Lessons I learned after I turned 30

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, let’s hope it’s a good one without any tears (well maybe some tears, mostly happy ones)

This is it! 2016 it’s almost over. And what a year it has been… The next few weeks will be very busy so this is the only chance I get to post before 2017 is upon us and I really wanted to so here it goes…

Many many lessons learned in 2016 that won’t fit in one post but if I have to choose the most important ones then they’ll have to be:

Trust yourself and be yourself. Self-confidence and believing in yourself is hard in this cruel world but it’s only one you and that’s what makes sou special, so trust your instincts and not be afraid to be you.

There are a lot of mean people out there, more than I thought (and fortunately a lot of nice and kindhearted, wonderful human beings), so you can’t be nice all the time and to everyone. I never really make any new year resolutions but I decided that this year I won’t let anyone spoil it for me anymore. Kick ass if I have to!

If something is too good to be true, then it probably is not.

And finally do whatever makes you happy! You see life is never easy, well not for all of us anyway, it’s hard as it is so don’t compromise, do whatever makes your heart beat faster.

All in all it’s been a fun year, full of laughter and I’m really happy I made new friends, became a godmother, tried new things, including starting this blog which helped me immensely with my confidence, getting over situations and making sense of life, done some silly things too but it has been rough at times. And I reached my breaking point more than once.

Apologies to my friends I haven’t seen for a while, it’s been tough couple of months but I promise I’ll make it up.

It’s been tough for a lot of us across the world with terrorist attacks, homophobic attacks, Brexit, Donald Trump elected as the US president, the crisis in Syria and many many more…

For me…

2016 found me starting my life from scratch, this time on my own, heartbroken, confidence at its lowest, in grief…

After 30 years I had to learn to live on my own and depend solely on myself. I never liked asking for help even from my other half or my family so it was a hell of a journey.

But I’m very proud of how far I come. I made mistakes, I took risks when I shouldn’t but I learned to trust and believe in myself and I know now that whatever happens, I can face it, however hard it might get.

And now it’s finally time for a little break, I’m going to have the most amazing Christmas and NYE and then new adventures await. I literally have no idea where I’ll be in a month’s time, but I hope everything will work out in the end. And if not, oh well I guess I’ll learn something new.

I never had much money and neither did my family. They still live in an old building which might collapse at any time.

But we learned to fight and do our best to provide for each other. We always cared more about each other than ourselves. We learned to live with little and appreciate the little things, we learned that it’s not important to get what you want, because it might not be possible, but we learned to always try our best with what we’ve got. We learned to love unconditionally.

We never needed the fanciest cars, the most expensive gifts or the newest phones to be happy.

We are the happiest when we are together having a laugh even at hard times, caring about each other, helping others, and that’s what it really matters. It’s always been about love and being grateful for what we have and I’m so happy and proud I was raised in such an amazing family. I wouldn’t change that for all the money in the world.

One day, if I have my own family, I’ll consider myself very lucky if I’m as half as a good parent as my parents are.

I have hundreds of Christmas wishes, my letter to Santa is quite long but if I only had one wish is for all of my loved ones to be happy, healthy and safe. If you are an expat or your family lives far away, you know exactly what I mean. It’s heartbreaking not to be able to be there whenever my sister or my dad has an accident or my aunt is sick or…

And one of my lifelong dreams is to one day be able to buy a house for my family (and build my own house exactly as I imagined it, but I don’t mind if that never happens) so I don’t have to worry about them. Which is wishing for the impossible but a girl can dream.

I never cared about having the most expensive clothes, bags or make-up. If you know me you probably know that. I’m not the prettiest or the fanciest dresser but I spend most of my money on bills (living on my own costs A LOT and sacrificing this won’t be easy), trips, gigs, experiences, spending time with friends, getting gifts for friends and family. And I wouldn’t change that for anything.

I sometimes worry about the future, it’s only natural but as long as I’m happy and do my best, I leave the rest to the universe.

I’ll leave you with this, which couldn’t be more true.

Merry Christmas to all of you and your families.

I hope all your Christmas wishes come true!

I know one of mine will 🙂

And I hope 2017 is much better for all of us. Amen.

Love you all! x

A year without her…you are always in our hearts… Αιωνια σου η μνημη θεια μου καλη μου.

A year ago, on this day, 17th of October, 2015 my beloved aunt Anna died.

