Return home

We have returned to Sydney after two weeks away in England and then Singapore. Our trip back was great, particularly seeing family and friends, some of whom I haven’t seen for two years. But it feels good to be back here especially returning from the cold of the English winter to the heat of the Sydney summer.

Our trip was a whistle stop tour of Manchester, Salisbury, Essex, Walton-on-Thames and London, with a cheeky three day stop off in Singapore on the way home. These trips are no longer holidays so much as a family and friend catchup. Seeing everybody is a treat that we savour for the short time spent with our closest people. But everyday we see someone else and then say goodbye to them for another year or more. We cram in catchups with as many people as mentally possible because we want to see them. It is exhausting, not physically but emotionally and mentally, because saying goodbye multiple times over takes a little out of you each time. It is also a privilege to be able to experience that, because if Catherine didn’t earn what she does then we wouldn’t be saying hellos and goodbyes in person, but rather on the phone.

This may sound to you as though I am complaining and that I should be grateful that I have the opportunity. Well I am grateful, I bloody love seeing my family and friends. Would I like to see them more? Of course. But Catherine and I made the decision to move to Australia to experience a new life and travel. The cost is that we don’t live so close to those we love, we can’t just organise a weekend away to see them. Instead we live a great life near the beach with a handful of awesome friends. It’s our home where friends and family can come and visit and relax with us. I am extremely grateful for that and over the past year of improving my mental state I have come to enjoy each day I am here a great deal more.

Now that we are home I have returned to my routine of meditation, writing and reading. I am now throwing in regular exercise and a handful of other tools to create a better mental state for myself. I have not been able to finish my book by the end of 2016 as planned. But whilst away I had some great ideas and added new content to the book. The result of this is that I am following exactly what I have written because I like to practice what I preach in life. If you are interested in getting a copy of the book just send me a short email at tjalfry@icloud.com and I will send you one when it’s completed soon.

I’ll chat to you again soon but before I do I will leave you with this piece of wisdom:

If you are depressed, you are living in the past. If you are anxious, you are living in the future. If you are at peace, you are living in the present. – Lao Tzu

Tom :)