I Ended Up Alone in a Remote Rental by Accident - And Fell in Love With Life Again
Recently, I was on my own for almost 1.5 months. Unplanned. In a foreign country, staying in a rental apartment that was located somewhere pretty remote.
How did that happen?
I’m currently on a longer trip with my husband, but unfortunately, he had to travel back home urgently, with no certain date for when he’d be able to return. Since we were traveling with our dog, and we had already made the non-refundable bookings for the apartment and the car, it just didn't feel like the right calling for me to go back as well. So, we agreed to re-evaluate the situation on the go and decide day by day.
That’s how I ended up in a beautiful yet remote location in a foreign country, completely on my own, from one day to the next.
Now, I knew you could approach this situation two ways:
Be desperate about it, numb yourself with distractions, and just wait for your better half to come back.
Or, take it as a personal challenge to do the things you haven’t gotten to for a long time, and go on a self-discovery journey (while still longing for the day your love can come back to you, let’s be real :).
I decided to go for the second.
Upfront, I decided to take on a sports challenge - challenges are the best way to keep you going and stay motivated. I wanted to switch up my exercise routine anyway, so it was the perfect time to commit to a new one. What can I say? I loved it, I’m still doing it, and it was definitely a win.
Other than that, I want to be honest with you. Being in a situation like that can be boring. But that is actually a good thing! Because boredom lets you get creative. It forces you to listen to yourself and actually think: about yourself, about life, and about dreams versus reality.
I’ve always wanted to write a book - I started one before university but never finished it due to time constraints. I came up with a completely different story idea last year, and I decided now was the time to go for it. Because if you don’t do it in a situation like this, you never will. So, I started writing (and by now, I’m almost done with the first draft, yikes!).
Also, this period gave me a lot of time to look back at past dreams and re-evaluate them - which of them have faded, and which are still present? To my surprise, I found one still burning slowly inside of me, deeply buried under years of different obligations. Thanks to having this quiet time, I decided to go for it. Just one step for now, because who knows if it really is a dream I want to come true? But you’ll never know until you try. So I did - and I am.
Now, I won’t say this time was the most fulfilling, perfect vacation I could’ve dreamed of. It was lonely. It was depressing at times.
BUT it was a chance that can turn into something more. Right now, I feel like I'm in motion towards something bigger. And maybe, at one point, I will look back at this exact moment and clearly see the impact it had on my life.
Sometimes you need a challenge like this. Maybe life hands you one, or maybe you decide to create it yourself. It might not be as romantic and easy as some people make it look, but it can be incredibly impactful nonetheless.
If you decide it to be.