On Saturday morning, 17/10/15, having quit a job I hated the day before, I was on a plane to Cyprus knowing I was going there to say goodbye to my wonderful aunt Anna who went through hell for a year battling stage 4 cancer… but I was 10 minutes late…she died before I got there. I won’t go into detail again because it was not just one of but the hardest, most heartbreaking and life-changing moment of my life. And it still gets me…

But if you want to know more about this amazing soul, what happened that day, the funeral 2 days later (19th of October, 2015 a difficult, sad but humbling and beautiful, sunny day none of us will ever forget) and what happened after that I’ve posted a series of blogs a while ago… (https://whatilearnedbeforeiturn30.wordpress.com/2016/02/26/4-months-ago-part-2-dedicated-to-my-aunt-anna/)

It’s worth posting again the school essay my little nephew, her grandson wrote about her a couple of months after her death..

For those who lost someone close to them who they loved dearly… this might sound familiar. I’ve lost other relatives before, but my aunt was the first person to lose that I was so close to…

The pain never really goes away. It gets easier to control as the time passes by, as we get on living our lives but it’s always there and sometimes hurts as much as it did on that day… I could only describe it as a healing wound that gets scratched every now and then and hurts again. It gets easier to live with but it’s always there.

And today it hurts as much as that day. I can’t even imagine how it feels for my cousin. If it was my mum I wouldn’t be able to cope with it that well. She is a real heroine. Γεωργία μου είσαι ηρωίδα μάνα και η θεία βλέπει σε που ψηλά και χαίρεται!

I used to listen to a lot of songs then but one especially, before her death and afterwards… a song narrating what Stephanie Rainey went through when she lost her nephew… The video is worth watching, it shows people who lost a loved one, holding up a placard, sharing how they felt, what they thought their loved ones would tell them if they were alive and what they would tell them if they could… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLJ6r8mBPJc

I can’t believe it’s already been a year. So much has happened in a year… And although I went through a rough patch, I wouldn’t change anything.

I’ve had an amazing year and it all comes down to that day…

Although I knew, we all do, that life is short and can change in an instant, her death and knowing that such a loving, caring person spent most of her life only thinking of others until her very last breath, sacrificing her own happiness for others and rarely did what she really wanted, and suddenly diagnosed, suffered and died of cancer within a year, completely changed my mindset.

It’s been hard to accept she is really gone and for months I couldn’t handle my emotions, the pain was too much to deal with and with everything else happening in my life at the time, I felt lost and doubted my self, I overreacted, I went through all the grief stages over and over, but because of her I think I came out of it a better person…

Because of her I try new things even when I’m terrified…

Because of her I don’t stay upset or sad for too long…

And because of her I only do what I want and I don’t even try to pretend I enjoy things I don’t…

And because of her, I learned to appreciate and make little things count. I was told recently ‘It doesn’t take much to make you laugh’. No, it really doesn’t. I make the most of every little thing and I laugh at silly things like ‘Limkokwing’ and get excited about a bacon roll or chocolate popping candy enhanced orange (magic!) because that’s what life is about. Enjoy the little things, appreciate these little beautiful moments.

Unless you are incredibly rich (although I don’t think rich people are happy all the time, it’s not all about money) you, as most of us, spend most of your time at work, with friends and family, and those moments are precious, this is our life and it’s more fun when you are having a good laugh!

I’m not stupid or naive or immature. If I don’t laugh, I’ll cry… not because I’m crazy but because thinking about my responsibilities, problems, things that need fixing, people I miss, things I want to do but I can’t right now, bad experiences I’ve been through, all the horrible things happening in the world and a million other things, it upsets me, it makes me sad. We all have coping mechanisms and mine is laughing it off.

I want to thank Sheba, I love you babe, I REALLY REALLY hope you get to fulfil your dreams very soon. Thank you for being there for me all this time through thick and thin… You’ve been there for me when I quit my job, broke up, lost my aunt, job-hunting, crying over people and things that were not worth it… And thank you for the incredibly amazing time we had and are having! #ninjasintraining.

To my family, I love you all and can’t wait to see you soon… Sending you hugs and all my love, especially today…

A big thank you to my SSU family, who they offered me a job, stability and security when I needed it the most, when everything else in my life was falling apart.

For everyone going through cancer treatment… A big big big hug… I know everyone copes with it differently, but seeing what my aunt went through, chemo, radiotherapy, immunotherapy, liver failure, depression, horrendous physical and emotional pain… however you are dealing it, you are a hero!

