching. 

moments of wonder in the capital - Pollock.

national portrait gallery - or Lorde, Melodrama?

Mils and Nic holding me this week.

I’m a little shaken at the moment and I count my lucky stars Isaiah and Paris have kept me close and busy. I worry how it’ll feel returning to Sydney and the quiet of my tiny bedroom. mum and dad will arrive tomorrow, and I’ll be with them once more for too little time before taking the trip back to my other life. it all moves and my heart stays the same.

I’m lucky and I won’t forget it, but I feel how I feel and I know that it’s real. <<

this way

occupying a space in constant movement. I bounce from distraction to distraction until I’m tired. I sleep and start again and we continue this way. 

I threw out some cheap shoes when they fell apart. one lingered on the sidewalk for at least a week. I don’t know how it got there or where it went. so it goes.

Eurydice closed two weeks ago now. I was given a chance to really engage with some pretty important things through that experience, and I count myself lucky to have had the opportunity to use storytelling as a way of trying to make sense of how I feel. it’s strange. Orpheus is a character I really cared for. the gift of spending time in his shoes was like a warm hug. I doubt I’ll soon forget the time we shared and how it felt to see love and loss through his eyes.

stories continue beyond curtain call. life rolls on. I try ro make it count each day, and look at how fortunate I am with gratitude. missing my homes and those I love I can’t be with and hold. time does very little to some feelings. <<

in seconds

days roll over each other and I lose track of where I thought I was meant to be going. a two week show season disappears in seconds. we repaint the walls and dismantle the set. a few drinks to celebrate and that’s it? not quite ready to unpack Orpheus and the time I spent with him. sometime soon maybe.

weekend full of precious moments. dancing to celebrate Millie arriving, stuccwits galore. breakfast with Eliza and her parents, sushi and bubble tea with mum and Zi before a nap on the bunk. 

a very precious closing show. a heavy heart for dear Orpheus and the grief he endures. big feelings and warm hugs. phone calls with precious friends from afar. longing forever.

sleep needs catching up on. I’ll write more soon. I’ve been very lucky and will try to remind myself every day. to find meaning in so many places is something very special. <<

ebb and flow

everything moves for a moment. there is fluidity to every second and I have long since given up on trying to keep track of it all. each day brings newness and something foreign to the stream. I stay put with one foot left on land.

last weekend my family and I visited Isaiah in Canberra. we watched him perform in a production he’d been involved in for quite a while. I was so proud of him. in his company I realise just how much I miss his being close to me, and just how much I love him.

I relish the friends I’ve been spoiled with. the luck I’ve had to find the people that shape my experiences is something I’ll never understand. Nic and co. looking out for me. Stucco welcomed me home whenever I need it. how lucky can one person be?

filling space and time to make some kind of meaning. distraction is bliss! we opened Eurydice on Wednesday. four of eight performances have passed. some nights I feel close to the text and Orpheus. I’ve not cared for a character this deeply in forever. it’s a real gift.

thinking about music.

looking for what’s been lost.

losing everything that mattered.

overwhelmed with the support of my friends, showing up each night to listen to our silly story and cheer us on. seeing Bernice smile brings me deep joy.

living at the theatre through performance weeks and learning more about Orpheus each night I spend in his clothes. I wish I knew him better, though I’m lucky to be knowing him at all.

Blake surprised me at the show. we drank bubble tea and visited a gallery and the Chinese garden of friendship. dumplings and noodles for lunch. a beautiful Sunday. I called Fieke in the evening - she plans on visiting this summer. a year ago today I was with Nash in New York. time. does the ebb and flow ever make sense?

<<

Jenae’s podcast

I spoke about writing here last night. for her course, Jenae is creating a podcast series about people preserving memories online in different ways. she knew about this page, and reached out to ask if I’d be happy to talk about it. until that point she hadn’t interviewed friends, so I tried to remind myself to not let our familiarity with and fondness for each other get in the way of my responses.

she asked me to read a blog post of my choosing aloud. this is something I’d never done before. answering her questions made me realise things about this space and why I still use it. I hardly ever go back to read and relive where I’ve been, though I still feel the need to tie experiences and feelings to words here. why? I think I left the conversation with unanswered questions about my own motivation and pursuit of meaning. but it was special to sit with Jenae in this context and force ourselves to be vulnerable for each other. the friendship felt present tense last night. she is a wonderful listener and a champion in my life.

it’s a strange conversation to mull over in this space. Jenae’s questions have reminded me of the filtering of emotions I do without realising when writing here. where do those other thoughts and feelings go? I’ve been bad with my journaling - I’m always much better when I’m travelling. I know the time always comes and I’ll spend the time it takes to write what I remember with a pen on paper, just for me. but I wonder what makes it so easy here - or what appeals to me about it. how much of it is my own vanity, the awareness that someone else out there might be reading along and thinking of me? I can remove mirrors from my room and hide my face. controlling my thoughts is a lot more complex.

he is looking at the world outside. the expression in his face reads as though he’s unimpressed. I like this photo. the window is dirty, like my glasses often are. his view of the world is tainted by the smear on the glass. somedays my view is tainted more than others. but I still have to keep my eyes open regardless. this is the way.

missing those I love and can no longer hold. counting what I am lucky to have and treasuring it as best I can. <<

limbo living

limbo living at the moment. days are the spaces between sleep. dreams feel like life sometimes, a life where I find myself less tired and less restricted by the limitations of logic and my own humanity.

on the move a lot. occupying myself with enough to never be left to my thoughts. I think this is helpful right now. I see friends and call my parents and fill empty space with excuses not to stop. writing and reading and running and drifting.

I take a moment to appreciate my capacity to see the world through the eyes I’ve been given. nobody else has this opportunity, and I’ll never truly see the world from the eyes of anyone else. we’re all seeing something different in the same spaces.

I miss every day. this is forever and this is okay. one day at a time for forever and a half. <<

permanent places

one day at a time. trying my best to notice the good and not take what I have for granted. warmer weather. songs that make me feel understood. a bed and clothes I feel safe in. people occupying permanent places in my heart as I move from one moment to the next.

Nic and I walked around the city today. two years to the day since I moved to Sydney and found a home at Stucco. time means little but it’s still a funnh thought to me that this city has been my halfway home for a while. not quite sure what to think of it. never sure how I’m meant to feel.

a lot of missing. wishing I could take away the pain and do more for those I love. breathing. I haven’t written in my journal since I moved back in April. a need to learn how to listen to myself.

holding it all in my heart. <<