The first 10 months

So, it’s been a little more than 10 months since I’ve packed up my bags, said goodbye to the life that I’ve known for 29 years and set sail (or in this case flight) to the unknown. Well, it’s not exactly the unknown since The Netherlands is rather known but usually for nothing more than drugs, sex and windmills. Saving goodbye to my life in Singapore was a bitter-sweet experience. I was almost 5 years into my career and was starting to really enjoy it was learning alot and was climbing up the 'corporate' ladder but I know that that's not the only thing in life. Happiness to me, is not how big my bank account is, how many designer products I have or how many people I have working under me. But I know that I needed something more. I wanted a life. I want to be able to look back onto my life 40 years from now and say, "Yes, I did live it to the fullest. I did do the things that I WANTED to do and not things that I HAD to do." That to me is the true meaning of living. But of course life is not just something that happens to you. Maybe it does when you're younger and your parents or another adult pretty much made all the decisions for you. But they would come a point when you have to be responsible for your own life and ultimately for your own happiness.
Making the initial decision to move to Netherlands was easy. It usually is when it involves love. But between the time I decided to move over till the actual move itself was not as smooth sailing as I would have wanted it to be. Shakespeare said that the course of true love never did run smooth and that applies to long distance love too. And at times I did think about what I had to 'give up'... my family, my friends and my career. But I also know that the main part of what was sometimes keeping me back was fear. Fear of the unknown, fear that maybe my relationship was not going to workout and I would have to pick up the pieces. Fear of having to start allover again. I did need my partner to be the strong one and thank god he was. I would be eternally grateful to him for practically dragging me kicking and screaming onto the plane...well actually I got on the plane on my own cos he was here at that time. Looking back, it was one of the best decision that i made. Sure, there has been some difficult times for me; looking for a job, making new friends, adjusting to the weather here (which I love actually, except when I'm on my bike and it's pouring), but all those difficulties has made me a much stronger person. Being here has taught be plenty of things. I now know how to cook, bake and clean the house. These may seem like small accomplishment to some but to me, a person who has always lived with her grandmother has has always had things done for her, being able to do all that is a big deal. I can honestly say that I am rather proud of myself. It took sometime, but I realised that I will always have my friends and my family and that I will make new friends, and I did. I may not have a job now but I will always have my qualification and my experience. For now, I should just enjoy life and make the most of everyday. I should have things slow and stop to smell the roses (something I was not really able to do back in Singapore as I'm always so busy with work), and bake more!