And finally a message for my aunt:

I’m so so sorry I was away for most of the time you were going through all the horrendous treatment and pain… and I’m sorry I was 10 minutes late… Had I known, I would have ran out of the plane, leave all my stuff behind and come straight to the hospital…

What I wouldn’t give to be able to talk to you one last time… I’m sorry you didn’t get to meet your grandson, my godson! He is the sweetest, cleverest little boy, our little prince. We all love you and miss you a lot… especially on family gatherings…

I’ll never forget your unconditional love and kindness, how much you loved your farm, land and animals, your beautiful words, your incredible cooking, the big birthday parties and celebrations on your terrace underneath your vine rooftop, and your beautiful smile even when you were in pain…

Thank you for changing my life, without knowing… You will always have a home inside my soul….

Θεία μου συγνώμη που δεν ημούν εκεί όταν έκαμες τις θεραπείες και συγνώμη που άργησα 10 λεπτά. Μακάρι να μπορούσα να σε δω και να σου μιλήσω μια τελευταία φορά. Λυπάμαι που δεν γνώρισες τον εγγονό σου τον Στέφανο μας, το μικρό μας πρίγκηπα.

Θα θυμάμαι πάντα την αγάπη σου για τη γη, τα ζώα, τα υπέροχα φαγητά σου και τα τραπέζια στην αυλή σου κάτω που το αμπέλι σου, την απέραντη αγάπη σου για όλους μας, τη καλοσύνη, την ταπεινότητα, την αγνή ψυχή σου και το χαμόγελο σου ακόμα κι οταν πονούσες.

Σε ευχαριστώ που τα βάθη της ψυχής μου που μου άλλαξες τη ζωή χωρίς να το ξέρεις. Θα σ’αγαπούμε για πάντα.

Αιωνία σου η μνήμη θεία μου.

You are not alone! #worldmentalhealthday

Just a quick message for World Mental Health Day…

I’ve written a post about mental illness a while ago ( https://wordpress.com/post/whatilearnedbeforeiturn30.wordpress.com/1788 ) so I won’t go into detail about my experience..

I just want to say to everyone who is dealing with a mental illness, you are not alone!!! I know first hand, as most of us, how it feels. We are all humans with feelings and emotions and a brain which sometimes doesn’t switch off for days or months…

I know first hand how terrifying and upsetting and overwhelming these irrational thoughts are and how they get you…

Please speak up and ask for help, don’t suffer in silence. It is not embarrassing or taboo or whatever makes you think it’s not OK to ask for help or show how you feel…

I know from personal experience how difficult it can be to ask for help… but please do…

I hope that people keep talking and raising awareness on mental health every day more and more and not just today.

Love you all x

PS I don’t own the featured image, borrowed it from this page http://www.hercampus.com/school/usf/misconceptions-mental-illness

#lessonlearnt #JUSTBEYOURSELF

It’s getting late and I have to wake up VERY early tomorrow but I can’t sleep so it’s time to share…I lost count of how much I learnt over the last month or so but here is the most important lesson…

We live in a world that we are expected to be happy and positive and optimistic all the time… but if you are laughing and chat a lot, because you try to find joy in little things and you know that if you don’t laugh, you’ll cry you are seen as silly or stupid…

A world in which if you don’t like what most people do then you are “weird”…

A world in which being sad or emotional is considered weakness, a world in which being intelligent and knowledgeable makes you a “geek”, a world in which if you are aware of what is actually happening on the rest of the planet and you have views and opinions based on solid, intelligent, intuitive arguments, knowledge and your own life experiences and theories you are “too serious”…

A world in which if you are single it means you are sad or lonely or somehow gives the right to others to be extra “friendly” or if you are in a relationship you are happy or if you are married you are boring…

A world in which if you don’t go out all the time or do something crazy or post cool photos having fun, you are then “less interesting” or “important” than others.

A world in which you are not “allowed” to worry or admit you struggle because life is not always easy.

Isn’t it ironic?? Isn’t it sad that a lot of people live their lives trying to be “cool”? Trying to impress others and end up being miserable because that’s not what they really want from life? Desperately trying to follow all these “social rules”?

Well I’m not. I can’t. Yeah, it’s been a difficult month for me. I’m not going to get into details, not because I care what others think but because I don’t want to share all my mishappenings and troubles with EVERYONE.

And I reached a point I just wonder how much one can take. But then I remember my aunt. She comes into my thoughts a lot lately, I guess it’s because it’ll soon be a year since that day I flew back home, since the last time I’ve seen her. I won’t write much about it on this post because I’m already emotional just thinking about it, but I can’t believe how fast this year has gone by but also still feels it was only yesterday. That night scarred all of us for life. But also changed all of us for ever. I’ll write a special post on the day, 17th of October, I’ll never forget this date…

But that was made me not take life too seriously. That’s what made me every time something bad happens to remind myself that is nothing compared to what she went through so selflessly and that life is too short.

