let go and forget about the hate

I read Ashlyn's post about her summer and her coping mechanisms and it hit me that we've both had a trying time this summer. I came back from London emotionally and mentally exhausted, and the last few months have been one of if not the lowest times for me. Like Ash, this summer really made me sit back and contemplate on everything - I was thinking and feeling so much that it would get very overwhelming sometimes. This summer has been a rollercoaster and while I wouldn't change any thing at all (even the shittiest parts), I too, wanted to write about how I compensated for the negative energy.

Little Things for Happy

Learning Something New
I worked at a chain skate store for three years of my life and I didn't push once throughout my time at Zumiez. I hadn't stepped on a board for years until the beginning of this summer, and I definitely regret that choice. Learning how to longboard, or any of my hobbies at all ie learning how to read Tarot or picking my Canon up for the first time in ages, really got my mind off whatever I was feeling. It gave me motivation to go out and get better, opened up my circle of friends and points of interest, and challenged me to do something that wasn't laying in bed moping.

Taking Time To Do 'Nothing'
Despite not wanting to think about anything a majority of the time and constantly wanting to be busy, I took it upon myself to do something simple for as much as possible. The less 'free time' I had, the better. I went hiking more this summer and in the past few weeks have been taking drive-adventures by myself or with my friends more often than not. Sometimes it was just being in my own head with the wind coming through my car window that calmed me down.

Stop Looking Towards the Future
Before I moved to London, I had a very set future ahead of me. We never take in account what could happen to us in a month, tomorrow, or even in an hour. While I'm graduating in the Spring, I've slowly been breaking the habit of figuring out what my life will be like. It's the unknown, and stressing over something that can be affected by the littlest of things shouldn't be put priority over what we're doing in the present.

Finding People
There was one big thing I was terrified about when I moved back to New York, and that was my relationships with the people back home. I luckily found myself surrounded by some of the raddest people I know, and while they don't know it, they really helped me get into a positive mindset. While no one should rely on others for happiness, sometimes you just need the people who you care about the most to remember that life isn't so bad.

This is all relatively simple stuff I guess, but I never really sat back and thought to myself how I was able to get through the last couple of months. The last point especially is so personally important. I never outwardly thanked the people closest to me but every single one of them holds a special place in my heart.

Thank you for reading! xx