How far I've come?

I remember the first night I got my own place in Finland. I sat there in a 32 square metre (studio apartment) rental which was largely unrenovated since it was built in 1967 (the bathroom was redone in the 90s). After many years of tenants hanging pictures, there were dozens of holes randomly scattered across the dull grey wallpapered walls. You could hardly notice them though as star patterns cut from a similar coloured wallpaper, but different texture, patched them over.

I remember sitting there thinking 'Where did I go so wrong?'.

Living here has taught a boy that grew up in a very large, old farmhouse how little space he actually needs to survive. Even 14 years later, I haven't expanded my footprint too much.

When I left Australia I was 23 and had bought my own place (mortgage) at 18. It was a great 3 bedroom investment property and I worked very hard while at university full-time to get it (I have actually worked since I was 12, officially since 15). When I came here though, my mother was already very ill and in the end my place was sold to pay for her final care and relocation back to her home town.

A young egg in the nest doesn't last long under such conditions and I am pretty sure that my life would have been somewhat easier going in Finland, if I had had a little money behind me. The lessons I have learned starting again from zero as an adult are a value I wouldn't have received though.

Before I start writing for the night I thought I would share a few 'very old' photos. I haven't been back to Australia since the start of 2009 and these were taken in Cairns, the place where I had my house. It is a little city of 120 thousand and has the tag 'the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef' for obvious reasons. A tropical paradise that even though it sees a couple million tourists per year, still feels like a small town. At least when I was there last.

Taraz
[ a Steemit original ]

And this is where I have chosen to live instead...