So I cry. Or get angry. And then I laugh it off. I find little things to make me laugh, I make up silly jokes. I spend time doing things I love with people I love or spend hours on my own because I don’t always want to be around others, playing the guitar, or singing or reading or writing. Anything to remind me that life can be fun and enjoyable even when you struggle.

Life can get difficult, it’s hard as it is, don’t pretend to be someone else or hide your real feelings just because you feel you have to. You don’t. It’s OK to be shy or loud, or open or closed or sensitive or quirky or intelligent or (add whatever you can think of). It’s OK to cry, laugh, be happy, sad, depressed… It’s OK to be you. And it’s OK to be human…

So the biggest lesson I learnt: Just be yourself. That what makes you cool and special, to me anyway. I love how honest and open Donna is, I love how flaky and loveable and awesome Sheba is, I love how fun and quirky Helena is, I love Linda’s collection of memorabilia from her trips, I love how Suzanne knows so much about DIY and painting… how Matt and Sati love their adorable children so much… how kind Sarah is so much she drove to the vets to rescue a seagull… I love how much Claire loves her little ones at school and puts her heart and soul into her teaching… I love how Chris always loses his credit cards (but also how kind and considerate is, boss you are the best)… I love how Jon always offers me his food when I’m hungry, I love how Jaba always gives hugs to everyone…, how Dan arranges and teaches us a song and is passionate about his work, … how amazingly organised Lucy is… I love Claire Rayner’s voice, I’m glad she is back on Lunchtime Glee, love Helen and Sally’s adventures, I adore the O’Donoghue sisters, so loving and caring and fun… I love Andy, his special good morning and goodbye fistbumps and his tattoo (N-dog!)…I Iove Steve’s dry sense of humour (Chandler from Friends!), I love how Fraser always brings me treats when he comes back from holiday, I love Lorna’s laugh, every time she laughs we all laugh!

I love Jack’s stories, even when I know he spiced them up, Lesley’s dancing around, Ellie’s jokes, Mike’s hilarious snaps, Pat’s funny posts…

I love how beautifully Elena plays the piano, how Polia always gets into trouble, I love Andri’s cooking, how Artemis always comes up with clever ideas, how Maria ALWAYS gets me and understands exactly what I’m saying, how my sister and dad make any dish, even simple ones taste so special, I love how my mum is so sensitive and genuine, I love how my little sister can play the flute and annoy us all for hours… I love how Georgia always finds the most beautiful things to buy for her and her children and how much she loves her 7 angels… I love Athena’s cakes and crafts, I love chatting to Alkistis about Marvel… I can go on and on but you get the point…

Be yourself. Express your feelings. Just be you. If others don’t get it or don’t get you, well they don’t have to. If they don’t like you and love you for who you are, then it’s not worth it…

Until next time…

Love you all xx

What a summer it’s been…(lesson learnt: #nomoremissnicegirl )

Usually my posts have a positive, optimistic tone, but this one does not, well most of it doesn’t. But life is not always full of roses and you can’t always be nice.

It’s been a while since I last posted… I promised to myself I will only post when I feel like it, as the only purpose of this blog is to share lessons I learned worth sharing with everyone… I felt the need to post a couple of times but when sharing through my blog or other social media that are public means everyone in the whole wide world can read and some things I only want to share with friends (that’s what’s FB for).

But anyway… after the bank holiday, summer is officially over!

It’s been one of the best summers I had in years… or maybe ever… A big, fun, crazy adventure! Celebrations, birthdays, christening, nights in playing the guitar, reading, daydreaming, nights out dancing, crossing a motorway, jumping off a wall and sprinting through a bridge over the Thames, Jason Bourne style, to catch a Shakespeare play under the stars in central London at midnight, the most amazing time back home, sunny days at the beach, sunny lunches and picnics at the park, spending time with friends and family, making new friends, wandering around, music, always music, finding out more about British culture and life in general (thank you Donna!), learning new life skills such as how to jump start a car or change bulbs, lots of fun and laughter…

But summer is over! And it feels like an end of an era!

