Theme: Emotional Attachment
Subtheme: Family/Adopted Family
Point Pleasant Park. On the first day the lockdown restrictions lifted, I went for a walk around Fort Needham Park for the first time and met Muggle (Bernese Mountain Dog pictured) as a freshly baked puppy. Fast forward a few months, I brought home my puppy. They became besties quick, with both pups having a similar laidback energy. Their favourite game is bitey face. Together with the humans, we often go on adventures at the beaches and hiking trails.
West End, Halifax. Rigoberto the Rojo Congo is co-owned by plant pal and me. Our friendship started out with me offering plant pal some sphagnum moss to rescue a melanochrysum wet stick (now RIP). The plant parenthood lifestyle quickly evolved to include larger and larger plants for both of us. In the case of Rigoberto, it was an exhilarating adventure taking them home. While we were driving down the highway, I was literally on fire for five seconds, the fire burnt a hole through my jacket and almost went through my sweater gg. Still reeling from the fact that the fire was right next to 14-year-old Scooter the Chihuahua who made absolutely no noise throughout the predicament. We originally thought the fire flew into humongous Rigoberto sitting in the backseat, that was why attention was diverted from the front. Long story short, I’m on a mission to get plant pal to quit smoking. It’s not just lung cancer that may kill!
A major factor in my decision to stay or leave Nova Scotia is my family. Although we are spread throughout the Atlantic provinces, we see each other regularly and prioritize spending time with each other. Staying in NS would ensure that I can see my family regularly and maintain these important relationships.
Subtheme: Hopes and Dreams
Simon Point catching the sun: In the ancient Egyptian mythology Apophis devours the sun. In this modern age we catch it with a bug catcher net……….. hahahahah.
Louisbourg Lighthouse: The Sea has always been one of my favorite places to go when I need time to think about my life, action and plans. Looking at the water and how it merges with the horizon, an endless vastness of it and the very definition of calmness and chaos on the surface.
Subtheme: No More Kiasu
The Past: Sticking with a similar theme to the previous one, being home constantly reminds me of some of the failures I’ve faced in life. As a teenager growing up, I showed incredible potential in taekwondo and soccer, obtaining my black belt at the age of 15 for the former and receiving an athletic scholarship to join a soccer academy for the latter. However, major injures meant I was forced to give up the prospects I had with those sports. Coming to Nova Scotia has afforded me a fresh start, so to say, where I have been able to leave behind the ghosts of my past that still haunt me for the prospects and potential that I never lived up to.
Second Chances: The last 2-3 years prior to my arrival in Nova Scotia were fraught with challenges and obstacles that destroyed me both mentally and emotionally. The combination of being far from home, the warmth of Nova Scotians, and the opportunities available to me, has allowed me to slowly piece myself back together after everything that’s happened. I have come to love the beauty of sunsets down by the water, the peace it brings. I often to take time out of my day to go to the water at sunset, to reflect on everything going on in life, and I have come to synonymize sunsets with my 2nd chance in life.