spent a lovely afternoon sitting in a coffee shop for 6 hours enjoying the company of HS, a swedish girl whom i met at work.  within a couple of weeks of knowing her and some coffee breaks in the avro i just knew that she was one of those “friends at first sight”.

simply laughing and exchanging stores i didn’t realize how much time had gone by.  it been a while since i have had this in-depth interaction with another person.  it was refreshing – a genuine friend.  but it was the tail end of our multi layered conversation that struck me profoundly.  she was talking about australia being the last leg of her trip before going back home to sweden – she had been gone for 7 years.  and warmly she said, “australia – this is my way home.”

it was a brilliant summary of her time away but with the confident curiosity of returning to the world in which she grew up in and had left behind several years ago.   and it was this belief that you can move away only to return one day that made me realize that whilst she is on the last phase of her incredible journey i am still merely at the beginning with a long way to go. 

i will forever be touched and thankful that this lovely person whom only until recently was a stranger felt comfortable enough to confide in me.  without question she has definitely restored my hope in what i am looking for.