It’s been challenging at times but I feel better than ever…

And I got my confidence back! A couple of months ago I’d never imagine posting a video of me singing or playing the guitar let alone both (I’m novice at both as you can see if you watched my videos). A friend told me they would never be confident enough to do it and my response was “I wouldn’t either a while ago, but I spent years doubting myself and worrying what others might think. And it was not worth it”. If I want to post a video of me singing a song for my best friend because she had a bad day and I wanted to make her feel better and declare my love and support publicly, but someone doesn’t like it, or doesn’t like me so what? It’s human nature, we can’t and don’t like everything and everyone and not everyone likes us. And it’s OK. I’m not everyone’s cup of tea nor are you.

So here it comes the most important lesson I learnt over the last few months…

A couple of weeks ago I was lying on the grass at the park, had my headphones on, enjoying listening to my music whilst having my lunch in the sunshine and then this guy comes over, gets off his bike and starts chatting to me. I took my headphones off so not to be rude, but it was VERY obvious I’d rather be left alone. I hardly spoke to him or made any eye contact, my answers were short, I didn’t even ask for his name until he was about to leave just out of politeness but he still sat there chatting to me for 15 minutes. It wasn’t even an interesting conversation. In the end I had to say, after he turned the convo where he wanted to and said he was “looking for a partner to drink ouzo with (as if all Greek/Cypriot people only drink ouzo, what a cringy pick up line, don’t ever use that on Cypriots, it doesn’t work!)” that I was not looking for an “ouzo-drinking” partner.

He wasn’t rude but he should have left me alone. It was OBVIOUS I was not interested. And it spoilt my lunch, it spoilt my ‘me’ time enjoying the sunshine and the music and watching people, making up crazy, fun stories about them, it just spoilt the moment.

After that and other incidents recently (worse than the one I mentioned above), which I cringe even thinking about so I won’t mention, I decided I won’t take anything from anyone anymore even if it means being rude, which I hate doing but it’s sometimes necessary.

I don’t know if that’s across the whole country but people here are too polite most of the time (not always) to show their annoyance or disagreement and are afraid they might come across as rude or inappropriate if they are honest and say what they really think even when chatting about everyday life issues.

So lesson learnt!! DON’T TOLERATE ANYTHING THAT YOU DON’T LIKE/ ANNOYS/UPSETS YOU. When someone is being annoying or creepy tell them off, show it. Just do it. Don’t ask for help or if anyone offers to help you deal with it, just say no and do it yourself. You don’t need anyone to protect you, because you won’t always have someone to do that, learn to deal with it yourself, it’s a basic, essential life skill!

Don’t get me wrong, I hate moaning and I’m nice, friendly and polite most of the time but there are limits.

I live on my own, I have no family close by and when things break or I accidentally hurt myself-all the time-(accident proneness/string of bad luck whatever it is the result is the same) or I get ill or run out of milk or money, I’m the only one responsible and the only one who can help myself (yeah I don’t like asking for help either, I am too proud!). So I won’t take sh** from anyone and I’m not willing to let anything or anyone spoil my moment. I won’t be nice if you are mean to me or sleazy or make a weird comment or you behave inappropriately.

Lesson I learnt again these last 2-3 months: Learn to say NO! Only hang out with people you really want to and do things YOU want to. Life is too short to compromise and waste time on things you don’t really enjoy just to be nice! If you don’t want to reply to that message or go somewhere, then don’t. And don’t feel guilty. Everyone does it! If you feel bad being completely honest (although my advice is just be honest!), make up excuses everyone does and have a universal meaning everyone will get such as: “I’ve been very busy”.

And last lesson for today: “age appropriate” is nonsense (not to confuse with being immature!). I’ve been given valuable advice which I appreciate on how I need to start thinking about my future as I’m getting older and do things people at my age should do like buy a house (and other related “life goals”). But I won’t. I can’t sacrifice my present so I can have a better future which I might, probably not even get to live long enough to enjoy. Sad but true…

The last 8 months have been a big adventure, not a single dull moment and I wouldn’t change that for anything else. I don’t ever want to go back to how my life was a couple of months ago. So I’ll take my chances. I love taking risks and that’s what spices up my life. Who knows what the future holds. I hope mostly nice surprises!

I want to AGAIN thank all of my friends, old and new and my family. You can’t imagine how I appreciate and value the support and love you show me. I love you all so much words can’t even describe and those of you I am far away from now, know that I really miss you and can’t wait to see you again soon (maybe sooner thank you think!).

So that’s what I learned over the last few months. I learned to be feistier and not tolerate anything I shouldn’t. And I got my confidence back.

