I have been away from my country for over a year by now. And as much as I convince myself that my core beliefs and approach to life have not changed, I am finding myself make a mental note of how I feel/live differently more often than I imagined. So I drew up a basic checklist to remind myself how I may have evolved more significantly than ever before this past year:
-- Worrying about my understanding of money and the importance it plays in my life. I never cared about insurance, pension plans or making an absolute minimum salary earlier
-- Understanding that perhaps my interests and my career moves don't always have to be intertwined
-- Learning to detach myself emotionally every time I have a rush of high-strung feelings associated with things or people I am close to and who move me immensely
-- Checking every food product I intend to consume for parabens, aspartame and the million other weird chemicals that could be carcinogenic
-- Craving for Greek yogurt with honey at 1 am while watching the nth episode of Scrubs
-- Which brings me to the realization that I have watched and heard more over the internet than I ever have before AND the fact that I take the broadband speed in the US for granted
-- From being paranoid about letting go in deep waters to overcoming that fear and pushing myself harder to swim, that too during one of the harshest winters in upstate New York
-- Wanting to be outdoors as much as possible to soak in the sun, that liquid gold seems such a luxury after living in Syracuse in -10 F for close to 6 months
--Going from someone who used bare minimal make up to someone who now uses 'bare mineral' make up everyday
-- From freaking out about the idea of dating to for the first time understanding the pragmatism behind the concept
-- Understanding that sometimes timing and circumstances play a bigger role in things not working than blaming someone or a situation for hurtful events
This year poses to be yet another huge challenge what with having to start from scratch in a new industry, hunting for jobs without the assurance of a full time gig and figuring out which career path suits me more as I grow older. There will be endless sleepless nights sans the comfort of seeing the wonderful faces next morning of some amazing friends I made in grad school. Hmm....there will be obstacles and dilemmas but hopefully that checklist will lengthen, albeit for the best.
