I hope you’ve all had a restful weekend and are ready to step into this new week with your best foot forward! I’ve had an enjoyable weekend and while I don’t feel ready for it to be Monday quite yet, I choose to approach this day with a fresh mindset and do my best. I hope you feel encouraged likewise.
On Saturday I travelled about an hour away from my area to a rural Sydney town called Richmond. The drive there was beautifully scenic- green pastures, the open blue sky and so many farm animals. Richmond itself was bustling for a small town. They had saturday markets on, streets lined with various stores and eateries. I visited a florist to check out their dried flower selection as I’m looking to update the vases in my room with some new blooms! I also went to a quaint homewares stores and did a spot of thrifting. I’d travelled down with my mum and brother and while we’d wanted to stay in Richmond longer, I had a driving lesson later on in the morning. We decided to stop in at a cafe for a quick bite- I got a scone with cream and jam and a chai latte to go with. My brother ended up getting a brownie and hot chocolate which he found too sweet, so passed to me. I certainly had my sweet fix for the day!
Around midday was when my driving instructor picked me up for our lesson. My previous instructor and I hadn’t worked out so this was more of a trail lesson with a new company and teacher. I felt that we didn’t quite hit it off as his teaching style is significantly different from how I learn- he spent about twenty minutes out of the hour we had telling a story on how not to drive. I would’ve preferred he let me drive and make corrections where needed rather than us having to constantly stop and start. Other than that, his car was hefty. So much so that when I first drove it out of my street, he joked that we weren’t in America and I should drive on the left side of the road, not right! What could I say? In my defence, I was simply trying to manoeuvre the car onto the correct lane.
During that hour spent driving, I had somewhat of a realisation. I was taking my time and going slowly and as I’d expected, the experienced drivers behind me were frustrated by my lack of speed and know how on the road. It was discouraging at first as I didn’t want anybody mad at me, even if it wasn’t direct or personal. Nobody chooses to do something incorrectly after all! At times, even my instructor seemed frustrated with me. I now have eighteen logbook hours but have only driven for six in reality. I began to liken this experience to blogging and it became increasingly clear to me that I need to have grace and patience with myself.
The first few posts I published as a new blogger were nothing to write home about and it didn’t bother me in the least. I was new to the game and ten years old, blogging solely out passion and drive to share my voice. I hadn’t written anything before and certainly hadn’t shared it with the world. I wasn’t interested in perfection and simply wanted to run my humble gaming blog. If anybody read what I wrote, that would be a bonus. We are six years on now and I’ve seen such a transformation in my abilities and the audience I’ve reached. It came organically with time and dedication, as will my skills with driving. They are something to develop. If I can run a successful blog with a dedicated readership made up of diverse viewers, I can drive. Simple as that.
My goals this week are simply to make progress on upcoming assignments and to continue practicing my lines for a drama performance in a few weeks time. Along with a few friends, I am performing a section of scene three from the play Ruby Moon. The storyline revolves around parents Sylvie and Ray Moon, Melbournians who live in the fictional town of Flaming Tree Grove. They struggle to come to terms with the mysterious and alarming disappearance of their daughter, Ruby, who left to visit her grandma and seemingly just disappeared.
My understanding of the storyline is that the couple are held together by Ruby and the idea of family. The trio completed each other and with the loss of one came the loss of all. Ray and Sylvie became confused, warped and fragmented versions of their former selves. There is a strong psychological element to the storyline as the couple begin to interview neighbours on their whereabouts and activities on the day Ruby disappeared. It turns out however that these neighbours are nothing more than concoctions. The interactions they seemingly have with the couple speak only to Ray and Sylvie’s increasingly downward mental state as well as their paranoia. They fail even to trust each other and cannot be the support system the other person needs. They recognise deep down that to heal, they need to experience grief and allow it to transform and morph with time. As long as they distance themselves from this inevitable experience, they will continue to lose parts of who they are as individuals and as a collective.
Thanks for the inspiration xx
And good luck with your practice.. I know you’ll do wonderfully ❤️
Thank you so much 😊
You are so inspiring, Maryam! I know we chatted already on the subject of driving lessons but you certainly eased my mind with your analogy between blog posts and driving lessons. It makes complete sense that as we continue to practice and work at a skill, we can only become better.
The play Ruby Moon also sounds very interesting!! I’d love to check it out.
Wishing you a lovely and fulfilling week ahead! xo
You are too good to me Kaycee! Thank you so much. I’m glad I was able to put your mind at ease and frame things a different way. We can only improve with time. There is no race to be won and as long as we continue to progress in our lives, we are automatic winners. Consistency is certainly key!
I think the Ruby Moon play would definitely interest you! I’d personally love to go see it if it came out in a theatre near me. I actually have one locally, about five minutes away from where I live which is pretty cool!
Wishing you the same. Have a blessed week ahead- sending you all my love x
Love the inspo Maryam!! Ooh have fun with your driving lessons! One of my siblings currently gas an instructor and I always tell them to put their hands on Ten and Two as if it was a clock! Which is funny because I’ve never been in the driver’s seat!😂 Lovely post Maryam!💗
Thank you so much Zainab! Driving lessons really are a must. What I’ve realised is that people learning to drive take many lessons, frequently more than just the ten I thought I should be taking. I know people who’ve spent a total of twenty proper hours learning while others needed only a lesson or two. My cousin is an example of someone who picked up driving quickly. He has lots of confidence which certainly helps.
I like your clock analogy and also follow this! I feel like it’s a pretty natural position for your hands to sit when you’re grasping the wheel. When do you think you’ll begin to learn how to drive? Are you in the States or UK? (:
Have a beautiful week ahead love!
Hey again Maryam! I’m in the UK so I think roughly around age 17! I don’t know why but I really want to drive earlier just because it looks so fun 😂
Love your new little profile picture Zainab! So classy. That’s quite interesting how each country has a different age requirement. Fifteen in the States, Sixteen in Australia and Seventeen in your country! There is a great sense of freedom and autonomy that driving gives you. You’ll enjoy it when the time comes! x
Thanks so much Maryam!! Yess so true, I honestly wish the age was lower in the UK as I’d just love to drive!! Aww thanks Maryam, I hope so!
Best of luck with driving! It took me a loong time to learn how to drive correctly, too. I think it just takes time, but you’ll get there! ♥
Thank you so much Wardah! Your kind words mean a lot to me. I believe I’ll get there as long as I continue to put time and effort into learning! x
Have a beautiful week ahead love!
You’ll definitely get there!! Same to you xx
Beautifully written🌸💖
Thank you so much for your support Kavya! x
Love all the inspo floating around😊 good luck with your driving lessons, you’ve got this 👍
Thank you Lucy! means a lot x
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