I am definitely not the person I used to be even a couple of months ago. And I am glad. I’ll never be that weak, scared person ever again. I rarely say “never” but in this case I’m sure. That wasn’t me. That was a person I let others turned me into, but not anymore. I’m never going back to that. If that means I might sometimes come across as rude or cruel or selfish or crazy then let it be.

So here’s to the last 3 months of 2016! A lot of exciting things coming up and I can’t wait! I hope the last few months of this year are amazing for all of us!

PS Love you to the moon and back Shebz!!! I am sure you are having an amazing time but I already missed you very very very much! xxxxx

Love you all! x

What I learned over the last month (#worldgonemad#Brexit#timefornewhome?#homeiswheretheheartis#ilovecyprus)

Wow, my last post was about a month ago… so much has happened since! But I won’t bore you with all of it!

The day I flew home to Cyprus was the day the EU referendum results were out…

I don’t usually get involved in politics as I believe that all politicians are pretty much the same, but this was an issue close to my heart, so I registered to vote.

I’ve heard and read a lot about all the possible scenarios. I understand that being a member of the EU is not always beneficial, we all know what happened to countries like Greece and Spain and Angela Merkel and her friends have not been the best advocates of the EU ideals.

But I voted to remain because I love being a part of a larger community, being able to travel freely across Europe and most importantly not have to worry about being an expat living in the UK… I thought the world was moving forward… I thought we are all now citizens of the world…

I was confident that the UK would have voted to remain. 99.9% of my friends and people I know strongly supported the Remain campaign. When I read the news that morning I was shocked and upset and angry…

I am sure I was not the only immigrant/foreigner/EU citizen living in the UK who was upset with the results. And I cried, I cried from the moment I heard the news until the plane landed in Cyprus…

I fully understand I shouldn’t take it personally and that not all Brits are racists and xenophobic. And I understand that a lot of people who voted to leave the EU were not fully aware of the implications or fell for the arguments of the Leave campaign.

But I felt unwanted at my own home. I’ve lived here for the last 8 years, and it was not an easy ride but I love and contribute to my community, I pay my taxes, I absolutely adore my friends and colleagues, I actually enjoy my job most of the time, I am happy with my life right now.

A life that can change any minute. The new Prime Minister (who is a strong supporter of surveillance and monitoring personal data amongst others!) can’t guarantee that EU citizens who already live here are safe… does that mean if I lose my job I’ll get deported?? Does that mean that when I retire I will need to leave my home???

So now what? I have no idea…

I had the most amazing time back home with family and friends. I am now a godmother to my little prince, I thoroughly enjoyed the sun, the sea, the culture, the Cypriot hospitality (best way to describe it is “a giant hug”) and truly felt the love… I was sad to leave, I found it very hard to say goodbye to everyone and I’d have loved to stay for more than a couple of weeks. I can’t even describe how much I love Cyprus and everything that represents for me. But I am used to a different life now and I do not think I can move back home permanently, at least not now, but should I consider moving to another country??

I am very confused about what my next move should be but I’ll stay for now. This is after all my home. A friend once told me “Running away from your problems is not the solution”. And he is absolutely right. He reminded me of a greek poem by Kavafy, “Η Πόλις/The city”.http://www.cavafy.com/poems/content.asp?id=58&cat=1 Blaming the city/place/the situation won’t change anything. Wherever you go, “the city” will follow you.

So first Brexit, then this week there was another terrorist attack in France and a military coup attempt in Turkey. And don’t forget what’s happening in countries like Syria. My heart aches for all the innocent people who lost their lives for nothing really. The world has truly gone mad.

Amidst all this madness though there is always hope. As long as there is still love and amazing human beings in the world, who make life worthwhile then there is still hope.

I recently watched Eat, Pray, Love, which reminded me of my own life and also inspired me and reignited my desire to travel and see more of this amazing world. It reminded me how important it is to never stop chasing my dreams, to want more in life, try everything and not compromise or give in to mediocrity or do anything which doesn’t make me happy. So I’ll leave you with this!

Love you all! xx

PS. I’d like to thank EVERYONE for all their lovely messages, hugs, love and support over the last month. Especially my close friends, you know who you are. And Sheba above all! I truly feel blessed and so lucky to have you all in my life xx

A quick message before I go (love and goodbyes)…

Hi all!

God I missed sitting down writing!

I feel emotional right now because I am going home for 2.5 WEEKS!! I haven’t had such a long holiday for a while… And last time I went home for that long I didn’t really want to come back I ended up staying for 3 weeks (thank you again Chris, best manager ever!)!

And this time it will be even more special (most of you know why), I am so excited I might burst!!!!!!!

I feel the need to say goodbye to everyone for some reason…

I am going to miss a LOT of people, a lot of you lovely people reading this at this very moment. My choir families, workplace (Louise, ‘I don’t give a f***’, lol) and SingNow (love you all, Claire ‘badday’ haha xx!), my colleagues (all the fun and laughs, and I know you’ll miss me, it will be too quiet without me around, Donna you are a legend!) and of course my friends, older and people I got to know better lately (don’t forget to smile 🙂 ). I will miss our daily chats, last minute plans, Sunday Jams, all the fun and laughs… And most of all my partner in crime Shebz! I love you so much hun, I wish I could take you with me! Remember #fakeittillyoumakeit x

I mentioned it a lot of times but I feel incredibly lucky to have amazing people in my life.

For those I haven’t had the chance to give a cookie-who doesn’t love some chocolate!- and say goodbye in person today, I am sending you a big big hug.

I am closing this post with the song that always marks my visits back home, the song which always reminds me of the Cyprus sun, culture and love, the song I sing with my sisters and friends, the song that I never get bored of, the song I listen to when I wanna feel loved and safe because it reminds me of my special ones, the song I dance to whilst walking to and from home. (I’ve done a quick translation ages ago for non-Greek speakers, because the lyrics are just beautiful- and a friend asked me what the lyrics meant, I remember Jack!) epimoni translation

I can’t wait to experience that feeling of excitement and nervousness when I get to the airport, one of my favourite places!

I am coming home!!!!!!’Ερχομαι!!!!!!!!!

See you all sooner or later!

Love you all! x

Love, not hate. And take mental health seriously! When will this stop???

I made some time to write this post, because I felt the need to express my thoughts in more than 140 characters or a long Facebook post…

In the last week, two events deeply upset me and saddened me.

Three days ago a man decided to load 2 guns and kill 50 innocent people and injure many more who were having fun at a nightclub in Orlando… I’ve read a lot about this man. He was mentally unstable, used to beat his ex-wife, he was interviewed by the police in the past… but nothing was able to stop him from murdering innocent people…

Why? To prove what? What did he achieve? We live in 2016… how long will it take to finally extinguish homophobia/islamophobia/phobia of anything??? What does it matter what race/sexual orientation/religion/(add anything else you can think of) you are?

Nobody is better than anyone. We all come from the same place, share similar DNA, we are all in a sense cousins. But we are different too, and that’s what makes us special and unique! But it doesn’t make us better or worse than each other. And this madness needs to stop.

Yesterday, MP Jo Cox was stubbed and shot to death… I don’t know much about her but from the little I read, she was an amazing person. Although it doesn’t matter even if she wasn’t. Nobody deserves to be stubbed and shot to death, not even the worst of the worst of people, let alone a talented, powerful woman, mother and wife doing the job she loved. At the time I am writing this it’s still not clear why her attacker did this… but it seemed he was mentally unstable and disagreed with her political views…

Her husband posted one of the most heartbreaking and inspiring messages I’ve ever read, it’s worth reading… (https://twitter.com/guardiannews/status/743488399651250176).

My deep and sincere condolences to Brendan Cox, their family and everyone who lost a family member, a friend, a lover, a soulmate, a mate, a wife, a husband, a colleague in Orlando…

I can understand how hatred can blur someone’s sanity. To a degree… I don’t hate anyone, but I overreacted to situations and was upset with people as we all do. But I NEVER ever wished for anyone to get hurt, let alone die.

Nothing good comes out of hate. NOTHING! I feel sad every time I hear about a shooting or innocent people getting killed for whatever reason. And don’t forget all the innocent souls who die in countries such as Syria every single day…

There is another IMPORTANT issue that needs addressing… When will mental health be finally given the importance it deserves??? There must be a way to help people who struggle with mental issues before they reach the point of killing another human being!!!!

I hope that humanity and love will prevail. I’ll never stop believing in forgiveness and love. Because that’s what makes us humans. That’s what discriminates us from other animals. We have a brain for thinking and a heart (well brain again, but let’s not get into science) for feeling! And I hope that WE (society/government/world) will one day be able to give mental and emotional support to everyone who needs it!

I sincerely hope one day all this will stop. So my message/advice of the day: forgive, love and don’t judge, don’t hate anyone or anything you don’t agree with or don’t understand!!! Holding grudges or hating anything or anyone will only poison your mind…

And take mental health seriously!

I’ll finish this post with a powerful sentence from Jo Cox’s husband’s message…

“Hate doesn’t have a creed, race or religion, it is poisonous…”

A special hug to everyone today…

Love you all xx

How time flies!

I can’t believe is June already! This year is flying by!!!

I finally made some time to post! I have a list of things to do today but I’m glad I managed to sit down and reflect even for a little.

Turning 30 gave me the perfect opportunity to push myself to the limit. Even when I am tired I feel I can’t stay still, I am restless. I want to get out and do things, meet people, spend time with friends, old and new, try new things more often, anything to make me feel alive and enjoy life as much as I possibly can.

So what have I learned this last month or so?

Some things are better kept unsaid! I share a lot with others because I am a very open person but sometimes you need to keep some things for yourself.

The older you get, the more you don’t care about others’ opinion. I was talking to a friend recently who was going to a wedding he really didn’t want to but he felt he had to. Well if it were me, I wouldn’t. I only really care about my friends and family and I am not willing to waste any time on anything I won’t enjoy just because I feel I have to. Life is so much better when you do what YOU want!

Time just flies! I honestly cannot believe is June already! I’ve been living on my own for 5 months ( I must admit I’m not the best example of a responsible adult living on their own, but having fun is more important, right?) although it feels like yesterday when I first moved in. So much has happened in the last couple of months, I know I’ve mentioned that a lot but I am amazed how many amazing, incredible and sometimes ridiculously talented (talent is sexy!) people I’ve met, how many awesome experiences I had and how my life has changed and is changing even as we speak. Remember, give everyone and everything a chance, it’s incredible how amazing life can be when you are open and spontaneous!!!

I’ve read somewhere recently that ‘sometimes to end a chapter and begin a new, we must read the same lines numerous times over. Be patient. With repetition, comes understanding. The truth may not surface at first, but at some point it always will’.

I completely disagree!!! You don’t always get closure and some things will never make sense, no matter what. So my advice is: If you don’t get closure, don’t go through everything over and over again. Complete waste of time. Make up your own story, your own closure, whatever will push you to move on, because honestly, not everything that happen to you or me or anyone will make sense.

A couple of days ago we were discussing with friends whilst having lunch in the sun how happy we are with our life now, even though we all ‘ve been through s*** situations over the last year. And I am happy we are all happy 🙂 Love you guys!x

I feel the need to thank everyone again (you know who you are!) for all the love and care you show for me, especially this month, I’m so grateful to have you in my life! x

I’ll be soon going home for holidays, catchup, celebrations and then new chapters begin when I’m back for which I am really excited about! (that means I might not be able to blog again until after I’m back, but hey, there are so many things I enjoy doing with my free time, you can’t blame me 😉 )

I’ll leave you with my favourite summer song at the moment! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjOhZZyn30k

Enjoy the summer!

Love you all! xx

Thank you :)

Thank you all for my birthday wishes, cards, messages, gifts.

I am all about people and love and I definitely felt the love, even from people I didn’t expect! My little heart melted, especially with some of the messages I received.

I had an amazing time celebrating my birthday since early May until my AWESOME birthday weekend (thank you Shebz and Helena for making it so special for me!). I will definitely not forget my 30th birthday celebrations! It was a nice goodbye to my 20s, and now a new era begins! Turning 30 gave me the perfect opportunity for a fresh start!

It’s up to me to make it a good one and I will, no matter what! I remembered recently something my psychology professors used to say: if someone hurt you/upset you/made you cry, it’s your fault! And they are right! Think about it for a minute! It’s totally up to you how you will react to a situation. You choose to be upset or sad or ignore it. I know it’s not easy, I’m the last person to suggest it’s easy, I’m an emotional person, but I guess the older you get the less you bother about situations you don’t enjoy or upset you, so I promise, it gets easier!

I look forward to my first year in my 30s, I have no idea what I will be doing in a year’s time! I might be in Vietnam or Mexico or London, I might be married with a kid. Life is full of surprises and I LOVE surprises, so who knows what it will bring! The only thing I know is that I will do my best not to waste anytime on anything that’s not worth it and just be happy!

The aim of this blog as the name suggests was to share what I’ve learned before I turn 30, but I will continue to share what I learn now that I’m in my 30s! I might need to change the title!!! I will not post as often as I’m keeping myself busy all the time, trying to enjoy life to the full, even if that means being tired 24/7. So I am not sure when I’ll post next/

Thank you all again for all your wonderful messages.

I’ll finish this post with a snippet of one of my favourite messages I received: surround yourself with people that make you smile and always remember to be yourself!

Love you all! xx